That One House Party

Maya's first real house party was exactly as awkward as she'd imagined, which was saying something considering she'd spent three hours straightening her hair only to have it frizz up in the humidity. The bass from someone's phone speaker vibrated through the kitchen floor as she squeezed past a pyramid of red solo cups that some sophomore had definitely spent way too long perfecting for Instagram.

"Hey! You made it!" Jason yelled over the music, appearing way too suddenly in her personal space. His eyes were doing that thing where they couldn't quite focus, and Maya felt her stomach do that nervous flip it always did when he was nearby.

"Yeah, barely," she said, trying to sound chill and not like she'd been psyching herself up in the mirror for forty-five minutes. "What's happening?"

Jason pointed dramatically toward the living room. "Tyler's being a total sphinx, just sitting in the corner all mysterious like he's in a music video or something. And Emma?" He lowered his voice conspiratorially. "Emma just tried to befriend the host's dog for twenty minutes straight. Like, full conversation. The dog looked so done."

Maya laughed, and some of the tension in her shoulders loosened. This was okay. She could do this.

But then her phone buzzed in her pocket, and she pulled it out to see a text from her mom: How's it going? Don't do anything I wouldn't do! 😘 followed by three goldfish emojis because her mom still didn't get that emojis weren't literal.

"Everything okay?" Jason asked, leaning closer than he had before.

Maya's brain short-circuited. This was it. The moment. Except she was hyper-aware of her awkward hands, her probably-not-cool outfit, and the fact that her palms were starting to sweat.

Then, without warning, Tyler emerged from his sphinx-like solitude and accidentally knocked over the cup pyramid while demonstrating what he called "the perfect dance move." Cups went everywhere, soda splashed across the linoleum, and someone's dog started barking hysterically.

For a second, everyone just stared. Then Jason grabbed Maya's hand and said, "We should probably bear witness to this disaster from outside," and pulled her toward the backyard.

Under the string lights someone had hung in the trees, away from the chaos, Jason didn't let go of her hand. "So," he said, finally looking at her like she was the only person there, "you having a good time?"

Maya's heart did that thing where it felt too big for her chest. "Actually," she said, surprised to find it was true, "yeah."