Riddles in the Cemetery

Maya dragged her feet through the overgrown cemetery behind the abandoned church, her iphone buzzing frantically in her pocket. Group chat爆炸 again. Probably another party she wasn't invited to, or worse—another reminder that everyone was hanging out without her. She felt like a zombie lately, just going through the motions: school, homework, pretend to care, repeat.

Buster, her ancient golden retriever, nudged her hand with his wet nose. He was the only one who didn't make her feel invisible. The only one who didn't care that she wasn't part of the popular crowd or that her Instagram posts got three likes max.

"You're better than people," she whispered, scratching behind his ears. Buster wagged his tail like he understood.

That's when she saw it—a weathered stone sphinx half-buried in weeds, its wings cracked, face eroded by time. Something about it called to her. Maya knelt beside it, tracing the faint inscription with trembling fingers.

"I get it," she murmured. "Everyone wants answers, but nobody wants to hear the truth."

Buster barked, and suddenly she noticed something shiny caught between the sphinx's paws. An old pocket watch, stopped at 11:11. Make a wish, she thought, then laughed at herself. Wishes were for little kids.

But as she slipped the watch into her pocket, her phone chimed. A new notification: *Alex: hey, u busy? wanna hang?*

Maya looked at the sphinx, then at Buster, who was already trotting toward the gate. Maybe riddles weren't meant to be solved alone. Maybe the point was finding someone who'd help you figure them out.

She texted Alex back: *give me 10 mins.*

For the first time in months, Maya didn't feel like a zombie anymore. She felt like someone who was just beginning to wake up.