“Oh, but not the Eve Lom,” Ainsley said, lifting a hand. Brooke shot her a look, and Ainsley stuck her lip out. “Fine, deal. No conditions.”

I was sorely tempted to snatch up the Eve Lom cleanser just to make a point. But I settled for a tinted moisturizer that was more my shade than Ainsley’s anyway, and a perfume sample, ignoring Brooke’s side-eye.

What could I say? Something about having Brooke nearby made me want to spread love.

It was a good thing she was so often nearby.

And damned if I was going to let Alexander Brougham mess with that.

THREE

Self-Analysis:

Darcy Phillips

Have known I was bisexual since I was twelve and I got so invested in a female character from a kids’ show my stomach fluttered whenever she was on-screen, and I used to think about her when I fell asleep.

Despite the above, have never even kissed a girl. To be fixed.

Have kissed a guy, once, in a Target parking lot. He flicked his tongue in and out of my mouth without warning like it was a hole he’d been assigned to jackhammer.

Despite the above, still definitely get crushes on guys, too.

Almost-definitely in love with Brooke Nguyen.

Believe love can be simple … for other people.

The Queer and Questioning Club—or Q&Q Club, as anyone who didn’t have time for seven syllables called it—held meetings every Thursday lunch in classroom F-47. Today, Brooke and I were the first ones to arrive, and we set about pulling the chairs into a semicircle formation. We knew the drill.

Mr. Elliot burst in a minute after we had things set up, looking frazzled as usual, carrying a half-eaten rye sandwich. “Thank you, ladies,” he said, shuffling through his messenger bag with a free hand. “I got held up by a crazed fan. I told him I didn’t have time for autographs, but he started raving that I was his ‘teacher’ and I needed to ‘sign his pass’ so he could ‘access the music room.’ The demands of fame, am I right?”

Mr. Elliot was one of the youngest teachers in the school. Everything about him screamed “approachable,” from his twinkling eyes, to his deep dimples, and his soft, rounded edges. He had dark brown skin, a pigeon-toed gait, and a chubby baby face that probably got him carded about as often as the seniors. Also, not to be dramatic, but I would have killed for him.