Green in the Deep End

The pool at Tyler's house looked like a sheet of glass, reflecting the sunset in oranges and pinks that made my stomach do that thing where it kind of wanted to throw up but also wanted to jump in anyway.

I'd been avoiding swimming since seventh grade, which was fine until I started dating Tyler, whose entire personality revolved around water polo and his Instagram feed of shirtless action shots.

"You coming in?" Tyler called from the deep end, splashing water at his best friend Marcus. They were both grinning like they'd invented fun.

"In a minute," I said, faking casual as I leaned against the patio table. That's when I felt it — that weird fuzzy feeling in my front teeth. I'd spent the last twenty minutes nervously eating spinach dip while making awkward small talk with Tyler's mom, who kept asking about my GPA like it was my entire personality.

I pulled out my phone and opened the camera. Yep. A solid chunk of green spinach wedged between my front teeth like a tiny betrayal. I'd been talking to everyone for half an hour like this.

"You good?" Maya appeared beside me, holding two sodas. She was Tyler's younger sister, two years below us, and somehow the only person in this family who didn't make me feel like I was constantly being evaluated.

I hesitated, then pointed at my teeth.

Maya didn't laugh. She just set down the sodas, reached into her pocket, and pulled out a single dental floss pick like she'd been preparing for this exact moment her whole life.

"I've got you," she said.

Something about it — the fact that she just handled it, no embarrassment, no making it weird — made the knot in my chest loosen.

"Your brother's going to realize eventually that I'm not like, pool people," I said once the spinach was gone.

Maya raised an eyebrow. "Tyler failed his driving test twice and cries at car commercials. Nobody here is cool, Maya. We're all just pretending."

I laughed. Actually laughed.

"Now," Maya said, heading toward the pool, "I'm going to cannonball. Try not to look so terrified of having fun."

She jumped in, creating a massive splash. Tyler whooped. Marcus yelled something about his hair. And for the first time all night, I thought: yeah. Okay.

I took off my cover-up and jumped in.

The water was perfect.