LOGINDRE’S P.O.VThe line connects after a third call.“Hello?” I call impatiently. “Luke, are you there?”A few seconds pass, and I finally get a response, but it’s not Luke.“Hi, Andrea,” the soft-spoken person responds. I immediately recognise the voice; it’s Ian’s.My cheeks still burn when I recall our last conversation. Ian caught Luke and me messing around in the locker room, and I haven't known how to face him ever since.“Hi, Ian...can you put Luke on the phone?” Luke did mention he’ll be staying at Ian’s, but then he changed his mind. At least, I thought he did. Why else would he leave me here alone tonight?“Uh, he’s asleep. Is everything okay?”I swallow hard. I just want to know if he’s fine, from him and not Ian. But if he’s asleep at Ian’s, everything should be okay then.“Yeah, everything’s fine,” I assure, forcing lightness into my tone. I just wanted to know if he’s okay... that’s all. Sorry I called, good night—”“Wait,” he cuts in. My ears perk up. I strain
LUKE’S P.O.V For the next two hours, Ian and I spend it scrolling and analysing every single picture we can get of Nathaniel. Group photos, selfies, we even got our hands on some family photos. We go through his entire socials. Posts he uploaded himself, posts he was tagged in, every single one we can find. It gets to the point when we have to ask a few guys and a couple of his first to send pictures they have of him too. They did, we search through each one. At the end of it, we gathered close to three hundred pictures of Nathaniel, and not one of them has a single piece of jewellery we're looking for. A black plaited bracelet. Whoever is in that video with, Dre wore it. It’s the only clue I could find. The only other options to get to the bottom of this are worse. It's either we: A- break into Nathaniel’s room to see if it somehow resembles the room in the video. Or B- show Dre the actual video and ask her directly who the guy is. Ian suggests we do the latter. “It’s th
LUKE’S P.O.V I drive straight to Ian’s instead of Dre’s. I need to think. I need someone who isn’t going to look at me with the whole time with those big, trusting eyes and ask why I sound off. Ian’s house is dark except for the basement light. His parents are probably still out. I let myself in, as always and head downstairs. He’s sprawled on the old couch, controller in hand, some shooting game paused on the TV. “Luke? Grab the controller; I’m about to play another round,” he says, barely looking at me before fixing his eyes on the screen again. “I’m good.” Ian frowns then pauses the game. His eyes scan over me. "The fuck happened to you? You look pale.” I drop onto the beanbag across from him and pull out my phone. “They fucking texted again.” My hands are still shaking a little as I hand him the phone. “It’s not Nathaniel.” Ian sits up straighter his game forgotten. “How do you know? You said you were sure it’s him.” “Yes, because he's the only person
LUKE’S P.O.VThe first picture opens after what feels like forever. Dre’s in it, and it’s not what I feared it could be. My eyes narrows, straining to decipher the poorly shot image. It had obviously been taken in secret—the awkward angle gave it away. It’s Dre and me in the school's parking lot, together. I open the next one; it’s Dre and me in hallways. The next is Dre and me in the cafeteria during lunch. Dre and me sitting next to eachother in class. Dre and me driving out of school. Dre and me in the library. Dozens and dozens of pictures of Dre and me together. All at different days and times, all proving I didn’t stay away from Dre. Nathaniel comes to mind but Nathaniel’s in juvenile; phones aren’t allowed. It’s possible an outsider is helping him do this, or he’s not the sender.No, it has to be him; it’s the only logical option. He’s Dre’s ex; he's been with her; he already has a record of keeping sex tapes of girls in our class. He has a motive, and this is his way of
LUKE’S P.O.V “Did Darren Ford approach during your game, Lucas?” I’m back at the law office, meeting with Mr Reyes again, accompanied by my attorney, Ross. “He didn’t approach,” I answer. “What about your friends, anyone you know. Did he approach any of them?” I made sure to ask Dre and Halle, and they both assured me Darren didn’t say a word to either of them. Aside sitting behind them like a creep, that was it. “No, he didn’t speak to either of them.” “Has he tried to contact you since?” The attorney asks. “No, he hasn’t.” It doesn’t make sense. He’s been in hiding, or at least I thought he was, so why come back here? Why risk showing his face for a high school basketball game?” My phone buzzes loudly on the desk but I ignore it. Mr Reyes leans back in his leather chair, the wood creaking under his weight. Beside me, Ross looks over his notes, his pen tapping against his yellow legal pad. “He’s messing with you Lucas,” Ross says quietly, breaking the silence. “
LUKE’S P.O.V(PRESENT)Dre walks straight into my chest, wrapping her arms around my waist. She’d told me everything Ruth had told her this night. But even after listening to everything, every painful detail, I still don’t know how the hell to fix this. But I sure as hell don’t want her carrying any of it. She’d barely recovered from the last wave of insecurity a few days ago — where she convinced herself she wasn’t worthy of this, of us. It had taken nights of reassurance, of me holding her and repeating that she was it for me, before she finally started to believe she deserved this relationship.And now here comes another wave, heavier than the last.This time it’s the guilt — the heavy, crushing belief that she had ruined any chances of Ruth and me, when the chances have been zero from the start. That she was the reason everything had blown up, and no matter how much we had planned to tell Ruth the truth tomorrow, she had still become the girl who took what someone else wanted
DRE’S P.O.V My salad’s cold, I can barely eat a thing. I came to the cafeteria starved, but the moment I saw them, my appetite disappeared. Nate and Maddie are just a few tables away from me. He leans back against the wall near the vending machines. Maddie’s pressed up against him, her arms loo
LUKE’S P.O.V Dre sits cross-legged on the floor opposite me, scribbling in a notebook while she does homework. The medication had finally settled her, leaving her calmer and more focused than I’d seen in days. “Can you pass me my glasses on the table?” She asks, pointing toward the table witho
LUKE’S P.O.VShe stares at the small sealed bag in my palm. Two tiny white pills sit inside.Her jaw drops in shock.I press a finger to her lips, forcing her to close them again.“Before you say anything,” I start to say. “They’re clean. I wouldn’t give you anything sketchy.”“Xanax?” She whispers
LUKE’S P.O.V“Andrea,” Halle snaps.Dre and I halt mid-step. Halle’s supposed to be at work, but she’s home now—and neither of us knew.Dre’s eyes meet mine. Unlike her, I stay composed. We make our way to the living room, where Halle is seated, arms crossed.“So it’s true?” She asks the second we







