Riddles by the Pool

The chlorine smell hit me before I even saw the water. Ryan's End of Summer Bash. The kind of party that could make or break your entire sophomore year reputation.

I stood by the fence, watching Katie float in the pool on an inflatable flamingo. She looked effortless. I looked like someone who'd spent forty-five minutes choosing an outfit and still felt like a fraud.

"You gonna stand there all night or actually talk to her?" Maya appeared beside me, holding two sodas. She tossed me one. "You've been spy-ing on her for like twenty minutes. It's getting weird."

"I'm not spying!" I protested, though the evidence was pretty damning. "I'm... observing. Strategically."

"Whatever you say, James Bond." Maya rolled her eyes. "Look, just go talk to her. What's the worst that happens?"

"She laughs in my face? I drown from embarrassment? The usual catastrophes?"

Before Maya could respond, someone splashed into the pool beside Katie. It was Leo — the new kid, the one everyone called Sphinx because he never gave straight answers to anything. Last week when someone asked what music he liked, he'd said, "The kind that sounds like colors."

"Hey," Leo said to Katie, treading water. "What's something that's yours but everyone else uses it more?"

Katie blinked, treading water too. "What?"

"A riddle," Leo grinned. "Want the answer?"

"Sure."

"Your name."

Katie actually laughed. I felt something weird in my chest. Not jealousy — okay, maybe a little. But also... admiration? Leo had just walked up to the girl I'd been "observing" for twenty minutes and immediately made her laugh with a riddle.

"See?" Maya nudged me. "That's how you do it."

"He's got a point," I admitted. "Though that riddle was kinda cheesy."

"Cheesy works, though. Look at them."

Katie and Leo were still talking. She'd moved her flamingo closer to him. My stomach dropped.

"You know what?" I handed Maya my unopened soda. "You're right. I'm going over there."

"That's the spirit!" Maya cheered. "Finally!"

"No, not to talk to Katie," I said. "I'm going to ask Sphinx where he gets his riddles. Because that was actually awesome."

Maya stared at me. Then she grinned. "You're the weirdest person I know."

"I learned from the best." I headed toward the pool, nervous but ready. Maybe the night wasn't about winning over Katie. Maybe it was about making a new friend, learning something cool, and finally realizing that being yourself — even a weird, riddle-loving version of yourself — was better than pretending to be someone else.

The pool water felt perfect as I slid in. "Hey Sphinx," I called out. "Teach me your ways."