The Sphinx at Jordan's Party

The bass from Jordan's sound system thumped against my chest as I leaned against the kitchen counter, nursing a flat Coke. My best friend Maya kept glancing toward the living room where Ethan—the absolute fox of our sophomore class—was laughing with his friends. His messy dark curls and that effortless grin had half the school swooning, myself included.

"You should just go talk to him," Maya whispered, shoving my shoulder. "Instead of standing here looking like a scared puppy."

"Easy for you to say," I shot back. "You're not the one who's been crushing on him since September."

Then there was Avery—Ethan's ex-girlfriend—standing by the patio doors like some kind of sphinx. Mysterious, unreadable, with those piercing eyes that seemed to know everything. She'd been giving me weird looks all night, and I couldn't tell if she was plotting my social demise or just naturally intimidating.

The worst part? Avery and Ethan were supposedly still "friends," which in high school translation meant: zero chance of making a move without stepping into a minefield.

"Whatever," I said, forcing confidence I absolutely didn't feel. "I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna take the bull by the horns."

Maya raised an eyebrow. "Pretty sure that's not how that saying goes, but okay. Go get 'em, tiger."

My heart hammered as I pushed through the crowd toward Ethan. He looked up as I approached, and those brown eyes actually lit up. "Hey! Chloe, right? You're in my English class."

"Yeah," I managed, suddenly forgetting how to form complete sentences. "I, uh, really liked your presentation on The Great Gatsby."

"Thanks!" He stepped closer, away from his friends. "I was hoping you'd show up tonight. I've been wanting to ask you something."

Avery appeared beside us, and I braced myself for the sabotage. But instead, she just smirked. "There you are, Ethan. You've been talking about Chloe all week. Finally gonna ask her to help you with that history project or what?"

My jaw dropped. Ethan's face turned pink. "Avery, you're the worst," he muttered, then looked at me. "So... about that history project? Or maybe coffee first?"

I laughed, surprised and relieved and totally tripping out on how different reality was from my overthinking brain. "Coffee sounds perfect."

Maya gave me a thumbs-up from across the room as Ethan and I walked toward the quieter hallway. Sometimes the sphinxes of the world weren't mysteries to fear—they were just watching the show, waiting for you to make your move.