Green Between My Teeth

The universe hated me. That was the only explanation for why I had spinach in my teeth while Cody, the cute sophomore from my English class, was leaning in to read my palm at the spring carnival.

"Your lifeline is really long," Cody said, his finger tracing the crease in my palm. He smelled like cedarwood and that cheap cologne all the baseball players wore.

I froze. Earlier, my best friend Maya had warned me about the spinach dip from the cafeteria. "Don't eat it," she'd said. "It gets everywhere." But I'd been hungry, and now here I was, about to have my first almost-moment with a boy, and I probably looked like I'd been grazing in a field.

"That's cool," I managed, keeping my lips sealed tight. If I opened my mouth, he'd see the green disaster. My life was over before it had really begun.

Cody looked up, his brown eyes meeting mine. The carnival lights flickered behind him—pink and gold spinning against the dark sky. "You know, I've wanted to talk to you since I saw you at the baseball game last week."

My heart did that annoying fluttery thing. I'd gone to that baseball game specifically because he was the pitcher. Maya said he'd looked at me three times during the seventh inning stretch.

"You did?" I asked through clenched teeth, mentally calculating how fast I could run to the nearest bathroom.

"Yeah. You were wearing that yellow hoodie. You looked... really happy." Cody smiled, and oh my god, his smile was perfect. "I'm playing again tomorrow if you want to come. First home game of the season."

This was it. The moment I'd been waiting for. He was inviting me to his baseball game, and I was going to say yes except—

"I'd love to," I said, then remembered the spinach situation and pressed my lips together harder. "But I have to—"

"Palm reading! Five dollars! Get your future told!" The carnival announcement blared over us, making us both jump.

Cody laughed. "So, about that palm..." He squeezed my hand gently. "I think your future's looking pretty good."

I pulled my hand back gently. "I think so too. But first, I really need to find a mirror."

"Everything okay?" He looked concerned.

"Just need to check something," I said, backing away. "About the spinach."

His eyebrows shot up. Then he started laughing. Not mean laughing, but real, genuine laughing. "I have spinach in my teeth, don't I?"

"No!" I lied. "Me! I have spinach in MY teeth!"

We stood there laughing while the carnival spun around us, and somehow, this embarrassing moment felt like the beginning of something real. "Tomorrow's game," he said. "I'll save you a seat in the dugout."

"Deal," I said, finally heading toward the bathrooms. "And remind me to never eat spinach dip again."