I think it's time I cleared something up for you. I'm not who (or the people) you think I am. I'm not Jun, Fleur or Frankie. They, like a few others, are just pawns in a game. Same with Jessica, who came running to your place on Friday! You see, secrets are delicious (when they're in the right plate, with the right condiments, on the right person's table, of course), and when you eat them right, they do you good, and they make you strong and healthy.

Poor Beau. And, ooh, your brother has anger issues, just hitting someone like that! Well, that's for later. What I want you to do today is ask Viola about her Internet friend. Here's what I'd be putting on at HalloWiener. See you there!

Beau's notes were making Bella realize something she wasn't ready to admit.

They were there in an old shoebox, staring up at her, tempting her to read them when she was supposed to be putting her homework in her backpack and heading for school. And they weren't just tempting. They were also eye-opening.

She took one of the notes and unfolded it, her eyes immediately devouring every word on the paper. Her heart embraced every letter that made it beat faster, and her mind accepted the beauty of the days they slipped notes into each other's lockers.

It was true. She actually loved someone, and as unreal as it felt to her, she knew it was real. So why was she refusing to talk to him?

The sound of the door opening made her put the note back in the shoebox, then put the shoebox away. When she stood and turned around, she saw her cousin sitting on the edge of her bed, her feet in fluffy bunny slippers.

"Hey," Maggie-Lyn said in a fragile voice, but Bella ignored her and walked to her backpack.

She put the books on her study table in it, then her laptop, which reminded her that she had a lot of explaining to do before she could ask Viola for the answers YWN wanted.

"Those pants look nice on you," Maggie-Lyn tried again, and Bella released a frustrated sigh before walking to her mirror to check if her eyes were swollen.

"Thanks," she replied, hoping it would make her leave her alone.

But it didn't. "You're ready early."

"I'm walking."

Maggie-Lyn nodded, then stared at her slippers for a while. When she spoke, her voice trembled. "I was jealous of you, that's why I did it."

Bella stopped what she was doing so she could listen, but didn't turn to her. Everyone seemed to be jealous of her these days.

Maggie-Lyn continued, "I started YouTubing before you did and I wanted it to be my thing. When you reached a million subscribers in two years, you don't know how jealous I was. Literally Maggie has been existing for three years now, and I just have seven hundred and five thousand subscribers.

"I was mad you took my thing and started doing better than me, so I got another phone and opened another Instagram account—beccaeverything."

Bella turned to her, her eyes widened. "It was you?"

Maggie-Lyn nodded. "The Monday before I came here, I got an email from YWN, telling me they were going to reveal to you and all my fans what I was doing. They told me they know who you are, and I got scared. I told them I'd do anything and they told me to be their inside person. Every night these past weeks, after you fell asleep, I've been texting them everything I noticed about you with my backup phone."

Bella stared at her for a while, a part of her anger diminishing at the thought of her cousin being blackmailed, too. "Why didn't you tell me, Maggie?"

Maggie-Lyn's eyes were remorseful as she looked at Bella. "I was scared, Bella. And I'm so sorry. I knew what I was doing was wrong, but I didn't have a choice. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Maggie, but promise me you'll stop texting them."

"I cross my heart."

Bella gave her a small smile. "You didn't say literally in any of your sentences."

"I didn't? I literally didn't notice."

Bella laughed even though she didn't want to, and Maggie-Lyn stared at her through wet lashes.

"Are you okay? I know about Fashionella Dirt and all those other supporting channels."

A knock sounded on the door, and Bella placed her index finger over her lips to shush her cousin. Her mom poked her head into the room.

"I heard you laughing. How do you feel today?"

"I'm fine, Mom."

"I gave you the whole weekend to yourself, but you have a lot of explaining to do later, young lady. You can't just scare me the way you did and get away with it."

