I click on the notifications before remembering I’m on Jordan’s account, not my own. Most of the notifications are tagged videos and photos from last night, and when I move to my profile I see I’ve been tagged in the same ones. We’ve been spoiled with hanging at the Jay Beach house, and I’ve let myself forget how well-recognized I am, especially in Summerside. Sure I noticed the phones on us last night, but it’s different from seeing a dozen tagged pictures and videos from strangers replaying my night. It’s not my privacy I’m concerned about though, and I search the comments for anything mean toward Jordan. There’s nothing like that, and while I’m relieved, I can’t help but find it disturbing how fickle the public can be about this stuff. It’s all based on images and some perception of reality that has little or nothing to do with the real story.

  She’s got some unread messages, but I put her phone back on the nightstand and lay my head back. Instead of dozing like I’m hoping, I start to wonder if she’s been getting threatening messages and not telling me about them. She kept them to herself last time. Before I can talk myself out of it, I’m checking her messages on Instagram. One of the unread ones is from Sydney, which is weird. Curiosity gets the best of me and I open the message.

  Thanks for talking to us yesterday. We’ve already got some ideas about who’s behind the razzleydazzles account. What was the name of the other one again?

  That has me frowning. Why would she be talking to Sydney about this? Is she still worried about those accounts? I don’t see any messages from either of them. As far as I can tell, bubblerollie is long gone and if Razzle is still at it, her focus is Griffin, not Jordan. Besides, it seems pretty clear that it’s Fliss.

  I scroll down, seeing some messages from girl skateboarders admiring her, but more messages from dudes coming on to her. Some are crude and some are lame, but it all makes my blood boil. Why is she even opening these? I’ve got mine set so I only see messages from people I follow, unless I manually approve the message. Early on I replied to all the fans but that’s been impossible for months now, and I certainly don’t open ones with a sketchy vibe.

  I glance down at Jordan sleeping peacefully on me, and realize we’ve both been avoiding talking about social media. It’s a sore spot in our relationship, a delicate topic.

  I’m not real proud of myself for going into her Instagram, but then a text comes through from Davis Surfer. The dude’s last name is Caine, not Surfer, and while it probably means she forgot his last name or hasn’t bothered to update the contact info, my pulse is already high from reading messages from strange guys. Jordan didn’t respond to any of those, but Davis? What is he doing texting her on a Friday morning? He saw me last night, and I think he left earlier than most of us, but he’s got to know I’m in bed with her right now.

  It’s too late to go back now that I’ve gotten the alert so I click on the message.

  Hey give me a call when you get a chance.

  I don’t like it. I really don’t like it. Sure, there isn’t a single other text in their history, and that means she hasn’t messaged him since getting this new phone back in January or whenever it was. Unless she deletes her messages. Where is this paranoia coming from? Am I that messed up from my relationship with Kelly? And if I am, why am I the one suddenly acting the way my ex would in this situation? I’m already out of bed, walking down the hallway to the bathroom for a private conversation. I’ve never thought of myself as an overbearing boyfriend, but as I hit the call button on Davis’s name, I know that’s exactly the role I’m playing right now.

  Davis answers on the first ring and my irritation skyrockets to a level usually reserved only for my dad.

  “Jordan?”

  “No, it’s Beck.”

  “Oh, uh, hey Beck. I take it you got the text I just sent?”

  “Yeah, I did. Jordan’s still asleep. I was in bed with her when it came through.” I know I sound like an asshole, but I’m leaning into it right now, not even feeling that bad.

  “Right. Yeah, I guess a text from me asking her to call didn’t sound good then, huh? Sorry man, it’s not what you think.”

  Did he really just say that? A harsh laugh comes from my belly and it doesn’t sound like me at all. “Why did you need her to call, Davis?” I mean, if the guy is actually trying to go behind my back with Jordan, he really sucks at it. But even as I recognize how unlikely that scenario is, I still feel like I’ve got a right to play this role right now. It’s necessary. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I let a text like that slide? Maybe I shouldn’t have been on her phone in the first place, but still.

  “You know that Sydney girl?’

  “Yeah, I know her.”

