Poolside Prophecies

The invite said 'pool party' but Maya's brain heard 'social disaster.' She stood at the edge of the concrete, toes curling against the hot deck while everyone else splashed like they'd been born in **water**. Typical. The one weekend her parents finally let her go to Jordan's house, and half the sophomore class was already in the **pool**, living their best lives while Maya fully forgot how to people.

'So, are you swimming or just posing dramatically?' Jordan's voice behind her made her jump. He was holding a plate of the most aggressively aesthetic fruit arrangement Maya had ever seen—pineapple, mango, and something that looked like alien eggs.

'I'm contemplating,' she said, which was a lie. She was definitely not contemplating anything except how to disappear.

'Here.' He held out a wedge of orange-yellow fruit. 'Try this **papaya**. It's basically nature's candy, minus the judgment.'

Maya eyed it skeptically. 'Is this a test?'

'Jordan's test of courage,' he grinned. 'Pass and you get full access to the snack table. Fail and I make you try the coconut macaroons my aunt made.'

She took a bite. Sweet, kind of musky, unexpectedly delicious. 'Okay, I passed your weird test. Now what?'

'Now you meet Chloe.' He pointed toward a girl sitting cross-legged under a **palm** tree at the far end of the yard. 'She read my palm at lunch and told me I'd meet someone who needed papaya courage today. Which is frankly suspiciously specific.'

Maya snorted. 'You're telling me she predicted—'

'—that I'd meet someone at a pool party who didn't know how to jump in.' Jordan shrugged. 'She also said you're wearing mismatched socks, but honestly, that feels like cheating.'

Maya looked down. Yeah, blue stripes on one foot, polka dots on the other. Whatever. It was her thing.

'So what's the verdict?' She gestured at the water. 'Do I just... jump?'

'Or,' Chloe called from the palm tree, 'you could let me read your palm first. Just to verify the prophecy.'

Jordan smirked. 'See? It's practically destiny.'

Maya looked at the pool, at Jordan's ridiculous grin, at Chloe waving her over. Fine. She slipped off her flip-flops, took a running start, and cannonballed into the deep end. The water rushed over her head, cool and sudden and perfect.

When she surfaced, Jordan was already doing a terrible pirouette in the shallow end. 'So? How was it?'

Maya slicked her hair back, grinning. 'Better than your macaroons.'