Electric Summer Truth
The pool party at Tyler's house was supposed to be mid, honestly. But here I was, clutching my ***vitamin*** D supplement like it was some kind of emotional support object, watching everyone else radiate main character energy while I felt like an extra in my own life.
"Yo, Marcus!" Jordan called out, jogging over with that easy confidence I'd been trying to fake since seventh grade. "You gonna actually get in the ***water*** or what?"
I shrugged, attempting to play it cool. "Maybe later. The temperature's not really vibing with me right now."
Jordan gave me that look — the one that said they saw through everything. "Bro, it's eighty degrees. You're overthinking again."
Because Jordan was right. I was ALWAYS overthinking. About whether my friends actually liked me or just kept me around for entertainment. About whether my crush would ever notice I existed. About whether I'd ever stop feeling like everyone else had gotten some secret manual for being a teenager that I'd missed out on.
The sky chose that exact moment to open up. Rain poured down like the universe was washing away all my pretenses, and thunder rattled my chest like a bass line I could feel in my bones.
"Inside! NOW!" Tyler's mom yelled from the back door.
We all scrambled, wet and laughing, collapsing onto the basement carpet in a pile of limbs and oversized towels. Jordan plopped down beside me, their shoulder warm against mine.
"That was iconic," I admitted, finally relaxing for real.
"You're really my ***friend***, huh?" Jordan asked, like they were just realizing something important.
The question hung there between us, heavier than it should've been. Outside, ***lightning*** flashed so bright it turned the whole basement stark white for a heartbeat, illuminating everything I'd been too scared to say out loud.
"Yeah," I whispered. "Like, actually."
Jordan nodded slowly, understanding. "Same."
And somehow that was enough. The rain kept falling, the storm kept raging, but for the first time all summer, I wasn't pretending.