Operation Pool Party

Maya's phone buzzed with the notification that changed everything: *Pool Party @ Tyler's — 7pm. Bring a swimsuit.*

She'd been at Northwood High for three months and was still basically invisible. Tyler's party was her chance to finally break into the popular crowd, which is why she was currently hiding behind a massive **cable** box in the corner of his backyard, basically channeling her inner FBI **spy**.

This was mortifying. Absolutely mortifying.

She'd been so nervous about **swimming** in front of people that she'd spent twenty minutes in the bathroom fixing her hair, only to realize her younger brother's pet **goldfish** — RIP Bubbles — had been on her mind all day because she forgot to feed it that morning. And now she was stuck lurking near the snack table because her aunt had made her bring this weird **spinach** dip that absolutely nobody was touching.

"Yo, are you seriously hiding behind the cable box?"

Maya practically jumped out of her skin. It was Tyler himself, wearing those ridiculous pineapple swim trunks and holding two Solo cups.

"I was just... admiring the landscaping," she lied, because obviously.

"Bro, you've been standing there for twenty minutes." He grinned, showing off slightly crooked teeth that made him weirdly more attractive. "You want some punch? Or are you gonna spy on my guests all night?"

Her face burned. This was it. The moment her social life died.

"Actually," Tyler continued, "I was gonna ask if you wanted to try the slide. My little brother dared me to go down backwards, but I'm not trying to end up on TikTok with a broken tailbone."

Maya blinked. "Wait, seriously?"

"Dude, nobody cares about that stuff except you." He nudged her shoulder. "Come on. And bring your spinach dip — honestly, it smells kind of fire."

Later that night, floating in the pool with Tyler and his friends, laughing so hard she almost inhaled water, Maya realized something: she hadn't been invisible because people didn't see her. She'd been invisible because she'd been too busy hiding behind cable boxes to actually let anyone look.

Bubbles the goldfish would've been proud.