Poolside Panic

Maya stood at the edge of the pool deck, her fingers practically strangling the strap of her pool bag. This was it — the first party of sophomore year, and everyone was already in the water, laughing and splashing like they'd been best friends since kindergarten. Which, basically, they had.

Jake's golden retriever, Buster, bounded over, shaking water everywhere and somehow managing to soak Maya's already-damp towel.

"Buster!" Jake called from the pool, grinning. "Sorry about that."

Maya forced a smile. "It's fine."

Her throat felt tight. She hadn't gone swimming in front of people since middle school, before everything got weird and complicated and she became hyper-aware of every "flaw" she'd never noticed before. Her hair had taken two hours to perfect this morning, and now chlorine and humidity were about to destroy it.

"You coming in or what?" Sarah waved from the shallow end, surrounded by a gaggle of girls whose swimwear game was approximately a thousand times stronger than Maya's.

"Yeah, just... gotta find my goggles," Maya lied smoothly.

She turned toward the bathroom instead, heart pounding against her ribs like a trapped bird. Changing stalls. Mirrors. The unavoidable moment when you had to actually step out and everyone could look at you.

Why was this so hard?

Inside the stall, she leaned against the door and closed her eyes. She could hear muffled laughter through the walls. Everyone was having fun. Everyone except her, stuck in her own head again.

Her phone buzzed. Her mom: Have fun!! Don't forget to eat something :)

Maya stared at the screen. She was tired of missing out. Tired of overthinking every little thing until the moment passed and she was just watching from the sidelines, safe but lonely.

She changed quickly before she could talk herself out of it.

The walk back to the pool felt like a death march. Twenty pairs of eyes, probably. Thirty. Everyone was going to stare. Everyone was going to judge—

"Finally!" Jake splashed water at her. "Took you long enough."

Sarah slid over, making room on the pool steps. "Move over, give Maya some space."

No one was staring. No one cared. They were just... hanging out.

Maya slipped into the cool water, and something in her chest finally loosened. "Your dog is chaotic, Jake," she said, and wasn't even surprised when actual laughter came out.

"Yeah, well, someone's gotta keep things interesting around here." He splashed her again.

This time, she splashed back.