The Cat Who Saw Everything

Maya's hair was a disaster. After three hours of attempting balloon curls for Tyler Anderson's party, she looked like a poodle that stuck a fork in an electrical socket. So she did what any reasonable person would do: she grabbed her brother's beanie and pulled it low, hoping nobody would notice the frizz escaping underneath.

The party was already in full swing when she arrived, iPhone clutched in her sweaty hand like a lifeline. Her best friend Priya had ditched her immediately for the bathroom lineup, leaving Maya stranded near the snack table where someone's mom had thoughtfully arranged a bowl of vitamin gummies alongside the chips. "For energy!" a handwritten note proclaimed, while kids popped them like they were illegal contraband.

Maya's heart did that stupid fluttery thing whenever she saw Tyler across the room, laughing with his friends. He looked effortlessly good in his flannel, while she was hiding under a hat like some sort of fashion criminal. She pulled out her iPhone to document her misery—maybe a tragic selfie for the story, something that screamed 'socially awkward teen spirit' without being too pathetic.

That's when the cat appeared.

Nobody knew whose cat it was, but there it was, weaving through legs with suspicious purpose. Maya watched in horror as it hopped onto the snack table, tail flicking with calculated chaos, and batted the vitamin bowl onto the floor. Gummies scattered everywhere. Tyler laughed. Maya instinctively lunged to save the bowl from complete destruction, and in that moment, her hat caught on a decorative branch.

It happened in slow motion: the beanie slipped, revealing three hours' worth of disastrously curled hair, while the cat sat atop the table like it had planned the whole thing.

Tyler stared. For three seconds, Maya considered faking a sudden illness and fleeing. Then his face split into a grin. "Sick curls, actually."

Priya returned from the bathroom. "Did I miss something?"

"The cat," Maya said, touching her exposed hair, "is a total drama queen."

"Sick curls," Tyler repeated, and Maya realized nobody was actually staring at her hair. They were waiting to see if she'd laugh with them.

So she did. "Trade you this beanie for those vitamin gummies."

"Deal."

The cat watched from its throne, satisfied with its work.