Poolside Lightning Strike

Chloe's heart did that weird flutter thing again—the same way it had been doing all week whenever she looked at the pool deck. She adjusted her headphones, pretending to be completely absorbed in her phone while actually taking notes.

"I'm not a creep," she muttered to herself. "I'm conducting research."

Okay, so maybe she was lowkey spying on Kai's pre-lap ritual. Three fist bumps to the thigh, two to the pool edge, one breath that lasted exactly seven seconds. The boy had a routine for everything, which explained why he'd won state last year in the 100-meter freestyle.

Chloe had been running four miles every morning since March, trying to build the kind of lung capacity that made swimming look effortless. But every time Coach Martinez announced tryouts, she suddenly remembered she had somewhere else to be. Anywhere else.

"Yo, Chen Kai!" Marcus yelled from the bleachers, Chloe flinched. She'd been spotted.

He jogged over, water still dripping from his hair, and she fully prepared to die of embarrassment right there on the pool deck. But instead of calling her out for watching him like a weirdo, he sat on the edge and dipped his legs in.

"You know, you're not exactly subtle," he said, grinning.

Heat rushed to her cheeks. "I was just—"

"Running every morning. I see you sometimes." He stretched his arms behind his head. "Why haven't you tried out? You've got the build for it."

Before she could answer—before she could admit that the thought of racing in front of everyone made her want to throw up—the sky cracked open. Lightning scribed electric veins across the clouds, followed immediately by thunder that rattled the windows in the pool house.

"Everyone out now!" Coach Martinez's voice cut through the sudden chaos.

They grabbed their gear and made a run for it, breathless and soaked, bursting through the doors into the rain. And somewhere between the pool deck and the parking lot, between the lightning and the laughter, Chloe realized she wasn't scared anymore.

"Tryouts are Monday," Kai called over his shoulder, already halfway to his car. "Don't make me wait."

She watched him go, then looked back at the pool one last time, lightning flashing in her peripheral vision like some kind of cosmic sign.

"Okay," she whispered to no one. "Okay."