Under the Hat

The worst thing about getting a buzz cut you didn't want? Everyone notices. Especially when you're fifteen and your hair was literally the only thing you liked about yourself.

So I did the logical thing: I stole my brother's baseball cap and pulled it down low. Which, of course, made me look like I was trying too hard to be chill. Maya noticed immediately during third period.

"New look?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "Or are you going incognito?"

"Shut up," I muttered, but I could feel my face heating up.

Then she dropped the bomb. "Hey, a bunch of us are playing padel at the rec center after school. You should come."

Padel. Me. The most unathletic person at Northwood High. But Maya was looking at me with those hopeful eyes, and honestly, I would've agreed to juggle chainsaws if she asked.

"I'll think about it," I said, trying to match her casual energy.

What I actually did was show up forty minutes early and scope out the scene from the observation deck above the courts. I felt like a total spy, crouched behind the railing, watching everyone arrive. Lucas and Sofia were already there, naturally good at everything, laughing as they volleyed back and forth. And then Maya showed up, wearing those ridiculous flower shorts that somehow worked on her, grinning like she'd just won the lottery.

I stayed hidden, my heart pounding, because what if I messed up? What if they realized I didn't belong?

Then suddenly Maya was bounding up the stairs, and I instinctively pulled my hat lower.

"Hey! You actually came!" She grabbed my arm before I could retreat. "You're not gonna hide up here all day, are you?"

"Maybe," I mumbled.

She reached up and tugged my hat brim. "You know, you've got really nice hair. You shouldn't hide it."

I froze. Was she serious? Or just being nice because that's who Maya was—genuinely kind to everyone, even awkward guys who watched from the sidelines like a creep?

"It's... it's messed up," I admitted.

"So? Everything's messed up at fifteen." She grinned. "Come on. Lucas needs a fourth player."

I followed her down, heart in my throat. But somewhere between the stairs and the court, I took off the hat. My buzz cut wasn't perfect. But for the first time all day, I wasn't hiding.