Static Electricity

The bass from inside rattled the porch railing as Maya texted her best friend: *come rescue me this party sucks ass*. She'd been at Tyler's house for exactly twenty-three minutes and already wanted to yeet herself back to the safety of her bedroom and her Netflix account.

That's when she saw the cat — a scrawny calico hiding under the porch steps, eyes glowing like tiny flashlights in the darkness. Maya crouched down, pulling pieces of beef jerky from her pocket (she'd learned to always carry snacks after the Great Incident of 2023 when she'd fainted at a marching band competition from low blood sugar).

"Hey little guy," she whispered. "You hiding too?"

The cat inched forward, sniffing her offering. Behind her, the slider opened. She turned, ready to fake a bathroom break excuse, and froze.

It was Lucas. The Lucas. Junior varsity soccer captain, had that jawline that looked like it was carved by Greek gods, and currently holding two red cups. His golden retriever, Buster, bounded past him and immediately stuck his nose in Maya's face.

"Buster, down — oh shit, sorry," Lucas said, yanking the dog back. "You're Maya, right? You sit behind me in Calc?"

Maya's brain short-circuited. Lucas knew her name?

"Yeah," she managed, while Buster proceeded to try to eat the beef jerky she'd offered the cat. The calico hissed and bolted toward the backyard.

Thunder cracked overhead. A storm had been brewing all evening.

"She likes you," Lucas said, nodding after the cat. "Buster, I mean. She never likes anyone. Kind of her whole thing."

"She's sweet," Maya said, scratching Buster's ears. The dog leaned into her touch like they'd known each other for years.

"Want to get out of here?" Lucas asked suddenly. "This party's kinda cringe anyway. My friend's hosting, but like, the ratio's way off and someone already puked in the bathroom."

Maya's heart did that thing where it forgot how to heart properly. "Um. Yeah. Actually.

They ended up sitting on the curb three houses down, sharing the beef jerky while lightning flickered across the sky like paparazzi flashes at a celebrity premiere. Buster curled between them, occasionally trying to steal more jerky.

Lucas told her he was failing Calc because he couldn't focus, his mom was pressuring him about college applications, and he secretly wanted to be a photographer. Maya admitted she felt invisible at school sometimes, like she was watching everything from behind glass.

"You're not invisible," Lucas said. "I notice you. Like, every day."

A jagged streak of lightning illuminated his face. He was looking at her like she was something worth seeing.

"Is this weird?" Maya asked. "Like, are we vibing right now or am I misreading the room?"

Lucas laughed. "No, you're not misreading. I've been trying to talk to you for weeks but I'm awkward as hell and you always have those headphones on."

The cat slunk out from between two houses and sat on the sidewalk near them, watching with judgment in her yellow eyes. Buster's tail thumped against Maya's leg.

"My phone's gonna die," Lucas said. "Can I get your number? For real this time. Not for Calc notes."

Maya's thumbs hovered over her screen as another roll of thunder shook the air. She typed in her number, heart pounding louder than the storm.

Lightning flashed again, and this time Maya saw it clearly — that split second before everything changes, when the whole world holds its breath.

"Cool," Lucas said, grinning like an idiot. "Tomorrow at school, then. I'll save you a seat."

"Yeah," Maya said, dizzy with it all. "Tomorrow."

As she walked home, cat trailing her for two blocks before vanishing into the night, Maya thought maybe parties weren't so terrible after all. Sometimes the best stuff happened when you escaped. And sometimes lightning really did strike. Just like that.