She gave her mom a small nod, then added Make up a lie for Mom to her mental to-do list. "I have to get to school now. Can you tell Cody I left?" She looked at Maggie-Lyn until she nodded, then went to grab her backpack. "I'll see you later, okay?"

"Sure," her cousin replied.

She gave her mom a hug on the way out, and her mom gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Be careful, okay? And if you feel sick, just text me with that new phone of yours."

She could guess her mom knew who got it for her, and she didn't know if she was bringing Beau up on purpose, but she wasn't sure how she felt about it.

She didn't tell her she dropped the phone on the beach the previous day. "I'll explain later, Mom."

"Great."

When she got downstairs, she saw Adele on the couch, but wasn't in the mood to talk, so she just waved her goodbye and walked to the front door. Immediately her hand touched the doorknob, Adele said, "Someone's waiting outside for you."

Bella's heart thumped hard against her ribcage and she turned to her sister. "Who?"

Adele smiled suggestively, but didn't say anything. Bella turned back to the door, her hands now shaking. She wasn't ready for Beau.

"I think I'll use the back door," she said, turning back around, but Adele lifted a scolding eyebrow at her.

Bella shut her eyes, knowing there was no way out, and, in one quick motion, she turned to the door again and pulled it open.

She saw the car before she saw him and, although she was expecting to see him, her entire body went rigid.

Beau was leaning against his car, his arms folded over his chest. His posture straightened when he saw her, and they awkwardly stared at each other.

Bella noted he looked exhausted, like he hadn't had proper rest for days, and she wondered if what happened was really affecting him the way she thought. There weren't any obvious bruises on his face from the fight, but he looked a little pale.

"I'm sorry," he said, looking straight into her eyes. "I haven't exactly said that, and I know what I did was wrong. I also want you to know that you're right to be mad at me, and I don't blame you for not wanting to talk to me. I messed up really bad and I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, Belle."

She walked to him, stopping a few feet away so she could still breathe. The confession she made to herself minutes ago was making her stomach fluids turn as she stared up at him, and he maintained the eye contact, honesty rolling off him.

"If Cody finds out you're here, he won't be happy," was what she heard herself say. "You felt what happened yesterday."

"I did, but I don't care. If it means I can properly apologize to you, then I'll take whatever he gives me."

She looked away from him, feeling the pull his eyes offered. "Why are you doing this?"

"I came to ask you to forgive me. Take however long you want, I'll wait."

God, she was so weak. Tears were filling her eyes again, and she could feel herself softening. "Why should I forgive you?"

"Because I'm an idiot and idiots need second chances."

"You hurt my feelings." She still looked away from him. "You placed money on me like I was a kid's toy. I'm sorry to say this, but you were royally disappointing. I didn't expect someone like you to do something like that, especially to a girl who doesn't know what she's doing most of the time."

"Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?"

She took a while before responding. "No."

She heard him release a breath, then he reached into his pocket and pulled out the phone she dropped at the beach. "Here. I saw it in the sand yesterday."

"I don't want it. You'll try to call me and I don't want that." She didn't know what she was doing, but the words flowed out of her mouth.

"I won't call you. I promise."

She stared at the phone, realizing he would leave once she took it, and she didn't want him to. So she asked, "Why did you keep it from me, Beau?"

He dropped his hand. "Honestly, at first I didn't think about it. I just took it as an opportunity to get to know you on a personal level before I graduate. I was craving for that and was tired of only seeing you in the hallway or cafeteria. I wanted to know you, Bella. When I realized I wasn't going about it the right way, you already had me tightly hooked and I was scared of losing you. I'm sorry you had to find out this way, and I'm sorry I'm making so many mistakes with you."

She shut her eyes as he went on. "The truth is, I'm crazy about you, Bella. Sometimes you're weird, most times you're sweet, and you're the only person in this world who really gets me. I love all those things about you and I couldn't imagine how you would feel when you found out."

"So you kept quiet to protect my feelings... and to preserve this thing—whatever it is—between us?

