Goldfish in the Dugout

Maya's hair was doing that weird frizzy thing it always did when she was nervous, which was basically all the time now that freshman year was actually happening. The baseball diamond stretched out before her like a judgmental green expanse, and she clutched the plastic bag containing her newest problem—a goldfish she'd somehow won at the birthday party she wasn't even supposed to be at.

"You're actually going through with this?" Chloe raised an eyebrow, expertly applying lip gloss in the dugout mirror while simultaneously looking unimpressed.

"Shut up," Maya muttered, though her voice cracked. "He needed a home. And I figured... maybe if I brought him to practice, the team would think I'm chill? Like, casual goldfish mom energy?"

Chloe snorted. "That's not a thing, Maya. Also, you have papaya on your chin."

Maya wiped frantically at her face. Of course she did. Because nothing about today could be smooth. The upperclassmen were already watching her like she was some exotic specimen, and now she was the girl with spinach stuck in her braces AND a goldfish in a clear plastic bag.

"Hey, frosh!" Tyler, the junior pitcher, sauntered over. His baseball uniform was perfectly fitted, unlike Maya's which hung awkwardly off her developing frame. "What's in the bag?"

"Nothing!" she squeaked, but the goldfish chose that exact moment to do a particularly splashy flip.

Tyler leaned in, squinting. "Is that... a fish?"

"His name is Bubbles," Maya said, then immediately wanted to die.

But Tyler didn't laugh. Instead, his face lit up. "No way. I had a goldfish growing up. That thing lived forever." He dropped his voice. "Hey, you playing today? Or just... fish-sitting?"

"I'm playing," Maya said, surprised by her own confidence. "And Bubbles is my emotional support animal."

Tyler laughed, but not meanly. "Cool. Well, make sure Bubbles doesn't distract you when you're up to bat. Coach hates when anyone strikes out because they're too busy watching their fish."

Maya smiled despite herself. Her hair was still frizzy, she definitely had papaya somewhere on her face, and she was about to play baseball with a goldfish watching from the dugout. But somehow, standing there with Chloe's eye roll softening into something almost like approval, and Tyler actually talking to her like she was a real person, Maya thought maybe high school wouldn't be completely terrible.

Even if she did have to explain to Coach why there was a fish in the dugout.