Orange Cat Confidential

Maya adjusted her too-bright orange hoodie, already regretting her outfit choice. It screamed look at me when all she wanted was to disappear into the lockers. Freshman year at Northwood High was two weeks in, and she was still zero friends deep.

She'd taken to eating lunch behind the gym building, where she could spy on the popular crowd through the fence. They sat at their designated tables like they owned the social hierarchy. Especially Chloe, whose effortless cool made Maya's orange hoodie feel even more tragic.

What was she doing? This was weird behavior. Normal people made friends; they didn't lurk behind dumpsters collecting intel like some kind of loser FBI agent.

A cat appeared. Orange tabby, ear notched, with the attitude of someone who'd seen it all. It sat beside her, tail flicking.

"Sup," Maya whispered. The cat ignored her completely.

"I'm spying on popular people," she admitted. "It's pathetic, I know."

The orange cat considered this judgment, then started licking its paw. Maya found this oddly validating.

"You're behind the gym too?" A voice behind her.

Maya jumped. Chloe. THE Chloe. Up close, she looked different – tired, maybe. Less like social royalty and more like someone who'd rather be anywhere else.

"Oh my god, I wasn't – I was just –" Maya's brain short-circuited.

"Hiding out?" Chloe dropped down beside her, not behind the fence. "Me too. Sometimes I need a break from being perfect."

The orange cat abandoned Maya for Chloe's lap. Traitor.

"His name's Pickles," Chloe said, scratching behind its ears. "He hangs out here every day."

"You named him Pickles?"

"I'm good at many things, naming isn't one of them." Chloe actually laughed. "Your hoodie's sick, by the way. I wish I had the guts to wear orange."

Maya's brain couldn't process this information. "But you're literally –"

"Miserable? Yeah, it's exhausting." Chloe's phone lit up with notifications. She ignored it. "Hey, you want to come sit with us? Like, actually sit. Not spy from a distance."

The orange cat purred like he'd planned this whole thing.

"Sure," Maya said. "But only if Pickles can come."

"Deal."

And just like that, Maya's orange hoodie wasn't too bright anymore. It was just her color.