The Palm Reader's Prophecy

My palms were sweating through my cutoffs at Maya's party—classic freshman energy, right? The social pyramid at Lincoln High had me at the bottom, barely visible beneath the varsity jackets and perfectly curled hair. But tonight, I'd decided to stop running from every interaction.

"Let me read your palm!" Maya shouted, dragging me toward her makeshift fortune-telling station. She'd gone full mystic with scarves and fairy lights, probably from that Pinterest phase she swore she wasn't in.

"Your life line shows..." She squinted at my hand dramatically. "You're going to bear witness to something totally epic this weekend."

"Bear witness?" I laughed. "What is this, a YA novel?"

"No, seriously!" She gestured toward the TV where Jake's older brother was setting up for zombie movie marathon night. The whole thing had that suspicious pyramid scheme vibe—he kept promising us it would be "totally life-changing" if we just waited for the "big reveal."

Turned out the reveal was live-action zombie tag in the woods behind Maya's house. Because apparently nothing says Friday night like running through pitch-black woods while someone chases you making zombie noises.

"You're a zombie if they tag you," Jake explained, tossing glow sticks at everyone. "Last human standing wins."

I found myself sprinting through the trees, dodging grasping hands and actually having fun for once. The social pyramid dissolved when everyone was equally terrified and disoriented. I even managed to "survive" until dawn, mostly by climbing a palm tree in Maya's backyard and refusing to come down until the game ended.

Monday at school, everything felt different. People actually high-fived me in the halls. "Zombie game legend," Jake called it.

Maybe Maya's palm reading wasn't so far off. I hadn't just survived the weekend—I'd finally stopped running from myself. The real prophecy wasn't about becoming popular or fitting into some perfect mold. It was about finding moments where I could just be real, sweaty palms and all.

Though next time someone suggests zombie tag at midnight? I'm definitely making them read my palm first.