Blackwood Lightning

Maya's phone buzzed in her pocket as she stood at the edge of Blackwood Lake, clutching a red solo cup like it was a lifeline. First house party of junior year, and she'd already spent twenty minutes hiding by the snack table, pretending to be deeply interested in a bag of Doritos.

Across the yard, Jake laughed at something Chloe said, throwing his head back. Maya had been crushing on Jake since seventh period English, when he'd caught her reading manga under her desk and whispered, "That series is lowkey fire, don't let Mr. Harrison catch you." They'd been texting for weeks, but tonight? He'd barely acknowledged her existence.

Then everything went sideways.

Chloe's cat, Moon, appeared out of nowhere and decided the top of the speakers was the perfect place to perch. Someone screamed. Moon scrambled, knocking over the DJ setup. In the chaos, Maya's cup flew from her hand, drenching Jake's white hoodie in

water and cheap punch.

"My bad!" she practically shrieked, face burning hotter than a thousand suns.

But Jake just grinned, punch dripping from his chin. "Dude, you literally just baptized me."

Before Maya could die of humiliation, lightning cracked the sky open. The storm that had been threatening all evening finally broke, sending everyone sprinting toward the house. Maya found herself squeezed onto the porch with Jake, both of them soaked and laughing like idiots as rain poured down in sheets.

"So," Jake said, wiping water from his eyes, "you want to watch actual bears with me tomorrow? There's a mama and two cubs behind my place. My mom says they've been coming around since the construction started."

Maya blinked. "Wait, like, actual bears?"

"Yeah. It's lowkey terrifying but kinda cool." He bumped her shoulder with his. "Way better than hiding by the Doritos."

Maya's heart did that thing where it felt too big for her chest. The storm raged, the cat yowled from inside, somewhere someone was blasting thunder, and suddenly she didn't feel like the awkward girl in the corner anymore.