Poolside Apocalypse

Maya dragged herself to the pool party feeling like a straight-up zombie. Junior year had absolutely cooked her brain—AP exams, college apps, and her parents' messy divorce had left her running on pure iced coffee and anxiety. But Chloe insisted she HAD to be there. "It's the kickback of the year, bestie. You can't skip."The minute she walked in, Maya felt it—that tightness in her chest, the sudden urge to check if her phone was still in her pocket (it wasn't). Everyone looked so effortless. Liam's crew was by the deep end, laughing way too loud at something definitely not funny. Jessica and her minions had claimed the prime lounge chairs, looking like they'd stepped out of a TikTok that Maya wasn't cool enough to watch.

And then there was the orange situation.

Maya's older sister had convinced her to buy this bright orange bikini, promising it would "slay." But standing there in her two-piece, Maya felt like a traffic cone trying to pass as human. She considered faking a migraine, bouncing, anything to escape this.

"Yo, Maya!" Ethan waved from the pool. He was floating on an inflatable pizza slice, looking ridiculous and not caring at all. "Get in here! The water's actually not rancid!"

Maya hesitated. She'd had a massive crush on Ethan since freshman year, and he was finally talking to her? This felt like a trap. Or a fever dream.

"I'm good," she called back, voice cracking slightly. Smooth.

Ethan swam over to the edge, water dripping from his hair. "Seriously, you've been standing there looking like you're at a funeral. What's up?"

Something about his earnestness broke her defenses. Maybe it was that he'd noticed her. Maybe she was just exhausted from pretending she had it together.

"Honestly?" Maya let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. "I feel like I'm dying inside. Like, actual zombie mode. This whole high school social hierarchy thing? It's exhausting and I don't think I'm doing it right."

Ethan laughed, but it wasn't mean. He pulled himself halfway out of the pool. "Bro, nobody knows what they're doing. Jessica literally posted a crying selfie yesterday with the caption 'fake it till you make it.' We're all just zombies trying to look alive."

He looked at her orange bikini and smiled. "And for the record? That color looks sick on you. Way better than everyone's basic black."

Maya felt something unclench in her chest. Maybe she didn't have to perform today. Maybe she could just exist.

She kicked off her flip-flops. "Move over, Ethan."

The pool water was shockingly cold, refreshing, real. For the first time in months, Maya didn't feel like she was drowning.