Papara

Maya felt like a zombie. Like, literally dead inside from three hours of sleep and three AP classes back-to-back. Her phone buzzed in her pocket—probably another notification she'd ignore because who has the energy?

"You're vibing, bestie," Chloe whispered, sliding into the cafeteria seat beside her. Maya forced a smile. Chloe was the kind of person who said "no cap" unironically and thought her entire personality was being "that girl" who brought fresh papaya to school every Wednesday.

"What's this?" Chloe nudged a Tupperware toward her. "My mom went full Pinterest mom mode again."

Maya stared at the orange fruit. "Chloe, why papaya?"

"It's giving exotic wellness energy," Chloe said, then lowered her voice. "Anyway, I need you to be my spy today."

Maya blinked. "Your what now?"

"My spy!" Chloe's eyes darted around dramatically. "Jordan is definitely flirting with Sarah in bio, and I need you to casual-stalk their interactions during passing period."

Maya almost laughed. Almost. Because the truth was, she'd been watching Jordan since September—not as a spy, but as someone who'd accidentally memorized his schedule, his hoodie rotation, the way he tapped his pen when he was thinking. Not that she'd ever tell Chloe that.

"I can't just spy on people, Chloe. That's literally creepy behavior."

"It's not spying if it's for friendship purposes," Chloe argued, then her expression shifted. "Wait, you like him, don't you?"

Maya's face burned. "What? No. I barely think about Jordan. He's just... there. Like a decorative plant."

"You're terrible at lying," Chloe said, but softer this time. "You know what? You should just talk to him. He's not gonna bite."

"Easy for you to say," Maya muttered. "You're not socially awkward. You bring papaya to school and make it look normal."

Chloe laughed, then something in her face changed. "You know I used to be terrified of everything too, right? Before I decided to just... lean into being weird on purpose?"

Maya looked at her friend—really looked at her. The perfect outfit, the confident smile, the weird fruit habit that everyone pretended was normal because Chloe made it feel normal.

"You're faking it?"

"Everyone's faking it, Maya," Chloe said. "The difference is, some of us are just better actors."

The bell rang. Chloe gathered her stuff, then paused. "Oh, and Jordan? He looked at you three times during lunch. Just saying."

Maya watched her walk away, feeling something shift in her chest—not much, but something. A tiny spark of possibility. She wasn't a zombie anymore. Maybe she never had been.

She took a bite of the papaya. It wasn't terrible. Actually, it was kind of perfect.