Operation Goldfish

Maya Chen: Certified Nerd. Invisible to the popular crowd. And currently, the world's worst spy.

I crouched behind the baseball bleachers, clutching Mr. Barnaby—my childhood teddy bear, don't judge—to my chest like he was some sort of tactical shield. My mission: observe Tyler, the varsity shortstop who smiled at me in chemistry yesterday. My target: currently fifty feet away, taking batting practice.

"You're gonna give me away with that bear," whispered Savannah, my co-conspirator and fellow social outcast. She gestured at Mr. Barnaby's suspicious-looking ear. "Real spies don't bring stuffed animals on stakeouts."

"Real spies also don't have panic attacks," I shot back. "Mr. Barnaby is for emotional support. He's basically a service animal."

Suddenly—disaster. Tyler's baseball connected with his bat in the worst way possible, sending a foul ball screaming directly toward our hiding spot. I froze. Savannah ducked. Mr. Barnaby took one for the team, getting beaned right in his fluffy brown head.

Tyler jogged over. "You okay? That was pretty gnarly."

I died. Right there. Spectacular expiration event.

"Oh yeah, totally fine," I squeaked. "Just... hanging out with my bear. He loves baseball. Big fan."

Why. WHY did I say that.

Tyler's face did this confused scrunch thing. "Cool bear. Wait, aren't you the girl who won that goldfish at the carnival last week?"

"Goldfish?" I practically shouted. "I mean, yes! His name is Finneas. He's... swimming. Happily. In his bowl."

"That's actually kinda awesome," Tyler said, grinning. "I used to have a goldfish. Named him Kobe. He lived for like, five years."

We talked for twenty minutes. About goldfish. And baseball. And Mr. Barnaby's tactical advantages.

"Hey," he said before walking away. "Maybe sit in the actual bleachers tomorrow? The bear can come too."

Later that night, Finneas did a triumphant lap around his bowl. Savannah texted me: *Operation Goldfish: SUCCESS.*

I grinned at my phone. Who knew being the world's worst spy would work out so perfectly?