Water Break Truths

Maya's lungs burned like she'd swallowed fire. Three miles into XC practice, and her legs felt like they were made of lead weights. Coach Martinez was screaming something about "digging deep" from his golf cart, but Maya was mostly digging deep into her regret for joining the team.

"Water break!" someone shouted, and the pack of runners stumbled toward the cooler like zombies toward brains.

Maya grabbed a cup, chugging it way too fast. Water dribbled down her chin, but she didn't care. She was dying.

"So," Maya's ex-best friend Chloe sidled up, flipping her perfect hair. "Tyler's party Friday? You going?"

Maya hesitated. Tyler was the guy Chloe had been crushing on forever, the same Tyler who'd slid into Maya's DMs last night with some suspiciously friendly messages. The same Tyler who Chloe claimed was "totally obsessed" with her.

"Maybe," Maya said, wiping her mouth. "Why?"

Chloe's eyes narrowed. "Just wondering. He said he invited you."

"Yeah, he did."

Chloe's fake smile faltered. "Right. Cool."

They stood there, awkward silence stretching between them like the distance they'd been running from each other since middle school. Since Chloe decided popularity was more important than their friendship.

"You know what?" Maya set her cup down. "I'm done with this."

"With what?"

"With this." Maya gestured between them. "With you pretending we're still friends while you talk about me behind my back. With Tyler playing both of us. With all the bull."

Chloe's face flushed. "What bull?"

"The bull where you tell everyone I'm obsessed with Tyler when you KNOW he messaged me first. The bull where you act like my friend but ditch me the moment someone cooler shows up. I'm over it."

"Maya, I—"

"Save it." Maya turned toward the track. "I'm finishing this run. Alone."

She took off, legs pumping, heart racing. Behind her, she could hear Chloe calling her name, but Maya didn't look back. For the first time in forever, running didn't feel like punishment. It felt like freedom.

Water break over. Time to run toward something real.