Green Hair & Leftover Dread

My hair was supposed to be ocean blue. Exactly like the Instagram tutorial said. Instead, it came out swamp-green—like someone had pureed spinach and dumped it on my head. I stared in the bathroom mirror, horror movie style, while my phone blew up with texts about Jessica's pool party. The party of the year. The one where Alex would definitely be.

"You look... unique," my little brother said, clutching Mr. Waddles, his ratty teddy bear missing half an ear. He'd insisted on bringing it everywhere since our parents split. "Like a zombie that's seen better days."

"Thanks, Miles. Really helpful." I yanked a beanie over my head. The August heat would make this torture.

At Jessica's, everyone looked perfect. Sun-kissed and effortless. Meanwhile, I was wearing a winter hat and sweating through my clothes, calculating how long I could avoid the pool before people started asking questions.

"You okay?" Alex asked, appearing beside me with a red Solo cup. His hair was messy in the cute way. "You're acting like a zombie or something."

Before I could answer, my beanie snagged on something. Jessica's dog, maybe? No—Miles had come out of nowhere, holding Mr. Waddles like a peace offering. He tugged my hat, and it came off.

Silence. Literal, actual silence. The pool went still.

My spinach-green hair was out. Ruined. The horror.

But then Alex laughed. Not mean laughing. Real laughing. "That's actually sick. Did you mean to do that?"

"Totally," I said, channeling confidence I didn't have. "It's called being bold. You should try it sometime."

Jessica's friends started complimenting it. Asking for the tutorial. Alex kept looking at me like I was the most interesting person at the party.

Later, when Miles fell asleep in a chair with Mr. Waddles, I actually jumped in the pool. Green hair and all. And Alex jumped in after me.

Some days are disasters. Some days, they're just story starters. Either way, you keep swimming.