The Friday Spy Club

Maya had perfected the art of being invisible. Well, invisible-ish. Her black beanie — the one she refused to take off even in June — pulled down just enough that she could watch the world without being watched back. She called it reconnaissance. Her mom called it "weird behavior for a fifteen-year-old."

Every Friday during third period, when Mr. Harrison droned on about symbolism in The Great Gatsby, Maya would execute Operation Hallway Pass. Bathroom break. Walk past the gym. Slow down exactly as the varsity soccer team changed for practice. She wasn't creeping, okay. She was conducting research. There was a difference.

"You're being a spy again," Chloe whispered, sliding into the desk beside her. "I can tell because you get this intense look like you're decoding nuclear launch codes instead of staring at Tyler's hair."

Maya's face burned. "I am not. And his hair isn't even that good anymore. He got that weird trim last week."

"So you've been tracking his grooming evolution." Chloe flipped her notebook open. "Maya, literally just talk to him. You're not James Bond. You're a freshman who accidentally made eye contact with him at a pep rally once."

That's when Tyler's best friend Marcus walked past their desk in the hallway and tossed something toward Maya. It landed perfectly on her notebook.

A hat. Not a beanie. A properly douchey flat-brimmed snapback that said "COACH" across the front.

"Tyler said you left this at his cousin's party last weekend," Marcus called back, not even stopping. "Also, he said your hair looked cool without the beanie. Just saying."

Chloe's jaw dropped.

Maya's fingers hovered over the snapback. She hadn't gone to any party. She'd been home rewatching Pride and Prejudice for the fourth time because she was "taking a break from boys."

"You didn't go to a party," Chloe hissed. "You were literally texting me about how Mr. Darcy is better than real men."

Slowly, Maya pulled off her beanie.

Her hair — the hair she'd spent two years growing out, dyeing, and hiding because she was convinced it looked stupid — fell in waves that she'd actually spent forty-five minutes perfecting that morning.

"I think," Maya said, staring at the snapback, "I think he might have been trying to talk to me and panicked."

"Or," Chloe said, "you've been so busy being a spy that you missed the part where HE'S been watching YOU."

Maya's phone buzzed. Unknown number.

*so did u like the hat or was that too weird lol this is tyler*

She looked at Chloe. They burst out laughing so hard Mr. Harrison actually stopped talking about symbolism.

"Operation Hallway Pass," Maya whispered, grinning, "has been compromised."

"Operation," Chloe corrected, "is a success. Now text him back before he spirals."