Orange Lightning

Maya's iphone battery was at 4% and her social anxiety was at 104%.

"You're literally vibrating," said Jax, who'd somehow convinced her to come to this house party. "Just take the L and go home if you're gonna stand by the snacks table all night."

Maya clutched her phone like a lifeline. The charging cable was wrapped around her wrist like a prayer bracelet. "I'm good. I'm vibing. Can you guys believe senior year is actually almost over?"

"Nobody's talking about that," Jax deadpanned, but his soft expression gave him away.

Outside on the back deck, the storm was brewing. Maya peeled an orange, the citrus scent cutting through the cheap beer smell. She'd brought it because her mom still packed her "emergency snacks" for literally everything, and honestly, she wasn't even mad about it.

"Want a segment?" she offered to the girl leaning against the railing, looking as out of place as Maya felt.

The girl—Jordan, maybe?—took it with a grateful smile. "You're a lifesaver. I've been fake-smiling for two hours and my face hurts."

They watched lightning split the sky, purple and electric and way closer than comfortable.

"Classic," Maya said. "Now we're trapped inside with everyone who's been pre-gaming since 5 PM."

"Or," Jordan's eyes lit up, "we could make a run for it. My car's two blocks that way."

They looked at each other, then at the party throbbing inside, then at the rain starting to fall.

"Bet," Maya said, and they bolted.

Dripping wet in Jordan's Honda, sharing the last of the orange segments, Maya's phone finally died. And for the first time all night, she didn't care.

"You're shaking," Jordan said softly.

"Adrenaline. Or fear. Or both." Then Maya laughed, really laughed. "That was actually unhinged."

"Ten out of ten, would chaos again," Jordan grinned. "Also, you're literally the only person here who brought actual fruit. You're a bear, Maya. A whole-ass vibe."

Maya wasn't entirely sure what that meant, but somehow, being called a bear felt like the highest compliment she'd ever received.

Her phone was dead. Her hair was wrecked. She was sitting in a stranger's car eating orange segments in the middle of a thunderstorm.

She was absolutely living her best life.