The Spy Who Ate Spinach
Microwave hummed, glowing orange. Charlie leaned against the kitchen counter, staring at the sad container of spinach defrosting for dinner. Again.
"You need to eat your greens, mijo," his mom called from the living room. Her telenovela blared—dramatic music, people slapping each other.
Charlie rolled his eyes so hard it hurt. At seventeen, he was practically a man, yet still trapped in this suburban prison where the most exciting thing that happened was his mom's obsession with leafy greens.
His phone buzzed.]
FOX: so r u coming or what? party starts at 9
Charlie's stomach did that thing where it forgot how to stomach. This was it—the chance to finally prove he wasn't just the quiet guy who sat alone at lunch. The guy everyone forgot existed.
He'd been spying on Maya's Instagram stories for weeks. Maya, who laughed with her head thrown back, who had that constellation of freckles across her nose, who somehow made wearing overalls look cool instead of tragic. The fox.
His phone buzzed again.
FOX: u still there? ur typing disappeared lol
Charlie typed, deleted, typed again.
CHARLIE: yeah sorry. def coming. who else gonna be there?
He'd been practicing this—being cool, chill, whatever that meant. Watching how the popular kids talked, how they used slang without trying too hard. Like a spy gathering intel.
But now, typing in his kitchen with spinach-warm air filling his nose, he felt like a fraud. He was about to walk into a party where he didn't belong, pretending to be someone he wasn't, all because he couldn't stop staring at Maya's selfies like some creep.
The weight in his chest—the bear he'd been carrying around for months—suddenly felt crushing.
His phone lit up.
FOX: nvm lol just saw u typing 4evr. its cool if u dont wanna come. no pressure.
Charlie's fingers hovered. Maybe this was his chance to stop spying. To stop pretending.
CHARLIE: actually i dont really party. sorry if i was being weird
Three dots appeared. Disappeared. Appeared again.
FOX: lol thank GOD. i hate parties too. i only invited u bc maya said u seemed cool & i wanted a friend who wouldn't pressure me to drink
Charlie blinked.
CHARLIE: wait what
FOX: yeah maya noticed u reading that manga book at lunch? the one with the red cover? she reads it too. she said u seemed interesting
The bear in his chest dissolved.
CHARLIE: oh. wow.
FOX: so wanna just hang instead? i can come over. bring snacks. no spinach allowed
Charlie grinned, his first real smile in weeks.
CHARLIE: deal. but bring literally anything else
His phone buzzed with a selfie—Fox sticking her tongue out, holding a bag of chips, Maya in the background laughing.
The spinach beeped in the microwave. Charlie hit cancel. Some things were worth leaving behind.