Goldfish Witnesses Everything

Maya stared at her reflection, her hair refusing to cooperate despite three different products and twenty minutes of aggressive curling attempts. The first house party of sophomore year demanded perfection, or at least something better than this semi-disaster.

"You're overthinking it," her best friend Kai texted. "Literally nobody's gonna notice your hair except you."

Easy for him to say. Kai's hair somehow always looked intentional, even when he rolled out of bed five minutes before school.

Her parents were out—date night, which meant they'd return around midnight in that suspiciously good mood that made Maya want to bleach her brain. Which gave her exactly three hours to get ready, freak out, andUber to Jake's house.

The vitamin supplements on her bathroom counter caught her eye. Her mom had bought them last week, claiming they'd help with "stress and focus." Maya had been taking them religiously, even though she was pretty sure stress was just her personality now.

She flopped onto her bed, earning a betrayed look from Goldie, her goldfish who'd seen way too many teenage crises for a creature with a three-second memory. Or whatever that myth claimed. Goldie had actually watched her entire freshman year breakdowns through the glass of his bowl.

"You're lucky," Maya told him. "Nobody expects goldfish to have their life together."

Her iphone buzzed. A group chat explosion. Jake's party was apparently already lit, whatever that meant. Maya felt a familiar knot in her stomach—that particular blend of excitement and terror that defined pretty much every social interaction since starting high school.

She grabbed her jacket, checked her reflection one more time (still not perfect, whatever), and headed for the front door. Outside, the autumn air hit her like a wake-up call.

Her phone pinged again. Kai: "Just bear in mind, Jake's parties are always 50% awkward and 50% actually fun. You'll be fine."

Maya smiled despite herself. Kai always knew exactly what to say, which was either sweet or terrifying depending on how much she thought about it.

She took a deep breath, pocketed her phone, and started walking. Whatever happened tonight, at least Goldie would be there to witness the aftermath tomorrow. And she'd definitely remember this one—goldfish memory span myths be damned.