Goldfish Moments

Maya's freshman year survival strategy had two rules: (1) be invisible, (2) never let anyone see you care. Then Jake Taylor invited her to his pool party, and suddenly she was failing at both.

She stood by the decorative pond, staring at the lone goldfish swimming in endless circles. "Rough night, little guy?" she whispered. The fish ignored her. Solid.

"Hey! You coming to play padel?" Jake's voice cut through the humidity. The cool kids were already on the court, laughing like they'd been rehearsing their social dynamics since birth.

"Sure!" she squeaked. Because apparently her mouth had decided to betray her entire personality.

Her cousin Chloe had tried explaining padel last week. "It's like tennis, but easier, so adults can feel athletic. Also, you have to say 'padel' a lot or they kick you out."

Maya grabbed a racquet. What could go wrong?

Everything.

She missed the ball. She missed it again. Someone's Instagram story captured her flailing like a dying octopus. She heard snickering.

The water called to her. Not the pool — the ornamental fountain near the patio. After her third swing at nothing, Maya somehow tripped over her own feet and fully committed to the bit. She landed with a spectacular splash, right into the knee-deep fountain.

Dead silence. Then laughter. Not mean laughter — everyone was losing it. Jake was practically crying.

"Finally!" someone shouted. "We thought you were a robot!"

Then Buster, Jake's massive golden retriever, decided this was HIS moment. He bounded through the party, leaped into the fountain after her, and started enthusiastically licking her face.

Maya sat in waist-deep water, being assaulted by a dog, while the entire lacrosse team filmed it on Snapchat.

And she started laughing. Like, actually laughing.

"Okay," she gasped, pushing Buster away. "This is officially the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to anyone."

Jake extended a hand. "Nah. Last month, Brandon tried to impress a girl by doing a backflip off the diving board and ended up in the ER."

Maya took his hand. Water dripped everywhere. Her hair was wrecked. Her phone was probably dead in her pocket.

She looked back at the pond. The goldfish was still swimming in circles.

Whatever. Being invisible was overrated anyway.