“You know, I don’t know.” Imogen pressed her tongue up against the back of her teeth as she thought for a moment. “Right now it feels like forever. But when I think about it, I know that there was a time before, you know?”

“A time before?” Art Boy’s focus was intense. Like he didn’t look at many people, but when he did, it was with his whole being.

“Yeah,” said Imogen. “What about you?”

He thought about that for a moment. His eyes went up; he bit his lip. Then he relaxed his whole expression and began to speak. “Sure, it was this morning. Before I found out what Daniella and Eli were up to.”

“Oh God. What is it?” She felt the need to kiss her fingers, to touch her forehead, to touch the sky. Cool Girl and Eli always reminded Imogen of an engine—one spark would get the whole motor running. Alone they were trouble. Together, they were combustible chaos.

He raked his hands through his too-long hair, getting it out of his eyes. “It’s just, did you know the bookstore was going to close?”

Imogen turned and stared at him. Combustible. Chaos. “When did you find this out?”

“Fifteen minutes ago.” He shrugged. It could have been the nonchalant shrug of an art boy who didn’t care. But it wasn’t that. That the shrug didn’t mean It doesn’t matter. No, it said, It matters more than I know how to say, more than I have words for.

Imogen wondered if he actually was a real art boy, or if she’d just slotted him into a category because of his disheveled hair and his worn-in jeans and his quiet demeanor. In that moment, he could have been anyone. But he wasn’t anyone. And he wasn’t Art Boy, either. He was AJ, plain and simple.

“How?” Imogen didn’t know why she asked it. But she needed something to say. Some time to process her thoughts. Some way to delay the truth from sinking into her own mind.

“Ask Daniella about it. She and Eli have a whole scheme to fix it.”

“What kind of scheme?”

AJ shrugged again—that shrug that spoke volumes and refused to be silent—and said, “Ask them yourself. I don’t think it’s my secret to tell, even if I don’t think it’ll stay a secret much longer. It’s too big for that.”