Foxfire and Fortunes

Maya's palms were literally sweating as she stood outside the carnival tent, the neon sign flickering 'MADAME ZORA - FUTURE REVEALED.' Behind her, Jace was being his usual chaotic self, already three deep in cotton candy.

"You're actually gonna do it?" Jace snorted, blue hair falling in his eyes. "This lady probably Googles her fortunes."

"Shut up, you're supposed to be my best friend," Maya muttered, wiping her hands on her jeans. "What if she tells me something real? Like, about him?"

Jace groaned dramatically. "You're still stuck on Lucas? That guy has the personality of unflavored toast."

Inside the tent, Madame Zora looked less like a mystic and more like someone's hippie aunt. She took Maya's hand, traced the lines on her palm with surprisingly gentle fingers.

"You're carrying something," Zora said softly. "A weight. Like a bear in winter, hibernating what you're afraid to say."

Maya's breath caught. Was it that obvious?

"And here," Zora tapped a line near her thumb. "This person you're thinking about? He's not what you need. But someone else..." She smiled knowingly. "Someone crafty. A little wild. Someone fox-like, hmm?"

Maya froze. Fox-like?

Outside, Jace was leaning against the tent entrance, failing to look casual. His fox necklace caught the light—the one Maya had given him for his birthday last year. The one he never took off.

"So?" he asked, way too interested. "What'd she say?"

Maya looked at him—really looked at him. The way his smile didn't quite reach his eyes when she talked about Lucas. The way he'd stayed by her side through three different crush disasters, three family emergencies, one disastrous haircut, and countless panic attacks.

She'd spent months agonizing over Lucas, who barely knew she existed. Meanwhile, her actual person—her fox—had been right there, being unflavored toast's exact opposite.

"She said I'm an idiot," Maya said, and Jace laughed.

"Finally, a psychic worth the twenty bucks."

But then Maya stepped closer, heart hammering against her ribs like it wanted out. "And she said I should stop waiting for things that aren't gonna happen."

Jace went still. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." She grabbed his hand, both their palms sweating now. "So I'm not gonna wait anymore."

The fox smiled. "About time."