Zombie Mode Activated

Marcus stared at the plastic container of wilted spinach like it had personally offended him. "Bro, who actually eats this?" he muttered to his reflection in the cafeteria mirror.

Summer before sophomore year was supposed to be his glow-up era. His older sister Jordan had spilled the tea: clear skin came from drinking insane amounts of water, and apparently, spinach was the secret to looking "effortlessly healthy." Marcus had never felt more unhealthy in his life.

The problem was that he was also working the late shift at the pool snack bar, which meant he was operating on permanent zombie mode. Four hours of sleep daily, max. His friends had started calling him "Walking Dead Marcus" as a joke, but honestly? It wasn't far off.

Chloe, the girl he'd been lowkey crushing on since seventh grade, was coming to his pool party next Saturday. This was it—his chance to finally escape the friend zone. But between forcing himself to choke down spinach smoothies that tasted like wet grass and trying to chug his body weight in water every day, Marcus felt like he was dying inside.

"You good, Marcus?" Jordan asked, finding him staring blankly at the refrigerator at 2 AM. "You look, uh... not great."

"Just hydrating," he mumbled, clutching his water bottle like it was a lifeline. "Glow-up era, remember?"

His sister sighed. "Look, Chloe likes you. She told me. But she likes *you*, not whatever weird health influencer persona you're trying to become."

Marcus paused. "Wait, what?"

"Yeah, she thinks your zombie vibe is actually kind of iconic. Called you 'consistently hilarious.'" Jordan bumped his shoulder with hers. "Just be yourself, you dumbass. The spinach is not doing you any favors."

The party came. Marcus ditched the spinach, stopped forcing the water thing, and let himself actually be tired and awkward and weird. Chloe spent the entire night sitting next to him, laughing at his terrible zombie impersonation, and by the time everyone left, she'd written her number on his arm in sparkly blue pen.

"Call me," she said, grinning. "Maybe we can zombie out together sometime."

Marcus stared at his arm, the number already smudging, and realized Jordan had been right all along. The glow-up wasn't about changing—it was about finding someone who loved your zombie mode just as much as your regular mode.