Poolside Metamorphosis

The chlorine stung my eyes, but I refused to emerge from the **pool**. Down here, underwater, the muffled sounds of Marcus's party felt distant, manageable. I'd been hiding for seven minutes—long enough that people would definitely notice, but short enough that maybe they'd think I was just really committed to holding my breath.

"Yo, Cameron!" Marco's voice cut through the surface distortion. "Your mom dropped off your **vitamin** gummies. Said you forgot 'em again."

I shot up, gasping. The whole pool deck was watching. Marcus, clipboard in hand, wearing that stupid **orange** polo shirt his mom bought for his "executive summer" phase. Jenny was there too, looking away like she'd rather be literally anywhere else.

"Thanks," I muttered, dripping wet, grabbing the bottle from Marco. The gummy vitamins clinked against the plastic—my daily reminder that my mom thought I was still twelve.

"So," Marcus said, his voice suddenly weirdly gentle. "You gonna tell her?"

Tell who what? But then I followed his gaze. Jenny. She was sitting on the edge of the diving board, her feet skimming the water, that tiny silver **bear** charm on her ankle catching the sunlight. She'd told me about that charm last week—her grandma gave it to her before she passed. She'd trusted me with that story.

The **bull** in my chest—that tight, suffocating feeling I'd been carrying around all summer—suddenly made sense. I wasn't scared of the party. I was scared that I liked her. That I really, genuinely liked her, and that she deserved someone who didn't hide underwater for seven minutes instead of talking to her.

"I got you something," I blurted, walking over to the diving board. My heart hammered. I pulled the sketch from my pocket—drawn during third period when I should've been taking notes. It was her bear charm, but reimagined as a warrior bear, tiny sword raised.

She stared at it. Then at me. Then she smiled—not the polite smile she gave everyone, but a real one.

"You draw?"

"Only when I'm supposed to be paying attention."

"Cool," she said, and something inside me unlocked. "Teach me?"

The pool didn't feel so scary anymore. Neither did being seen.