Papaya Incident

Leo's palms were sweating. Again.

"You good, bro?" Marcus asked, not looking up from his phone.

"Yeah. Just... yeah." Leo adjusted his shirt for the fiftieth time, even though they were just hanging at Tyler's house. Same thing they did every Friday.

Except tonight, SHE was going to be there.

Maya.

The new girl who'd transferred from Seattle two months ago and had somehow become the center of their friend group without even trying. She had that effortless cool thing going on — vintage band tees, always looked like she'd just woken up from a nap but still gorgeous, laughed with her whole body. Leo had been lowkey obsessed since she'd first sat at their lunch table.

Tonight was his chance. His mom had given him her old dog, Buster, a week ago when her new apartment didn't allow pets. Leo had been posting about him constantly — mostly because Buster was actually cute AF (a golden retriever mix with one ear that flopped and one that stood straight up, like he was permanently confused). Maya had commented "OMG SO CUTE" on his story yesterday and Leo had screenshot it immediately like a pathetic loser.

The doorbell rang.

His heart actually stopped.

Maya walked in with a Target bag. "Hey! Brought snacks."

"What'd you get?" Tyler called from the couch.

"Papaya," she said, pulling it out like it was normal. "My mom's on this health kick again. Apparently it's got, like, every vitamin ever? I don't know. She bought too many."

Everyone stared.

"Who just... brings papaya to a hangout?" Marcus asked.

Maya shrugged, unbothered. "What? It's good. Try it."

She sliced it open right there on the kitchen counter. Leo stood frozen, hyperaware of how close she was, how she smelled like vanilla and something woodsy. She handed him a piece.

"Your turn."

His fingers brushed hers and his brain short-circuited. He took it, trying to look casual, like eating tropical fruit with his crush standing three inches away was completely normal. Meanwhile, Buster chose that exact moment to lose his absolute mind, barking at something outside.

Leo jumped. The papaya slice went flying.

It landed directly on Marcus's fresh Jordans.

Silence.

Then Maya cracked up. Not like a polite laugh — like, actually lost it. Leo wanted to die. He wanted to dissolve into the floor, join the dust bunnies under the couch, never be seen again.

"I'm so sorry," he started, but Maya was already bent over laughing, and something about it was so unpretentious, so real, that he started laughing too.

"Okay, that was actually iconic," she said, wiping her eyes. "Ten points for style."

Marcus sighed, but he was smiling too. "You're buying me new shoes, bro."

"Deal."

Later, when everyone else was caught up in a Smash tournament that Leo kept losing on purpose, Maya slid onto the couch next to him. Buster immediately flopped onto her feet.

"Traitor," Leo said, but he was smiling.

She laughed. "Sorry, I'm just the chosen one. Dogs know." She turned to him, and her voice got quieter. "Hey, thanks for tonight. This is way better than sitting at home with my mom's weird health food."

"Anytime," Leo said, trying to play it cool. "I mean, if you ever need to dispose of more papaya..."

Maya's eyes sparkled. "I'll keep you posted."

Buster let out a contented sigh, and Leo figured maybe, just maybe, his first papaya experience wasn't going to be his last.