Poolside Padel Protocol

The bet had started as a joke during third period—conspiracy theorist Jordan claimed the new kid was a government spy, and I'd laughed so hard I accidentally agreed to a ten-dollar wager.

Now here I was, Friday night, lurking behind the pool house at Tyler's party like some sort of low-stakes private investigator, phone recording through a crack in the fence while whatever game they played inside echoed across the yard.

I froze when the back door flew open and Sarah stumbled out, phone light cutting through the darkness. She caught me mid-crouch, phone still pointed at the house like a total creep.

"Are you—seriously?" She squinted, then burst out laughing. "Jordan put you up to this, didn't he? That weirdo is convinced Alex is undercover."

My face burned. "I can explain."

"You're spying on a padel game," she said, like she couldn't believe this was her life. "Behind a pool house. At a party. Bold choice."

The back door opened again and Alex stepped out, holding the family's enormous golden retriever by the collar. The dog spotted me and started wagging its entire body, dragging Alex toward my hiding spot.

"Oh hey," Alex said, spotting us. "Buster found a frog. Want to see?"

Sarah mouthed *spy mission accomplished* while I stood there paralyzed, caught between total humiliation and the weirdest conversation of my life.

"Actually," Alex continued, oblivious, "we're setting up the padel court tomorrow if you guys want to learn. My uncle plays professionally, he's kind of intense but he promised not to yell at beginners."

"Yeah," I found myself saying. "Actually, that sounds—yeah."

Sarah was losing it, silently shaking behind Alex's shoulder. I flipped her off, and she finally cracked up loud enough that Alex turned around.

"What?"

"Nothing," I said. "Just. Looking forward to it."

Later that night, Jordan texted: *well???*

I sent back a screenshot of Alex's padel invitation.

*congrats on your intel,* he replied. *that'll be ten dollars.*

I blocked him, then unblocked him, then typed: *you're never living this down.*

*worth it,* came the response. *see you at padel practice, agent.*

I set my phone down on my nightstand, smiling at the ceiling. Some spy I was—been caught on my first mission, somehow made friends with my target, and now I was voluntarily showing up tomorrow to let a stranger's dog lick my face while I failed at sports I'd never heard of before tonight.

Worst ten bucks I'd ever lost. Absolutely worth every penny.