Flush

Maya locked the bathroom door and slid down against the cold tile, her phone clutched in her hand like a lifeline. The muffled bass from downstairs vibrated through the floor—Jayden's house party was in full swing, and she'd lasted exactly twelve minutes before panic kicked in.

She opened Instagram. Everyone else seemed to be having the time of their lives. Kylie posted a story with the caption "living my best life" and Maya felt like a failure. Who leaves a party to hide in a stranger's bathroom?

Her phone was at 3%. She'd forgotten to charge it, obviously.

Maya dug through her purse and found her mom's vitamin gummies. The ones she was supposed to take daily for "focus and energy." She'd been forgetting all week. What if that's why she couldn't function normally? What if everyone else had some secret vitamin routine that made them socially capable?

She chewed three violently, like they were medicine for her personality disorder.

The sink was still running. She'd turned it on when she rushed in, pretending to wash her hands, but now it was just water wasted. Maya stared at the stream, hypnotized. Her face in the mirror looked foreign—too much eyeliner, hair falling flat, eyes too wide.

"You okay in there?" a voice called through the door. It was Chloe, the junior whose locker was next to hers.

Maya's heart stopped. "Yeah! Just, um, fixing my makeup!"

"Cool. Mind if I come in? There's literally nowhere else to pee."

Maya considered faking illness. Faking a phone call. Faking her own death. Instead she unlocked the door.

Chloe slipped inside, already unbothered. She caught Maya's reflection in the mirror and grinned. "Dude, I've been looking for an excuse to escape. Jayden's brother keeps trying to explain crypto to me. Save me."

Maya blinked. "You're hiding too?"

"Big time." Chloe leaned against the counter. "These things are always better in theory. Wanna just hang out here? I have a fully charged charger and TikTok."

For the first time all night, Maya's chest loosened. "I'd love that."

Outside, the party raged on. Inside, two strangers sat on the bathmat, sharing a phone charger and watching stupid videos until their sides hurt. Maya's vitamin gummies sat forgotten on the counter. She didn't need them after all.