Page 91 of Subscriber Wars

I turn back and give Sebastian a look that clearly says, brace yourself. “You know why, Bruce?”

Brick wipes his mouth and glares. “Because no matter how sneaky you thought you were, you will never be able to play with the big dogs.”

And with those parting words and nausea in my throat, I rip off the wig and let my long hair drop, ripping off the eyebrows and sideburns and tossing them at Brick’s feet.

“You,” I say in my own voice through the gasps and OMGs, “will never replace me.”

At which point I turn around, leaving Malcolm’s mouth hanging open, and face my naughty neighbor. “And you… should always know we’ll win. MyView is our house.”

Then I launch my ass at the man who once confided in me that he thought beer tasted like an old sock and even lent me his Desitin when I lied and said I had ball chaffing. This man was my bro, my bestie, and my asshole amigo, whether it be when I’m wearing a bra or pretending I have a dick.

This is my human.

Sebastian catches me with an oomph, and I go in for a kiss. I don’t care that everyone is putting it together that I am Tweener, Sebastian’s elite cameraman, and the one who abandoned him only to be right back in his life, playing his fake girlfriend. What can I say? We like to keep our relationship interesting.

Our mouths collide, and Sebastian’s groan fuels my wanting.

I might be crazy.

And I might have embarrassed the shit out of him.

But he still wants me and that’s all that matters.

Well, that and winning this money. There’s no way we won’t at least give Malcolm a run for the prize money with this video.

When I pull back from our kiss, I immediately bury my face in his neck. “I’m sorry I went rogue on you, but I couldn’t let you lose. This is your dream, dude.”

Those big hands that have stolen more shit than is acceptable, palm my ass, ignoring the fact that I have on my uncle Pe’s jeans and boots, and shift me farther up his hips. “I’ve missed your crazy ass, bro.”

Our laughter is met with others, and for the first time since I got here, I allow myself to look around. Amongst the drama hogs, our friends are standing around us: Aspen with a camera; Bennett on guard, looking around like someone is going to snipe us at any minute; Fenn on his phone, so over me being dressed like a boy; and Drew, chatting up one of the girls who looks like she’d be happy to take a ride on Big D. Then there’s Maverick, ready to go, with a tight grip on Ainsley, who I don’t know, but by the way she’s clapping and whooping, I already like her.

“I cannot believe this is what you were doing for two months,” Aspen muses. “How did I miss my bestie dressing up as a guy and living this whole double life?”

I shrug. “I waited until you would sneak over to Bennett’s at night.” I slap my hand over my mouth. “I mean, fell asleep.”

Aspen waves off my comment. “It’s fine. It’s not like Fenn doesn’t know I come over. I always end up using his razor.”

Fenn makes a noise low in his throat. I’m sure he’s used to sharing with his sister and I highly doubt he cares if she is sneaking over to see his friend. “I knew you were into some weird shit, Vee.”

I shrug. “It isn’t weird. Winners do whatever it takes.”

I look back to Sebastian whose face has lost its smile. My heart sinks to my toes. Surely he’s happy we, more than likely, blew up the internet with this crazy show.

“You alright?” I ask him.

He nods and sets me down. “Yeah. I’m fine.” He touches my cheek with his thumb, and it feels final, like this is our goodbye.

I swallow and force a smile on my face. I knew this would happen. I was prepared that if this went well, it would only lead to one of two outcomes. Winning the contest and Sebastian leaving Georgiaorexposing our story and embarrassing us both so much that he’s forced to leave Georgia to save face.

“Want a lift home?” he offers.

I look at Aspen who stares back at me. She’s probably wondering the same thing I am. Should I take him up on his offer and endure the ‘what the fuck were you thinking exposing us’ lecture, or should I avoid his goodbye at all costs?

Avoiding sounds pretty good at the moment, but I’m not a coward. “Sure.” I cut Aspen a small smile. “Will you bring my stuff home?”

She nods, and Sebastian gives me his hand, which I take, and follow him toward the parking lot, away from the cacophony of laughter and what was probably an epic exit by Malcolm and Brick.

When we’re in the quiet of Sebastian’s Jeep with the doors locked, Sebastian drums on the steering wheel for a moment. “Just say what you want to say,” I tell him. “I embarrassed us both, I know, but I didn’t know what else to do. I didn’t want you to lose out on your dream.”

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