Midnight Zombies and Orange Tabby

Maya wasn't usually one for midnight runs, but tonight she couldn't sleep. Finals week had her feeling like a total zombie—brain fried, eyes burning, existing on nothing but Red Bull and desperate prayers to the GPA gods. Her phone lit up with another text from him. *You up?*

She grabbed her sneakers and slipped out the window, grateful her parents were heavy sleepers. The cool October air hit her face as she started running, pavement beneath her converse rhythmical and grounding. This was her thing now—running until her legs burned, until thoughts of Liam and the awkward cafeteria incident faded into background noise.

A ginger cat darted across her path, nearly tripping her. "Whoa, little dude," she breathed, slowing down. The cat paused, yellow eyes assessing her before rubbing against her shin like they were old friends. Maya crouched, scratching behind its ears. "You out here avoiding your problems too?"

The cat purred, vibrating against her palm. For the first time all week, her chest loosened. She'd been so busy stressing over whether Liam's Instagram story was about her, whether her friends noticed she'd been weirdly quiet, whether she'd messed up her chances with him permanently. And here was this cat, just vibing.

"You know what?" she told it. "You're living your best life. No overthinking. Just doing cat stuff."

Her phone buzzed again. *Can we talk? Please?*

Maya stared at the screen. Part of her wanted to keep running—literally and metaphorically. The other part was tired of running. The cat head-butted her hand, demanding more pets.

"Fine," she sighed, standing up. "But you're coming with."

The cat followed her for three blocks before veering off toward a house with a glowing pumpkin on the porch. Maya smiled. Maybe she'd stop running too. She typed back: *Coffee tomorrow?*

His reply came instantly: *It's a date.*

Maya walked home, zombie exhaustion replaced by something fluttery and nervous. Tomorrow would be terrifying and awkward and probably messy. But for tonight, under the streetlights, she felt alive again.