"Yes."

"And for some blasted reason you thought that was the best way to go about it?" She finally looked at him, and he pushed a hand through his hair.

"I'm sorry. I really am."

Their eyes locked again and she hit him on the arm, letting her pain go once and for all. She let her tears go, too, and it felt good.

"Did you mean all the things you said?" she asked, her voice low and weak.

"I did."

"And you promise never to use a girl's heart like this again?"

"I promise," he whispered, and she took some time before closing the gap between them.

He didn't make any move to touch her, and she placed her forehead on his chest. She could hear his heart beating through his shirt.

"You promise?" she asked again.

"I promise, Bella."

Her hands slowly and finally went around him, and it felt like home when he returned the gesture.

* * *

By the time they got to school, Bella had filled Beau in on what Maggie-Lyn told her, and what the latest instruction from YWN was.

Beau's car was a bit awkward and he kept glancing at her with a look in his eyes, but Bella didn't mind. She was just happy she had forgiven him.

Seconds after he stopped the car, Bella sat where she was and played with the straps of her backpack.

"Nervous?" he asked after staring at her for a while, and she nodded. "Come on, I'll walk you to your locker."

"Okay."

Whispers filled the hallway, and students turned to them immediately they stepped into school. Bella locked eyes with a few of them, but Beau steered her away from them.

Their whispers got louder, and disbelief floated through the hallways as words bumped into each other.

"I thought they'd have broken up by now."

"They're still together?"

"Oh, they're so cute!"

The sentences followed them as they approached Bella's locker, and Bella saw Amora angrily tear a piece of paper off her locker door. She balled it at her side, looking genuinely angry, but her expression softened a bit when she saw them.

"Hey, guys," she said.

Beau gave her a chin nod and Bella said, "Hey, Amora." She looked at the balled paper in her hand. "What's that?"

"It's just," Amora looked down at it, "hateful stuff—love square and all that crap. It's the third one I'm getting rid of today."

Bella opened her locker. "Thanks. I'm glad I didn't have to see them."

"No problem. I'm glad you two are still together."

Bella's lips parted as she prepared to tell Amora that Beau and her weren't dating, but she thought better of it. After putting some of her books in her locker, she turned to Amora. "Thanks, Amora. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Sure, and don't let dumb high school gossip get to you, okay?"

During lunch, Beau and Bella met outside the cafeteria, and she waited there when he walked in to get Viola. It was like they had a silent conversation, because he knew just what to do. When Beau came out with Viola and Jake, Bella stared at the kind-of-stranger, wondering if she'd be comfortable talking about a cyberbully with him present.

"Hey," Viola said, surprisingly calm and friendly. "I hope you don't mind Jake coming along. He's a weirdo, but I'll make sure he stands to the side."

Bella gave a tight-lipped smile, and they went to the bleachers. Beau sat with Jake at the bottom and engaged him in a conversation almost immediately.

Bella and Viola sat at the top, Viola staring out to the field and Bella staring at Beau's back—at the way his muscles moved, and how perfect his T-shirt was on him.

A small smile went up her face as she listened to his cool voice, and Viola asked, "When did you two get together?"

Bella turned to her. "We're not official," she said simply, like it was a scout pledge. That seemed like the perfect explanation for what was going on between them.

"That gossip website sure is."

Bella stared at her ex-best friend. Viola looked ten times prettier, and she wondered if she had always looked that way but she was just noticing.

"I saw some articles dating back to last month," Viola continued, "and I'm not sure why I care, but I've noticed something's not all right with you."

"That's why I—I brought you out here. I brought you here to tell you everything. Maybe it'd bring us to an understanding."

Viola released that upset smile of hers. "You're not the one to decide that, Belinda. All I know is that you know a lot and, since I bumped into Amparo, I've been curious. You owe me honesty."

Bella was hurt, but she didn't show it. She only nodded and tried to put her thoughts together.