Poolside Lightning

Maya stood at the edge of the **water**, gripping her solo cup like it was a lifeline. Tyler's annual pool party was supposed to be the highlight of sophomore summer, but so far, she'd spent forty-five minutes pretending to text people who weren't answering.

"You good?" Jordan appeared beside her, sliding his phone into his swim trunks. "You've been hovering by the shallow end like a nervous **cat**."

"I'm not nervous," Maya lied, even as her stomach did backflips. "Just... taking it all in."

"Mhm." Jordan's skepticism was palpable. "Is this about Riley?"

Maya's cheeks burned. "No. Why would it be?"

"Because she's been giving you heart eyes from across the pool for an hour, and you haven't made a single move." Jordan bumped her shoulder with his. "My **friend**, you're down bad."

Before Maya could defend her dignity (or lack thereof), the sky opened up. Not rain—something more dramatic. **Lightning** cracked across the darkness, turning the backyard into a strobe-lit dance floor. Someone screamed-playfully, thankfully-and suddenly everyone was scrambling out of the pool.

"Classic," Maya muttered, making a break for the covered patio.

But in the chaos, someone collided with her, sending them both tumbling onto the grass. She looked up into Riley's wide eyes, rain already plastering dark hair to her forehead.

"Sorry," Riley breathed, not moving. Her hand rested on the **palm** of Maya's hand, fingers tangled together. "I was trying to find you before the storm hit."

"You... what?" Maya's heart hammered harder than the thunder now rolling overhead.

"I was trying to find you." Riley's voice dropped, barely audible over the rain. "This party sucks anyway. Want to get out of here?"

Maya looked from Riley's hopeful expression to Jordan, who was making exaggerated thumbs-up motions from the patio. She looked at the rain, the pool, the chaos of teenagers everywhere, and thought: screw it.

"Yeah," Maya said, letting herself be pulled up. "Yeah, I do."