Riddles at the Deep End

Maya stared at her iphone screen, the glass still slick with pool water. Three unread messages from Jordan. *You coming? * *Everyone's here * *???*

The annual neighborhood pool party. The social event of the summer for everyone except Maya, apparently. She'd spent the last hour hiding in her bathroom, spiraling about what to wear, what to say, how to exist around people she'd known forever but suddenly felt like strangers.

"Maya?" Her mom's voice through the door. "Jordan's here."

Perfect. The one person she didn't want to see. Not because Jordan wasn't her best friend — because Jordan was the only person who knew everything, including the stuff Maya couldn't say out loud. The feelings that had been bubbling up all summer like carbonation ready to explode.

She grabbed her towel and headed out, iphone tucked safely in her pocket.

The pool area was already chaos — music, splash fights, that one older kid everyone pretended to be cool around. Jordan stood by the deep end, dripping wet, grinning like they'd won the lottery.

"There she is!" Jordan waved her over. "We need you."

"For what?"

"The Sphinx." Jordan pointed to the diving board, where a giant inflatable sphinx sat like the world's weirdest throne. "Max brought it. He thinks it's hilarious."

The sphinx stared blankly with painted-on eyes, its wings slightly deflated. It was ridiculous. Perfectly ridiculous.

"Okay... why do you need me?"

Jordan's grin softened into something more real. "Because Max said whoever answers the sphinx's riddle gets to decide the playlist. And we both know your taste is the only thing saving us from listening to his dad-rock obsession all night."

Maya felt herself smiling despite everything. "What's the riddle?"

Jordan jumped onto the pool edge, feet dangling in the water. "That's the thing. He won't tell us unless we're in the pool. Both of us."

Something in Jordan's voice made Maya's chest tight. Not uncomfortable tight — like holding-your-breath-before-something-happens tight.

"So," Jordan said, sliding into the water with a soft splash. "You in or what?"

Maya looked at her iphone, the notifications still lighting up the screen. Then she looked at Jordan, treading water in the deep end, waiting.

She jumped in.

The water was perfect. Jordan was already paddling toward the inflatable sphinx, laughing as they tried to climb onto its slippery wing. Maya followed, and for the first time all summer, her overthinking brain went quiet.

"Hey Jordan?"

"Yeah?"

"Whatever Max's riddle is, we solve it together."

Jordan's smile widened. "Deal."

They didn't solve the riddle that night — Max's taste prevailed, unfortunately. But as they floated under the stars, shoulder to shoulder in the deep end, Maya decided some questions were better left unanswered anyway.