Electric Summer Nights

The social pyramid at Northwood High was simple: jocks on top, band kids somewhere in the middle, and everyone else fighting for the scraps. I was definitely a scrap-fighter.

Then came Maya's pool party—the social event of the summer that would determine my entire sophomore year trajectory.

"You're actually going?" Leo asked, flopping onto my bed while I attempted to tame my hair. "Maya literally doesn't know you exist."

"Details," I said, though my stomach was doing full laps. "This is my shot. I just need to be cool. Confident. Not weird."

My golden retriever, Buster, chose that moment to thunder into my room, skidding across the hardwood and crashing into my vanity. The bottle of expensive cologne I'd 'borrowed' from my older brother shattered.

"Buster! Bad dog!"

"Well," Leo said, gagging dramatically, "you'll definitely smell memorable."

I arrived at Maya's house reeking of a department store explosion, but surprisingly, the party was going okay. I'd managed a full twenty minutes without embarrassing myself. I was even talking to Maya—actually talking to her—when it happened.

"You should come swimming!" she said, and before I could respond with something cool, someone shoved me from behind.

I tumbled into the pool fully clothed, sneakers and all. The water shocked my system like underwater lightning. When I surfaced, sputtering and wiping my eyes, the entire party was laughing.

But then Maya jumped in after me, still wearing her sundress.

"Now we're even," she said, grinning. Her mascara was running down her cheeks like waterproof failure, but she looked more real than she had all night.

We spent the next hour in the shallow end, talking about everything and nothing while the party continued around us. She told me about the pressure of being at the top of some imaginary pyramid, about how everyone expected her to be perfect all the time.

"I'd rather be invisible," she admitted.

"Trust me," I said. "It's not all it's cracked up to be either."

Later, as I walked home with Leo, hair still damp and shoes squelching with every step, my phone buzzed.

Maya: Thanks for making my party actually fun. Also, you smell terrible. 🫶

"So," Leo said, grinning like he knew everything. "How's the view from the middle of the pyramid now?"

I couldn't stop smiling. "Honestly? It's not bad at all."