Papaya Summer Secrets

Maya pressed herself against the row of lockers, heart hammering like she'd just chugged three espressos. She wasn't technically a stalker. Okay, maybe she was kind of spy-ing on Jake from the AP Bio class, but that's what happened when you're sixteen and socially awkward — you developed highly specialized stealth skills to avoid the human you're lowkey obsessed with.

"Maya!" Her best friend Chloe slid up next to her, nearly causing Maya to drop her phone. "You're doing it again. The spy thing. It's creepy."

"I'm gathering intel," Maya whispered, though her face burned hot. "Strategic observation."

"Strategic observation of Jake's hair?" Chloe raised an eyebrow. "Noted."

Maya's mom had started her on this new vitamin regime — like, apparently being a teenager required nutritional supplementation now — and Maya swear she could feel the capsules rattling in her stomach every time Jake looked anywhere near her vicinity.

The worst part? Jake was heading straight for her.

"Hey, Maya!" Jake's voice was warm and easy and Maya's brain short-circuited. "My cousin's having this thing later, if you want to come. She's making papaya salad and she insisted I invite people who appreciate... exotic fruits?"

Papaya. Maya had never even tried papaya. Was this a test? A metaphor? Some kind of weird fruit-based personality assessment?

"Papaya's... cool," Maya managed, feeling like the entire situation had become a bear trap of awkwardness she'd accidentally stepped into. "I like. Exotic. Things."

Chloe was vibrating with silent laughter beside her.

"Cool," Jake said, grinning. "Tonight at seven. My place. Don't worry if you've never had it before — it's basically amazing."

As he walked away, Maya realized two things: one, she'd just agreed to eat foreign fruit at her crush's house, and two, sometimes the scariest adventures weren't the ones you planned. Sometimes they were just papaya salad and a boy who smiled like he meant it, and maybe that was enough.

"You're going, right?" Chloe demanded. "I need to witness this papaya situation."

"Bear witness," Maya corrected automatically, though her stomach did this nervous-excited flip thing. "Yeah. I'm going."

Her mom was going to be so proud she'd finally tried new food. Maya just hoped Jake would be proud she'd shown up at all.