Riddles in the Rain

Maya's phone buzzed for the third time in five minutes. Another group chat blowing up without her.

"You coming?"

"IDK yet," she typed, then backspaced. What was the point? They'd already moved on.

The lightning storm outside mirrored the knots in her stomach. Great. Just great.

She grabbed her hoodie and headed to the backyard, where her older brother Leo sat on the porch, smoking cigarettes he thought nobody knew about. Next to him sat Egypt, his hairless sphinx cat, looking like something that had witnessed too many family dinners.

"Friend drama?" Leo asked, like he could read the teenage misery radiating off her.

"They're at Jordan's party. Without me."

"Oof."

"Exactly." Maya dropped onto the steps. "I thought we were solid. Then suddenly I'm the odd one out? Makes no sense."

Egypt the sphinx cat sauntered over and plopped her wrinkly butt directly on Maya's homework. The cat stared at her with those enormous alien eyes, like she held all the answers to the universe but refused to share them.

"That cat's a sphinx," Leo said. "You know what sphinxes do? They ask riddles. They make you figure stuff out yourself."

"Very helpful, Leo."

"I'm just saying. Maybe the riddle isn't why they left you out. Maybe it's why you want to be friends with people who treat you like an option."

Lightning cracked the sky open, purple veins against the darkness. Maya's phone lit up — Nicole's name.

"Hey, sorry about tonight," the text read. "Jordan said you weren't coming."

Maya stared at the screen. Then at the sphinx cat, who was now vigorously cleaning her butt with zero shame.

Some riddles weren't that hard after all.

"Hey," Maya said, typing back. "It's cool. Actually, I think I'm done with Jordan's crowd anyway."

"Finally," Nicole replied. "Me too. Want to come over and watch horror movies instead? My treat."

Maya smiled. The lightning flashed again, but this time she didn't jump. Some storms cleared the air. And sometimes the real friends were the ones who chose you, even when it meant breaking away from the crowd.