MasukNina The warm summer breeze brushed across my skin as I stood on the patio, clutching my robe tightly around my body. Laughter and splashes echoed up from the pool below, where our friends were already gathered for our big end-of-summer party. I should have been down there too, soaking up the ve
“What... what do you mean?” He braced his hands on the doorframe, leaning in closer with a heavy sigh. “I mean, by the time I caught up to them this morning, I only saw them long enough to get that photo before they were boarding a speedboat and taking off. Hell, I’m still not even totally sure wh
Nina My breath caught in my throat as I pulled open the front door expecting to see excited party guests, only to be immediately met with the sight of Luke’s grim expression. His brow was furrowed in a deep frown, his lips pressed into a tight line—clear signs that something was very wrong. “Luk
Nina I huffed out a breath as I hoisted the oversized cardboard box higher in my arms, carefully navigating my way through the living room. Strings of fairy lights poked out haphazardly from the top, and I could feel the weight of glass jars and other assorted decor inside shifting precariously wi
Then, at the last possible second, the scout seemed to find an extra burst of speed. He surged forward, hurtling between two towering oak trees and vanishing into the cover of the forest beyond. “Dammit!” I slammed my palms against the rough bark of the nearest trunk, powerless to do anything but
Enzo The crunch of leaves and snap of twigs echoed through the trees as Matt and I tore after the Schreiber scout. Our breaths came in ragged gasps, the hot summer air burning our lungs. Overhead, a little red bird chirped and flitted through the green canopy of trees; Daphne. But even she wasn’
Nina “Fine,” Selena said, slowly lowering the knife. “I’ll go with you.” I let out a relieved sigh at Selena’s words and smiled gently, then led her over to the door and opened it for her. She stepped out into the hallway, still avoiding eye contact, and walked alongside me with her head down. As
“Was he always like this when he coached you guys on the hockey team?” I asked, turning to look up at Matt.Matt chuckled wryly and nodded. “Yeah, actually,” he said. “Maybe not quite this bad. But when we first started out, none of us were very good, and we had some people on our team who weren’t v
“If I were Selena, where would I be…” I whispered to myself as I jogged across campus. I knew that she couldn’t be in her dorm, as Luke would have looked there first. I decided to try the lecture halls first, since they had no windows and had desks to hide under. Plus, she knew those rooms well comp
NinaEnzo and I both looked at each other, our eyes wide and our mouths open.“How long until they get here?” Enzo asked, quickly stepping out of the rink and going over to the bench to remove his skates. I followed, although when I tried to untie my skates, my hands were shaking so much that I coul







