The Sphinx of Seventh Period

Maya's thumb hovered over her iPhone screen, the notification from Leo making her stomach do that stupid flutter thing again. *Want to hang out after the game?*

She'd been crushing on him since September, when he'd let her borrow his pen in English and forgotten to ask for it back. Now it was April, and she still had that pen somewhere in her backpack, a talisman of possibility.

The baseball game was already in motion when she arrived at the field. The crack of the bat echoed through the spring evening. Players in crisp white uniforms dusted themselves off like they were performing some sacred ritual. Leo stood at home plate, his stance confident, eyes focused.

"He's such a sphinx," her best friend Chantal said, appearing beside her with a pretentious smirk. "Mysterious. Unreadable. You never know what he's thinking."

Maya rolled her eyes. "You just called him a mythological creature with riddles. That's not a compliment."

"It is when he looks like that."

Leo hit the ball — a solid line drive that sent everyone scrambling. The crowd roared. Maya found herself cheering too loudly, then immediately self-conscious, adjusting her oversized flannel like armor.

After the game, Leo found her near the concession stand. His hair was messy, sweat-dampened, unfairly perfect.

"Hey," he said. "You came."

"Yeah, I —" Maya started, then her brain short-circuited. "Nice hit."

"Thanks." He shifted his weight. "So, my mom made this fruit salad thing for the team gathering. She's obsessed with papaya lately. It's... kinda weird, honestly. But I saved you some?"

He held out a Tupperware container like it was the most normal thing in the world.

Maya stared at it. "You saved me papaya?"

"I mean, if you want it. I can throw it out if papaya's not your vibe."

"No, I love papaya," she lied, taking the container. Their fingers brushed. Electricity? That was such a cliché, but her pulse definitely kicked up.

"Cool." Leo grinned, and suddenly the sphinx demeanor dropped. He was just a guy who saved her tropical fruit because he wanted to talk to her. "So, seventh period tomorrow? Mrs. G's doing that mythology unit."

"Yeah?"

"We should study. Together. I'm gonna need help with the sphinx riddles stuff."

Maya smiled, genuine and terrifying. "I'm pretty good at riddles."

"Good." Leo walked backward toward his team. "See you tomorrow, Maya."

She stood there holding her papaya, watching him go, her iPhone buzzing in her pocket with Chantal's inevitable texts: *WHAT JUST HAPPENED TELL ME EVERYTHING.*

For the first time in months, Maya didn't overthink it. She took a bite of the fruit. It was actually kind of delicious.