Poolside Pyramids

Maya stood at the edge of the pool, clutching her red solo cup like a lifeline. The party was in full swing—someone had cranked the stereo until the bass vibrated through the concrete deck, and the pool churned with bodies splashing and laughing. She'd been here for twenty minutes and already felt like she was drowning.

"Hey, you gonna stand there all night or actually jump in?"

It was Leo from her AP History class, the one who always sat in the back row with his baseball cap pulled low. He was treading water near the edge, grinning up at her like she wasn't completely out of her element.

"I'm good," Maya lied.

"Come on. The water's actually decent." Leo gestured to a plastic pyramid floating near the pool steps—a weird structure of solo cups someone had built. "We're playing beer pong pyramid style. You knock down a cup, you move up a level. It's basically a sport now."

Maya's phone buzzed in her pocket. probably her group chat blowing up without her. Sometimes her friends acted like she was invisible, like she was just background noise to their main character energy. She glanced toward the house where she'd seen a golden retriever and a tabby cat curled together on a couch earlier—the only chill beings at this entire party.

"I don't really do... parties," she admitted, finally.

Leo shrugged, water dripping from his hair. "Me neither. But I figured out something this year—nobody actually knows what they're doing. We're all just faking it till we make it. Like that pyramid." He nodded toward the floating cups. "Looks solid from far away, but one wrong move and the whole thing collapses."

Maya found herself smiling. "That's the most depressing inspirational speech I've ever heard."

"I try." Leo splashed water at her, just a little. "Your turn. Jump in or I'm telling everyone you're scared of deep ends."

"You're annoying."

"I'm literally not even the worst person here. Have you met Jordan? He thinks saying 'no cap' after everything makes him sound authentic."

Maya laughed and set her cup down on the pool edge. She kicked off her flip-flops.

"Fine. But if I sink like a rock, you're saving me."

"Deal."

The water was colder than she expected, shocking her into the moment. When she surfaced, Leo was still grinning, and suddenly the party didn't feel so overwhelming anymore. Sometimes you just had to take the plunge—literally or metaphorically. Either way, you usually ended up okay.

Mostly.