The Riddle by the Pool

Maya smoothed down her frizzy **hair** for the tenth time, wishing she'd straightened it instead of letting it air-dry into its usual wild explosion. The **pool** party was already in full swing, kids from freshman year to seniors crowded around the water, music thumping from someone's Bluetooth speaker. She hovered near the snack table, clutching her red solo cup like a lifeline.

Then she saw him—the **fox**. That's what everyone called Jake, with his messy copper hair and sly grin that got him out of detention three times last semester. He was laughing with his friends by the deep end, and Maya's stomach did that annoying fluttery thing.

"Hey." Sasha appeared beside her, handing her a phone. "Check this—the Sphinx posted another riddle."

The Sphinx was the anonymous account that had been taking over their school's social scene for weeks, posting cryptic challenges and dares. Maya read the screen: "What has secrets but can't speak, holds the future but can't see it?"

"Weird," Maya said, but then her eyes landed on the setup behind the cabana—a **palm** reader tent someone's mom had set up for entertainment. "Wait."

She pushed through the crowd toward the tent, heart pounding. The Sphinx wasn't being metaphorical. The answer was literally right there.

Inside, Jake was already getting his **palm** read, looking equal parts skeptical and amused. The reader—Mrs. Chen from down the street—gripped his hand, studying the lines.

"You're going to make a choice tonight," Mrs. Chen said dramatically. "A choice about someone you've been watching."

Jake's eyes flicked to Maya in the doorway, and for a second, the mask slipped. He wasn't the smooth fox everyone knew. He was just a guy who might be nervous too.

Later, when Maya finally got her turn, Mrs. Chen winked. "You're going to stop standing on the edge, Maya. You're going to jump in."

Outside, Jake waited by the pool's edge, toes in the water. "So... about that Sphinx riddle."

"Yeah?"

"I think," he said, "it's about people who don't say what they mean." He grinned—that fox grin again. "So I'm saying I've been waiting for you to show up all night."

Maya's hair could be frizzy for all she cared. She kicked off her flip-flops and jumped in.