Chapter 42

Miles stood with his head bent, offering Elise the tousled back of it. With that miserable pleading in his voice, she couldn't have stayed angry if she'd tried.

Her usually swaggering, insufferably confident brother was prepared to let her hit him or scold him, provided it made her happy. She gave the back of his head a gentle push, making him straighten.

He went on watching her hopefully.

The practice papers in her hands were crumpled. She could almost see him at his desk, struggling to keep his temper, dragging his hands through his hair whenever another problem defeated him, then forcing himself to finish. The notebook, too, showed an effort to write neatly. His letters were a considerable improvement on their usual wild sprawl.

He really had worked at this.

“All right,” she said with a sigh. “I'm not angry anymore. But you don't get to do this again.”

His eyes lit up, and a smile immediately spread across his face.

“I promise. Never again. I stake my entire reputation on it. If mine isn't good enough, I'll stake Dylan's, too.”

She burst out laughing. Dylan had never been a devoted student himself, yet Miles had forced him to take notes for all this time. The more she thought about it, the funnier it became.

“Ellie, I'm hungry. Shall we go down and eat?”

She nodded.

Downstairs, two more pairs of anxious eyes turned toward her. Remembering how hard Julian and Adrian had tried to cheer her up, she smiled at them. They could stop worrying. She wasn't angry now.

Julian visibly relaxed and raised a hand to Daniel.

“You can serve dinner.”

The food was ready. They'd only been waiting for her.

Adrian sprang off the sofa. “If he lies to you again, Ellie, you won't have to lift a finger. I'll beat him up myself.”

Miles promptly took the seat beside her at the table and gave Adrian a dangerous look. Beat him up? He'd like to see Adrian try. The only reason he hadn't reduced him to tears already was that Adrian happened to be his older brother.

Julian served Elise some food.

“Even when you're angry, you still need to eat. Besides, you weren't the one who did something wrong. Come down and have your dinner. Let him starve.”

That had worried him most while he waited downstairs: that she'd be too upset to eat. Miles was tough enough to survive a missed meal. She shouldn't have to go hungry because of him.

Having finally earned her forgiveness, Miles wasn't about to jeopardize it by arguing with either brother. He endured their open and less obvious jabs, limiting himself to a few murderous looks.

Elise couldn't help laughing at how thoroughly he'd been put in his place.

Julian considered him, then smiled. “Since he owes you an apology, ask him for something. Make him earn his way back into your good books. You can even squeeze some money out of him. He's got plenty.”

For once, Miles had no objection to anything coming out of Julian's mouth. He looked at her expectantly. If she wanted something, he could give it to her. That would help with the guilt, too.

“Make him give you an enormous cash gift for New Year's,” Adrian suggested. “An envelope as thick as a book.”

With Miles making no attempt to fight back, both brothers seized their chance to bargain on her behalf.

Her smile widened. “I don't want the money. I want a practice paper with a passing grade on it. Can you give me that, Miles?”

There were still several months until New Year's. If he kept working, a passing grade was within reach.

He thought it over, then made up his mind.

“Deal. And you're getting the cash, too. The envelope will be thicker than a test-prep book.”

Everyone laughed.

For the first time, Elise felt that they were simply a happy family around a dinner table. These were her brothers, bound to her by blood, the people who ought to have been closest to her. When she'd first been brought back to the Whitmores, she'd hoped for the warmth of being reunited with them. She hadn't found it then. Only after this strange return to her old life had she begun to feel what it was like to be home.

But someone was missing.

Her fork paused. “When is Theo coming back?”

The table went quiet.

Julian thought for a moment. “The last I heard from Hannah, he was at a closed training camp in Russia. Perhaps he'll be back in America soon.”

“You heard from her?”

Elise looked at him in surprise. Julian didn't know where Theo was himself? He had to hear about him from Hannah?

Then she remembered their previous life. After she'd been found, all her brothers except Julian had kept homes of their own. Adrian and Miles occasionally came back to see Vivian. Theo barely sent word except around the holidays, and from time to time he'd mail Vivian a present.

She hadn't seen much of him again until the family went bankrupt. He was an esports player and owned shares in Whitmore Group. To repay his own debts and the family's, he'd sold the team he'd built himself. People in the esports community had called him a traitor for it. A man they'd once treated as a legend had gradually become someone they reviled.

