Chlorine and Consequences

The chlorine stung my eyes as I hovered at the edge of the pool, clutching my phone like a lifeline. Jordan's annual summer rager had already reached DEFCON 1 levels of chaos, and I'd been here exactly seven minutes.

"Yo, Maya! You gonna stand there all awkward or actually jump in?" Jordan called from the deep end, splashing water everywhere. They were wearing that ridiculous backwards baseball hat like they were some kind of TikTok influencer.

I forced a laugh. "Just warming up!"

The truth? I'd forgotten my swimsuit. Again. Last time it was my retainer case. This time, I'd rushed out of the house so determined not to be late that I'd left my bag sitting on my bed. Now I was stuck in cutoffs and a tank top while everyone else looked like they'd stepped out of a PrettyLittleThing ad.

"Hey, you want this?" Someone thrust a cup at me. "Green juice. My mom's on this wellness kick, so our fridge is basically a vitamin pharmacy now."

I took it gratefully. Anything to look busy. The first sip hit my tongue like liquified lawn.

"What is this?"

"Kale, spinach, apple, and regret," they said. "My mom says it's good for my skin."

I choked down another swallow. It tasted like health.

"Maya!" Emma materialized beside me, her phone recording. "Do the TikTok dance with us!"

"I don't know the—"

"Just follow along! It's easy!"

The music started blaring. Everyone was doing this synchronized arm movement thing. I tried to copy them, but my arms went left when everyone else's went right. My cup of green juice sloshed everywhere. The spinach-colored liquid splashed across the concrete like a crime scene.

Someone's phone camera flash went off at the exact wrong moment. Me, flailing, green juice dripping down my chin, arms akimbo, looking like I'd been possessed by a very uncoordinated demon.

"Oh my GOD," I whispered.

But then Jordan was there, somehow, baseball hat still perfectly backwards. "Dude. That was LEGENDARY." They high-fived me. "We're doing that again, but this time you're leading."

"But I—"

"No buts. You're the star now."

The music restarted. I wiped the green juice from my chin. I took a breath. And then I jumped into the pool, cutoffs and all, because sometimes the only way forward is to make the biggest splash possible.