The Poolside Pyramid Scheme

Maya's palms were sweating so bad she thought she might actually drop her phone into the **pool**. That would be peak embarrassment—right next to spilling Fanta on Tyler's white Jordans last semester.

"You good?" Jax asked, dangling his feet in the water beside her. "You look like you're about to pass a kidney stone."

"I'm fine," Maya lied, clutching her phone. "Just... existential crisis vibes."

Across the backyard, the popular kids had claimed the prime real estate near the waterfall feature. They sat in this weird social **pyramid**—Chelsea and her minions at the top, everyone else orbiting below. Maya had spent three years trying to decode the hierarchy, but apparently the secret was just being born with perfect teeth and your parents' credit card.

Tyler emerged from the cabana with an **orange** snapback backward on his head, looking annoyingly perfect. Maya's stomach did that thing where it forgot how to organs.

"Bro, watch this!" Tyler's friend Brian shouted, climbing onto someone's shoulders. "Human pyramid time!"

Because apparently this was a thing now. Brian wobbling on Drew's shoulders while everyone filmed vertically. Maya cringed so hard she nearly choked on air.

Then Tyler looked over. Actually looked at her.

"Maya!" he yelled. "Come join!"

Her brain blue-screened. This was not in the script. The script said: admire from afar, make eye contact once per semester, eventually marry in ten years after he matures and maybe goes to therapy.

"She's good!" Jax called back, grinning. "Maya doesn't do pyramid schemes."

Tyler laughed, and Maya's palms stopped sweating long enough for her to breathe. Maybe the social pyramid wasn't as solid as she thought. Or maybe—just maybe—she didn't want to climb it anymore.

"Actually," she said, standing up and slipping off her slides, "I think I'll just swim."

She cannonballed into the deep end, sending a wave that nearly toppled Brian. Chelsea shrieked. Tyler laughed again, but like, actually laughed.

Sometimes, Maya decided, you don't climb to the top. You just make your own splash.