The Vitamin D Conspiracy

Maya Chen adjusted her phone camera, making sure the bathroom lighting hit her cheekbones just right. One more selfie for the finsta—because if she didn't post it, did she even exist?

"What are you doing?" Her little sister Jin appeared in the doorway, holding a neon orange bottle. "Mom says you forgot your vitamin again."

Maya groaned. "I'm busy, Jin. Go away."

"Whatever. You're gonna get scurvy." Jin skipped off, leaving the bottle on the counter.

Maya stared at herself in the mirror. Fourteenth follower request from someone named "real_alex_m"—probably a catfish or some bot trying to sell her crypto. She'd been playing social media spy for three weeks now, trying to figure out if Alex, the cute junior in her art class, had actually noticed her or if she was reading way too much into every single thing he did.

Like yesterday when he'd asked if she had a pencil. Did it mean something? Or did he just need a pencil?

The Sphinx—that's what her friends called Alex. Mysterious, unreadable, possibly devastatingly handsome or possibly just really quiet. He sat in the back corner, always drawing in his sketchbook, never speaking unless spoken to. Maya had caught him looking at her twice this week, but she'd also convinced herself the barista at Starbucks was in love with her because he remembered her name, so.

Her phone buzzed. Group chat: THE GIRLS 💕

Layla: DID U SEE ALEX'S STORY

Chloe: girl he posted that fox painting?? that's SO you

Maya's heart did that embarrassing little flutter thing. Fox painting? She scrambled to his profile—and there it was. A watercolor fox, all oranges and rust, with these eyes that seemed to know something. The caption: "For someone who gets it."

"Oh my god," Maya whispered.

She was still staring at her phone, grinning like an idiot, when her phone buzzed again. A DM from real_alex_m:

hey, so I know this is random but I've been meaning to ask—what brand vitamin D do you use? I keep running out and you seem like someone who has their life together

Maya laughed out loud. The Sphinx had a terrible pickup line. And honestly? It was working.