Cannonball Confidence

Leo's hair was doing that thing again — standing up in six different directions after baseball practice. He caught his reflection in the window of the 7-Eleven and quickly ducked inside, grabbing a Gatorade before anyone could see the disaster happening on his head.

"Yo Leo!"

He froze. Maya.

She was leaning against the wall outside, iPhone in hand like always. Probably livestreaming something or posting stories that made everyone else's life feel basic by comparison. Her hair was perfect, naturally, these beach waves that somehow looked effortless instead of chaotic.

"Your hair's, um, adventurous today," she said, deadpan.

Leo felt his face burn. "Yeah, thanks. I'm going for the 'just got struck by lightning' look. It's trending."

Maya laughed, actually laughed. "You're ridiculous. Anyway, you coming to Jenna's pool thing later? Everyone's gonna be there."

The pyramid of social hierarchy at their school had Jenna at the apex, then the popular kids, then regular people, then somewhere near the base, Leo. He'd been avoiding swimming situations since sixth grade, when some jerk named Marcus made fun of how he swam. Marcus had moved away, but the insecurity stuck like residue.

"I don't know," Leo said. "I'm not really a swimming person."

"Bull," Maya said. "I've seen you at baseball practice. You're athletic. What's the real reason?"

Leo shrugged, staring at his sneakers.

Maya's expression softened. "Marcus isn't here anymore, Leo. And nobody cares how you swim. We're gonna be 15, not trying out for the Olympics."

Something about her tone — no pity, just straight truth — made him actually hear it.

"Alright," he said. "I'll come."

Later, standing at the edge of Jenna's pool with everyone watching, Leo's heart hammered like it was trying to break out of his chest. Maya splashed water at him from the shallow end.

"Take the bull by the horns, Leo! Or in this case, take the pool by the cannonball!"

Leo closed his eyes, stopped overthinking everything, and jumped.

The water crashed around him, cool and shocking, and when he surfaced, spluttering and laughing, everyone was cheering — not ironically, genuinely cheering. His hair was plastered to his forehead, probably looking ridiculous, and Maya was filming it.

"You're going viral, Leo!" she called out, grinning.

For the first time in years, he didn't care. Some things were worth looking stupid for.