Poolside Prophecy
The humidity was straight-up disrespectful that July afternoon. Maya stood at the edge of Kara's above-ground pool, her phone clutched in her hand like it held the cure for her existential crisis. The group chat was blowing up with screenshots—someone had been talking mad smack about her, and honestly? She was tired of the bull.
"You gonna swim or just stan there overthinking everything?" Jade called from the inflatable flamingo she'd claimed as her throne.
"I'm contemplating my entire existence," Maya deadpanned, but she cracked a smile. Jade had that effect.
The pool party was supposed to be the kickback of the summer, but Maya's energy was low-key ruined. She dropped onto one of the lawn chairs, scrolling through the drama until her thumb hurt.
"Let me see your hand," Jade said, abandoning her flamingo kingdom to drip pool water all over Maya's towel.
"Why? So you can read my palm and tell me I'm gonna die alone?" Maya asked, but she extended her hand anyway.
"Please. I've been watching TikTok palm reading tutorials for three days straight, I'm practically a pro." Jade traced the lines on Maya's palm with dramatic seriousness. "Okay, so this line here means you're gonna meet someone special, but this tiny one means you're gonna have to deal with some fake people first."
"Fake people? That's literally everyone at our school."
"Nah, for real though." Jade looked up, the joke suddenly gone from her voice. "Whatever drama you're stressing about? It's not worth it. The people who actually matter know what's real."
Maya stared at her palm, at the water swirling in the pool, at all the people laughing and living their best lives. The bull that had been eating at her all week suddenly seemed exactly what Jade had called it—fake.
"You know what?" Maya stood up, phone still in hand. "You're right."
"Obviously." Jade flipped her wet hair. "Now are you getting in this pool or what?"
Maya laughed, dropped her phone on the towel, and cannonballed into the deep end. The drama could wait. This moment was real.