Screenshots at the Deep End

Marcus stood at the pool's edge, clutching his iPhone like a lifeline. The screen reflected his own anxious expression – sixteen and somehow still nervous about Rachel's party. His best friend Devon had been hyping this up for weeks, but Marcus felt like he was already underwater.

'Yo Marcus, you gonna stand there all day?' Devon called from the diving board. Marcus's phone buzzed – a DM from Rachel herself. His thumb hovered over the notification like it was a bomb timer.

The pool was packed with juniors and seniors, people he'd known forever but suddenly felt like strangers. Tyler from the baseball team was doing cannonballs, shouting something about vitamin D deficiency being real for gamers like Marcus. The group laughed, and Marcus felt the familiar heat creep up his neck.

He wasn't a gamer, not really. He just liked his room, the quiet, how screens made more sense than this – water everywhere, skin on display, conversations without an edit button.

'Marcus!' Rachel waved from the shallow end. 'Come in! The water's perfect!'

His iPhone slipped from his sweaty palm.

Time slowed as the phone arced through the air. He lunged for it, missed, and watched it hit the water with a tiny splash nobody noticed but him. His entire life – photos, messages, everything – sinking toward the deep end like his dignity.

'My phone!' Marcus yelped, jumping in fully clothed.

The pool went quiet. Then Tyler burst out laughing. 'Bro, you committed to that bit!'

'I – it wasn't –' Marcus sputtered.

But Rachel was swimming toward him, grinning. 'That was literally the most extra thing I've ever seen.' She reached underwater and pulled out a waterproof pouch. 'Good thing I brought this.'

As Marcus fished out his dripping phone, Devon swam over. 'That's my friend, everybody! Making an entrance!'

Rachel laughed, and Marcus felt something unclench in his chest. 'Your phone's probably fine. My cousin dropped hers in a toilet once and it survived.'

'That's... reassuring?' Marcus said.

'Hey,' Tyler called from the diving board. 'Since we're all in, who wants to play Marco Polo?'

Marcus looked at his iPhone in the waterproof pouch, then at Rachel's smile, then at Devon nodding like this was exactly what they should be doing. He set the phone on the poolside chair.

'POLO!' the group roared back, and Marcus shouted with them, loud and unfiltered, chlorinated water in his nose and something like joy bubbling in his chest.