Summer of the Living Dead

Chloe's phone buzzed for the third time. "You coming to Jake's pool party? Everyone's gonna be there."

She stared at her reflection — foundation three shades too pale, dark circles smudged under her eyes like she'd been cast as an extra in a zombie movie. Three hours of **running** padel drills in the August heat would do that to you. Coach Martinez's voice still echoed in her head: "Faster, Vasquez! College scouts don't sleep!"

Her **cat**, Luna, wound around her ankles, purring like a tiny motor. "At least one of us has her life together," Chloe muttered.

The party was everything she dreaded. Jake's backyard pool shimmered blue, packed with seniors from the varsity squad. Someone brought a speaker. Bass thumped against the fence. Chloe stood at the edge, clutching her phone, suddenly very aware of her uneven tan and the way her hair frizzed in humidity.

"Hey, Padel Queen!" Jake waved from the **pool**, water dripping from his perfect jawline. "Get in here!"

Her stomach did that thing it always did when Jake looked at her. She slipped off her flip-flops and waded in, the cool water shocking her sunburned skin.

Then she saw them.

Across the pool, Jessica and her squad were applying green face paint. "Zombie apocalypse theme!" someone shouted. They'd all transformed — hollow eyes, fake blood, torn clothes. They looked like they'd walked straight out of the video game Chloe played to decompress after tournaments.

Jessica caught Chloe's eye and smirked. "Ooh, scared, Padel Queen?"

Something snapped. Maybe it was the heat. Maybe it was three seasons of being "just one of the guys" while Jessica got to be the girl. Chloe dove underwater, letting the silence swallow her.

When she surfaced, Jessica was posing for photos, staged horror faces and manicured terror. Fake. All of it.

Chloe swam to the edge and hauled herself out, water streaming down her legs. "Nice makeup," she said, voice steady. "But real zombies don't check their reflection every five seconds."

Dead silence.

Then laughter — not mean, but real. Jake's eyes met hers, something different there. Appreciation.

"Wanna play padel later?" he asked. "Actual courts, not imaginary ones."

Chloe grinned, feeling like herself for the first time all summer. "Only if you can keep up."