Orange Hair, Running Forward

Maya'shair wasn't supposed to be orange. It was supposed to be a subtle auburn, a "sophisticated fall vibe" according to the Instagram tutorial she'd followed. But standing in her bathroom mirror at midnight, staring at the neon disaster on her head, she had to face facts: she looked like a traffic cone.

"You're gonna own it tomorrow," Sam had texted when she sent a panicked selfie at 2 AM. "Lean into the chaos. It's giving main character energy."

Main character energy or not, Maya felt like she wanted to disappear. Especially because Jordan, the cute junior she'd been lowkey stalking for three months, finally noticed her existence yesterday—in the worst way possible.

She'd been at lunch, happily minding her business, when Sam—who'd appointed herself as Maya's personal spy—had kicked her under the table.

"Jordan's looking at you," Sam had hissed. "Don't look, don't look!"

Maya looked.

Jordan wasn't looking at her with admiration. They were staring with visible concern, gesturing vaguely at their own teeth.

Spinach. From the spinach salad at lunch. Stuck in her braces.

"I'm literally never eating again," Maya had groaned, throwing her head in her hands.

"At least they noticed you!" Sam had tried.

"NOTICED THE SPINACH IN MY TEETH, SAM."

Now, running around the neighborhood park at 6 AM because sleep was obviously not happening, Maya thought about how her life had become a series of mortifying moments strung together by bad decisions. Her hair bounced with every step, a bright orange beacon of her poor life choices.

But then her phone buzzed. A notification from Instagram.

Jordan had messaged her: "Hey! I was gonna tell you yesterday your braces looked really cute with the green in them. It was honestly kind of iconic, no cap. Also, I love the new hair color."

Maya stopped running. Her orange hair caught the morning sun, glowing gold and copper and somehow, exactly right.

Maybe tomorrow she'd actually talk to Jordan without spinach in her teeth. Baby steps.