The Storm Before the Splash

Maya's thumbs were basically vibrating at this point. Her iPhone screen lit up for the hundredth time—*pool party @ Jake's, 7pm. bring swimsuit!!!*—and she felt that familiar knot in her stomach. Jake, who she'd been lowkey crushing on since September. Jake, whose parties were legendary. Jake, who probably didn't even know she existed.

"You're going, right?" Zara asked, flopping onto Maya's bed while gesturing dramatically at the ceiling. "Don't be a bull about this, Maya. You literally never go anywhere."

"I'm not being a bull, I'm being... selective with my social battery," Maya defended, though she knew Zara was right. Being homeschooled until eighth grade had turned her into someone who treated parties like they were radioactive. "Besides, what if I say something weird? What if—"

"What if you actually have fun?" Zara shot back, sitting up. "Look, I'll be there. We'll do the thing. You know, where we stick together like glue until you feel comfortable, then I disappear into the crowd and you live your best life."

Maya sighed. "Fine. But if this goes south, you owe me boba for a month."

* * *

The party was already in full swing when they arrived. The backyard pool glowed with those fancy underwater lights, and someone had set up speakers blasting a playlist that was definitely not school-appropriate. Maya felt like she was walking onto an alien planet where everyone knew the secret handshake except her.

Jake was by the **pool**, laughing with a group of friends. His wet hair was plastered to his forehead, and—yep, there it was, Maya's heart doing that annoying flutter thing. She should've stayed home and finished that documentary on

"Hey!" Zara nudged her. "Earth to Maya. Jake's looking over here."

"What? No he's not."

"He literally just waved at you."

Maya's brain short-circuited. Before she could overthink it, a crack of **lightning** split the sky, followed immediately by thunder that shook the ground. Someone screamed, and suddenly everyone was scrambling toward the house.

"Come on!" Jake yelled, grabbing Maya's arm. "The basement's safer!"

They ended up huddled under the basement stairs with about ten other people, everyone's **iPhone** flashlights creating this weird strobe effect. Maya was pressed between Jake and a washer-dryer, and she could feel her face burning.

"So," Jake said, his voice barely above a whisper, "I was hoping you'd come tonight."

Maya blinked. "Wait, what?"

"I mean, I know we don't talk much," he continued, scratching the back of his neck, "but I always see you reading in the library during lunch, and I think that's kinda cool. Most people just scroll TikTok the whole time."

The storm raged overhead, but Maya could barely hear it anymore. "You... you noticed me?"

"Yeah?" Jake laughed, this soft, genuine sound. "Why's that surprising? You're the one who recommended that book about space to Tyler last month. He wouldn't stop talking about it."

Maya's mind was officially blown. This whole time, she'd been convinced she was invisible, and meanwhile, Jake-the-perfect had been paying attention to her book recommendations?

"Well," she said, a smile spreading across her face, "I've got way more where that came from."