Drowning in Notifications

Maya's thumb hovered over her **iphone**, doomscrolling through Instagram stories of the pool party she wasn't invited to. Again.

"Mija, you coming in?" her mom called from the backyard.

"Yeah, just a minute."

The **swimming** pool at her abuela's house shimmered in the July heat, but Maya wasn't trying to hear it. She'd spent all morning curating the perfect aesthetic—oversized sun **hat** from Urban Outfitters, vintage bikini, that effortless I-don't-care vibe that actually took forty-five minutes to execute. Now she was stuck at a family BBQ while everyone worth being seen was at Chloe's.

Her cousin Leo splashed water at her. "Quit lurking and get in here!"

Maya groaned but stepped down the pool ladder, phone clutched in her left hand above water like a lifeline. The water was perfect—cool and chlorinated, washing away the sticky humidity. For a second, she almost forgot about FOMO.

Almost.

She reached for a piece of fruit from the floating platter. **Papaya**. Abuela grew them in the backyard, sweet and musky and nothing like the cafeteria stuff. Maya took a bite, juice dripping down her chin, and—

Her phone buzzed. Three times in a row. Her stomach did that familiar clench thing.

"It's probably nothing," Leo said, paddling over. "You're always waiting for something to happen."

"Says the guy who's been at community college for three years with no major."

Leo laughed. "Touché."

A flash of orange caught Maya's eye. Abuela's **cat**, Señor Fluff, sat on the pool deck, tail twitching, judging them all. The cat hated water but loved supervising pool activities like a tiny furry lifeguard who couldn't actually swim.

"He's waiting for one of us to drown so he can finally be an only cat," Maya said.

"Or he's just vibing." Leo shrugged. "You should try it sometime."

Maya looked at her phone one more time. No new notifications. Just the same feed of fake lives and filtered smiles. She set it on the deck next to Señor Fluff, who proceeded to sniff it disdainfully.

"You know what?" Maya said, sliding deeper into the water until her hat tipped back. "I think I will."