The Sphinx's Secret

Maya adjusted her headphones for the third time, orange highlights falling over her eyes as she leaned against the gym wall. First house party of sophomore year, and she was already regretting coming. The bass thrummed in her chest like a second heartbeat.

Across the room, Jake—Jake with the stupidly perfect hair and lacrosse jacket—laughed at something. Maya had been low-key spy mode on him since September, which was pathetic, honestly. She'd memorized his schedule, knew his locker combo (accidentally, she swore), and had definitely typed his name into the search bar of his Instagram then immediately panicked and closed the app.

"Yo, you gonna stand there all night or what?"

Maya jumped. Riley, her lab partner, stood there with two Solo cups. "Want one? It's just orange soda. I figured you weren't the drinking type."

"Thanks." Maya took it, grateful for something to do with her hands. "How'd you know?"

"You seem like you've got your stuff together." Riley grinned. "Also, I've seen you reading during lunch while everyone else is being basic."

Outside, lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating the gym windows in strobe bursts. Someone cranked the music louder.

"My cat's named Sphinx," Riley said suddenly, like that was a normal thing to say. "She's an Egyptian Mau. My mom's obsessed with ancient Egypt."

"That's actually kind of sick."

"Yeah?" Riley's smile got softer. "You should come meet her sometime. She's weirdly judgmental. Like, she'll just stare at you until you feel weird about your life choices."

Maya laughed, and it was real, not the fake laugh she'd been using all night. Jake was still across the room, probably still being perfect, but the urgency to spy on him had faded.

"Anyway." Riley pulled out their phone. "Give me your number? In case Sphinx needs to judge you too."

Maya typed it in, orange highlights slipping into her eyes again, and for the first time all night, she didn't mind being seen.