Riddles at the Deep End

Marcus stood at the edge of Jenkins's pool, clutching his can of soda like it was a lifeline. The end-of-summer bash was in full swing, but he felt like he was drowning in social anxiety.

"Yo, Marcus! You gonna stand there all day or what?" That was Leo, swaggering over with that fox-like grin that made every girl at North High swoon. Leo had that effortless confidence Marcus couldn't pull off even on his best days.

"I'm good," Marcus mumbled, watching everyone else swimming laps and showing off. Tyler was doing cannonballs off the diving board like he owned the place. Even Sarah, who'd broken her arm last month, was splashing around with her cast in a plastic bag.

His eyes landed on Sasha—the sphinx herself. She was perched on the pool edge, mysterious and unreadable as ever, her dark hair slicked back from the water. She'd been giving him these weird looks all summer, like she knew something he didn't.

"Baseball's on in the basement," Jenkins shouted, towel-drying his hair. "Cable's finally working again if anyone wants to catch the game."

Marcus found himself down there ten minutes later, pretending to understand sports stats while Sasha slid onto the couch beside him. Close. Too close.

"You know what a sphinx is, Marcus?" she asked suddenly, her voice low.

"Mythological creature. Riddles. Lions with human heads."

She smiled, and something shifted. "Exactly. Riddles." She leaned in closer. "Here's one: what's the one thing everyone wants but nobody admits to needing?"

Marcus's heart did this stupid flip thing. "I don't know. Attention?"

"Validation," she whispered. "And you? You're like a fox, Marcus. Always watching, always thinking, never jumping in. But foxes are supposed to be clever, not scared."

She grabbed his hand. "The pool's still out there. The party's still happening. Question is—are you gonna keep watching from the sidelines, or are you gonna get in the water?"

Marcus looked at her, really looked at her, and realized she'd been waiting all summer. For him.

"I'm getting in," he said, and for the first time all night, he didn't feel like he was drowning at all.