I want the ground to swallow me up when Zoe starts giggling uncontrollably.
“Rayne must be totally rested,” she says, and I nudge her warningly in the side.
Melanie looks confused for a moment, then smiles again. “Glad to hear it.”
Her gaze shifts to someone behind us, and she greets Lia and Katie, who are just entering the room. I’m not sure if Zoe has also seen Jase’s sister, but she hooks her arm through mine and pulls me to the other end of the studio without even looking in Lia’s direction. I still don’t know what the problem is between Jase and Lia, but it’s pretty obvious that it’s not something that can be easily resolved. Even Zoe, who is usually nice to everyone, ignores her consistently.
“I thought Mae was the only one making fun of me,” I protest, pretending not to have noticed anything. Whatever is going on, it’s none of my business.
“I’m not making fun of you, honestly.” Zoe blinks innocently at me, and I roll my eyes, grinning.
“Of course you’re not.”
“No, I really think it’s beautiful how clearly in love you are.” She hugs me briefly before letting go and smoothly lowering herself to the floor. I sit down next to her a little less gracefully.
“I think it’s pretty crazy,” I admit. “I didn’t think it would feel like this.” I can’t quite find the right words to express what I’m feeling, but Zoe gives me a knowing smile. She understands what I mean anyway.
“Yes, I know.” Her voice sounds soft. She turns her head, and when I follow her gaze, I see Jase and Skye entering the room. Skye is gesturing wildly with her hands as she talks to him. There’s a deep crease between Jase’s eyebrows.
“Everything okay?” Zoe asks as the two of them collapse onto the floor next to us. Jase leans over and kisses her. When they pull apart, they gaze at each other for a moment in a way that makes me feel like I’ve interrupted an intimate moment.
“Skye has secrets,” Jase finally explains.
“Don’t act like I’m the only one.” Snorting, Skye removes the hairpins from her dark curls until they fall in long, tousled locks down her back.
“I didn’t say it bothered me,” Jase argues, grinning at her. “I’m not mad or anything. I just wanted to know why you’re bringing this up now after not saying a word about it for months.”
“Can someone explain this to me?” Zoe looks from one to the other, confused.
But Skye’s gaze is fixed on me, and suddenly I know what’s going on.
“How quickly did Jax betray me?”
“Uh...” I say, unsure how to respond.
She sighs and waves her hand dismissively. “Never mind. Jax and the guys want to shoot a video for the song they recorded over the weekend, and they asked if I could help because I’ve made a few TikToks. No one knew about them except Jax. But I should have known he couldn’t keep his mouth shut, and now somehow it’s common knowledge.”
“You make TikToks?” Zoe asks incredulously.
“That’s exactly how I reacted,” Jase says, reaching for Zoe’s hand and intertwining his fingers with hers.
“Which is exactly why none of you know about it.” Skye gives us a saccharine smile. “Well, too late now. It doesn’t matter anymore.”
“I still don’t quite understand what this is all about,” Zoe says.
Skye nods at me. “You explain it. You’re more involved in this than I am.”
“It’s not really a big deal,” I begin, then briefly summarize the idea the boys have been talking about over the last couple days.
“Sounds like a big deal,” Zoe says when I’ve finished.
“It’s really not.” I realize I’m trying to downplay the whole thing. “It’s just—” I break off when Melanie claps her hands in the middle of the room, and all conversation stops abruptly. We stand up and join the others.
“Now that we’re all here, let’s get started,” Melanie says. “How’s your choreography coming along?”
No one says anything. No one moves.
An amused smile flits across her face. “Has anyone started yet?”
