starts to dig through and then stops mid-sentence. “I forgot our phones broke when we fell in the lake. Sorry.”
“509,” Chase says all of a sudden.
“What?” I turn my attention back to him.
“Room 509, fifth floor,” he says. “She told me earlier. When we were dancing.” He looks slightly guilty. “It was like . . . almost like she wanted me to remember the room. She said it was her favorite number.”
“509 isn’t her favorite number,” Ava says.
“509 isn’t anyone’s favorite number,” I say.
And then Ava puts her hands on her hips. “Come on, guys, really? Danielle told you her room number because she wanted you to come hang out. Danielle and Andrew don’t even like each other. You’re all such idiots.” She flips some purple hair behind her shoulder.
We all look at each other for a few seconds and a wave of understanding passes through us. For the first time everything is so clear, all the pieces finally fit into their rightful places.
“I have to go back inside,” I say, motioning toward the door. “I have to find Andrew.”
And then I turn around and run back through the front doors.
“She’s running back into a burning building for him!” Ava shouts behind me. “It’s true love!”
And then I hear Chase. “There’s no fire.” And then Ryder. “Where’s that other dude?”
I push my way past the two gangly teenage bellhops who are trying to guard the front doors.
“You’re not allowed back in the building!” one of them shouts as I pass, but I ignore him and keep running. Now I know where I have to go. Stairs. Five flights up. The concierge is in the middle of the lobby, directing people toward the doors, and when he sees me run past, we lock eyes and he knows I’m the one who pulled the alarm. It’s like he doesn’t know I’m Keely Collins, that pulling alarms isn’t in my nature. He thinks I’m someone else, someone wilder and freer and more alive, and I kind of like it.
I run as fast as I can toward the back stairwell, already feeling a cramp in my side. I hear footsteps behind me and turn, expecting to see the concierge, but I’m surprised to see Chase right behind me.
“I can’t let you be the only hero,” he says, grinning. “Maybe now she’ll forgive me.”
We tumble together through a swinging door.
“Wait,” I say. “We should split up. I take these stairs and you take the ones on the other side.” He nods and heads in the other direction, saluting before he disappears back through the swinging door. “Go get your girl!” I call after him.
Then I begin to climb. This is slower going, because the stairs are old and twisty. Finally I make it to the fifth floor, and I push open the door into the hallway. It’s empty—only flashing lights and blaring alarms. I let myself lean against the wall for a minute to catch my breath. If he’s not on five, I should just go back outside. I’ll find him eventually, once the alarm shuts off and the chaos dies down. I heave myself off the wall and head back to the stairs.
Then there he is at the other end of the hallway.
“Collins!” he shouts over the sound of the siren. “We have to get out of here!”
“Where’s Danielle?” I ask, expecting her to come around the corner behind him.
“She went outside,” he says. “I came up here to find you. Ava said you went back to the fifth floor. There’s a fire!” He lunges forward to grab my hand, like he’ll be able to pull me to safety.
“It’s okay!” I shout back. I let him take my hand and I link our fingers together. “There’s no fire!”
“What?” he asks, and I’m not sure if he can’t hear me or if he’s just confused about what I said.
“There’s no fire!” I repeat. “I pulled the alarm.”
He’s still running down the hallway toward the back stairwell, pulling me along behind him. And then he stops suddenly and