  “She showed up where I get coffee every morning and I don’t think it was an accidental run-in.”

  “Okay. What’d she want?” My free hand grips the counter as I remember the message from Sydney on Instagram.

  “Not real sure. One of the strangest conversations of my life. I’ve only hung out with her a handful of times over the summer through Lucy, and I can’t say I know her well. But she was asking me some weird questions.”

  “Like what?”

  Davis clears his throat. “Like if I’ve got a girlfriend. If I’ve dated anyone since – uh – since last fall. I’ll just say it, dude, because I think it has to do with you or your girlfriend. She wanted to know if I was hung up on Jordan and had some big thing for her. Or if I had any vendetta against you. I’m not and I don’t, by the way. No clue where it was coming from.”

  “That’s fucked up.” I’ve got no clue where it’s coming from either.

  “I get why you called and I don’t blame you. But I thought we were past that. It was a year ago and nothing really happened.”

  “Yeah, I’m past it.” I thought I was too, and while this phone call is messed up, I’m feeling pretty damn confident Davis isn’t a threat.

  “I haven’t talked to Coby yet, I think he’s with Lucy at her place. Maybe they’ve got some clue what that ambush was about, but I wanted to give Jordan a heads up.”

  “Thanks,” I say reluctantly.

  “All good? Need me to do anything?”

  “No, just call me if anything like this comes up again.” I’ll sound like an insecure shithead if I ream him for texting Jordan after learning what it was about.

  “I don’t think I have your number.”

  “I’ll send it to you.” He gets what I’m saying. And he seems to respect it. We’re going to be running in the same circles, and there’s no reason to create unnecessary tension. I hate that the dude touched Jordan and had his lips on hers, but it was a year ago, and it ended before it really began. Maybe if there’d been lots of guys before me it’d be better, or maybe worse, I’ve got no idea.

  The door to the bathroom opens. “Beck? What are you doing in here?” Jordan’s voice is groggy and disoriented. She rubs her eyes.

  “I was just on the phone and didn’t want to wake you. Come on, let’s go back to bed.”

  “Okay, meet you in a sec. Just need to go first.”

  She gestures to the toilet and I move out of her way to meet her back in bed. When she climbs in next to me a minute later, she doesn’t lie back down, but sits beside me.

  “Who were you on the phone with? Did you borrow mine? I’m really sorry about killing yours.”

  I’m not real eager to hit her with questions when she’s barely awake, but I’m not about to start lying to her either.

  “It was Davis, actually.”

  She furrows her brow. “You called Davis?”

  “He texted you asking you to call him, so I called him.”

  “You checked my messages?”

  “I was on your phone checking Instagram when it came through.” I should apologize, but for some reason I don’t. “I guess Sydney ran into him at a coffee shop, or followed him there, and asked him a bunch of weird questions.”

  Jordan groans and throws herself onto her pillow. “That girl is a nightmare.”

  “Do you know what it was about?”

  “She talked to me after class yesterday. She’s in my econ lecture, with Fliss and Daisy too. All three of them talked to me about how they don’t want to be on the outs with my friends, mainly you and your crew. It’s bad for the sorority and they’ll be outcasts in their sorority world if the hottest club – the Jay Beach house, I guess – gives them the red light. That’s how they see it.”

  “So, what do they want from you, exactly?”

  “They want to help find the person behind the Razzle account so that we don’t think it’s Fliss anymore. And the person behind the other one who got real threatening, bubblerollie. I guess they’re now harassing people as part of their investigation. What a mess.”

  “You told them to go for it?”

  “I can’t remember exactly how I responded, because then Sydney told me about Brie and Zora and I was all distracted. How does she know about that, anyway?”

  “Maybe they were out somewhere together and she saw them.”

  “Or she’s spying on the Jay Beach house.”

  “I doubt it. The place is surrounded by a giant fence. We had to keep it private during filming.”

  “Yeah, and we know how easy it is to climb fences.”

  “Are you still worried about those accounts?” I push. “We haven’t talked about it, but they haven’t been in touch with you, right? You don’t have anyone making threats anymore?”

