Joe? Party? Sydney blinked in surprise as she watched the girl give Joey a friendly smile. Apparently more than just Joey’s appearance had changed. “Fencer’s calling it the Pre-Octo Bash. ‘Octo drinks for everyone,’” she quoted, rolling her eyes.
“Uh… as in eight drinks?” Joey asked.
“I guess. I didn’t have the heart to tell him it didn’t make sense.” She turned to Sydney, flashing her the same friendly smile. “I’m Brie,” she offered.
“Sorry,” Joey said hastily. He looked flustered for a second, the old Joey creeping back in. He quickly cleared his throat, composing himself. “This is Sydney. She goes to Winslow. Brie and I take Animation together at Danford.”
“Hey,” Sydney said. She dropped her eyes. She’d never been good at meeting new people, new girls in particular. But Brie didn’t seem to notice.
“You should come to the party with us, Sydney.” She winked at her. “See how much better Danford does it than Winslow.”
“Oh, um, thanks,” Sydney said shyly, “but I won’t be in Boston tonight. I’m catching a train back to Echo Bay after this.”
“Well, considering the party starts in”—Brie glanced at her watch—“four minutes, that shouldn’t be a problem. Fencer’s house isn’t far from the train station.” She ran a hand through her short hair. “You can have your Octo drinks and catch a later train. Fencer always has a theme for his parties,” Brie added. “It should be an Octo-wonderland.”
“With octuplets?” Sydney couldn’t resist asking.
“And octopi,” Brie agreed solemnly.
“And octogenarians,” Sydney added. “What’s a party without eighty-year-olds?” Brie laughed, and Sydney felt a tiny thrill. She couldn’t believe how relaxed she felt. At Winslow, she had a set place. But here, she could be whomever she felt like. She wondered if that was all it had taken for Joey to become Joe.
“Don’t forget doctors,” Joey put in, his new, steady voice still taking her by surprise. Sydney gave him a confused look. Next to her, Brie did the same. “You know, doctors,” Joey said, his face flushing a little.
Sydney groaned. “Remind me to never play Scrabble against you.”
“Or Pictionary,” Brie chimed in. “This boy can draw.” She smiled over at Sydney. “So you coming? I promise it will be Scrabble-free.”
Sydney glanced at Joey. His forehead was wrinkled as if in concentration. “You should come,” he said suddenly. “I’ll walk you to the station after.” He coughed, his face flushing again. “That way, I can answer your e-mail in person.” Sydney hesitated. Back home, all that waited for her was a Matt Morgan manhunt. “All right,” she said with a grin. “Octo-party it is.”
“Whoa,” Sydney said as the elevator spit her and Joey out on the top floor of Danford’s tallest building. Up ahead, wide glass doors led to a huge roof deck. A glass railing provided a flawless view of Danford’s manicured campus below. Several tall heat lamps were scattered about, casting a warm glow over the whole place. “Are all of Danford’s parties like this?”
“All of Fencer’s are.” Joey grabbed two beers off the glass bar and handed one to Sydney. She took it gratefully, downing a big sip. Echo Bay Sydney wasn’t a huge drinker, but if Joey could become Joe, surely she could enjoy a beer. She smiled over at him. Back at the RISD fair, when Brie said she had to run a few errands before the party, Sydney had been nervous to be left alone with Joey. But as they’d trekked through the city back to Danford, there hadn’t been a single lull in their conversation. In fact, Sydney couldn’t remember the last time she’d had so much in common with someone. Not only was Joey applying to all the same art schools as she was, he was also applying for their scholarships and financial aid. “So, basically, you’re my competition,” Sydney had mused.
Joey had wiggled his eyebrows in response. “Better watch out, photo girl,” he’d said. “Cartoon boy is swooping in.”
“Joe!” A huge guy came over and pounded Joey on the arm. He was wearing what once was probably a Danford blazer, but was now plastered in so many bumper stickers it looked more like a billboard. “About time you got here.”
“Hey, Fencer.” Joey nodded in Sydney’s direction. “This is Sydney. She went to my old school. Fencer and I are on the swim team together,” he informed Sydney.
