The Riddle of sweaty Palms

I felt like a total zombie. Three hours of sleep final-sceason will do that to you. But here I was, at Spring Fling, because Maya said she'd be here and I'd been low-key crushing on her since bio lab started.

The gym was transformed - crepe paper everywhere, DJ playing mid-2000s throwbacks, a punch bowl that was definitely spiked. I spotted Maya by the sphinx prop near the photo booth. Some student council masterpiece - cardboard and gold paint, riddles taped to its side. She was laughing with her friends, looking effortless in that dress that definitely cost more than my entire wardrobe.

My palms were sweating. Like, actually sweaty. I wiped them on my jeans, probably for the fifth time.

"Hey," someone said. I jumped. It was Tyler from my English class, dressed as a zombie with surprisingly good makeup. "You gonna talk to Maya or just stand there being weird?"

"I'm not being weird," I protested, but I felt the heat in my face.

"Bro, you've been staring for ten minutes. Just go over there." He pointed his green-streaked finger at the sphinx. "Read her a riddle. Girls love that mysterious shit."

I rolled my eyes but found myself walking toward the prop anyway. Maya turned, smiling, and my brain short-circuited.

"Hey,"

I said, my voice cracking. Smooth. "Want to hear a riddle?"

She raised an eyebrow. "From the sphinx? Sure."

I grabbed a paper from the prop, my fingers trembling. "What walks on four legs in the morning, two in the afternoon, and three in the evening?"

"Man," Maya said, grinning. "That's classic." She leaned closer, and I could smell her vanilla shampoo. "A human. Crawling as a baby, walking as an adult, using a cane when you're old."

"Correct," I managed, my heart hammering.

"You know," she said, "I was hoping you'd come over. I was gonna send Tyler to zombie-walk you over if you didn't."

I blinked. "Wait, what?"

Her laugh was genuine. "I've been trying to talk to you since bio lab, Lucas. You're always so focused." She extended her hand. "Want to dance? Or stand somewhere less loud?"

I looked at my hand, then at hers, and for the first time all night, my palms weren't sweating. "Yeah," I said. "Yeah, I'd like that."

Behind us, the cardboard sphinx kept its mysterious smile, guarding riddles and first kisses and the kind of night that feels like the beginning of something real.