By the time she'd taken her brothers into her home, Theo was already distant from the others. He'd stayed with her for a month, then left. After that, she'd heard nothing from him.

She still didn't know what had driven them apart.

Adrian looked bored with the subject. He raised a brow. “Hasn't he always been like this? He probably won't tell us when he gets back, either. He should put in an appearance at New Year's, though.”

“He's used to doing everything alone,” Miles said with a frown. “Don't worry about him, Ellie. Pay attention to me. What reward do I get when I pass?”

“A punch?” Adrian offered, glancing at him.

The brothers started bickering again. Elise lowered her head and ate in silence. Now that she'd changed her mind about keeping her distance, she wanted them all together. That included Theo.

He would come home for New Year's, wouldn't he?

That next morning, the classroom was noisier than usual. Students gathered in twos and threes, talking excitedly.

Grace saw Elise come in and rolled her eyes without bothering to hide it. Elise smiled and walked around her to her seat.

Nora had seen the whole thing.

“She's just jealous,” she said indignantly. “You're crushing her in the vote for procession leader. It feels so good!”

“Oh.” Elise was slow to respond. They'd started voting already? She hadn't even asked Ms. Parker to withdraw her name.

“And after all that campaigning! She's been buying people bubble tea to get votes. Last night she almost caught you, and then your total suddenly shot up. You left her miles behind. That's why she's so mad. It's hilarious.”

“My votes shot up? Why?”

Nora took out her phone and opened the school discussion board. Someone was posting live updates on the election.

Each class had selected three students for the honor procession. The whole school would then choose one of those nominees to lead it, with a place on the school website and display board to follow.

“I don't know. She was only seven votes away from overtaking you last night, then you suddenly got loads more.” Nora scrolled through the discussions filling the page.

Claire came over, her face flushed with excitement.

“Elise, haven't you seen it? Someone posted a video of you on the board. That's why everyone's voting for you!”

“A video?” Elise's eyes widened.

Claire opened one of the most popular threads. There she was. The poster had a male account, and his title was straightforward enough:

“Does anyone know what class this girl is in? Nothing major. A friend of mine just wants her contact info.”

The replies were full of laughter. Would this friend happen to be the person who'd posted it?

The video showed Elise on her skateboard, filmed from behind. She was wearing her uniform skirt with her shirt sleeves rolled up. Her long, slim legs filled the center of the frame as she pushed off and sent the board rolling. A few moments later, she turned lightly on it, drawing whistles from people outside the shot. The narrow waist and pretty figure were part of the attraction, but her skating was impressive in its own right. Several of the tricks were difficult.

The thread had taken off as soon as it appeared the previous night. At first, with only a rear view to go on, everyone had guessed at the girl's identity. Her strikingly fair skin, the uniform, and a few students who'd actually seen her skating that day had eventually settled it.

Once people connected the video to Elise's name on the ballot, the votes poured in. A pretty girl who could skate like that? Of course they liked her.

“I never knew skateboarding could look so cool,” Claire said, almost glowing with admiration. “You have to teach me sometime. You look amazing doing it.”

Nora had already watched it several times and was playing it again.

“I'm a girl, and even I'm drooling. Elise, how are you that gorgeous?”

Elise didn't know whether to laugh or sigh. It had never occurred to her that someone might film her skating, much less that a video would put her so far ahead in the voting.

She still didn't want to join the procession. With a rather dispirited expression, she took her textbooks out of her bag. She'd go and find Ms. Parker after class and ask to have her place withdrawn.

Grace heard every word from their corner. Claire and Nora sounded like a pair of shameless flatterers.

She'd spent all her allowance buying drinks and canvassing for votes. A single video of Elise had beaten the lot.

She added it to the list of things she resented her for.

Since joining the parents' group, Adrian had discovered another useful pastime: browsing the school discussion board.

He knew its popular threads by heart. He'd even registered several alternate accounts, using them to recommend Elise to anyone who might listen. Whenever somebody insulted her, he could pick up one of those accounts and argue for hours.

If voting for procession leader hadn't been restricted to Northbridge High students, he'd have cast tens of thousands of votes for her himself.

During his usual round of the latest threads, he found the skateboarding video.

After confirming that it was his sister, he sat bolt upright.

Who had filmed her without asking? And who was using that pathetic excuse about a friend to ask for her contact details? Some little punk thought he had a chance with her?

