Chlorine Palms

The pool glittered like liquid sapphire, but Maya's stomach did backflips. This was IT — the party that would define her entire eighth grade existence. She tugged at her hair, wishing she'd let her mom talk her out of the choppy layers that now refused to cooperate with the humidity.

"You're doing it again," said Charlie, her oldest friend, raising an eyebrow. "That thing where your palms get sweaty before you even get in the water."

Maya wiped her hands on her towel. "Shut up. I'm not swimming yet anyway."

"Then why are you wearing that?" He pointed at her oversized t-shirt covering her bikini.

Before she could defend her life choices, McKenzie appeared — the queen of the middle school social hierarchy, flipping her perfect ponytail like it was her job. "Maya! Oh my god, I LOVE your hair! It's so... intentional. Very indie-chic."

Maya froze. Was that a compliment or a burn? Her brain lagged like a bad WiFi connection.

"Thanks," she squeaked.

"So," McKenzie continued, "we're doing palm readings by the snack bar. Avery's cousin took a class and she's actually PSYCHIC. You coming?"

Palm readings? Seriously? But McKenzie was already walking away, and Maya found herself following, Charlie trailing behind with a grin that said this was going to be good.

Avery's cousin turned out to be a sophomore with way too much eyeliner and a crystal necklace. "Ooh," she said, examining Maya's palm dramatically. "You're going through some stuff. Change coming. Big change. But first..."

She leaned in close. "You have a little something..."

Maya's heart stopped.

"...right there." The girl pointed at her own front tooth.

SPINACH. From the hummus wraps they'd served earlier. Maya had been walking around with green gunk in her teeth for forty-five MINUTES.

She wanted to evaporate. This was it. Her social life, over before it began. She could practically hear the laughter starting, see the memes being created in real time...

"Dude," Charlie said, pulling a napkin from his pocket. "I was trying to figure out how to tell you. You had it since lunch."

"And you DIDN'T?!" she hissed, wiping furiously.

"I thought you knew! I thought it was, like, a statement!"

McKenzie burst out laughing. Not mean laughing — the real kind. "Oh my god, that happened to me at homecoming LAST YEAR. I have a picture where it looks like I have a green mustache."

"No way," Maya said, her pulse finally slowing.

"Way. I'll show you. Come on — we're taking a group photo anyway. My mom's making her famous spinach-artichoke dip."

As they walked toward the food table, Maya caught Charlie's eye. He winked.

"Still not swimming?" he asked.

She peeled off her oversized shirt and cannonballed into the deep end, surfacing with a splash that soaked everyone within a ten-foot radius.

The scream McKenzie let out? Totally worth it.

Some things, Maya realized, were worth bearing with a little embarrassment. And sometimes the worst moments turned into the best stories. She'd save that one for high school.