Page 153 of Alphas Like Us

Oscar stares at him for a long beat. “More.”

Agreed. Jack is a huge part of the docuseries, and he’s in a top executiveposition.

I try to capture my sister’s attention, but she’s still purposefully avoiding my eyes. “Kinney,” Isay.

My sister takes a trained breath, and then peers up from her bowling shoes. “Don’t say it,” she tellsme.

“First,” I start out, “I don’t know why you didn’t tell me about your date, but you know I’m always here totalk.”

She rolls her eyes like I’m so embarrassing, but a shadow of a smile—one that she wouldn’t want me to see—starts inching up herlips.

“Second, you’re being a hypocrite,” I tell her bluntly. “You’re willing to kick out Farrow but you have adatewho’s also not here and she gets apass?”

“Shouldn’t you be happy for me?” she combats. “You’rethe one who told me to try seeing someone else after Viv left. So what do I do? I take your stupid advice and invite Hollyhere.”

“What’s wrong?” I ask her because she’s made a figurative turn and is starting to take deep, spastic breaths like she’s trying hard not tocry.

“Nothing is wrong,” she snaps back. “She’s just late like Farrow. And she’ll be here…she’s not standing me up,Moffy.”

“She’s not,” I agree, layering on the confidence forher.

“We just arrived; she’ll make it,” Oscaradds.

“Iknow that. But you both don’t know for sure,” she says flatly. When she gets upset, she goes into defense mode. Attack anyone in sight, and usually it’s me. She knows I can take herjabs.

Kinney swings her head to the wall clock. “How long do we have the alleyfor?”

“Don’t worry about that,” I say. “Can I have this girl’s number? Let me callher—”

“Over my rotting corpse,” sheglares.

“I can help,” I remind my sister and hold out my hand for herphone.

She considers for a long moment, then brushes me off coolly. Like none of this matters anyway, even though we all know that it does. “I’m not worried,” she says and looks around at the near-emptyspace.

My phone vibratesagain.

“Should we start without them?” she wonders as I read mytext.

Almost there–Farrow

My stomach and chest immediately lighten like a huge, immeasurable weight has vanished. I glance up at Kinney. “He’s going to be here soon,” I tell her. “Don’t give him a hard time. He already feelsbadly.”

“We’ll see,” Kinneysays.

The screen above the lanes illuminates with our names. As soon as I read it, Kinney and I both turn to Oscar who was in charge of giving the manager a list of the bowlingplayers.

He’s grinning into his sip ofbeer.

“Your membership has been revoked,” Kinney declares in adeadpan.

Oscar laughs and almost chokes on his beer. He sets it down. “Hale,” hestarts.

“Revoked,” she says and stands up. “I’ll be back.” She snatches up a drink menu from the table and eyes thebar.

“They’re not going to serve you alcohol,” I tell her, knowing she craves to be one of the “adults” but she’s onlythirteen.

“No duh,” she replies and gives me a look likeI’mthe absurd one. “But they have a drink called thebubbly cauldron. I’m going to convince the bartender to make me a nonalcoholic version.” She takes a deep breath and leaves us, confidence encasing her posture, despite potentially being stoodup.