Sweating It

Maya's palms were sweating — like, actually dripping — which was exactly the kind of thing that made her hate herself sometimes. She was seventeen, practically an adult, and still getting nervous about stuff that shouldn't even register.

Standing at the edge of Harper's pool party, clutching a red solo cup like it was a lifeline, she watched the popular kids do their thing. Harper's parents had that ridiculous house with the waterfall and enough outdoor furniture to furnish a small nation. The pool glittered blue and fake-inviting.

"You gonna jump in or what?" Harper yelled from the water, flinging wet hair like she was in a shampoo commercial. Her friends laughed on cue.

Maya forced a smile. "Maybe in a bit!"

Inside the house, she spotted Tyler leaning against the kitchen counter. Tyler, who'd sat behind her in AP History since sophomore year and somehow never noticed she existed. Tyler, who was currently talking to Jessica with that soft, interested expression Maya had daydreamed about him using on her.

Suddenly Maya felt like a spy. Not the cool, Jason Bourne kind. The creepy, pathetic kind who lurked in doorways watching people have normal conversations. She should leave. She should've never come.

Then her phone buzzed. Her mom: "Running late at work, pick you up at 11?"

11 PM. It was barely 8:30.

Maya did the math: three and a half hours of pretending to have fun, or three and a half hours of freedom. The mall was two miles away. Her friends were probably there.

She grabbed her backpack from the corner and slipped out the side gate. No goodbye, no awkward explanations. Just the sound of splashing and laughter fading behind her as she started running.

Her palms were still sweating, but the air felt cooler now. Less like Harper's pool party pressure chamber, more like actual possibility.

At the mall, she found her crew outside the food court. "Where've you been?" Kira asked, grinning. "We saved you a seat."

Maya wiped her hands on her jeans and sat down. "Nowhere," she said, and realized it was mostly true. "Just... nowhere."