The Goldfish in the Fedora

Maya's phone buzzed. Party at Jax's. Parents gone. You coming?

She stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Braces still had that annoying lisp when she said "fish," which was unfortunate because she'd somehow won a goldfish at the carnival earlier that day. A carnival prize she definitely did not need.

"Just go," her best friend Kiara had said. "Jax is literally gonna look so good in that hat he always wears."

The hat. That stupid fedora Jax thought made him look mysterious but actually just made him look like he was trying way too hard. Maya had a crush on him since seventh grade, which was pathetic and she knew it.

She spent forty minutes on her hair. Another twenty picking an outfit that said "cool but like, not trying too hard cool." When she walked into Jax's basement, someone had already started a game of truth or dare. Because of course they had.

"Maya! Truth or dare?" Jax called out. The room went quiet.

"Dare." She regretted it immediately.

He grinned. "I dare you to eat this spinach artichoke dip with your hands. Like, actually scoop it."

Laughter erupted. Maya's face burned. This was it. This was her social funeral.

"Wait." A voice spoke up. Leo, the quiet guy from her English class. "That's messed up. Let her spin the bottle instead."

The bottle landed on Leo. His turn. He looked at Maya. "Truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"What's something nobody knows about you?"

She thought about it. Really thought. Then she heard a splash from the plastic bag she'd brought with her.

"I won a goldfish today," she said. "His name is Captain Fin. I carried him to a party in my purse because I was scared he'd get lonely."

Silence. Then Jax started laughing. "You brought a fish to a party? That's actually hilarious."

"Let me see him," Kiara demanded.

Maya pulled out the bag. Something about seeing that tiny orange fish floating there made everyone relax. Made her realize that being the girl with the goldfish at a party was better than being the girl who did something embarrassing for a laugh.

Later, Leo sat beside her on the basement couch. "You know," he said, "there's this fox that lives in the woods behind my house. I see him sometimes when I'm walking my dog. He's always alone but he looks like he's got it figured out."

"You comparing me to a fox?" she asked, smiling.

"Maybe," he said. "Or maybe I'm just saying you're cooler than anyone here realized."

The goldfish swam in his bag. Jax kept his hat on all night. And Maya? She realized the cringiest parts of her were actually the ones worth keeping.