Connection Error

Maya's palms were sweating so bad she could barely grip her phone. Three notifications lit up her screen—Aisha asking where she was, Jamal spamming the fire emoji, and some random bot trying to sell her followers. She took a deep breath and stared at the house across the street. Her first real party. The kind that showed up on people's Instagram stories for days afterward.

The front door flew open before she could knock. Carlos, a senior with the kind of smile that made girls voluntarily fail math, practically pulled her inside. "Yo, you actually came! Everyone's in the basement."

The bass hit her before she even reached the stairs. Someone had hooked up their phone to these massive speakers, the bass making the floor vibrate under her worn Converse. Maya had spent two hours choosing her outfit—vintage oversized hoodie, curated messy bun, the aesthetic she'd been perfecting all semester. Now she felt ridiculous. Everyone else looked so effortless.

"Maya! You made it!" Aisha appeared from nowhere, throwing an arm around her shoulders. "Come meet everyone."

The basement was packed, the air thick with cheap cologne and anxiety. Then Maya saw him—the guy from her English class who sat in the back and never spoke to anyone. What was his name? Alex? He was crouched behind the TV, surrounded by a tangled mess of wires.

"What's happening?" Maya found herself asking.

"The HDMI cable's messed up," Alex said without looking up. "Nobody can get Spotify to work."

Before she could stop herself, Maya was crouching beside him. "Let me see."

His fingers brushed hers as he moved aside, and her face flushed hot. They worked in silence, her tech-savviness suddenly the most interesting thing about her. When the music kicked back on, everyone cheered.

Alex turned to her, actually making eye contact for the first time all semester. "You saved this party. Seriously."

"Whatever," Maya said, but she was grinning. "You would've figured it out."

Her phone buzzed—her mom, reminding her about her curfew. As she headed toward the stairs, a cat nobody had mentioned darted past her legs, nearly sending her flying. Alex caught her arm, steady and warm.

"You good?"

"Yeah," she said, and meant it. "See you Monday?"

The walk home felt different somehow. The streetlights made everything glow soft and golden. Her palm still tingled where he'd touched her, and she couldn't stop replaying the moment in her head. She'd come for the party, the FOMO, the Instagram-worthy experience.

But she'd left with something better: the beginning of something real.