Once we were going, he noted, “You were quiet tonight.”

I yawned, slouching down in my seat, getting comfortable. “I’m fine.”

“You sure?”

I nodded. I was. I didn’t know why, but I was. Rolling my head toward him, I asked, “Where are we headed?”

“I thought maybe we’d go to our spot.”

Oh.

“That sound okay with you?”

It wasn’t the same as the pride I’d felt at dinner, but another warm sensation flooded me. I knew I was smiling, and I was staring, and I didn’t care. Going to our spot would be the perfect ending to the night.

I said as much. “I think that sounds great.”

We both fell silent until we’d settled in to watch over my old house.

As I curled down next to Cross, my eyes growing heavy, I couldn’t help but think that tonight had been one of the best I’d had in a while.

“What are you doing with my cousin?”

Two days later, I was grabbing my books out of my locker when Alex came up behind me. Déjà vu hit me, hard.

I turned around. This couldn’t be right.

He couldn’t be asking me that question.

Nope. It was.

“Are you kidding me?” I growled, slamming my locker shut.

My response quieted the entire hallway. My needle that went from caring, to kinda caring, to beyond caring, to not giving a shit—it went straight from lying dormant all the way to soo not giving a shit. It didn’t matter who watched this scene play out, because it was high-time something happened to Alex.

“You’re in my face?!” I asked him. “After what your crew did?”

He glowered back at me, looking like he’d been forced to seek me out and wanted to be anywhere else. His forehead creased. “I got my ass kicked on two occasions now because of you. That has to count for something. My own cousin beat me up.”

I closed my eyes and waited. I counted to five before I looked at him again.

“You’re an idiot. Are you aware of that?”

Alex tipped his head back.

Yes. Apparently, I was the one irritating him. So silly of me.

I was starting to feel a little reckless. It’d been nagging me, for reasons I didn’t understand. Maybe I’d been waiting to be called to the office after the teacher/security video thing earlier this week. Or maybe all the stuff with Cross had filled my head with confusing thoughts and more confusing feelings. Or maybe it was because I’d been watching this fucker walk around the school, and every day that he thought he got away with hurting me, he got more and more cocky.

“Alex, do you know what your problem is?” I didn’t wait for him to respond. “Because you do have one, and that’s why you’re tangling with my crew. It’s not actually me.”

“Yeah, it is.” He flicked a hand toward me, short and dismissive. “It’s because you’re in a crew, you’re in that crew, and you’re a female. I wouldn’t have these problems if you were a guy.”

I’d expected an idiotic response. I got an asinine one instead. Goddamn, he was pissing me off. Anger rolled over in my stomach, but I didn’t move.

If I moved, I’d attack.

“You are the reason the term victim-blaming was created,” I said slowly.

He frowned. “Huh?”

I couldn’t. Not today.

Calm down, Bren. Calm down.

He gave me a look. “I know your crew is looking to work us over. I got that coming. I know that. I’m okay with it. I started both fights, so we get the payback. But my question stands. What are you doing with my cousin?”

“You’re all caring and concerned now?”

Alex shrugged. “I can just tell. Something’s off with him, and the only thing he’s had a crab crawled up his ass about is you and your crew.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “So what is it? What’d you do?”

I could only stare for a moment. Then I laughed. I cursed in my head. And I went back to laughing. I finished up by shaking my head. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

“I—”

I shot forward, shoving my face right in his. “You touch me without permission. You touch me a second time without permission. You and your crew jump me. Then you come up to me and ask what I did to your cousin?” My hand flexed. I wanted to shove him into the lockers so bad, but that’d be a fight. My ribs ached at the thought of it.

I looked him up and down. “Here’s a solid piece of advice from me. Don’t think for yourself. Find someone smart, and every time you have to make a decision or have to figure something out, ask them. Then go with what they say. Get a new brain, because you’re on a bad path—for yourself and your crew.” I wanted to say more, throw the drug business in there. But I kept quiet. I had to.

That was for later, much later.

His eyes went flat. “What’d you say?”

“You heard me.”

“Say it again.” His nostrils flared.

“I’ll do better.” My smile wasn’t pretty. “You’re a hothead. You didn’t earn your spot. You inherited it, and you’re pissing it away. If your crew doesn’t check you, the rest of us will.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” I narrowed my eyes.

He was in my face now. I stood my ground, willing myself not to lunge at him. I could slice him, get in a good nick on his side, and I didn’t think my ribs would protest too much.

“Do we have a problem here?”

I cursed.

Principal Neeon’s voice boomed from down the hallway. As soon as he spoke, everyone else in the hall stopped to look. Only a few had already been watching. Alex’s crew was hanging back, shielding us from an audience. That was done now.

People pulled out their phones.

I guessed I had about a minute before someone from my crew showed up.

“No problem, sir.” Alex turned to face Neeon as he got to us, pushing through the crowd.

“Why do I think that’s total bullshit, along with the weird coincidence of our security videos losing an hour of footage the other day, the exact same day our guards were sent on a wild goose chase?” He stared at me.

I didn’t react. I didn’t do anything.

When we’d gone back to class that day, no one had said a thing. Mr. Jenston finished teaching the class like nothing happened. When the last bell sounded and we filed out, it was the twilight zone—eerily silent and calm. Word had gotten around, and I got looks as I walked to my second class.

Cross told me after school that someone had said something by the end of the day. He’d walked past the office and saw staff bunched over the security video cabinet.

Hearing Principal Neeon’s words now, I knew they were aware something had happened, but they didn’t quite know what to look for. Good. Because there was nothing for them to find.

“Look, Mr. N, we were just talking,” Alex said, motioning toward me. “You can’t write us up for that.”

“I could write you up for having an attitude.” His jaw clenched.

I didn’t know what Principal Neeon would or could do, but I sensed his desperation. There was rage in there too, just under the surface. I wondered, for the first time ever, if he’d get angry enough to go outside the system.

No.

I dismissed that idea. I was overreacting. He wouldn’t do anything. He couldn’t do anything… Unless… I noticed the phones pointing in our direction.

Sick dread pooled at the bottom of my stomach.

We hadn’t been watching on Wednesday. Someone could’ve pulled out a phone. We could’ve been recorded. There could be evidence out there right now. It still might not show what had actually happened, but they wouldn’t care. They never did.

“Come on, Mr. N.” Alex tried again. “We’re just chilling.”

“Stop trying to bullshit me, Mr. Ryerson. I’m well aware of the confrontations between you and Miss Monroe lately.” He pointed to the cameras in the corner. “Don’t forget those are there. They’re there for a reason—safety for the other students and for you all as well.” His eyes lingered on me, falling to my ribs.

“What’s going on?”