“I say you post more pictures of the guy. Show the school that you’re the one winning this breakup.” He seemed so proud of himself for solving all my problems with that suggestion.
I had thought of that. It was the easiest answer—ask Daniel for a picture of the two of us together and post it. I could keep up the charade that I was dating LostAxis. I bit my lip. Would he let me do that? I’d have to explain everything to him. It was one thing to tell him about the picture, but completely another to insert him into my drama.
I looked at the now-empty bag of lemons. “What’s next?”
He grinned. “Eggs. I’ll get them.”
I thought about it while we made the filling for the lemon squares. Maybe Icouldask him to help me. Being catfished and randomly finding myself working with the catfishee (subject of the catfish?) wasn’t a disaster. It could be an opportunity. If he helped me.
But I barely knew Daniel. Did I trust him enough for this? He could also ruin me. One DM to Earl’s Whispers and the gossip would only get much worse.
Maybe I was looking at all this the wrong way. What if there was something in it for him, too?
“Um, actually, Daniel, you might be able to help me. Can you keep a secret?”
He grinned conspiratorially. “Absolutely. I’m excellent at secrets.”
I took a breath. “Okay. So, this is going to sound super weird, but ... the guy that everyone thinks I’m dating ... it’s you.”
His eyes went wide. “What? We only met yesterday!”
I opened my phone and found the post on Earl’s Whispers of Daniel and me together. I showed it to him.
“Shit. Thisisme! This is a picture of me!” He tapped the screen rapidly. “And you! It’s a photo of us together!”
“Yes, that’s why I am showing it to you.”
“But how ... why ...” He pinched the screen with his fingers to zoom in. “This is behind the shelter. But I’ve never met you before.”
I showed him the original picture LostAxis sent—before Aimee’s manipulation. “A friend did it. She’s awesome at photo manipulation.”
He studied the picture. “I remember this day. It was when we built the playground, I think.”
I looked at him, confused. “Last fall,” he explained, “a whole bunch of kids from different schools and a bunch of the shelter volunteers all built that playground outside. It was funded by a bank. Were you there helping, too?”
Holy crap.“No. Kids from my school went to that, but not me.” I bit my lip as a realization hit me. “Do you remember who took this picture?”
He shook his head. “I don’t remember anyone taking my picture that day. But there were a lot of people here. At least sixty.” He zoomed in on the manipulated picture. “It’s a flawless manipulation. But I don’t understand. Why did your gamer boyfriend send you a picture ofme? And why did your friend add you into the picture?”
I shrugged. “It’s a long story.”
He blinked at me several times, then went to the pantry and returned with a block of baker’s chocolate and some cocoa powder. “Okay. We’ll make brownies while you explain.”
I told him everything while we started on some triple chocolate fudge brownies. The story was completely unbelievable, but surprisingly, Daniel believed me. And to be honest, he didn’t seem all too flattered that his picture had been used by a catfisher.
He shook his head. “I don’t understand people. Why not send you his own picture? Or a celebrity’s? And why lie to you? I feel violated. He stole my likeness.”
I cringed. “I think he used this picture because you’re standing like a Dark Mage.”
He looked at me like tulips had just grown out of my head. “What?”
I pointed to the unmanipulated picture. “It’s from the video game we play. You’re standing like a Dark Mage holding his staff waiting for a battle to begin. LostAxis plays a Dark Mage in the game.”
Daniel frowned. “That was one of the construction pieces. A pole from the slide railing. I was pretending it was a hockey stick. That’s how I hold my stick when the clock’s not running.”
I nodded. “That’s what my friend Cass said. Are you mad at me for doing this?”
He looked at me while stirring the melting chocolate in a glass bowl over a pot of simmering water. “No. Not really. You thought you were just posting a picture of you and your actual friend.”
