Goldfish in the Dark

The fedora sat on my desk like a judgmental comma. Grandpa's hat, vintage cool, or at least that's what I told myself when I'd put it on to feel confident. Tonight was sophomore semiformal, and I was going to ask Maya to dance. Finally.

I'd spent three hours getting ready, only to discover while brushing my teeth that I had a massive piece of spinach stuck in my front teeth. FROM LUNCH. How long had it been there? How many people had seen it and not said anything? The insecurity spiral hit hard.

"You ready, son?" Dad called from downstairs.

"Yeah," I lied, adjusting the hat in the mirror. It made me look like I was trying too hard, but trying too hard was better than not trying at all, right?

The gym was already pumping when I arrived. Decorations everywhere, sweaty bodies moving to music that vibrated in my chest. Maya stood by the punch bowl with her friends, laughing at something. She looked effortless in that way that made my stomach do flips.

Then came the lightning.

CRACK. The whole gym went pitch black. Someone screamed, then laughter rippled through the darkness. The storm outside had taken out the power.

"Everyone stay calm!" Mr. Harrison's voice boomed. "We've got emergency lights coming on in just a minute!"

But in that moment of darkness, I felt something weird. Nobody could see me. Nobody could see the hat, or my awkward posture, or anything. I could feel my way toward the punch bowl, toward Maya, in the absolute anonymity of the dark.

"That you, Leo?" Her voice cut through the murmurs.

"Yeah," I said, heart pounding. "Funny running into you here."

She laughed, and I felt something brush my arm. "I was going to ask you to dance tonight, you know."

"Wait, really?"

"Really. I like your hat, by the way. It's brave."

The emergency lights flickered on, dim and orange-tinted. There she was, standing closer than I'd expected. Behind her on the refreshment table, someone's carnival prize goldfish swam in a plastic bag, glowing orange in the weird lighting.

"I have something for you," I said, reaching into my pocket and pulling out the small plastic bag containing the goldfish I'd won at the fair earlier. "I know it's weird, but—"

"I love it," she said, taking the bag and grinning. "What's his name?"

"Lightning," I said without thinking. "Because that's when everything changed."

She laughed, and I finally took off the hat. "Dance with me, Leo?"

"Yeah," I said, and for the first time all night, I actually believed it.