Goldfish Confidential

Marco stared at his phone, thumb hovering over the group chat. His friends were still blowing up the padel court invite from last night—emoji spam, "dude where were you??" and three missed calls from Jay. He'd lied about being sick. Again.

"You're terrible at this," he whispered to his goldfish, Orange Julius. The fish floated near the glass, bubbles popping at the surface. "At least you don't have to explain why you skipped the team hang to... what? Spy on your former self?"

Marco grabbed the vitamin gummy from his nightstand—his mom's new obsession, "immune support for growing boys"—and chwed it aggressively. It tasted like fake strawberry and betrayal.

Here's the thing nobody knew: Marco had been taking secret padel lessons at the rec center across town. The dirt-cheap one with the cracked court where nobody from school went. Because last time he played with the squad, he'd whiffed so hard everyone roasted him for weeks. Jay's "bro, you swing like a grandpa" had somehow morphed into his entire personality.

So he'd gone undercover. Spy mode. Training montage style.

His phone buzzed. Jay: "Bro, I swear if you're still sick I'm coming over with soup and my PS5"

Marco's chest tightened. This was the problem—his friends were actually decent people. Which meant his double life wasn't just sad, it was unnecessary.

Orange Julius did a little flip.

"You're right," Marco said. "I'm being dramatic."

He texted back: "not sick. just needed space. also i've been practicing."

Jay's response came instantly: "practicing WHAT"

"padel. i'm tired of being trash at it."

Three dots danced. Then: "bro we literally just play for fun nobody cares if you suck. come over tomorrow"

Marco laughed, surprising himself. Sometimes the big reveal wasn't a dramatic confrontation. Sometimes it was just... admitting you're trying.

He dropped another vitamin into the fish tank—just a tiny piece, as a treat—and watched Orange Julius go for it. Some secrets were worth keeping. Most weren't.

"I'll tell them about the lessons eventually," he told the fish. "Maybe when I can actually beat Jay."