“It’s my first day. I…just…can’t do this.” My voice cracked with desperation.

“Okay, but when can I see you again?” His fingers circled my wrist. “This sounds impossible and you’re going to think this is a line, but I promise, it’s not—I feel a really intense connection to you. Tell me you feel it, too.”

Every ounce of me wanted to say yes, knew that he was going to be in my life; it was inevitable. But I needed to get away. To think. “Always leave them wanting more,” I said, imitating my mother’s most flirtatious smile. Detangling myself from his grasp, I found Peter and claimed girl problems as the reason I needed to be excused.

“Go ahead.” He waved me off like he expected me to cut class.

As soon as I was outside, I found a bench and sat. Closing my eyes, I breathed deep to slow my racing pulse.

So much for staying on Lil’s good side…

I’m in trouble.

Chapter Eight

August 23, 20X4

Truth: I am a person who will destroy someone else’s life to save my own.

“How’d you like Self-Awareness?” Lil asked, her eyes flitting over me.

We were eating lunch on the Boulevard, the resort-style oasis dotted with lush palms, yellow umbrellas, and wood loungers arranged around a kidney-shaped swimming pool that served as Intersection’s dining room.

I pressed my hands to my queasy stomach. “It was okay.”

“Didn’t you tell her about Adam?” Kylie whispered to Dee.

“It’s fine,” Lil said, sipping her sparkling water. “You’re new, so you get a pass. But trust me, you don’t want to let a boy come between us. It’s terrible for your numbers.” She stared at me until I blinked.

“Nothing happened, I promise,” I rushed to assure her. “It’s not like Adam chose me—Peter paired us up—and mostly he talked about surfing and how much he’d rather be doing that.”

“Ella, we all saw how you were looking at him like a lovesick puppy,” Lil said. “I get it. He’s hot. You’ve had your one pass, and now you’re over it, and it’s time to prove we can trust you.”

“Yes. You can trust me,” I said. “I’ll do anything.”

Lil and Kylie looked at each other and smiled.

“Is everyone’s Life Stream turned off?” Kylie asked.

I double-checked my wrist screen, even though I was positive my stream was off, and they all stared into space, their eyes blinking commands at whatever they were seeing through their AMPs.

“All good,” Deena said.

“Me, too,” Lil said.

I nodded.

Kylie turned to me, her eyes twinkling. “Do you have the Burble app?”

“No,” I said, slowly. “What’s that?”

“It’s an app that sends messages from a Network account that you choose—not from yours,” Lil said.

“Give me your wrist,” Kylie said. “I’ll download it for you.” She took my arm.

“I should mention, as a general rule, if you’re going to hang with us, you should keep your top on, and no sexting,” Lil said while the app downloaded. “You’ll see why in a second. Those pictures never die.”