The Night Everything Changed

Maya clutched her iphone so hard her knuckles turned white. The screen was cracked—a spiderweb fracture from when she dropped it last week after getting that text from him. Standing outside Tyler's house, the bass vibrating through the door, she felt like she was about to throw up.

"You got this," Chloe whispered, linking their arms together. Chloe was the kind of friend who'd literally fight a bear for you. Tonight, she was Maya's emotional support human.

Inside, the party was already lit. Too many people, too much noise, and Maya spotted HIM immediately—Tyler, looking annoyingly perfect in that flannel that made his shoulders look broad. He was by the makeshift bar, peeling an orange like it was the most natural thing in the world. Who casually eats fruit at a rager? Tyler, apparently.

Maya's phone buzzed. NEW TEXT from tyler_l 🥺: 'you came'

"I literally can't," Maya hissed, hiding behind Chloe. "I have zero game. My flirting skills are comparable to a goldfish's memory span—nonexistent."

"You're being dramatic," Chloe said, but then her eyes went wide. "Okay, is that Sam from math class trying to do a keg stand? Bold of him to assume gravity won't gravity."

Then Maya noticed something moving near the kitchen island. A cat. A literal cat, just vibing at a high school party like it owned the place. It was orange, naturally, because the universe had a sense of humor.

"Is that... is that a cat?" Maya asked, legitimately confused.

"That's Mrs. Patterson's cat," someone said. "It literally escaped and walked in here like it was invited."

The cat jumped onto the counter, knocked over a red solo cup, and then proceeded to stare directly into Maya's soul. She felt strangely seen.

Tyler noticed. Of course he noticed. He walked over, all easy confidence and genuine smile, and scooped up the cat like it was the most normal thing in the world.

"This is Chester," Tyler said, scratching the cat behind its ears. The cat started purring loudly, betraying its cool exterior. "He's literally always crashing parties. He's the real MVP."

Maya's phone buzzed again. Same contact: 'the cat approves. that's all that matters'

"I—" Maya started, then stopped. Then started again. "I didn't know you were, like, a cat person."

"Only for the cool ones," Tyler said, grinning. "Want to hold him?"

Maya took the cat. It was warm and surprisingly heavy, and it purred against her chest like a tiny motor. Standing there, holding an orange cat that had crashed a party, with Tyler smiling at her like she was the only person in the room, Maya realized something.

She wasn't awkward. She wasn't invisible. She was just a girl at a party, holding a cat, talking to a boy who actually wanted to talk to her.

"Yeah," Maya said, actually smiling for the first time all night. "I'd love that."

Her iphone stayed in her pocket, cracked screen and all. Some things were more important than notifications.