The Pool Shark and the Palm Reader

The humidity hit me like a wall when I stepped out the back door, but at least the community pool meant escape from another afternoon of mom asking if I'd started my summer reading. Not that I could focus on books anyway.

I'd been running from the same problem all week: Skylar. She hung out at the pool every day, and I still hadn't worked up the nerve to say anything beyond basic awkward greetings. My palms sweated just thinking about it.

"Yo Mateo! You coming or what?" Marcus yelled from his bike.

The pool was already packed. Kids screamed, lifeguards blew whistles, and somewhere in the distance, I could hear the crack of a baseball from the rec league game at the park. Skylar was there, of course, sitting with her friends near the deep end. She caught my eye and smiled. My stomach did that thing where it forgot how to be an organ.

I was about to finally approach her when Tyson lumbered over. Everyone called him "the bull" behind his back — massive shoulders, zero chill, and a temper that flared faster than summer fireworks. He'd been tormenting me since middle school.

"Nice floaties, Mateo," he sneered, knocking my phone out of my hand. It skittered across the concrete.

Something snapped. Maybe it was the heat, maybe it was Skylar watching, maybe I was just done being scared. I didn't run.

"Pick it up, Tyson."

The whole pool went quiet. Even the little kids stopped screaming. Tyson's face went red.

"What did you say to me?"

"You heard me. Pick. It. Up."

We stood there for what felt like hours, me shaking but not moving, him deciding whether to flatten me or actually do it. Then Skylar started laughing.

"Oh my god, are you seriously threatening Mateo? He's on swim team, Tyson. You're about to get humiliated."

Tyson looked between us, realized he had zero backup, grabbed my phone, and handed it back. "Whatever. Not worth my time."

He walked away, and suddenly everyone was cheering. Skylar jumped into the pool right in front of me, splashing water everywhere.

"That was literally the bravest thing I've ever seen," she said, treading water. "You swimming or what?"

I dove in, and for the first time all summer, I wasn't running from anything anymore.