  She shakes her head. “No. I really don’t. It’s like I got a fresh start when I came back with a new account. Maybe people like you better with me than with Camila, or maybe they’re more interested in my skateboarding and coming back from a head injury than my relationship status. Plus there isn’t any of that speculation about me being with Griff. That definitely fueled the fire.”

  “You’ll tell me if that changes, right?”

  “Yeah, Beck, you’ll be the first to know.”

  Deciding to let the messages from the guys hitting on her go, I tell her the news I’ve been waiting to share with her in person.

  “Good, because I have another big public appearance coming up and I want to be able to talk freely about you, about us.”

  “Oh yeah, what is it?”

  “I’ll be a guest on the Eileen Delarosa Show.”

  “What? No way. You’re kidding me, right?”

  “No, I got invited yesterday.”

  Jordan squeals. “Can I come? Can I sit in the audience?” For a girl who doesn’t get fired up about much that doesn’t have to do with skateboarding, it’s damn cute to see her like this. But I have to shake my head.

  “It’s at the same time as Fusion Bowl in Vancouver. I really think you should go to that before the X Games. It’ll be good to have another major contest behind you.”

  She puts out her lower lip in a pout. “My first contest without you then, huh? I guess I need to put on my big girl panties.”

  Reaching for her, I hook my fingers through her underwear. “Not yet. Let’s take them off first.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Jordan

  I always feel more womanly after Beck makes love to me. I’ve never been much of a girly girl, whatever that term encompasses. I can admire put-together girls with beautiful hair and makeup, manicured and stylish, but never had enough interest to embrace that side of femininity. I like my clothes and hair functional, though according to Zora I do have a style, but anything I express with it is entirely unintentional. In any case, after a morning in bed with Beck, I feel like wearing a dress. Sure, I pull on spandex shorts underneath just in case a skateboarding opportunity presents itself, but this is my version of feeling womanly.

  Beck comes up behind me and kisses me on the shoulder. “No boyfriends allowed to brunch, huh?”

  “Or girlfriends. But I think all of you crashed here last night so the four of you can go have your own heart to heart if you want,” I offer.

  “That’s all right. I should get a little work done anyway.”

  Our favorite brunch spot, The Mecca, is still crowded on a weekday but we’re able to get a table after just a short wait. I’m expecting the focus to be on Zora but she fires the first question, wanting to know how Sydney was the one to spill the beans. I fill them in on the conversation, and they aren’t too thrilled I never mentioned before that our three favorite sorority girls are in class with me.

  “Until yesterday, I’ve mostly only hung out with Brie at the Jay Beach house. She came here once but we were basically at the condo pool the entire time.” Zora frowns. “I guess we went surfing at the beach one other time. Maybe that’s where she saw us.”

  “I should’ve asked how she knew, but I was caught off guard and still half thinking about their weird proposition.”

  Lucy puts down her menu. “It’s weird, but not totally unexpected for them.” She shifts her attention to Zora. “Talk to us. How did you and Brie happen?”

  Zora leans back in her seat, holding her mug between her hands. “I’ve always been interested in girls as well as guys. I’ve had crushes on both since I was a kid.” She looks at me. “These two already know, but I’ve been with girls a couple of times. I guess I assumed I was bi, but now that I’ve met Brie… I’m thinking I’m more lesbian.”

  There’s a beat of silence before Ellie asks, “You’re not sure?”

  “I just know I’m totally into Brie and being with anyone else doesn’t interest me at all.” She shrugs. “I’ve never felt more like myself. We click.”

  “I’m really happy for you,” I reiterate my sentiments from yesterday. The nuances of her sexuality aren’t important, even if I’m sure I’m not the only one of the three of us a little curious about the lack of clear distinction. She’s found her person, and that’s what matters.

  “When did things start happening between you two?” Lucy asks.

  “Your birthday party.” Zora pauses, and then amends, “Well, I guess at Southskate is when I started really crushing on her. But we kissed for the first time at the birthday party.”

  “How’d we miss this?” Ellie wonders.

