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Nick realigned what he’d learned fro, his easy comfort ho he was They’d shared a est secret of his life You’re safe here

With a start, he realized that Adam’s one-liners could have been the sairls

He’d rushed into this with his emotions exposed and bare

He’d fallen for Adam’s quiet confidence, his dedication to dance and school, and his singular focus on what he wanted Nick had been all instinct and feeling and passion Ada to breakit to himself now, it felt like such a line

"Yowch!" Quinn said, sitting up straight and yanking her arm away "Holy crap, Nick!"

"Sorry," he muttered "Here I’ll be more careful"

"No--actually--I think it’s fine" She held her wrist out, running a finger along the s," he echoed "Yeah Right"

"What’s wrong?"

"A him in the darkness "I think I need more information"

"With Adam"

She was quiet for a minute He pulled up the driveway to his house and killed the engine They couldn’t sit here too long, but they could never finish this conversation in the house, so he waited with the keys in his hand, his eyes on the darkened dash

Quinn let out a slow breath "You really like him," she said softly "Like, full on hearts in your eyes, doodling your last nas up on the bench to sit cross-legged "Did you go back to his place?"

He winced, feeling like he was ad he shouldn’t "Yes"

"Was there ain, and he fiddled with the keys in his lap Was this how girls felt? He didn’t like it "Dead even"

"Did anyone’s clothes co it

God, this was so confusing He shouldn’t have throay the cup sleeve with Courtnie’s number That he kne to handle

But another part of hiainst the idea, like he’d cracked a door and his subconscious had wedged an ar

Quinn was quiet for a while "I’ve known Ada time," she finally said "But that doesn’t uys around the studio or anything--

but he never seeain?"

"I don’t know You called, and I left in a hurry He said he’d text es froirl, doesn’t it?" said Quinn

"Shut up" But yes It did

Nick tried to be quiet when he snuck Quinn into the house, but Hunter stirred and ran a hand across his face when they crept into the bedroom

His eyes widened fractionally when he saw Quinn, but he took it in stride "You guys wanthere, that’s all," said Nick

Hunter yawned and rolled over, turning his back on thee your mind"

Nick usually slept in a T-shirt and boxers, but out of defer-ence to Quinn’s presence in his bed, he pulled on a pair of threadbare sweatpants They changed in the dark, and then he drew back the blankets

Quinn slid in beside him She offered his h, but before he could react to that, she was pressed up against hi?" he whispered, controlling the air so the sound waves of their conversation wouldn’t carry to Hunter

"Coht here, it should at least look like we’re sleeping together"

Nick didn’t say anything, torn between protesting and thinking she had a pretty good point

Quinn snuggledher head on his shoulder "It’s not like you care, right? If you want uess it’s okay"

"Can you still fix my face?" Her voice was sleepy

"Sure," hepositionher cheek

She relaxed into him, so he fished for information "You never told me how you ended up with Tyler"

"I walked to the 7-Eleven He was there"

"You walked there alone?"

"I walk there all the ti such ayou?" For an instant, he wondered if Quinn had walked up and started hassling Tyler She wasn’t exactly subtle

"He wants to knohat happened at the carnival He said so about the Guides" She paused "The news said those explosions at the carnival were due to poor wiring"

"No That was Calla Dean She started those"

"Calla Dean!"

"Shh Yeah She was behind the arson attacks, too"

Quinn’s house had burned down in one of those arson attacks--it was the whole reason they were living in that daht that was Rick Stacey!"

"He helped, but she was the mastermind"

Quinn was silent for a minute She knew Calla Dean from school--but she didn’t know her well Calla had been one of the students who’d disappeared after the carnival, and everyone thought she was dead There was still a memorial of notes and pictures taped all over her locker