The Catfish Spy Mission

Maya's sweaty palm hovered over the send button. This was it — the moment she'd become the first girl in sophomore year to slide into Jared's DMs. She'd spent forty-five minutes crafting the perfect message: casual but interested, funny but not trying too hard.

Then her cat, Mochi, decided now was the perfect time to knock over her chai latte. Maya lunged for the cup, her elbow smashing onto her phone screen. SEND.

But not to Jared.

To the group chat. The one with everyone in it, including Jared's ex, Brianna, who had made it her life's mission to destroy anyone who looked at Jared sideways.

Maya's stomach dropped like she'd missed a step on stairs. This was social suicide. She needed to delete that message ASAP, but Brianna had already reacted with the eyes emoji. The universal sign of I saw what you did there and I'm coming for you.

"I'm such a bull in a china shop," Maya groaned, burying her face in her hands.

Her best friend since kindergarten, Leo, burst into her room without knocking. His glasses were crooked, his 5SOS shirt was inside out, and he was vibrating with energy.

"Emergency spy mission," he announced, breathless. "My parents are going through my phone because they 'trust but want to verify.' Whatever that means. They already found my Reddit account."

Maya's phone buzzed. Brianna had posted a screenshot in the group chat. AKA everyone had seen Maya's failed attempt to flirt with Jared. Her face burned hot enough to power a small city.

"Join the club," Maya said. "I just accidentally sent my flirt game to the entire sophomore class. Brianna is probably planning my public execution as we speak."

Leo pulled up a chair. "What if we spy back?"

Maya looked up. "What?"

"Think about it. Brianna's always talking about how Jared's moving to Seattle next month. What if we find out when exactly? Then you can time your move perfectly, and if it doesn't work out, he's leaving anyway so who cares?"

Maya sat up. "Leo, you're actually a genius. A weird genius, but still."

"I'll take it. So, what's the plan, Agent Maya?"

They spent the next hour becoming amateur detectives. Maya created a fake Instagram to follow Jared's cousin, who posted everything. Leo hacked his way into Brianna's followers list to find people who might have inside info. By midnight, they had a target: Jared's little sister posted a family calendar in her story. Moving day: two weeks from Friday.

"Fourteen days," Maya said. "That's all I have to make something happen."

"Or," Leo said thoughtfully, "you could just talk to him in AP History tomorrow. Like, with words. In person."

Maya laughed. "What is this, 2005? Who does that?"

"People who don't want their mistakes screenshotted and put in the group chat?"

"Fair point."

Mochi jumped onto the keyboard, somehow opening Spotify. Trap music started blasting at full volume. Maya's parents knocked on the door, and she and Leo dissolved into giggles, spy mission abandoned.

The next day, Maya sat next to Jared in AP History. She practiced what she'd say while absentmindedly petting Mochi in her mind, calming herself. When she finally spoke, her voice only shook a little bit.

"Hey Jared, I heard you're moving to Seattle. That's gonna suck."

Jared looked up from his phone and smiled. "Yeah. My mom got a job offer there. But honestly? I'm kinda glad I'll be gone before Brianna starts her drama about who's dating who. That girl needs a hobby."

Maya's palm stopped sweating. "No kidding."

"Hey," Jared said, "are you going to Skylar's party on Friday?"

"Maybe," Maya said, casual as anything. "Why?"

"Because I was hoping you'd be there."

Maya walked to her locker like she was floating. Sometimes, she texted Leo, you don't need to be a spy. Sometimes you just need to be brave enough to say hey.

His response came instantly: And sometimes you need your cat to ruin everything so you learn how to fix it.

Maya laughed and high-fived her locker, not caring who saw. Being a bull in a china shop wasn't so bad if you learned how to dance with the broken pieces.