Page 19 of The Rebel's Guide to Pride

Rather than disregarding me, as he was prone to do, he cleared his throat as his ears reddened. “You’re disgusting,” he muttered, shifting his gaze to the raisins. “I didn’t think anyoneactuallyate those.”

I shoved more in my mouth and offered him the open bag with a wink. “Want some?”

“Hard pass,” he said instead of picking a fight.

Something was off with him. That trademark glower was gone, and in its place was too much thoughtfulness. I knew that look, had worn that look often since December. If he hadn’t made us enemies, maybe I’d ask if he was okay. Maybe I’d be more worried about him instead of relieved he wasn’t giving me the third degree.

“I think we should do it,” Kennedy said, snapping my attention away from Cohen. She pulled her hair into a loose ponytail, her yellow nails bright against her dark twist braids. “What do you think, Co?”

He glanced at me again and sighed. “The third floor is a wide-open auditorium with a stage,” he said without enthusiasm. “It would technically work.”

Sawyer tilted her head to the side in confusion. “How do you know that?” she asked.

“I read for the children’s story-time hour last spring,” heexplained, and then he cut his eyes toward me again. “Let me stop you before you give me hell. Yes, I volunteered there. Yes, I’m trying to round out my college apps for the fall. Yes, I did like it.”

I should have snapped back at him, anything to knock him out of his weird mood. But the dread of going back to Beggs High to start senior year felt like a kick in the balls.Not today,I told myself, refusing to think about the future. What mattered was now, what we were doing for Pride Month. That much I could control.

“Then it’s decided,” Sawyer said, taking charge as usual. “We’ll have it at the library.”

“What she said,” I muttered, grabbing my phone. “I’ll, um, let them know.”

“But it’s monitored by the security patrol,” Cohen added with a warning tone. My fingers stilled on the touchscreen, and I could tell by the waver in his voice that he was still shook. “Someone will most def notice everyone coming in.”

“Fair,” Kennedy agreed.

“Z,” Sawyer began, “didn’t your mom have a plan for that with her grand opening?”

“Uh…”

I thought back to March and how Mom had set up the lobby like a store called Zelda’s Music Emporium. She’d stocked the shelves with her old CD collection and assigned me as the guard since I was too young to attend. When guests arrived in their Roaring Twenties fits, they had to ask if we had any albums from this old girl group called the Spice Girls. Only then were they allowed to enter.

“She had a fake music store with a password.”

“We need a cover story like that,” Sawyer said thoughtfully with focus mode etched on her face.

“But it’s a library,” Kennedy pointed out.

I chewed on my lip as I tried to think, and I watched Sawyer do the same. My gaze fell down to her faded blue shirt with the NEHS acronym peeling off. She’d had it since we were inducted into the National English Honor Society. I’d since gotten kicked out, all because of Shakespeare’sTwelfth Night.Failing that test had been the start of my streak of bad grades, but I did remember enough of it. How the main character had disguised herself to get her way…

“What if,” I started, a plan forming, “we tell people to dress up as their favorite book character? No one would suspect it was a Pride event then.”

“That’s…that’s really smart,” Cohen said, a note of shock in his tone.

“I know.” I grinned with satisfaction, knowing I’d proved him wrong, and turned to Sawyer. “Then you could go as Captain Jaymes Catzanddo your drag routine since you didn’t get to.”

“Say less,” she said with an excited clap of her hands. “We’ll need to welcome everyone and then have the other drag performers I’d lined up for Pride Day and…has anyone seen my tablet? I need to take this down.”

Kennedy dug in her tote bag to retrieve a pen and notebook. “Here, just use this,” she said, handing them to Sawyer. “And write down that we should see if any of the QSA community supporters want to set up a table. The third floor is big enough.”

“Then we can do our original plan,” Sawyer said as she scribbled. “I could start the drag show. Does that work?”

A beat passed before I realized she’d directed her question at me. I nodded in agreement, stunned that she was deferring to me now. “We could even borrow the decorations from theshop’s grand opening,” I suggested, “and since we already have a stage…maybe someone could talk to the crowd again, like Carmen did?”

Sawyer smiled reassuringly. “I think that’s a wonderful idea, Zeke.” I shrugged it off, but she held her hand to her chest. “I’m proud of you, titty promise. You’re really stepping up.”

“Thanks,” I said, a blush heating my cheeks.

From my periphery, I could see Cohen staring at me again. I refused to give in and look. To see just how much he disagreed with her. Instead, I put my hands behind my head and stared up at the popcorn ceiling. My eyes roamed the ridges as I forced down any traces of doubt.

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