The Bear in the Batter's Box

Maya's phone buzzed for the third time in five minutes. Her best friend Kai was live-streaming from the varsity baseball game, and everyone was commenting on how cute Tyler looked in his uniform. Maya groaned and tossed her iPhone onto her bed, carefully avoiding her reflection in the mirror.

Her hair was a disaster. The supposed "subtle layers" she'd asked for had turned into something resembling a poodle who'd lost a fight with a lawnmower. "Bad hair day" didn't even cover it—this was a bad hair life.

Buster, her golden retriever, chose that moment to shove his wet nose into her hand. His tail thumped hopefully against the floor. At least someone didn't care what she looked like.

"Fine," she sighed, grabbing his leash. "Let's go."

They ended up at the school's back field, where Tyler's team was practicing. Maya hid behind the bleachers, watching through the slats. Tyler was at bat, his swing effortless, his hair perfect (of course). She'd been crushing on him since seventh grade, and he'd never once noticed her existence.

Buster had other plans. He spotted a squirrel near the edge of the woods and yanked the leash from her grip, tearing after it toward the tree line.

"Buster! No!" Maya scrambled after him, stumbling through tall grass.

She caught up to him at the forest's edge—but he wasn't chasing a squirrel anymore. He was nose-to-nose with something else.

A bear cub.

Maya's heart stopped. Because where there's a cub, there's...

A massive mother bear emerged from the brush, huffing. Maya grabbed Buster's collar and backed away slowly, her hands shaking so hard she could barely grip the leash. The bear watched them, then turned back to her cub, seemingly uninterested in the terrified teenager and her stupid dog.

They made it back to the field before Maya could process what had happened. Tyler was walking toward the dugout, and he spotted her. Her hair was wild from running, grass stuck out of it everywhere, and she was probably still pale from nearly dying.

"Hey," he said. "You okay? You look like you saw a ghost."

Maya laughed, a genuine sound that surprised even her. "Something like that."

"Cool hair," Tyler added. "Looks like you had an adventure."

Maybe perfection wasn't the point. Maybe the story—the crazy, messy, nearly-eaten-by-a-bear story—was better than looking like everyone else.

"You have no idea," Maya said, grinning. "You have no idea."