Swim team? Sydney raised her eyebrows. This new Joey was full of surprises.
“Hola, blue eyes.” Fencer threw his arm around Sydney’s shoulders. “We’re about to play Kings. You in?”
Sydney took another swig of her drink. She could feel the beer sloshing its way through her, slowing her pulse and unclenching her muscles.
Joey—Joe—gave her a questioning look. She shrugged. “All right,” he said. “Looks like we’re in.”
Several rounds of Kings later, the rooftop felt more like a carousel, the glass railing spinning around Sydney. “My turn!” Brie called out. She made a big show of drawing a card. “Yes!” she squealed, waving it through the air. “I get to make a rule.” She stroked an imaginary beard as she looked slowly around the group. Sydney swigged more beer, trying to ignore the incessant spinning. “Okay,” Brie said, finally. “The next person to draw a four… has to kiss someone. And I’m talking a real kiss,” she clarified. “No on-the-cheek bullshit.”
Sydney finished off her beer as the game continued around the circle. The air felt thicker than usual, wrapping her in fog.
“Your turn.” Brie nudged her in the side. Sydney nodded, trying to shake off the fog.
She pawed heavily at the deck, extracting a card. “Four of hearts,” she read.
“We’ve got one!” Brie howled. She thrust her beer into the air. “Go ahead.” She winked at Sydney. “Kiss away.”
“Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!” Fencer chanted. Next to him, a slim guy who’d tied the sleeves of his blazer around his head leaned forward, puckering up. Sydney looked helplessly at Joey.
“Sorry,” he mouthed.
“Better choose someone before you’re an octogenarian, Sydney,” Brie said, giggling.
“Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!” Fencer yelled.
The fog wrapped around Sydney, making the world feel underwater. Her eyes landed on Joey’s lips. Nice, she thought again. And then suddenly she was there, pressing her lips against his. They were as full as they looked, and warm, and he didn’t pull away, just kissed her back, his hand wrapping around her arm. And even through the haze she could feel it: a warmth, blazing from her stomach all the way to her toes. A minute passed, or ten, she couldn’t tell. She pulled him closer, the kiss deepening, the warmth spreading.…
“Go, Joe!” someone screamed.
Just like that, reality set back in. She pulled back, the roof spinning faster than ever. She could feel eyes boring into her from every side. “Joe’s the man!” someone else hooted.
“I—I have to go,” she mumbled. She rose unsteadily to her feet. The thoughts she’d kept at bay all day suddenly lifted to life: big, sweeping gales of thoughts, her very own Octo-storm. The darer. Her dad. Kyla.
She fought her way across the crowded rooftop. What had she been thinking, abandoning her life like this? Joey might have shed his past and started over, but she had almost a full year left at Winslow. Almost a full year left with the darer if this didn’t stop soon. She stumbled onto the elevator and pulled out her nearly dead phone. She had one new text from Tenley, whom she hadn’t spoken to since the tree house. We need to talk, Syd. U can’t avoid me forever!
“Wait!” Joey slipped into the elevator right before the door closed. “What just happened? Are you okay?”
The elevator jolted as it descended, making Sydney stumble. Joey reached out to steady her. “Come on. Let’s sit down.” He put his hand on the small of her back and guided her out of the elevator, toward a bench outside. Sydney sank gratefully onto it. It was quiet in front of the ivy-covered building, the noise of the party as distant as rain clouds. Now that she was away from the crowd, the spinning in her head slowed.
“What’s going on?” Joey asked.
Sydney clasped and unclasped her hands. “Things have just been tough at home lately.” She sneaked a peek at him out of the corner of her eyes. He was watching her steadily. “You’re lucky you got out when you did.”
“It’s the Echo Bay Kool-Aid, isn’t it?” he asked. Sydney sneaked another peek. He was leaning forward, his elbows propped up on his knees. “I swear, it’s like no one has their own mind there. Zombie town.”
“The zombies are after my dad now.” Sydney hadn’t meant to say it, but now the words hung suspended between them, impossible to ignore.
She waited for Joey to jump down her throat with questions, but he said nothing, just sat there watching her. She thought of the reason he was at Danford in the first place. Before her dad, before all of this, it had been him.