  Zora shrugs. “It was in the pool after you all went to bed.” Zora sighs like she’s remembering the moment, and then she smirks at me. “Remember when we dragged you here, ran into Griffin for the first time, and then decided you’d get some kissing practice from him?”

  “I can’t believe I told you guys about my first kiss disaster and lack of experience after just meeting you,” I say on a groan.

  Lucy laughs softly. “I’d say we all clicked, in the friendship way, just like Zora and Brie clicked in the kissy way.”

  Zora almost chokes on her coffee. “The kissy way? Really? Is that what we’re calling it, Lucy?”

  “Well, what do you want to call it?”

  Ignoring their banter, Ellie raises her orange juice glass. “Hey, let’s toast to clicking with people. The kissing-way or kissing-advice way, whatever.”

  We all raise our cups of juice or coffee for a toast. By some mutual agreement, we don’t touch on heavier topics the rest of the meal, and instead chat and laugh about everything from the shenanigans that went down last night to our plans for the rest of the semester. They want to come to Fusion Bowl in three weeks to watch me compete, especially when I tell them Beck can’t come. But then I decide to tell them why Beck can’t come – that he’ll be on the Eileen Delarosa Show – and their priorities change real quick.

  “Can we get tickets?” Lucy asks, bouncing in her seat.

  “Where are your loyalties?” I tease. “I thought you wanted to come support me at Fusion Bowl?”

  Zora waves a hand. “You’ll be fine. How do we get tickets to the show?”

  Chuckling, I promise to ask Beck about it. We’ve paid the bill and I’m already thinking about heading to Jay Beach with Beck to work on my 720 this afternoon. Lucy and I start to slide out of the booth, but before we can, someone drops in next to me. I note Lucy’s eyes flash before I turn to find Sydney beside me. She’s glancing all around the restaurant and ducking low.

  “What are you doing?” Zora’s tone is a mixture of hostility and curiosity.

  “I think you were right about Fliss.” Sydney’s voice is quiet, and her eyes continue to dart around like she thinks we’re being watched.

  “Uh, yeah, we know,” Ellie says, annoyance dripping from her voice.

  “But you want proof, right?” Sydney pushes, sounding a little frantic.

  My friends all look at me to respond, and I shrug, not sure I want to commit to a response. Of course proof would be nice, but I don’t want to encourage Sydney after hearing about her encounter with Davis this morning. Besides, I don’t trust her.

  “It’s less than twenty-four hours since you told me you wanted to find the real person, or people, behind the accounts who threatened me. Your motivation was to get the sorority and Fliss – and yourself, I guess – off our shit list, right?”

  Sydney is rubbing her teeth along her bottom lip and she nods slowly at my question.

  “And now you’re turning on Fliss? I’m having trouble keeping up here.”

  Ellie snorts beside me, but I’m not trying to be funny.

  Zora hasn’t stopped scowling. “And we already know it’s Fliss. We don’t need you to tell us what we already know.”

  “But what if I can prove it?”

  “I don’t know that I really care anymore,” I say truthfully. “I just want to put it behind me.”

  Sydney’s eyes cut to mine. “If that were true, you wouldn’t have kicked us out of your birthday party.”

  Ellie growls from my other side. “I think this conversation is over. And for the record, Jordan isn’t the one who kicked you out. Griff and Beck aren’t fans of Fliss either, stalker or not.”

  Lucy and Zora are already standing up, and Syd is clearly reluctant to let the conversation end on this note. Eventually she stands up too, allowing me and Ellie to slide out after her.

  Zora seems intent on getting to the car and leaving without another word, and Ellie is forging ahead too. I sense Lucy beside me glance back at Sydney though. As we reach Zora’s car, I follow Lucy’s gaze. Sydney is standing on the sidewalk, arms at her sides, looking a little lost. It’s hard not to take pity on her, but even Lucy, the most likely of all of us to extend an olive branch, seems resolved not to fall into another trap. It’s not until we’re in the car and pulling away that she finally voices her thoughts. “I don’t trust her. I don’t know what this is about – getting our friendship back, redeeming her status in her sorority, or finding her way into the Brazen crew’s good graces – but I’m not giving her an inch.”