Signal Lost, Heart Found

Maya had spent forty-five minutes on her hair. Forty-five. Her usual routine was 'wash and go,' but tonight was different. Tonight, she was finally FaceTiming Kai, the cute junior from AP Bio who'd been sliding into her DMs with memes and ' wyd ' texts for three weeks.

Her room was staged perfectly: fairy lights? Check. Plants arranged artistically? Double check. Barnaby, her 80-pound Golden Retriever mix, locked safely in the backyard? supposedly.

"You look amazing, seriously," Kai said through the screen, and Maya felt her stomach do that traitorous flip-flop thing. They were deep in conversation about his band's upcoming gig when—

Barnaby burst through the door. Nobody had latched the gate.

"No, Barnaby, stop!" Maya lunged, but it was too late. The excited dog cannonballed onto her bed, and in his enthusiasm, his paw caught the charging cable connecting her laptop.

Everything went black.

Maya stared at her reflection in the dark screen. Her hair, once carefully curled into beach waves, now looked like she'd stuck her finger in a socket. Which, ironically, she kind of had.

She called Kai back immediately, mortified. But when his face reappeared, he wasn't laughing. He was grinning.

"Dude, your dog is a legend."

"I'm so embarrassed," Maya groveled, smoothing her hair. "I spent forever getting ready and—"

"And you still look great," Kai cut in. "Actually? You look more like yourself."

Maya paused. Her hair was wild, her room was chaos, and she'd just experienced the most unglamorous moment possible. But Kai was still smiling at her—really smiling, not the polite smile you give when things are awkward.

"Sorry my dog murdered your cable," she said, and Kai laughed.

"Worth it. Besides, I'd rather talk to the real Maya than some curated Instagram version any day."

Maya's cheeks burned, but for the first time all night, it wasn't from embarrassment. Sometimes, she realized, the best connections happen when you lose signal.