The Mascot's Last Stand

Chase felt like a literal zombie as he dragged himself through the halls of Northwood High. First day of sophomore year and he'd already managed to: a) trip over his own feet during PE swimming (the pool was supposedly "repaired" but still smelled like mildew), b) get cornered by the baseball team captain who insisted Chase try out for pitcher because "you've got that weird arm movement," and c) somehow volunteer to be the school mascot because his older brother's girlfriend said it would be "soooo cute.

Now here he was, sweating inside a bear costume that smelled like every athletic event since 2019, while the Padel team — because apparently that was a sport now — celebrated their win over Oak Ridge. The tennis courts were packed with kids holding padel rackets and wearing those tiny shorts that made everyone look like they were trying too hard.

"You good in there, Bear?" Maya called out. She was beautiful in that way that made everyone else feel like they were underwater. She'd been his neighbor since kindergarten and had never once looked at him like he was weird.

Chase's bear head muffled his response. "Great. Just living the dream."

"My friends think you're hilarious," she said. "They're taking bets on whether you're actually a senior who failed gym three times."

He laughed inside the costume, hot air fogging up the mesh eyes. The crowd was chanting something about the bears, but honestly? He wasn't even sure what their actual mascot was supposed to be. Some kind of aggressive woodland creature?

But then Maya's friends were dancing around him, and the baseball team was doing that weird chest-bump thing, and suddenly the zombie feeling faded. Being trapped inside a hot, smelly bear costume while hundreds of students screamed at tennis players was weirdly the most alive he'd felt all summer.

Maybe this year wouldn't be so terrible after all.