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Cameron’s eyes shot wide. “Holy shit, Tris! That was amazing! How are you so good at that?”

Shrugging, I hoped my half smile and softened gaze conveyed my chagrin. “I’ve played around with accents for a while—it’s part of how I conceal my identity on my live streams.” My apologetic smile shifted into a smirk. “It’s actually quite a relief that you didn’t know that. That means you haven’t watched any of them.”

My bestie threw his head back and laughed. “Ugh, no! I could never! You’re like my brother, dude. No offense, but ew.”

We devolved into soggy laughter then, and I pulled Cameron over to the couch and plopped down next to him.

When we quieted, my best friend turned to me on the couch, folding one leg on the cushion between us. “Do you want to talk about what happened? Or did it just come on unprovoked?”

I turned to him, pressing my ear against the back of the couch. I was exhausted. “It was definitely provoked.” I sighed, steeling myself to rehash the trauma. “My dad was just here.”

Cameron gasped and reached for me, putting a hand on my jean-covered knee. “Oh, Tris, I’m so sorry. What did he say?”

I sighed again. “He had the fucking audacity to come into my home and call me a fornicator, say I was disgusting and that I was a sinner headed for hell.”

Cameron gasped but otherwise stayed quiet.

“Apparently, when they cut me off, he hired a private investigator to follow me around, spy on me. Which is super creepy.” I shuddered. “Anyway, you remember that news story Henry did on Mix It Up a few months back?”

He nodded.

“From what I could guess based on what he said, when the investigator showed him pictures of Henry and I at dinner one night, my dad realized I was gay. He deduced I was staying with Henry, who he recognized from that news story, and that I was all but living with him—hence the ‘fornication’ accusation—and apparently decided it was time to fuck with me. So he called in a favor to a friend to shut Mix It Up down.”

Cameron gasped. “Holy shit.”

I nodded. “Seriously.”

He started rubbing my knee in sympathy, and I put my hand over his, silently offering my thanks.

After we sat in tranquil silence for a few moments, I took a deep breath then confessed one of my biggest fears. “Henry getting shut down, all his pain and anguish over the past few months, was because of me, Cameron. I caused it.”

In an instant, his entire demeanor changed. He bolted upright, looking me directly in the eye. “You did not cause it, Tris. Not in the slightest. Your fucking no-good bastard of a sperm donor did.” He paused, eyeing me for a few squirmy moments before he continued. “And Henry’s going to see that, too. He won’t be mad at you for this, Tris.”

“But—”

“No.” My BFF could get stern when he needed to. And I was exceedingly thankful for that right now. My mind, previously calmed, had started to spiral again. “Henry loves you. He won’t even consider holding this against you. Blaming you wouldn’t even enter his mind—I guarantee it.”

I took a breath. “How do you know?” I whispered.

Cameron flipped his hand over and interlaced our fingers. “Tristan Arthur Applegate, you listen to me.”

I smiled at his use of my rarely used middle name.

“Henry loves you with everything he is. I’ve seen it, even if I wasn’t certain at the time. Looking back, I don’t know how every single person who saw you two together never figured it out. Because his love for you is obvious. As is your love for him.”

I blushed a little, dipping my chin.

“I promise you he will be saying the same kinds of things I am. He knows your parents are shitheads, right?”

I sniffled, nodding.

“There, you see? You have absolutely nothing to worry about.” He stood, pulling me to my feet. “Okay, what’s next?”

I blinked at the abrupt change of thought, but once my exhausted brain caught up, I knew Cameron had recognized me starting to overthink and was offering me a way to get past it.

So I flung myself at him, glomming onto him like a starfish. “I love you, bestie. Thank you.”

He hugged me back, his strong arms holding me tight. “I love you, too, BFF.” After a few moments and another squeeze, he pulled back. “Now, what was your plan?”