Sphinx on the Patio

Maya's palms were sweating so bad she could practically fill a water bottle. First house party of sophomore year, and she was already regretting everything. Why did she think wearing her brand new Docs to Elena's backyard bash was a good idea? Her feet were screaming.

She escaped toward the edge of the patio, dodging a group of juniors doing TikTok dances. There, illuminated by those string lights everyone's obsessed with, stood it: a literal sphinx statue. Some garden ornament thing, probably from Elena's mom's Pinterest phase. Maya leaned against it, pretending to be deeply fascinated by the stone creature's missing nose.

"That's majestic, right?"

Maya jumped. A guy with messy dark hair and a hoodie that definitely cost too much was standing there, holding a red Solo cup like it was something sacred.

"Super majestic," Maya deadpanned. "Nothing says mysterious like a discount sphinx from Home Depot."

He laughed. Actual laughed, not that polite half-smile thing. "I'm Leo. Elena's cousin."

"Maya. From... here."

Smooth. Really killing it.

A orange tabby cat wound around Maya's legs, purring like a tiny motor. She reached down to pet it, trying to look casual and not like someone who was literally hiding behind an Egyptian statue.

"That's Nacho," Leo said. "He's the realest one here. Everyone else is doing way too much."

Maya's palms stopped sweating for the first time all night. "Thank you. I thought it was just me."

"Nah, everyone's lowkey freaking out. They're just better at faking it." He nodded toward the party. "See Josh over there? He's been holding that same cup for forty minutes. He's terrified."

Maya looked where he was pointing. Josh, the starting sophomore varsity basketball player who she'd assumed was having the time of his life, was actually standing alone, scrolling through his phone with the same nervous energy she'd been feeling all night.

"Huh," Maya said. "I thought he was, like, living his best life."

"Instagram lies, Maya. That's the tea." Leo grinned. "Wanna hang out by the sphinx and judge everyone? It's surprisingly therapeutic."

"Honestly? Yes."

As they sat on the patio edge, Nacho the cat sprawled across their sneakers, Maya realized something: maybe nobody actually knew what they were doing. Maybe that was the whole point. And for the first time that night, her palms were dry, her feet didn't hurt, and she was exactly where she wanted to be.