Green Smoothie Riddle

Maya's green smoothie sat on the cafeteria table like a radioactive science experiment. She'd gone full health-nut over spring break, trading her usual Doritos for kale, spinach, and whatever other sad ingredients blended together into something that tasted like lawn clippings.

"You're drinking pond water again," said Joss, sliding into the seat across from her. Her best friend's voice had that edge lately — like she was one second away from rolling her eyes.

"It's literally full of vitamins," Maya said, stirring the green sludge. A piece of spinach was stuck in her braces. Of course.

Across the cafeteria, Dylan was laughing with his friends, his orange hoodie bright against the beige walls. Maya had texted him first last Friday. No response. Now he was acting like nothing happened, like she hadn't poured her heart out in that message asking if he wanted to hang over the weekend.

"He's looking over here," Joss said, suddenly interested in her phone.

Maya's heart did that stupid fluttery thing. "You think?"

"I know that look." Joss examined her manicure. "But honestly, May? He's been weirdly sphinx-like lately. Like, you send him this whole thing and he's just... silent. That's a vibe check, and you're failing."

Sphinx-like. Joss and her SAT vocab words. But she wasn't wrong — Dylan had become unreadable, a puzzle Maya couldn't solve.

The smoothie suddenly seemed like the worst decision of her life. Between the green chunks in her teeth and the whole situation with Dylan, she was a walking disaster.

"Whatever," Maya said, pushing the drink away. "I'm over it."

"Your braces say otherwise." Joss pointed at her own teeth. "You've got green stuff, like, everywhere."

Maya wiped her frantically with a napkin. Dylan chose that exact moment to walk past their table, orange hoodie blazing, glancing at her with what might have been amusement.

She caught Joss's eye. They both lost it, laughing until they cried, because sometimes being a teenager meant having spinach in your braces while crushing on boys who were about as readable as ancient riddles, and somehow that was just normal.

"Screw the smoothie," Maya said. "Let's go get fries."