Page 121 of Riot Rules

“Won’t be a second!” I turn on Wren and bare my teeth. “What the fuck are you doing here? And why the fuck did youhitme?”

Wren’s eyes are blazing balls of green fire. “Why do you think,Poindexter? You get up and sneak out of the fucking house at three o’clock in the morning? Without saying goodbye? No way, dude. I’ve been a jackass for a long time now, but things are changing. I’m changing. You’re changing. Whether he likes it or not, Pax is gonna have to change a little, too.”

“Fuck, you didn’t bring him with you, did you?”

“No! Do Ilookstupid? You, bailing halfway through senior year is like his parents announcing they’re getting a divorce on Christmas fucking morning. He doesn’t know a thing about this, and I plan on keeping it that way.”

“His dad’s dead.”

“What?!”

“That doesn’t matter right now. Look, you can’t keep it from him forever. He’ll put two and two together eventually, when he realizes I haven’t been around for a couple of weeks.”

“You’re not going anywhere, dude. Just grab your shit and let’s go.”

“This is a final boarding call for Advantage Airlines flight seven three zero from Boston to London. Would all remaining passengers please head to gate fifty-three immediately. Again, this is the final boarding call for Advantage Airlines flight seven three zero from Boston to London.”

“Wren, seriously. I mean it, man. I really have to go.” I grab him and I pull him into a hug. I think I surprised him, because he just stands there at first, like a wooden post, stiff and uncomfortable. I squeeze him, about to release him, and he finally hugs me back.

He lets me go, holding me at arm’s length. “Just one more second,” he says.

“Wren! I—”

He spins me around, and the world stands still.

“Dashiell Lovett, please make your way to gate fifty-three. Dashiell Lovett to gate fifty-three. This is a final boarding call.”

The boarding bridge that leads to the plane is less than twenty feet away, but my entire world stands between it and me.

Unruly curls.

NASA t-shirt.

Maroon jeans.

Bright yellow Chucks.

MyStellalooks up at me, forehead creased, brows drawn, a sea of panic in her beautiful, liquid brown eyes. “I looked it up,” she whispers.

I can’t speak. I stare at her in astonished silence.

“The math. I…looked up the math,” she continues. “And, while theoretical paradox-free closed time-like curves are technically possible…I doubt that any discoveries made in the next forty or fifty years will lead to the practical implementation of time travel.”

“Oh.” I’m so hot all of a sudden. “Well, that sucks.”

Carina nods. “And I got to thinking anyway. I don’t want to waste a lifetime working on a fix for something that’s already happened. I think…”

My pulse slows. “What do you think?”

She looses a breath, frustrated. “I think past experience is valuable. An opportunity to learn from our mistakes. I think that going back is impossible, and even if it was possible, we shouldn’t do it. We should move forward and create new beginnings instead of trying to re-create old ones.”

The airport see-saws in my vision. TheAdvantage Airlineslogo wobbles and distorts over Carrie’s shoulder. Wren blurs and fades into a dark smudge. All I see is Carrie. I take a cautious, hopeful step toward her. “Maybe you could put that into layman’s terms for me. What are you saying,Stella?”

She worries at her thumbnail, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. “I’m saying…that I’m selfish. I’m saying don’t go to London yet. Stay here and finish out the year.With me. I’m saying…let’s learn from our mistakes and grow. I’m saying let’s create anewbeginning.”

Overhead, another call goes out for flight seven three zero to London. My name blasts out across the concourse, ringing in my ears, but none of it registers. Carrie worries at her thumb nail, peering up at me, her face full of fear. “Well? Aren’t you going to say somethi—”

I close the distance between us and fold her into my arms, pulling her to me. My mouth is on hers, the scent of her filling my head, the warmth of her thawing out the block of ice in my chest, and I’m kissing her. Fuckingfinally, I’m kissing her.