“What’s happening is you caught the attention of the hottest, most mysterious man on MaskTok, and if you don’t message him right now, as your newly appointed personal assistant, I will,” Olivia says, giving a little hmph at the end.
I laugh, pressing my palm to my head. “But what do I even say? Hi, I loved your video. Please make more for me to put in my personal spank bank? I have no clue what to say, Liv, and even if I did, I know I’ll mess it up somehow and make a fool of myself.”
Olivia laughs. “You could always ask him to make content for you, and you’ll pay him for it. I can draft a contract if you need one. Find out his asking price, and I’ll mock up a contract for you.”
“Really? You’d do that? Because I’m so down to see more videos of Detective Liam Moore!” Olivia is toogood to me.
“Of course! I’m your personal assistant, remember? I think this probably falls under the job title. I’ll mock one up tonight and send it to you in the morning.”
Just as I'm about to thank Olivia, I receive a pull-down notification that someone has sent a message on Vidtok. I click the notification and see that WolfeInSheepsClothing has messaged me. “Olivia, he sent me a message.” My heart drops to my ass, and I suddenly feel clammy.
Olivia gasps, “What did he say?” she shouts.
I read the message out loud:
“Ooo! X, that’s a British thing, right, like a kiss? He’s totally some hot British dude.” I can practically hear her sigh herself into daydream land. “And now you don’t need me to come up with a contract either. It’s a win-win.”
“I should still offer to pay him. It’s only fair.” Olivia hums in agreement, and I hear Binx meow in the kitchen. “Oops. Gotta go, Olivia. Binx needs to be fed, and so do I. I’ll let you know if he says anything else.”
“Okay. Later, soon-to-be Best Selling Author!”
“Bye, Liv,” I say, laughing as I hang up.
“MEOW!” Binx yowls from the kitchen.
“Okay, Okay! I’m sorry!” I hurry to my kitchen, quickly popping open a can of his favorite as an apology for his late dinner. Binx eagerly starts shoveling his food down his gullet.
I stare at the message open on my phone. I chew on my thumbnail, leaning against the counter on the island. I don’t know how to write words all of a sudden, as I try to think of a reply:
I hit send on the message, pushing my phone over to the other side of the counter to keep my mind off of it while I find myself dinner.
I rummage through my cabinets, picking mac and cheese fordinner. I fill the bowl with water, stirring in the weird powder from the microwaveable mac-and-cheese dinners, then place it in the microwave. I hit start on my 3-minute timer, and a Vidtok notification pops up at the same time. I chew on my lip, debating if I should answer it now or wait until I've eaten. Curiosity gets the better of me, and I scoop my phone off the counter to open my messages, where I find another message from Wolfy:
A deep blush spreads all over my body. I don’t know what to say. Talking to him is both intimidating and thrilling. He’s such a big-name creator, I think I’m just star-struck.
I close out of Vidtok when the timer on my mac and cheese goes off. I pour in the powdered cheese on top, mixing it in when a paralyzing thought comes over me. Wolfy is a big-name creator with a huge fan base. Acrazy,hornyfan base. What if they think we’re dating and someone tries to dox me?The real me. The thought sends a cold chill down my spine.
Let’s be rational, Luna. It’s one video. I’ll get ahead of the rumors tomorrow by posting a video announcing that Wolfy and I have decided to work together and that our relationship is entirely professional. Yeah, that’ll work. No one will be upset, and my secret stays safe with me. I sigh and shove a spoonful of my mac and cheese into my mouth. “It’ll be fine,” I say out loud to try to reassure myself, but something deep in my gut tells me I’m either going to be grateful or regretful, and I’m hoping for the latter.
Luna
Ican see him through the crack in the closet door. My entire body shakes with adrenaline as I watch him throw things around the room, looking for me. “Where are you bitch! You can’t hide in this house forever. I’ll find you, and when I do, you’re gonna wish your parents took you on that drive with them that night.” My breath shudders, and I cover my mouth to keep the sound muffled—but it’s too late. “There you are. I’ll always find you.”
I jolt awake, sitting upright in my bed, clutching my chest. “It’s just a nightmare.” I remind myself, trying to catch my breath. I must have forgotten to take my sleeping pills last night to keep the nightmares away.
I reach for my phone on my nightstand, and the clock reads five in the morning. “Fuck.” I groan. I shift the covers, tossing them off in a huff, and walk from my bed to look out my window. The soft amber glow of the streetlight illuminates the street corner, and fog lies low to the ground, reminding me that the spooky season is upon us.
I turn from the window, determined to start my day now that I’m wide awake. Binx stretches on his pillow next to mine, giving me a pathetic attempt at a meow. “Good morning to you, too, handsome. Let’s start our day early, shall we?” I watch Binx climb down and race off to the kitchen. “I’ll take that as a yes.” I laugh.
I head to the kitchen, feeding Binx first, and then return to my room to retrieve my phone and open the notes app to make a list of things I need to get done today.
First, I need to go to the gym. Start my day off with some cardio to run off this adrenaline. After that, I'll go grocery shopping for the week, then head back to my apartment to film aVidTok video explaining the whole WolfyxLuna situation.
I giggle like a schoolgirl, seeing our names spliced together. I think back to the video he posted last night, squeezing my thighs together to keep myself under control.
Get a grip, Luna.
I head to my closet to change. It’s early enough that the gym won’t be crowded, which is good since I can’t handle big crowds on a crappy night's sleep. I grab a protein bar on my way out, making sure to pull on my front door to ensure it’s locked before heading down the stairs to my car.
