It didn’t work.

He lunged at me. I dodged his right hook in time for it to miss my eye, and instead it sent a searing pain into my jaw. The momentum threw me against the deck’s railing and knocked out my breath.

“Carter, stop!” Eliza ran behind us, while Austin held Carter back.

Carter shook him off. “Did you know about this?”

When Austin didn’t say anything, Carter scoffed. “Don’t know why I asked.”

Carter stepped back from the three of us, catching his balance on one of the stairs leading to Jeff’s backyard.

“This isn’t worth it.” Eliza’s voice cracked. “Carter, you’re being a dick.”

“Oh, I’m being a dick?” He looked at me, folded against Jeff’s house. “That is rich.”

My jaw throbbed, the pain building as Carter kept going. “Why couldn’t you tell me?” He asked. “Why’d you lie to my fucking face?”

Crickets coughed, waiting for me to answer. Because of this. “I’m sorry.”

The porch lights made Carter’s glare even more powerful. “The real irony, Nick? You’re the one who always brings up the Bro Code. A real bro wouldn’t pick a girl, my sister, or otherwise, over eighteen years of friendship.”

“No, Carter,” I said. “A real bro wouldn’t make me choose.”

Tears rolled off Eliza’s chin. “Please stop,” she said. “I can’t do this, you guys.”

“Have fun failing bio. I’m done,” said Carter. He turned to walk off the deck. Then out into the driveway. Then off to who knows where.

“Carter.” Eliza jumped after him.

He held out his arm. “I said I’m done.”

“Why can’t you be happy for me?” she cried, and I realized that while I’d seen the O’Connor siblings shout at each other before, I’d never seen either of them cry. “This is a good thing. We can all be happy together.”

I still crouched, trying to catch my balance. I wanted to stop him as much as she did. But I couldn’t move.

All I could do was play my final card, getting real skin in the game. If Carter could go there, then I could too.

“Sarah Rosen,” I called after him.

Austin, Eliza, and Carter each froze. “Don’t,” warned Austin.

“What?” asked Carter.

“You don’t get to lecture me about keeping secrets,” I said. “When you weren’t ever going to tell me what really happened. You can’t build a friendship on lies.”

“Good,” said Carter. “You’re starting to get it.” He stepped back into the shadows. “I’m going to miss hanging out with you, Maguire.” Finally, he relaxed his fists. “Always made me look so good.”

The entire school watched us from Jeff’s kitchen. None of them mattered. The key actors in this little drama were outside. One sobbed, one (me) was sprawled into the railing, one kicked the grass, swearing, and the other had run away. A long shadow stalking off into the night.

Done.

RULE NUMBER 20

A bro shalt not complain about working out.

I spent the next day in bed. My phone was annoying me with texts and DMs, and I’d thrown it to the other side of the room onto my dirty laundry. Apparently, this was the most interesting gossip to have hit Cassidy High since a few years before when this girl had tried to marry her stuffed animal. Apparently, her parents had officiated the wedding.