The Friday Night Dead

Maya's blue hair felt like a neon sign screaming 'look at me' as she stood against the wall at Tyler's house party. She'd spent two hours perfecting the messy waves that were supposed to look effortless, but now she just felt like a fraud. Her phone kept buzzing in her pocket—a literal zombie that refused to die, draining her social battery with each notification.

'You good?' A voice cut through her thoughts. She looked up to see this fox-like guy with messy brown hair and the kind of confident grin that made everyone else seem invisible. That was Leo, Tyler's older brother who'd graduated last year and still somehow showed up at every high school function like he owned the place.

'My phone's being annoying,' Maya muttered, pulling out her iPhone like it was some kind of shield. The screen lit up with another stupid group chat that had already blown up with 473 messages while the actual party had maybe 20 people standing around awkwardly.

Leo laughed. 'Bro, everyone out here is acting straight-up zombie. No one's actually talking, just standing around waiting for something to happen.' He nodded toward the living room where people were literally scrolling through their phones like they hadn't just shown up to a 'party.'

Then this golden retriever—Tyler's actual dog—bounded into the room and somehow knocked over a speaker, sending Bass-Boosted Fortnite music blasting through the house. Everyone finally looked up from their phones. Maya started laughing so hard her mascara probably ran down her face, and for the first time all night, she actually felt like she was at a party instead of just attending one.

'Wanna get some air?' Leo asked, and Maya found herself following him outside where the air was finally cool and nobody was performing for an audience.

'My hair looks ridiculous,' she admitted, touching the blue waves.

'Nah,' Leo said. 'It looks like you actually have something to say. That's rare around here.'

For a second, Maya's phone stayed dark in her pocket. And honestly? That felt like the most rebellious thing she'd done all night.