Page 88 of Subscriber Wars

I nod in the mirror. I really am. I am going to miss his ass. How did this happen?

I sigh. I lost him once; I can lose him again. “Do, it, bro.”

University CamFlix Competition Submission

Entry Number: 75

Sebastian and Valentina

Final Interview Continued, otherwise known as the day this shit finally ends

“What?” Tom, the producer, doubles over in laughter. “Really?”

Sebastian, having finally shown up an hour late, narrows his eyes at me as if to say, “Now look at what you’ve done.”

All I can do is shrug. He should have been here earlier instead of brooding over potentially losing the competition.

Tom’s laughter only amplifies as the video of our final submission plays in the background. “You mean to tell me—” His pig snort interrupts his ramblings. “—that you were—” Another snort. “—this whole time?”

I nod, feeling my cheeks heat with embarrassment. “This is what you both never spoke about?”

Clearly, we were correct in keeping it a secret, since Tom is struggling to breathe through his laughter.

“Yes.” My answer is almost a sigh. “You don’t have to air the submission videos, right?”

Tom leans back in his chair, funneling his laughter into something more manageable. “Oh, no. This is better than the original show we had planned. This,” he taps the screen, just as I remove the wig on camera, “is gold.”

“What are you guys doing here?”

My hands go to my face on instinct, and Aspen slaps them down. “Your dad called me,” she says with a grin. “He wasn’t sure what was going down, but he thought you might need your crew.”

My daddy, my hero.

I can already feel my eyes stinging with gratitude as Aspen wraps me in her arms. “We always have your back, Vee. Forever.”

I’m going to miss the shit out of this girl next year, which only brings on another bout of tears that I was attempting to hold back. “I love you, Asp.”

“I love you too, Vee-Boo.” A heavy arm wraps around me and Aspen, shoving us against each other so hard I can barely breathe.

“I love you too, Drusilla,” I squeak out.

A groan interrupts our declarations of love with a quick hug to my shoulders. “You know I sometimes love you, too,” claims Fenn. “Even if I end up suspended from school after this shitshow.”

Fenn’s words are sobering. I might be throwing myself to the rumor trolls with this stunt, but now, with my friends at my side, they will be at their mercy too.

“Look, I really appreciate you guys coming with me, but this is my battle. There’s no reason for you to go down with me.”

Bennett scoffs and unfolds his arms. “Your battles are our battles. If this is what you want to do, we’ll stand beside you.”

Why does he have to be the most lovable grouch ever?

“Yeah,” Aspen speaks up. “If Sebastian is important to you, then he is important to us.”

“I wouldn’t go that far.”

Aspen pulls back and cuts Fenn a look. “I’m just saying this—” she waves her hand at my attire, “is important to her, so it’s important to us.”

Fenn doesn’t look convinced, but he’s going to do it anyway; I can already see him putting on his game face.

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