Page 26 of Open Water
"My unsanctioned race from the beginning of the semester."
"Jesus." Marcus shook his head. The performance of surprise. Competent but not flawless — his hands were flat on the table instead of where they'd normally be, which was moving. Marcus talked with his hands. When his hands stopped, he was controlling the conversation. "That's fucked up. Any idea who?"
My stomach turned. Not because of him — because of me. Because I was sitting across from my oldest friend running an interrogation disguised as a conversation, and the worst part was how easily it came.
"I thought it was Braden," I said. "For a while."
"Makes sense. He's had it out for you since day one."
"But Braden's not subtle. He doesn't do anonymous." I tilted my head. "Whoever's doing this is strategic. They understand how my life works. The family pressure, the legacy stuff, which buttons to push."
Marcus's jaw shifted. Barely perceptible.
"So who do you think it is?" he asked.
And there it was. The question he shouldn't have asked. A friend who was genuinely trying to help would have offered theories. Would have saidhave you told anyone?orwhat did the messages say?Marcus skipped all of that and went straight towho do you think it is— because he needed to know if I'd figured it out.
"Someone who was at Brackett Lake," I said. Quiet. "Someone who saw something that summer and decided to use it."
Marcus went stone-still.
"You tell me," I said.
The mask cracked. A fracture at the jawline. A shift in the eyes. The face of a guy realizing he'd been walked into a room with no exits.
"Alex —"
"You were there that night. You saw us kiss." I kept my voice low. My hands were shaking under the table. "The slur at the party. The video. The texts. The photo. All of it started after that night."
"What are you talking about?"
"It's too late Marcus. I already know."
"I haven't done anything." He shook his head.
"You didn't react when I mentioned the video. You asked who I suspected instead of what was happening. And when I said Brackett Lake, your whole body changed."
Silence.
"I know it's you, Marcus."
He closed the laptop. The click of the latch was the loudest sound in the room.
"I was trying to protect you," he said.
It wasn't out of guilt or shame it was just dead certainty.
"Protect me."
"From throwing your life away over some phase."
"Phase?"
"Yes. A phase. Something you'd grow out of if someone just had the guts to —"
"Your solution was to terrorize me into not being myself?"
"I tried to scare you intothinking.That's different." The prep-school polish was gone. "I sent the texts to show you how exposed you were. How easy it would be for the wrong person to find out."
