Swipe Left on Courage

Marcus's palms were sweating so bad his iPhone almost slipped from his grip. Again. Third time tonight he'd nearly face-planted his screen into the pavement just because Chloe decided to finally look his way.

"You gonna throw that baseball or just stare at it like it's gonna text you back?" Tyrell laughed from the pitcher's mound, already wiping the summer sweat from his forehead. Some guys made being fourteen look easy. Tyrell was out here pitching a perfect game while Marcus was still trying to master the art of not being awkward in public.

"I'm working on it," Marcus muttered, though he definitely wasn't. The baseball felt weirdly heavy in his hand, like it knew exactly how much was riding on this moment. The beach party crowd around them had gone quiet. Even the seniors had stopped their snapchat marathon to watch.

Chloe was watching too.

His phone buzzed in his back pocket—probably mom asking if he needed a ride, or the group chat blowing up about whatever drama was unfolding at the punch bowl. Marcus ignored it. This was it. The moment he'd been practicing for in front of his mirror since seventh grade. He'd wind up, release, the ball would sail beautifully toward home plate, and suddenly he wouldn't just be "that quiet kid" anymore.

Instead, his phone buzzed again at the exact wrong second.

The baseball went wild—straight toward the palm tree behind home plate, where someone's golden retriever had been sleeping peacefully until approximately three seconds ago.

The dog, a massive fluffball that Marcus immediately dubbed Bear because obviously, woke up mid-stretch and somehow intercepted the rogue pitch with its nose. The ball bounced off, hit the cooler, and ricocheted into the punch bowl.

Dead silence.

Then Bear barked.

And someone started laughing. Then someone else. Then everyone, including Chloe, who was literally crying at this point.

"Well," Tyrell called from the mound, grinning. "At least you've got fans."

Marcus's face burned hotter than the summer sun, but somehow, the panic that usually lived in his chest had been replaced by something else. Something lighter. He pulled his phone from his pocket, finally checked the notifications.

Chloe had been trying to dm him all night about how bad the punch was.

Sometimes the worst moments are just the best ones in disguise. Marcus smiled, wiped his palms on his jeans for real this time, and walked toward the party like he belonged there. Because maybe he did.