Sphinx in the Spinach

Maya's sixteen-year-old heart was doing that thing again—the arrhythmia that only struck when *he* was around. Cameron, with his messy dark hair and galaxy eyes, was sprawled across his basement couch, right next to the empty spot she'd been psyching herself up to claim for the past forty minutes.

"You coming or what?" he asked, and Maya realized she'd been standing frozen in the doorway like a total weirdo.

"Yeah. Just... thinking."

She sank onto the couch, hyper-aware of how her denim-clad knee barely brushed against his. The basement smelled like stale popcorn and Cameron's cedar shampoo. On the massive TV, zombies were devouring what remained of Pittsburgh.

"Classic Friday night," Cameron said, tossing her a handful of spinach-artichoke dip from the bowl on his lap. "Zombie marathon, junk food, zero responsibilities."

Maya's stomach did a backflip. His *lap*. The bowl had been on his *lap*.

"My dad would kill me if he knew I was watching this instead of studying for the history final," she said, accepting the dip. "But honestly? I've been running on caffeine and anxiety all week. I feel like a zombie anyway."

"Same," Cameron laughed, and the sound vibrated through Maya's chest. "Mr. Harrison's gonna be brutal on that exam. Speaking of brutal—" He gestured at the screen, where the cable had chosen this exact moment to cut out, leaving them in blue-screen darkness. "You've got to be kidding me."

They both groaned. The basement plunged into semi-darkness, illuminated only by the LED strips lining the walls.

"I'll go check the cable box," Cameron sighed, starting to stand.

"Wait." Maya's voice came out smaller than she intended. "Maybe we could just... hang out? Without the movie?"

Cameron settled back. The silence stretched, charged with all the things neither of them was saying. Maya's cat, Sphinx, wound between her legs with a demanding meow—her emotional support animal, basically, except Sphinx only loved her when she had tuna.

"So," Cameron said softly. "I was gonna ask you something anyway."

Maya's heart hammered against her ribs. "Yeah?"

"Spring formal. Are you... I mean, would you want to go with me? Like, together?"

The spinach from the dip was definitely stuck in her teeth. She could feel it. But Maya found herself grinning anyway.

"I'd love that."

Cameron's answering smile was worth every awkward moment. The cable stayed dead, the zombies waited on pause, and somewhere in the basement, Sphinx purred like she'd planned it all along.