Poolside Hieroglyphics

The **lightning** cracked across the sky just as Maya's phone buzzed. Chloe's text: Pool party @ Jordan's. U coming?

Maya stared at her **orange** one-piece in the mirror. It was last year's style, barely covering her torso, suddenly feeling like a mistake. But it was either this or admit she'd been crying over Tyler for three days straight.

Jordan's house was the social **pyramid**'s apex—glass walls, infinity pool, parents who were mysteriously never home. Maya arrived fashionably late, clutching a bag of chips she'd forgotten to put on a plate.

"Maya!" Chloe waved from the shallow end, surrounded by the popular girls. "Tyler's not here, if that's what you're wondering."

Maya's face burned. She hadn't said anything, but somehow everyone knew. The whole grade knew.

She slipped into the pool, the cool water swallowing her whole. **Swimming** had always been her escape—underwater, nobody could see her face, nobody expected her to perform. She could just exist, suspended in blue silence, while above the surface the world kept demanding things.

"Bro, you look like a **zombie,"** Jordan said, splashing water at her. "What's up with you?"

Maya surfaced, slicking her wet hair back. "Just tired."

"Tired or heartbroken?" His tone was teasing, not mean. "Because Tyler's been telling everyone you were 'clingy' and—"

Another lightning strike illuminated the yard. The girls shrieked, and suddenly the power went out.

Pitch darkness. Water lapping against tile edges. Someone's giggles, someone else's yelp.

Maya felt a hand grab hers underwater.

"Sorry," came Jordan's voice from right beside her. "That was creepy timing."

They stayed there, treading water in the sudden quiet, as rain started pocking the pool's surface. The social pyramid dissolved when nobody could see who was standing where.

"Tyler's an idiot," Jordan said softly.

Maya's heart did something stupid and hopeful. "You think?"

"I know." His thumb brushed her palm. "Also? That orange swimsuit looks really good on you."