Sphinx in the Living Room

Maya stood against the wall at Riley's party, clutching her emergency vitamin D gummy like a lifeline. The bass thrummed through her palm as she pressed it against her chest, counting heartbeats. Senior year was supposed to be different—she was supposed to be different.

Then she saw The Sphinx.

Cassie Chen sat cross-legged on the living room rug, surrounded by a semicircle of admirers like some ancient oracle. Her cat, a sleek black creature named Onyx, draped himself across her shoulders like a living scarf. The two were inseparable, a perfect unit of cool that Maya could only admire from a distance.

"Who's next for the truth?" Cassie called out, flipping someone's palm with practiced ease. "Your life line says you're overthinking that text to Jordan. Just send it already."

Everyone laughed. Maya's phone burned in her pocket. She'd been staring at a draft to Jordan—am I projecting? or am I tripping?—for three days.

"You." Cassie's finger pointed directly at Maya. The room went quiet. Onyx blinked golden eyes at her.

Maya's feet moved before her brain could protest. She sat cross-legged across from The Sphinx, suddenly hyper-aware of everything: her sweaty palms, her pathetic vitamin supplement, the fact that she was about to be roasted in front of half the senior class.

Cassie took Maya's hand. Her touch was surprisingly gentle.

"You think everyone's watching you," Cassie said, tracing the lines on Maya's palm. "But you're the one watching everyone else. Am I right?"

Maya nodded, throat tight.

"Your cat—that's Onyx, right?" Maya found herself saying. "I saw him at the animal shelter last month. I wanted to adopt him, but my mom's allergic."

Cassie's eyebrows shot up. "Seriously? That's... actually wild." She looked at Maya differently now. "You're the girl who volunteers there every Thursday?"

Heat crept up Maya's neck. "Yeah."

"Hmm." Cassie studied her palm again, then grinned—a real one, not her Sphinx smirk. "Your palm says you're lowkey the coolest person here, but you're too busy worrying about what everyone thinks to notice."

Maya's phone buzzed. Jordan had texted first.

Cassie winked. "Also? You need more vitamin D. Your hands are freezing."