Bare at the Pool Party

The chlorine smell hit Maya before she even saw the water. Jackson's annual summer pool party—the event of the season—and she'd spent forty-five minutes staring at her reflection in the bathroom mirror.

Three weeks ago, she'd chopped ten inches off her hair. The pixie cut felt brave then. Now, standing at the edge of the concrete deck in her oversized t-shirt, Maya just felt exposed.

"You coming in or what?" called Chloe, floating on a neon pink flamingo. "The water's literally perfect."

Maya's fingers went to her nape automatically. The hair there was still strange to her touch—spiky, short, unfamiliar.

She hadn't always been this self-conscious. But middle school had a way of making you question everything, including who you were allowed to be. Her hair had been her shield since sixth grade, a dark curtain she could duck behind when things got too real.

"Yo, Maya!" Jackson himself waved from the diving board, water dripping from his abs that had definitely appeared over summer break. "We're doing chicken fights. You and me versus Sarah and Tyler?"

Her crush—since literally forever—asking her to partner up. And she was paralyzed.

"Maya?" someone said from behind her.

She spun around. It was Leo, the quiet kid from her English class who'd suddenly gotten cool over the break. He was holding a—

"Is that... a bear?" she asked, baffled.

"Technically it's a pool float," Leo said, deadpan. He was clutching an inflatable bear that looked mildly concerned about its existence. "My sister thought it would be hilarious. I'm beginning to suspect she was right."

Maya let out a startled laugh.

"Look," Leo said, "nobody's looking at your hair. They're looking at me and this ridiculous bear. So if you want to ease into the swimming thing with maximum distraction available, now's the time."

She looked at his goofy grin, the bear float bobbing in his arms. Then she looked at Jackson, still waiting by the diving board, looking at her like he actually cared about her answer.

Maya peeled off her t-shirt.

The air hit her skin. Cool. Not scary. Just cool.

"Race you to the deep end," she told Leo.

His eyebrows shot up. "You're on."

She dove in, the water sealing around her like a second skin, and for the first time since the scissors fell, she didn't miss her hair at all.