Shani took one slice and bit into it — the tiniest of bites. She chewed for what seemed like an entire minute

"ZeeZee!” Rusi called from across the auditorium. “D’you think the napkins look better neatly piled or scattered?”

ZeeZee had no clue. Artistry wasn’t her thing, but having fun being in charge definitely was. Pretending to give the buffet table a critical glance, she said, “Scattered. Definitely.”

Rusi gave her a thumbs-up, and ZeeZee headed toward the corner, where Tehilla was leading her choir in one last practice before the chagigah.

“Sounds amazing,” ZeeZee said.

Tehilla motioned to her. “Any idea where Shani is? The chagigah’s in an hour!”

“No clue.” ZeeZee frowned. Shani had been getting more and more reclusive lately. It would be so like her to hide in her room for the chagigah. “I’ll go look for her.”

Sure enough, Shani was lying in her bed. ZeeZee bounced on the foot of it. “Rise and shine!”

Shani winced as she lifted her head. “Don’t bounce.”

“Get up. The choir’s waiting for their star soloist.”

Shani rolled her eyes. “Cute. I’m not a star anything, and I’m not coming.”

“No way.” ZeeZee stood up. “No way, Shani Mandel. You’re not flaking out on the choir, and you’re absolutely not skipping the biggest event of the year.”

Shani rested her head back on the pillow. “I’m not feeling well,” she said weakly.

ZeeZee clenched her teeth. Maybe if she actually put some food in her mouth, she’d feel fine!

“So pop some Advil, but you’re not missing the chagigah. Come on! The skit! The video! The talent show! Did I mention that I’m playing guitar?”

A ghost of a smile appeared on Shani’s white face. “You might’ve made some passing reference to it, yeah.” The smile faded. “I can’t get up.”

ZeeZee wanted to shake Shani’s frail shoulders until she came to her senses and realized what she was doing to herself. Instead, she grabbed Shani’s hands and gently pulled her up to a sitting position.

“There you go. You’re coming. I won’t take no for an answer. Tell me what I can get you to help you feel better. Water?”

Shani hesitated, and then nodded. She had a hand on her forehead, but she didn’t lie back down.

ZeeZee popped open a small water bottle. “Here you go. What else? Something to eat? No, of course not,” she muttered as Shani shook her head.

ZeeZee watched Shani take a few sips of water and then held out her hand. “Now stand up.” She expected Shani to protest, but her roommate obediently reached for her hand and slowly pulled herself up. She wobbled a little as she stood on her feet.

ZeeZee couldn’t help herself. “You know, you’d feel a lot better if you ate something.”

“You’re probably right,” Shani said softly.

Mazel tov. ZeeZee skipped over to the food stash next to her own bed. “What do you want? Granola bar? Cookie?”

Shani looked alarmed. “No, no, I didn’t mean… I’m not really hungry, it’s fine.”

Ignoring her, ZeeZee dug in farther and struck gold. “An apple! You can eat an apple, can’t you?”

Shani closed her eyes and swayed a little. “Yeah, I’ll take a slice of apple.”

A slice? But ZeeZee wasn’t going to argue; she found a plastic knife and cut the apple in slices. Shani took one and bit into it — the tiniest of bites. She chewed for what seemed like an entire minute.

“Thanks,” she said at last. “Okay, I’m ready to go.”

ZeeZee narrowed her eyes. “That wasn’t a slice.”

Shani shrugged. “That was all I needed. I wasn’t really hungry.”