Mark’s face is beet red. Sweat pouring. He just stands there.
Eli continues.
“He claimed heartbreak for the ratings! He faked those sad-boy narrations! Sold the story, played the victim, Left out how she finally kicked him!”
Mark sputters, “I—she—this isn’t—”
Dex blows the whistle again. “TRUTH!”
Mark snaps.
He grabs the mic from Eli and screams:
“FINE! I used it for publicity! Annabelle told me to stop! She doesn’t want me back! She wants your hockey idiot! It was ALL FAKE!”
The crowd loses its mind.
Fans shriek.
The producer collapses onto a folding chair.
Some woman faints in the front row.
I stand perfectly still.
“She… wants me?” I whisper.
Everything inside me shifts. Breaks open. Re-aligns.
The guys freeze, then slowly turn to stare at me.
Gabriel smiles. “Told you, dude.”
Mark flees the stage like he’s escaping a crime scene.
Dex throws both arms up like they just won a championship. “NAILED IT.”
Colby and Eli high-five like deranged cheerleaders, and the place erupts into absolute pandemonium. The host is shouting into the mic, trying to regain control while clutching her note cards like a life raft. Stagehands are running in circles. A cameraman yells, “Keep rolling! This is ratings gold!” Someone in the crowd starts chanting “CHEATER! CHEATER!” while another person tries to climb a barricade for a better angle. It’s full, glorious, televised chaos.
The guys jump off the stage, sprinting back toward me like they just wrapped a Grammy-worthy performance and fully expect applause.
I’m still standing in shock.
Relief hits first. Sharp, overwhelming.
Then guilt. Then love so strong it knocks the breath out of my chest.
Annabelle.
Dex claps my shoulder. “Told you she wasn’t picking that clown.”
Colby nods. “We expect tears of joy. Or beer.”
“Preferably both.” Eli throws in like he’s delivering wisdom from Mount Idiot.
I drag a hand down my face. “That was… the worst performance ever inflicted on humanity... and I’ve seen your karaoke, Dex. I honestly thought that was an audition forGlee: Felony Edition.”
They beam like I complimented them.