Did they think her brother was dead?

He wasn't going to sit there and take it. Nor was he going to suffer alone. He immediately pulled Julian and Miles into a group chat.

Adrian shared a link: “Does anyone know what class this girl is in? Nothing major. A friend of mine just wants her contact info.”

Adrian: [Smiling face]

Adrian: Well? What are we doing to this guy?

Julian: [OK]

Miles: Ha.

Miles: He wants to hit on my sister?

Miles: We fucking destroy him, obviously.

“Hey, why won't the video open?”

Nora had bookmarked the thread so she could admire it again at home. When she tried it after class, the entire post had vanished, and the video was unavailable, too.

Elise glanced at the screen and gave a helpless smile. “Maybe a moderator deleted it.”

But a moderator's deletion usually left a notice saying the post had been removed. This link went straight to a 404 page.

Nora frowned at it, unable to work out what had happened.

Curled up on the sofa, Adrian watched the video again. The longer he watched, the broader his smile became. He supposed he couldn't blame the little bastards for noticing her.

His sister was beautiful.

He still had to protect her. Some clueless dog wasn't going to carry her off while he stood by.

Watching her reminded him that it was time to praise his sister on his feed again.

A new friends-only post appeared:

“Is it my sister's fault she's beautiful and brilliant? Why are there always so many mutts sniffing around her? Have they looked at themselves? [Smug face]”

His pride practically spilled off the screen.

The group chat stirred.

Julian: Done.

Julian: All the posts are gone.

Miles: I'm done, too.

Miles: Found out who the guy is. I'll have a nice talk with him about his life choices after school.

Adrian raised his brows. Efficient work. They deserved some encouragement. Clearly he'd been right to bring this to their attention.

Adrian: [Thumbs up]

Adrian: Excellent. Keep it up.

Julian: [Smiling face] And you?

Miles: You've been ordering us around. What did you do?

Adrian: Praised my sister.

Adrian: See my latest post.

Adrian sent an “I stand by what I said” meme.

Julian: Muted your feed.

Miles: Same.

Adrian silently cursed them both. Was it a crime to enjoy posting? Was it a crime to enjoy posting about his wonderful little sister?

They'd actually muted him.

A little later, another message arrived.

Miles: Oh, I've seen your post.

Adrian: Couldn't resist opening my feed after all?

Adrian: I knew you had taste.

Miles: ...

Miles: No. I didn't see it on your feed.

Adrian: Where, then??

Miles: Trending.

Adrian: ???

A bad feeling came over him. He opened X at once. His own name sat at the very top of the live trending list.

#AdrianWhitmoreSisterHype

The most popular post under the tag came from an entertainment gossip account. According to its breathless revelation, the man who cultivated such a cool, aloof image spent every day gushing obsessively about his sister on his private feed.

There were nine screenshots underneath.

Every one showed him boasting about Elise, sometimes openly and sometimes with an attempt at subtlety. There was even a photo of her homework notebook. Count them up, and he'd made well over a dozen posts praising her. The total was growing by the day, fast enough to flood his friends' feeds.

Elise's identity was being discussed all over again.

“Last time Julian and Adrian both spoke up for her, I thought they were putting on a show. Turns out Adrian really does adore his little sister.”

“I'm younger than you, Adrian! I can be your little sister, too! Please call me that from now on!”

“This looks exactly like me gushing about you.”

“Have you finally experienced what it's like for us to be your fans?”

“How are we supposed to feel when our idol becomes somebody else's biggest fan? [Laughing through tears]”

The man they showered with praise was privately spending every day showering somebody else with it.

The Starlights were left questioning everything. In their collective misery, they supplied a tag of their own:

#WhenYourIdolBecomesAFan

Adrian: THERE'S A TRAITOR ON MY FEED!!!

Julian: .

Miles sent a “Just here to watch” meme.

Adrian jabbed furiously at his phone and contacted his manager. Handle the publicity. Get the gossip account's post removed. Get the topic off the trending list.

If it had only been about him, he wouldn't have cared. He was a public figure; this sort of attention was routine. His sister was another matter. He didn't want her exposed to so much public scrutiny.

The topic was gone after just twenty minutes on the list.

His fans, however, had already absorbed the fact that he absolutely doted on her.

On sports day, Elise and Nora were in the stands early.

