Brandon's POV
Jason had been beeping me all day, but I didn't flinch. I already knew why he wanted to meet up, and I wasn't ready to face it. Not him, not Pete, not any of them. I'd been so mad at Pete for even having that video on his phone, madder still when I caught the others watching it together. They didn't post it, sure—but that didn't make them innocent. Guilt doesn't vanish just because you didn't pull the trigger.
So I shut them all out. Kept my head low, threw myself into classes, and tried to bury myself in the noise of extra curriculum. Anything to keep from thinking about how Chloe's cold silence at home stung sharper than any insult. She wouldn't even look at me sometimes, and when she did, it was with eyes that felt like a closed door.
