“This number.” I turn the phone toward her. “It’s not Zach’s.”
“Do you really think he’d use his personal phone to send these?”
“He wouldn’t do this.”
“He would.” Her face shifts—just for a second—before she recovers. “Honey, you're not thinking clearly. You're upset and—”
“Call the number.” My voice is steady now. “If it’s him, he’ll answer.”
I click the green call button and hear the ring.
It rings once. Twice.
“The number you have dialed is not in service—”
“Honey, please let me explain.” She reaches for the phone.
I pull it away, scrolling to her recent calls.
“There's nothing here. No calls from this number. No FaceTime. Just texts.”
“Because he knew better than to—”
“Stop lying to me!” The words rip out of me, louder than I've ever been with anyone. “You faked these. You made a fake contact and sent yourself messages so you could—”
She lunges for the phone.
I twist away from her reach, and my thumb accidentally swipes on the screen. The messages app closes.
Behind it, another app is open.
HushLine.
My heart stops.
I immediately recognize the first message.
Your golden boy's game isn't for another two days and you really think he's spending the night talking to the boys? That's cute.
I scroll through the thread, my hands starting to shake. I recognize every single one.
Check the location share, Honey. Or don't—denial looks as good on you now as it did when you were in high school.
Told you to check Zach's location. I'm embarrassed for you.
She's just a consolation prize. Isn't she embarrassed?
He's already pulling away from you and you don't even see it.
Message after message after message. All sent from Jenni's phone using this app so they’d show up on my phone as “Unknown.”
I keep scrolling, going back further, watching the messages start right after the first week of school last year. Before I even knew her.
Every fear I've ever had about myself. Every insecurity I confessed to Jenni late at night when I thought I had a friend who understood. Thrown back at me anonymously, designed to make me feel like someone was stalking me, like I should be terrified every time my phone buzzed.
“Give me my phone.” Jenni's voice cuts through the ringing in my ears, desperate now.
I look up at her slowly, and the person standing in front of me is a complete stranger. Someone I never knew at all.