Chlorine Kisses and Vitamin Dreams

The locker room smelled like chlorine and teenage desperation. Kai checked his phone again—still nothing from Maya. Three days of ghosting after he'd posted that photo of them at the meet. His friends said she was just being dramatic, but the knot in his stomach wouldn't untangle.

"You taking those gummies yet?" Brandon asked, slamming his locker shut. "My cousin says they're like, legal rocket fuel."

Kai pocketed the neon bottle of *vitamin* supplements his mom had bought. "Yeah, sure." He wasn't about to admit he'd looked up the ingredients and found mostly sugar and food coloring.

Coach Martinez blew his whistle. "Let's go! District qualifiers in TWO WEEKS. Some of you look like you've been skipping breakfast."

Kai slipped into the pool, the cool *water* wrapping around him like a reset button. This was the only place his brain stopped spinning. Forty laps later, his arms burned but his mind was finally quiet.

Until he saw her.

Maya stood by the bleachers in that vintage hoodie she always wore. Kai pulled himself out of the pool, dripping and suddenly very aware of his ridiculous school-issued swimsuit.

"We need to talk," she said, not meeting his eyes.

"About?"

"About how you're being such a *bull* lately." She finally looked at him. "You posted that pic without asking. Then you got all defensive when I said something. It's not that deep, Kai. Just... respect boundaries."

He opened his mouth, closed it. She was right.

"Sorry," he said. "I was just... hype. I wanted people to know we were hanging out."

"Just ask next time." She cracked a tiny smile. "Also, those supplements? Total scam. My brother's a trainer. Says most of that stuff is just expensive pee."

Kai laughed. He tossed the vitamin bottle into the trash on their way out.

"Wanna come over?" Maya asked. "My grandma has a pool. A real one. Not this chemical soup."

"Bet." Kai grinned. For the first time in days, the knot in his stomach loosened. Some things couldn't be fixed with supplements or filtered photos. But this? This was real.