The Fox at the Pool Party

Maya's heart hammered against her ribs as she gripped her iPhone, scrolling through texts she'd already read five times. *Pool party at Jake's. Everyone coming.*

She stood outside his house, chlorine already stinging her nose. The ridiculous bucket hat she'd bought on impulse pulled down over her ears like a security blanket—her cousin said it was giving "main character energy," but Maya just felt like a main character who forgot her personality at home.

"You coming in or what?"

Jake's voice. He materialized at the fence, shirt already off, revealing shoulders that had definitely broadened since freshman year. Maya felt her face heat up.

"Yeah. Just, uh, taking my vitamins," she lied, pulling a bottle from her pocket and dry-swallowing two like a total weirdo. Why did she say that? Who announces their supplement routine?

Jake raised an eyebrow but didn't roast her. "Cool. Everyone's already swimming."

*Everyone. Including Chloe.*

Chloe, who'd been swimming competitively since kindergarten and looked like a mermaid princess in a bikini while Maya looked like a potato attempting to blend in.

The backyard was chaos—splash fights, laughing, bodies everywhere. Maya's chest tightened. She couldn't do this. She'd just say she forgot her—

A rustle in the bushes near the property line made her jump.

A fox—a real, actual fox with the most magnificent russet coat—trotted out like it owned the place. It paused, amber eyes locking with Maya's, as if to say, *You good, fam?*

Then it snatched someone's abandoned sandwich and bolted.

"YO DID YOU SEE THAT FOX?" someone screamed.

"That fox stole my lunch!"

"Bro, foxes are the new raccoons, fight me on this"

The chaos shifted. Everyone was laughing, pointing, pulling out phones. And just like that, Maya wasn't the center of attention anymore. She could breathe.

Jake splashed up beside her, grinning. "That was lowkey iconic. You good?"

Maya adjusted her stupid hat. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm good."

She pulled off the hat, shook out her hair, and jumped in. The water wrapped around her like acceptance, and for the first time all summer, Maya stopped overthinking everything and just started swimming.