The Menagerie in My Chest

The bass from Maya's speakers rattled my ribs, or maybe that was just my heart hammering like a trapped bird. First party. First real one, anyway, not some middle school hangout where we played Smash Bros and drank lukewarm soda.

I squeezed past a junior I didn't know—some guy giving straight-up bear energy, shoulders blocking half the hallway—and slipped into the kitchen for air. That's when I saw the fish tank glowing like an alien spaceship against the dark wall. Three goldfish drifted through the neon-lit water, mouths opening and closing in this perpetual loop of nothing.

"Kinda iconic, right?" said a girl perched on the counter, legs swinging. Fox. That's what everyone called her, maybe because of her copper hair or maybe because she'd dated three different guys in the span of two weeks.

I managed something that was definitely not a word.

"They're lowkey living the dream," Fox continued, nodding at the tank. "Just vibing. Zero stress. Meanwhile I'm out here overthinking whether Jason's gonna actually text back or if I'm just—"

A gray cat wound through her legs, tail flicking with maximum attitude.

"Oh my god, Barnaby thinks he's the main character," Fox said, scratching behind his ears. "But honestly? Same energy."

The cat leaped gracefully to the floor and brushed against my shin, like he knew. Like he could tell I was five seconds from bailing, ghosting this party before anyone even learned my name.

"You good?" Fox asked, and something about her tone made it real, not just polite.

"Just... first party jitters, I guess. Feeling kinda like I don't know the game everyone else is playing."

She hopped down from the counter. "Bruh, nobody knows the game. We're all just faking it till we make it. Jason? Total loser. I'm only interested because he has that motorcycle." She leaned closer. "Want me to teach you how to work this room?"

The goldfish kept swimming in their endless circles, and Bear-boy was still blocking the hallway, and the cat was already judging us from the doorway.

"Yeah," I said, and something in my chest settled. "Actually, I'd love that."