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“No, seriously, your whole vibe is vibing.” The redhead circled my face with her finger.
“Thanks. I’m Dylan.” I stuck out a hand.
“I’m Sadie.” The redhead grabbed it and tugged me into a hug.
“I’m Alix.” The blond pointed at herself.
“And I’m Gia.” The last girl hugged me too. She had an English accent and the impeccable posture of an athlete. She seemed vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t pinpoint where from.
I unzipped my Ziploc bag, handing Gia a friendship bracelet with the words “Dylan Thomas” on it. “Nice touch, amiright?” I winked, gesturing toward myself.
“The best.”
They gave me bracelets too.
I hurt my back moshing to Taylor Swift.
John Mayonnaise.
I am the exception.
Yes, I thought to myself. I’ve found my people.
Even though it wasn’t the same without Cal, I forced myself into easy conversation with the three friends—all college friends who came together once each summer to do something fun for the weekend, this year a TS concert—and ignored the constant pinging of my phone in my pocket, signaling Rhyland’s text messages from an unknown number begging to be heard.
I was going to hear him eventually, but not soon, and definitely not today. He’d publicly humiliated me by openly flirting with Claire Larsen—what was he thinking, doing that in front of Bruce Marshall?—and he clearly missed his scheduled flight, which means something kept him busy over there.
It was a reminder that men could not be trusted. Even if they gave you butterflies, feathery kisses, and the best orgasms of your lifetime.
For the next three hours, I drowned in the show, screaming the lyrics to “Look What You Made Me Do” and weeping to “cardigan.”
“Is your phone blowing up too?” Gia checked her phone for the millionth time. She, like me, wasn’t entirely focused on the show. She groaned at her screen, shaking her head, one thumb flying over the screen as she typed out a text.
“Everything okay?” Alix put a hand on her shoulder.
“Yeah. Just Tate being…Tate.”
“Ugh.” Sadie made a face. “That’s the worst state for him to be in.”
“I’m quite sure the worst state for him to be in is the one I’m physically in. Unfortunately, we’re both currently in New York.He lent his friend a private jet, because there’s a mini tornado in Texas and loads of flights got canceled. The friend is apparently trashing it because he’s going through some kind of mental breakdown?” Gia’s delicate eyebrows pulled together. “How is that my fault?”
A mini tornado?
Flights canceled?
My blood froze in my veins.
“Your boss is Tate Blackthorn?” I shifted my full attention from Taylor onstage to Gia.
“Hey, don’t hold that against me.” She scrunched her nose. “The benefits are great, and every time I try to quit, he raises my salary. Do you know him?”
“He’s friends with my boyf—” No. Rhyland wasn’t my boyfriend. We’d never discussed our official titles. “My neighbor.”
“That pause right there was giving,” Alix laughed.
“And…” I grimaced, feeling guilty for a reason beyond my grasp. “Did you say mini tornado? In Texas?”
“Yeah, it’s all over the news,” Alix said. “No casualties or people injured, thank God, but it’s looking awful. I’ve been checking the news hourly. Lots of damage to property.”