Zombie Mode at the County Fair

Maya hadn't slept since Thursday. Three days of finals, plus her crush on Jordan finally texting her back at 2 AM, left her operating on pure adrenaline and vanilla latte. She was a zombie, dragging her feet through the County Fair where she'd promised to help with the petting zoo setup.

"You look like you've seen one too many horror movies," Jordan said, appearing beside her. Maya's heart did that annoying fluttery thing. She'd finally had a conversation with Jordan at lunch yesterday—actual sentences exchanged, not just awkward nods in the hallway.

"Rough week," Maya managed, trying not to sound like her brain was swimming in fog. "What are you doing here?"

"Helping my uncle with the livestock exhibit." Jordan nodded toward the barns. "There's this huge bull that keeps giving everyone trouble. Name's Beefcake."

Maya snorted, then immediately regretted it. Smooth.

Suddenly, a golden retriever bolted past them, knocking over a bucket of fish food. "That's Mrs. Henderson's dog," Jordan sighed. "Third time today."

The dog careened toward the goldfish pond exhibit, where Maya had spent all morning setting up the tiny plastic bags. She sprinted after it, her zombie state somehow forgotten.

"No! Bad dog!" she yelled, but it was too late. The retriever leaped into the pond area, sending water everywhere. Several goldfish bags went flying.

Maya dove to catch them, but her foot caught on something. She went down hard, dignity gone, goldfish water dripping from her hair.

Strong hands pulled her up. Jordan stood there, grinning. "You okay?"

Maya wiped her face, realizing she was still holding two goldfish bags. A crowd had gathered. Great.

But then she started laughing. Couldn't help it. This was ridiculous, awful, perfect.

"You know," Jordan said, eyes crinkling, "most people would cry. You're laughing. That's... pretty cool."

Maybe being a zombie wasn't so bad. Sometimes you had to be half-asleep to find the courage to look like an idiot and not even care.

"Want help cleaning up?" Jordan asked.

"Only if you promise to keep Beefcake away from the goldfish."