Papaya Thursdays

The orange bell above the door jingled. Thursday at 3:47 PM. Always.

I slid behind the counter at Mario's Market, adjusting my crooked name tag. Mom insisted I work here "to build character" whatever that meant. Mostly I just watched kids from school buy chips and pretend not to see me.

"Hey cat lady."

I jumped. Bear himself leaned against the counter—Bear, actual name Ethan, six-foot-two basketball captain who'd somehow earned the nickname because he'd once hugged someone so hard they couldn't breathe. His signature move.

"Not a cat lady," I muttered, straightening a papaya display. "I don't even own a cat."

"You literally talked to Mr. Henderson's cat for ten minutes yesterday." He grinned, all easy confidence and perfect teeth. "I saw you through the window."

My face burned. "I was waiting for the bus. And Pumpkin's a good listener."

Bear laughed, but it wasn't mean. He picked up a papaya, turning it over like it was alien technology. "What even is this?"

"A papaya. You cut it open, scoop out the seeds, squeeze lime on top. It's life-changing."

"You tryna make me eat fruit?" He raised an eyebrow. "What is this, a spy mission to ruin my rep?"

"I'm literally just explaining produce."

"Nah, you're doing that thing." Bear leaned closer. "That thing where you pretend you don't see everything. You're always watching, Mia. Like you're gathering intel."

My stomach dropped. "I'm not—"

"It's cool." He lowered his voice. "I do it too."

I stared at him. Bear, who walked through halls like he owned them, felt like he had to watch from the sidelines?

"People think it's easy," he said quietly, setting down the papaya. "Being the guy everyone expects you to be. But you're just... performing."

The orange bell jingled again. A group of his friends walked past the window, laughing.

"Bear! You coming?" someone called.

He looked at them, then back at me. "You know what? Teach me about papayas."

"What?"

"Your shift ends at five, right? I've been watching." He winked. "Spy game goes both ways."

I smiled, maybe for the first time in this store. "Fine. But you're buying the lime."