Electric Orange Summer

The pool party was already lit when Marcus arrived, his orange swim trunks glowing under the backyard string lights. Seventeen years old and still convinced everyone was watching him, he clutched his phone like a lifeline.

"Yo Marcus! Finally made it!" Jake called from the hot tub, surrounded by the popular crowd. The ones who actually had their lives figured out.

Marcus grabbed a water bottle from the cooler, desperately needing something to do with his hands. His mom had forced him to pack his vitamin supplements that morning, something about how puberty wasn't done with him yet. Thanks, Mom. Real confidence booster.

Then he saw Chloe—why was she ALWAYS in his orbit when he looked like a lost seventh grader? She was laughing at something Jake said, her hair perfect even in the humidity. Marcus had been crushing on her since AP Chem, where they'd been lab partners and he'd accidentally set a beaker on fire. Smooth.

Suddenly, chaos erupted.

Buster—the aging golden retriever that belonged to Jake's parents—came charging through the party like he'd just discovered teleportation. He was SOAKING WET, fresh from doing laps in the pool, and headed straight for the snack table.

"BUSTER, NO!" someone screamed.

Too late. The dog went full tornado mode, sending bags of chips flying and knocking over the soda cooler. Ice cubes scattered everywhere like diamonds across the patio. The party froze—then erupted into chaos.

And that's when the sky opened up.

Lightning cracked across the horizon, followed instantly by thunder that rattled the patio furniture. The summer storm had arrived exactly when the weather app predicted, which was somehow impressive and infuriating at the same time.

"Everyone inside! NOW!" Jake's mom yelled from the back door.

Everyone scrambled for the house, grabbing towels and shoes. Marcus ended up squeezed onto the couch next to Chloe, both of them damp and laughing at the absurdity of it all.

"Your trunks are really orange," she said, grinning.

"Yeah, well, my mom said they were 'vibrant,'

" Marcus admitted, and Chloe laughed. Actually laughed.

"I like it," she said. "Bold choice."

Outside, lightning flashed again, illuminating the rain against the windows. And for the first time all summer, Marcus wasn't worrying about who was watching. Sometimes it took a wet dog and a storm to realize that nobody had it figured out—and that was actually pretty okay.