Poolside Secrets

Marcus tossed another vitamin C tablet into his mouth, chasing it with lukewarm Gatorade. His mom swore they'd keep him from getting sick, but mostly they just made his tongue tingle when he was nervous.

Which was always, around Jordan.

"You coming to the pool today?" Jordan asked, spinning around on her heels. Her neon yellow bikini strap peeked from under her tie-dye shirt.

"Can't," Marcus lied. "Cable's out again. Dad's making me stay inside while the tech guy comes between 2 and 5."

Classic excuse. The cable had been working fine for weeks, but Marcus wasn't ready for pool season. Not yet. Last summer, he'd been the kid who sat in the shallow end with a t-shirt on, too self-conscious about the surgery scar down his chest. The one everyone stared at like he was some kind of medical specimen.

"Bummer," Jordan said, but she was already checking her phone. "We're all going. Keira's bringing her Bluetooth speaker."

All. Meaning everyone who mattered.

Marcus watched her walk away, her laugh carrying down the hallway. He made a decision.

That afternoon, he stood at the edge of the pool, heart hammering against his ribs. The scar that had kept him in shirtsleeves last summer was pale now, a silver line he'd earned when they fixed the hole in his heart. Literally.

Jordan waved from the deep end. "Cable guy come early?"

"Something like that," he called back, and for once, the vitamin-sized knot in his chest loosened. He dove in, chlorine stinging his eyes, and when he surfaced, Jordan was treading water nearby, smiling like she'd been waiting.

"Took you long enough," she said, splashing him.

Marcus laughed, wiping water from his eyes. The scar on his chest didn't feel like a secret anymore. It felt like armor.

"Hey," Jordan said. "Tomorrow, you should come over. My parents finally got cable boxes in all the rooms. We can binge that show everyone's watching."

Marcus grinned. "Only if you have those sour vitamins your mom takes."

"Deal."