Vitamin L

Zoey stood at the edge of the padel court, gripping her racquet like it might explode any second. The court looked smaller than a tennis court, enclosed by glass walls that reflected her terrified expression.

"You're gonna love it," Maya said, already bouncing on her toes, ponytail swinging. "It's like tennis but chaos."

Chaos was right. Zoey had only agreed to this because Maya had been her best friend since seventh grade, and Zoey owed her after that time she'd pretended to laugh at Maya's questionable TikTok obsession for three straight months.

The vitamin supplement shop next to the sports complex had been handing out free samples. That's where Zoey had gotten the Vitamin L packets Maya swore by. "L for Lightning," she'd said, tossing Zoey a bright orange packet. "For energy. Focus. *Vibe*.".

Now, as Maya served the ball, it ricocheted off the back wall and zoomed past Zoey's ear. She flinched, tripped over her own feet, and landed on the court's synthetic surface with a spectacular thud.

"Whoa there!" A guy's voice from the adjacent court. "You okay?".

His shirt was drenched, curls plastered to his forehead, but his grin was genuine. Zoey felt her face burn hotter than the Florida sun.

"Peachy," she muttered, scrambling up and dusting off her knees. "Just testing the gravity. Still works."

"Nice," Liam said, as if this were a completely normal thing to say. "I'm Liam. This is my brother Noah." He gestured to a guy who looked like a carbon copy but with more braces. "We're teaching ourselves padel. It's harder than it looks on YouTube."

"Tell me about it," Zoey said, and then—because something about his easy smile made her brave—"I'm Zoey. That's Maya, who's currently laughing instead of helping me up."

The four of them ended up playing together. The ball became a blur of neon yellow against the blue court. Every time Zoey missed, she learned something. Every time she connected with the ball, she felt it—a spark, like lightning in her veins.

By sunset, they sat against the glass wall, sharing water bottles and sore muscles. Maya and Noah were arguing about music. Liam sat beside Zoey, close enough that their shoulders brushed.

"You know," Liam said, "my mom says padel is like vitamin supplements for your soul. You don't know you need it until you try it."

Zoey laughed. "Your mom sounds wise."

"She's also why I have these." He tapped his braces. "Anyway, you're really good. For a beginner."

"I fell twice."

"Three times," Maya called out without turning around. "We counted."

Liam's eyes crinkled when he smiled. "Exactly. Most people quit after one fall. You got back up. Every single time."

Zoey felt something shift inside her, like lightning illuminating a landscape she'd been navigating in the dark. The vitamin supplement packet in her pocket suddenly made sense—not lightning for energy, but something else entirely.

"Hey," Liam said, pulling out his phone. "You guys should come back tomorrow. Same time? We could make this a thing."

Maya high-fived Noah. "Deal."

Zoey just smiled, feeling the way the court's glass wall caught the last light of day, turning it into something brilliant and blinding and impossible to look away from.

"Yeah," she said. "I'll be there."

As they walked to the parking lot, Maya bumped her shoulder. "Vitamin L, Zo. I'm pretty sure in this case, the L stands for something else."

"Friendship?"

"Sure," Maya grinned. "If that's what you want to call it."