The Papaya Incident at Sunset Club

Chloe didn't want to be at the Sunset Country Club. Her parents had dragged her there, claiming it would be "good for her social development," which was basically code for "please make some friends before senior year." The pool area was packed with the exact type of teens she actively avoided on Instagram.

"Chloe! Over here!"

Maya waved from a cabana, already surrounded by what looked like the popular clique. Chloe had met Maya at orientation - they'd bonded over their shared hatred of the school uniform policy.

"Dude, you have to try this," Maya said, shoving a piece of fruit at her. "It's papaya. The club's chef literally flew it in from somewhere exotic."

Chloe took a bite. "Whoa. That's... different."

"Exotic different or 'I think I'm allergic' different?" A guy named Jake asked from behind massive sunglasses. He had that effortless cool that made Chloe's stomach do weird flippy things.

"Exotic different," Chloe managed, then immediately felt lame for saying "exotic" twice in thirty seconds.

"You should come play padel with us," Jake said. "We need a fourth."

"What's padel?" Maya whispered.

"Literally no one knows," Jake laughed. "But the courts are right by the pool and it looks chill."

The game turned out to be tennis' easier, more chaotic cousin. Chloe actually didn't suck at it, which surprised everyone including herself. She and Jake were partners against Maya and some sophomore whose name she kept forgetting.

"You're actually kind of fire at this," Jake said after she nailed a shot that bounced weirdly off the wall.

"I have hidden talents," Chloe said, then instantly regretted sounding so weirdly intense.

They played until sunset, when Chloe spotted something rustling in the bushes near the courts.

"Is that... a fox?" she asked.

"The club has these foxes that live on the golf course," Jake said. "They're basically mascots at this point. The staff named them all after tennis players."

The fox - a sleek reddish one with one ear that refused to stand up straight - trotted right up to them like it owned the place.

"I think that's Roger," Jake decided. "He's the bold one."

Chloe found herself laughing so hard her sides hurt. Roger the fox sat there watching them like a tiny, furry judge of their athletic abilities. Maya took approximately five hundred photos for her story.

Later, floating in the pool while the sky turned that perfect summer violet, Jake turned to her.

"So, friend me on Instagram? I mean, if you want. You know, for the padel rematch."

"Sure," Chloe said, trying to sound casual. "And I'll bring my own papaya this time."

"Deal."

As she floated there, starfished out and watching the first stars appear, Chloe thought maybe her parents' "social development" plan wasn't totally terrible. Sometimes the weirdest days became the best ones. And sometimes all it took was a fox named Roger and a sport nobody actually understood to make everything feel okay.