Lightning in the Smoothie Cup

Maya's legs burned like she'd been running for hours, which she had. Eighth period gym class with Mr. "Sweatin' to the Oldies" Henderson was basically torture disguised as "exercise," but today it was her escape. Her parents had another spinach smoothie waiting at home—literally the most vile green sludge on earth—and she was not here for it.

"Dude, you okay?" asked Jordan, sliding onto the bench beside her. His hair was that perfect messy-ondirty blond that probably took product and three mirrors to achieve.

"Just surviving," Maya said, trying to play it cool even though her heart was still racing from the actual running part. Jordan was the kind of guy who made forgetting how to breathe feel like a legitimate medical condition.

"Wanna come to my place? My mom's making her famous spinach artichoke dip."

Maya's stomach did a backflip. Not the romantic kind. The I'm-about-to-puke kind. "Can't. Parents are, like, on this whole health kick again."

"More green smoothies?"

"Straight up. It's traumatizing."

Jordan laughed, and it was this perfect sound that made Maya forget she was covered in gym-class grossness. "Maybe that's your superpower. Like, radioactive spinach gave you powers."

"If my power is looking perpetually nauseous, then yes. I'm basically a superhero."

They sat there while the rest of the class cleared out, Maya desperately not wanting this moment to end. Then she saw it—Jordan's phone buzzing on the bench. His lock screen lit up with some girl's name: CHLOE.

Lightning struck somewhere outside, sudden and jarring, and Maya's stomach dropped harder than it ever had from spinach anything. Of course. Of course there was a Chloe. There was always a Chloe.

"I should go," Jordan said, grabbing his phone. "But, hey—maybe you can come over this weekend? Bring your own snacks though. No green smoothies allowed."

He winked. Maya's face was probably the exact shade of her mom's smoothies now.

"Yeah," she managed. "That sounds... actually good."

As he walked away, she realized her heart wasn't racing from the running anymore. It was racing because maybe, just maybe, the terrifying green smoothie days were the least scary thing about being fifteen.

And also, she was definitely going to Google Chloe later. Because priorities.