Page 10 of Golden

He blinks and meets my gaze, swallowing. “Good luck, then. You know, with all the splashing and shit.”

His teasing tone knocks me right out of my stupor. “Splashing and shit? Are you kidding me?”

Sol’s smile widens into a grin. “Come on. It’s not like swimming is a proper sport.”

“Are you serious right now?” I know he’s goading me, and I fight to keep the smile from my face. “Like lacrosse is a proper sport.”

“How is lacrosse not a proper sport?”

I shake my head with a laugh. “The Olympics don’t even recognize it, and they approved skateboarding for fucksake.”

Sol raises his eyebrows, the corners of his mouth twitching. “Isn’t one of your strokes called butterfly?”

“Oh, harsh words from the man who chases a ball with a butterfly net.”

A deep chuckle leaves his throat, and he shakes his head, turning back to his locker.

“Maybe you should drop by and check out some of the ‘splashing and shit’,” I say as I swing my bag onto my shoulder.

As soon as the words leave my mouth, I want to shove them back in. Why would I suggest that? I don’t want him to come and watch me swim.Fuck.

“Maybe I will,” he says, shooting me a smile over his shoulder.

I’m not sure whether I smile back as I hurry toward the doors as fast as I can without running. This is exactly why I don’t ‘people’. There’s no way he’ll actually come to the meet, though. Right?

As I half-jog back to my room at Ezekiel West Halls, I can’t decide what worries me more. That he’ll show up, or the disappointment I already know I’ll feel if he doesn’t.

WES

My foot taps slowly to the building bass as I lose myself to Tokio Myers’ Bloodstream. The Howl offices in Halston Hall are empty this afternoon and, despite being here at the ass crack of dawn to manually publish today’s issue, I came back to catch up on some proofreading between lectures.

There was no swim practice this morning and I’m honestly relieved. I’m not sure why, but the school hired an assistant coach this year. He seems like a nice guy to me, but the tension between him and Coach McMann is seriously souring the mood at the pool.

As far as The Howl goes, it seems my plan worked. Whoever was sneaking articles into the issues has had to find another way, because Sasha’s diary is appearing on the school intranet directly instead. Sucks for her, but I’m thrilled.

Someone taps me on the shoulder, and I turn, expecting one of the newspaper staff, but as though I’ve summoned them by thought alone, it’s Sasha and Alex. I eye them curiously as I switch off my music.

“Can I help you?”

“Yes, actually.” Alex leans against the opposite desk looking as cocksure as usual. He’s a seriously good-looking guy, but the arrogance that comes with it is a huge turn off.

“Well, we’re hoping you can,” Sasha says, giving Alex a look that tells me she’s thinking the same thing as me. Clever woman.

I look between the two of them, trying to decide whether I’m more curious or annoyed. Curiosity wins out. “Go on.”

“We’re still trying to find out who has my diary,” Sasha explains. “You’ve probably seen the posts on the intranet.”

Leaning back in my chair, I fold my arms across my chest. I have literally zero idea where this is going. This might be the first time Alex Rainer has spoken to me in the three years we’ve been at school together. It’s not a surprise. I avoid the frat boys and we have nothing in common. I also have nothing in common with Sasha, however, and we’ve spoken a handful of times over the years.

She glances nervously at Alex before back at me. “We were wondering whether there was any way to find out who set up the profile.”

Understanding dawns and I keep my face neutral as I consider what they’re asking me. I could really do without this, but whoever is posting that crap is the person who tried to sabotage The Howl, so if I find out who it is, I can finally relax.

Sliding off my glasses, I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Can I just clarify? You’re asking me to hack someone’s account?”

“Yes,” Alex says, bold as brass. “Whoever stole Sasha’s diary is crossing lines that shouldn’t be crossed. The university might have their hands tied, but I’m willing to do whatever’s necessary to stop this. What can I offer you?”

My pulse quickens at his words. I thought this would be a favor. After all, I’m getting something out of this if I find out who’s behind it all. The question is, what the hell can Alex Rainer offer me?

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