The Riddle of the Hallway

Maya's legs were literally shaking. First period AP English meant one thing: Mr. Henderson's legendary sphinx assignment. The whole class had to perform an original riddle in character, and if there was one thing Maya was NOT built for, it was being the center of attention.

"You got this," whispered Jordan, sliding into the desk beside her. Jordan, who somehow made everything look effortless. Jordan, who'd had a crush on Maya since homecoming but was too chicken to do anything about it. Not that Maya was complaining. Her love life was basically a ghost town.

"I'm gonna barf," Maya muttered, which was only like 60% hyperbole.

Mr. Henderson clapped his hands together. "Alright, folks. Who's brave enough to face the sphinx first?"

The room went dead silent. Someone's phone buzzed — that weird, fake-zen flute sound that everyone installed as a joke last month but now half the school actually used.

Then someone yelled "BULL!" from the back row. It was Tyler, the human embodiment of the word. He was always running his mouth, always pushing boundaries, always somehow getting away with it. "Maya's totally gonna crush it. She's been lowkey practicing in the library all week."

Maya felt her face burn. She HAD been practicing, but that was supposed to be her secret shame, not public knowledge.

"Well then," Mr. Henderson said, eyes twinkling. "Maya? The floor is yours."

She stood up. Her heart was running a marathon against her ribs. This was it. The moment of truth. The social execution.

She cleared her throat, channeled her inner mystical creature, and let the words flow:

*"I have a mouth but never speak,

I run all day but never move.

I show you everything but reveal nothing,

And when you close your eyes, I disappear."*

The class stared. Tyler actually shut up for once. Jordan was looking at her with this soft expression that made her stomach do something weird and fluttery.

Then someone's hand shot up. "Is it... a phone screen?"

Maya grinned. "Yep."

The room erupted. Someone actually said "slay" unironically, which should have been cringe but somehow wasn't. As Maya sat back down, Jordan slid her a note:

*That was actually fire. Dinner this weekend?*

She circled "yes" so hard she almost tore through the paper. Sometimes being seen wasn't so bad after all.