Summer of First serves

The spinach smoothie sat untouched on the kitchen counter. Mom's latest phase—actually her latest attempt to fix everything that was "wrong" with me.

"You need fuel, Leo. Padel camp starts Monday."

Padel. Because apparently regular tennis wasn't pretentious enough for Maplewood's elite summer crowd.

Monday arrived like a slow motion disaster. I stood there holding this weird mini-racket, surrounded by kids who'd clearly been playing since birth. Then I saw her—Chloe from English class, looking like she'd stepped out of a TikTok feed. So naturally, I tripped over my own feet.

"Watch out, bull in a china shop," someone muttered. Typical.

But here's the thing about being the clumsy new kid: nobody suspects you're actually decent. By Wednesday, I was surprising everyone—including myself. Chloe noticed. She even flashed this foxy little smile that made my stomach do backflips.

Then came the pyramid conversation.

"You should join the VIP training squad," Chloe said, sliding onto the bench beside me. "It's this exclusive group. We get private courts, pro coaching..."

"How much?" I asked, already mentally calculating how many smoothies I'd have to drink to earn this back.

"Just $200 to start. But you get two referrals for free, and when they refer people..." She outlined the whole thing. Recruits recruiting recruits. Each level earning from the level below.

A pyramid scheme. In Padel. For fifteen-year-olds.

I looked at her—really looked at her. She wasn't being malicious. Someone had sold this to her first, probably with the same glossy enthusiasm. And suddenly, the dynamic shifted. She wasn't the untouchable goddess anymore. She was just another kid who didn't want to feel left out.

"Actually," I said, "I think I'm good with regular practice."

She blinked. "Oh."

"But," I added, "if you ever want to hit some balls without the VIP drama, I'm usually here at four."

The hesitation lasted exactly three seconds. "Yeah. Okay."

That night, I actually drank the spinach smoothie. And you know what? Maybe Mom was onto something. Sometimes you have to try the weird stuff to figure out what you actually want.