Before the event, she'd found Ms. Parker and withdrawn from the honor procession. In exchange, she'd entered an additional event: the eight hundred meters.

The music for the procession sounded around them. Across the field, Grace carried the school flag at the head of the formation as it marched in.

Nora hugged Elise's arm, full of regret.

“Why did you have to pull out? You'd be down there now instead of Grace.”

“The rehearsals are too much trouble. They take forever,” Elise said helplessly. “I could use that time to work through more practice questions.”

Each class occupied its own section of the stadium seating.

Jade and her friends had just come up into the stands, intending to lean against a railing to watch. They didn't attend Northbridge, but with so many students coming in, a few borrowed uniforms had been enough to get them inside.

They'd heard Elise had entered two events and wanted to cheer her on.

Then someone called from the seats ahead.

“Jade!” Nora stood and waved them over.

Jade stubbed out her cigarette and brought the others across. Nora caught her hand and asked the people around them to make room.

Looking at the studious faces surrounding her, Jade hesitated. Did her lot really belong in the middle of this crowd?

“Maybe we'll go to the back. We don't mind standing.”

Nora tightened her grip and shook her head. “Stay! I've told them you're really nice. You don't go around bullying people. What are you worried about?”

Elise watched with a smile. Nora was growing more comfortable with Jade every day; now Jade was the one who seemed shy.

Claire came over, too. She looked at Jade a little timidly.

“It's fine. Sit here with us. There are so many people today, and the teachers aren't here. It'll be okay.”

She pressed her lips together, embarrassed by her own little speech.

Jade looked around in surprise. Apart from Nora and Claire, the other students seemed happy enough to have them there, too. Several watched them curiously. She couldn't find the disgust or contempt she'd expected.

“All right, we'll sit.” Her smile broadened as she turned to the girls behind her. “Never sat in the middle of the good kids before.”

“Here's your chance to try it.”

They all laughed.

Miles slipped into Section Eleven and made his way toward Elise, stepping past several people. As soon as students recognized him, they obligingly shifted to make room.

Nobody wanted to get on the wrong side of Northbridge's most formidable troublemaker. Even the teachers gave him a certain amount of leeway.

When he reached Jade and her friends, the easy atmosphere stopped.

He and Jade stared coldly at one another. The students nearby watched in alarm, afraid a fight might break out right there.

“Miles,” Elise called in time.

The stare broke. Both looked away with matching disdain, and he went straight to the place beside her.

The sun was strong. He wore a baseball cap, and sweat had gathered on his forehead. As he wiped it away, a patch of bruised skin showed beneath the edge of the cap.

“Miles, what happened to your forehead?”

His hand stopped. He wouldn't quite meet her eyes.

“Nothing. Banged my head the day before yesterday.”

A few days earlier, he'd cornered the boy who'd posted the video and asked for Elise's contact details outside the school gate. The little bastard could take a beating. He'd even landed a punch on Miles. Still, Miles had won. By the end, the boy hadn't been able to stand.

That ought to have taught him. He couldn't even beat Miles in a fight, and he thought he could hit on his sister?

He was asking for it.

Elise wasn't entirely convinced. For the past few days her brother had kept wearing a cap, and he'd been oddly evasive about going to school with her.

But she gave it no more thought. Something else occurred to her.

“You haven't told Julian and Adrian about sports day, have you?”

The brothers had been sparring with words every day, all trying to capture her attention. She could see what they were doing, and it was giving her a headache.

What if the other two turned up here? Nobody else in her class had brought a parent along to watch. She was a high school student. How embarrassing would that be?

Miles faltered. “I didn't tell them.”

He couldn't promise they wouldn't come, though. Adrian was always lurking on the school board. There was really no telling what he might do.

She relaxed. She hadn't told them, and neither had Miles. How would they even know the event was today?

Grace came back to her seat after the procession. Her public smile vanished at once.

She'd thought she was certain to lose. During the last few days of voting, she hadn't even dared look at the standings. Then the results came out, and somehow she'd been chosen to lead.

When she'd gone to ask the teacher about the final rankings, she'd found that Elise's name had disappeared. Only then had she learned that Elise had withdrawn.

The news had stunned her.

What was that supposed to mean? First place had fallen to her because Elise couldn't be bothered to compete?

There was no pleasure in winning it. She only felt humiliated.