The Cat Who Knew

My palms were sweating so bad I could barely grip my phone. This was it—the moment I'd been overthinking all week: asking Maya to the winter formal. I'd been running through scenarios in my head since Monday, each one more embarrassing than the last.

The social pyramid at Northwood High didn't make sense to me. Somehow the cheerleaders sat at the top like Egyptian royalty, while the rest of us—drama kids, stoners, band geeks—formed the layers beneath. Maya was somewhere in the middle, but to me, she was the whole damn structure.

I found her behind the gym, petting this stray cat that'd been lurking around campus for weeks. The cat—this calico with a patch of white shaped like a lightning bolt—looked at me like it knew something I didn't.

"Hey," I managed. My voice cracked. Smooth.

"Hey yourself." Maya smiled, and the cat nudged her palm like it owned the place.

That's when Jayson and his crew rolled up. Jayson, who played varsity football and walked through life like he was ennn titled to everything. "What's this, a cat petting zoo?"

"Shut up, Jayson," Maya said, but she was already standing up, brushing cat hair off her jeans.

"Just saying. Kinda weird for a sophomore to be playing with strays." He smirked. "Anyway, Maya, party at Tyler's Friday. You should come."

The bull in him was so strong I could practically smell it. That's what guys like Jayson did—marked their territory, acted like the rest of us were invisible.

Maya looked at me, then back at Jayson. "Maybe. I'll think about it."

My stomach dropped. I'd missed my shot.

But then the cat did something weird—it rubbed against my ankle and purred so loud it sounded like a tiny engine. Maya's eyes lit up.

"He likes you," she said. "He never likes anyone."

I scratched behind its ears, suddenly not caring that Jayson was still watching, probably judging. "Cool cat."

"Yeah." Maya stepped closer. "So... what were you gonna ask me?"

"You noticed?"

She laughed. "You've been staring at me all week. And your palms are still sweating."

"Winter formal," I blurted. "You wanna go with me?"

"Yes," she said immediately, like she'd been waiting for me to ask. "And can we bring the cat?"

"Deal."

Jayson rolled his eyes and walked away, defeated by a calico and a sweaty-handed sophomore who'd finally found his place in the pyramid.