Dog Days at the Palm Springs

Leo's golden retriever, Buster, had already claimed the best spot under the cabana when Maya arrived at Jordan's pool party. The dog's tan fur practically glowed against the fake-tanned bodies of Juniors flipping through TikTok on loungers. Maya adjusted her bikini top—definitely not as cute as the one Ashley wore—and felt that familiar stomach drop. She'd been the new girl for three months now, and somehow she still felt like she was auditioning for a role everyone else had already memorized.

"Mayyya!" Jordan waved from the pool edge, holding a red Solo cup. "Finally! We're about to play Chicken Fight—you and Leo versus me and Ashley."

The water looked fake-blue and perfect, reflecting the string lights wrapped around palm trees that Maya was pretty sure were also fake. But Jordan's parents were loaded, and nobody complained about the aesthetic when they had this setup.

She caught Leo's eye across the pool. He was already in the water, droplets sliding down his jawline like he'd stepped straight out of a thirst trap captioned "come in, the water's fine." When he winked at her, Maya's face burned hotter than the patio lights.

"You coming or what?" Ashley called, doing that thing where she pretended to be nice but was definitely not.

Maya stepped to the pool's edge, bare toes curling against the warm concrete. This was it—her chance to finally break into The Group. The one she'd heard about since her first week, back when people still introduced her with "this is Maya, she's new" like that was her entire personality.

Buster chose that exact moment to shake himself off, sending water droplets flying everywhere. Someone—possibly Cole, the lacrosse captain who'd been flirting with Maya all week—yelled "DOG!" and everyone cracked up. Even Leo.

Maya laughed too, but the sound came out weird. Suddenly her palms were sweating, and she couldn't remember if she'd put on deodorant this morning, and why was she even stressing about this? They were just people. People who happened to rule the school social hierarchy, but still just people.

"Maya?" Leo's voice cut through her spiral. He was treading water in the deep end, looking concerned. "You okay?"

She looked at him—really looked at him. Leo, who'd sat with her at lunch that first week when nobody else knew her name. Leo, who'd helped her find her classes when she was hopelessly lost. Leo, whose eyes were actually kind for once.

"Yeah," Maya said, surprising herself. "I'm good." She took a breath and cannonballed into the pool, water exploding everywhere, including all over Ashley's perfect hair.

The collective gasp was followed immediately by laughter—real laughter, not the mean kind. Leo splashed her back. "Challenge accepted."

Buster barked from his cabana throne like he approved. For the first time in three months, Maya wasn't thinking about fitting in or being the new girl or whether her bikini was cute enough. She was just Maya, cannonballing into a fake-blue pool with friends who might actually be real friends.

She surfaced, sopping wet, grinning like an idiot. "Game on."