‘Because I like writing for the school newspaper and it’ll be coolto see what it’s like to write for a real one.’
‘So just say that.’
I shake my head. ‘It’s not that simple. No one knows I’m the Secret Sender. Apart from you, Faye and Kira. And Ms Harkness now, I guess.’
‘Who’s Ms Harkness?’
‘My English teacher. She found out I’m the Secret Sender and said I should apply for the work experience.’
‘Sounds like she’s a good teacher,’ he says.
‘The point is, being the Secret Sender, is, well . . . a secret. I can’t go and put it in an application form.’
Ty shakes his head. ‘I don’t think they’re going to tell anyone. You need to put it in, because it’s the truth and anything you write will sound fake without it.’
‘I know,’ I say and close my eyes. There’s another weight on my chest, pressing down on me. ‘What if I’m not good enough?’ I say, quietly.
Ty leans forwards. ‘Selena, I call you Writer because that’s what you are. Didn’t you say you liked writing for the newspaper?’
‘Yeah, but . . . ’ I look away from him, towards the window.
‘But what?’
‘But no one knows it’s me. And it’s more freeing that way. This application, they’ll know it’s me, they’ll judgeme. And I’m no Tori.’
‘Wait, who’s Tori?’
‘Tori is the editor for the newspaper. She’s wanted to be a journalist her whole life. And it sounds like she has one of these three places in the bag already.’
‘So what, there’s still two other places.’
‘Ty, I took this up a month ago. Because Kira submitted me without telling me! And I write five-line articles. It’s not exactly investigative journalism!’
‘But that’s not what journalism has to look like. Most peopleare consuming a few lines of social media posts at a time. The fact you can capture people with a few lines, that’s an impressive skill. Probably more than whatever Tori is doing.’
‘People do talk about the Secret Sender the most,’ I say thoughtfully.
‘Writer, you’ve got to try.’ He leans forwards, his eyes dark. ‘Otherwise you’ll never know. And the only way is to tell your story. The real reason why you write. The real reason you should be the person to get the opportunity to learn more about telling stories.’
‘You’ve got all that from a couple of Secret Sender articles?’
‘No, it’s because . . . you’re a natural storyteller,’ he says, touching my hand. ‘And I want to keep listening to you. You’ve got this.’
I nod, unable to rip my eyes from him. ‘Okay,’ I say. ‘You’re right. I can do this.’
He winks at me. ‘I normally am right.’
I throw the cushion at him. ‘You know, sometimes I forget how annoying you are.’
‘But incredibly charming, right?’ He grins.
‘I wish I had another cushion to throw at you.’ I go to pick up the cushion by him. ‘Do you really think I can do it?’
He grabs me by the wrist, electricity sparking down my veins at his touch. ‘I really do.’
‘Why do you keep doing that?’ I say, looking down to where his hand is clasped around my wrist.
‘What?’
