Papara-zi

Maya's lungs burned as she rounded the corner, her sneakers slapping against the pavement. She'd been running every morning since summer started, convinced that if she could just transform herself into one of those effortless Instagram athletes, maybe—just maybe—Jake would actually notice her when school started in September.

"You're not actually eating that, are you?" Her older sister Kai leaned against the kitchen counter, smirking as Maya positioned the papaya on a plate like it was some kind of sacred offering. "It looks like alien insides."

"Shut up," Maya muttered, slicing into the fruit's alien-orange flesh. "It's super healthy. Full of vitamins."

"Vitamins," Kai snorted. "Right. Because that's totally why you're doing the whole health goddess routine. Has nothing to do with Jake reposting your sunset jog picture."

Maya's face flamed. He HAD reposted it. With "bby u got this 💪" in the comments. Which meant he noticed her. Which meant the running was working. Which meant she had to keep going.

The papaya sat heavy in her stomach as she started her run the next morning, the morning of the neighborhood block party that Jake would definitely attend. Half a mile in, her stomach revolted. She slowed to a walk, then stopped entirely, leaning against a tree as the world tilted.

"Yo, you good?" Jake appeared beside her, his own running shoes slapping the sidewalk. He wasn't effortlessly athletic on social media. he was just a guy in a band t-shirt who ran kinda weirdly, his arms flailing like a distressed penguin.

"Papaya," she gasped. "Don't eat it before running."

Jake cracked up. "Bro, that's iconic-level bad decision." He extended a hand. "Come on, Maya-from-English. Let's walk. You can tell me about your vitamin journey."

He knew her name. He'd noticed her before the running, before the papaya disaster. They walked three miles while Maya spilled everything—her insecurities, her sister's teasing, her desperate attempt to reinvent herself.

"You're already good, Maya," Jake said finally. "Running or not. Papaya or not."

They got ice cream instead of finishing the run. Kai never let her live it down. But somehow, walking weirdly beside a boy who made her laugh felt better than any transformation could.