The Palm Reader's Prophecy

I felt like a walking zombie after finals week — three days of surviving on energy drinks and panic, my brain completely fried. But Maya's pool party was non-negotiable. Social suicide to skip it.

The moment I stepped through the gate, I saw it: the social pyramid in full effect. Seniors lounging on the patio furniture like royalty, juniors claiming the decent chairs, sophomores circling the snack table, and freshmen awkwardly hovering near the fence. I was technically a junior, but in the social hierarchy? More like invisible.

"Earth to Lena!" Maya waved me over to where she sat with the popular crowd. "We're doing palm readings. Chelsea's aunt taught her."

Great. Another thing I'd be bad at.

But then I saw Tyler — the guy I'd been lowkey crushing on since AP Bio — looking uncomfortable as Chelsea traced lines on his hand. "You're going to be successful," she predicted dramatically. "CEO energy."

Tyler caught my eye and almost imperceptibly rolled his. Something in me snapped.

"Actually," I heard myself saying, stepping forward. "That's your life line, not your success line. And the split there means you've got major decisions coming up."

The circle went quiet. Tyler looked at me, really looked at me, for the first time all year.

"Show me yours," he said, ignoring Chelsea completely.

My hands were shaking as I held out my palm. The social pyramid suddenly seemed very far away. The pool lights shimmered behind us, turning everything blue and dreamlike.

"You're going to surprise everyone," I improvised, my voice steadying. "Including yourself."

Tyler grinned. "Yeah? Like what kind of surprise?"

"Like asking someone to hang out this weekend. Actually asking, not just 'maybe we should study sometime.'"

His cheeks flushed. The popular girls were glaring. Maya was trying not to laugh. And Tyler — Tyler, who sat at the top of the pyramid, who never looked twice at anyone from my level — just smiled.

"Bold prediction," he said. "I like that."