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“So, um, this,” Riley gestured to them, “is what we need to talk about.”
Skylar’s stomach made a free fall to the floor. What could there possibly be to talk about? Riley knew they were together, and so far, that hadn’t been an issue with anything. The tour was still sold out, the merchandise was selling left and right, and the albums were back on the top one hundred lists. Everything had been going well, so what was the problem?
Riley tapped on her phone, then turned it around so they could see it. As soon as Elena and Skylar saw the picture staring back at them, they both gasped. It was a candid picture of them kissing in the elevator at the hotel in Boston. Skylar hadn’t remembered seeing anyone in the lobby that night, but apparently, someone was watching them.
“Where is that posted?” Elena grabbed the phone, examining the photo.
“It’s on Reddit on a Skylena forum.”
“Skylena?” Skylar asked in confusion. “What is that?”
Riley grimaced. “It’s the ship name people have for you two.”
Skylar blinked once, then twice. She looked at Elena, who looked just as confused as she felt.
“Like SwanQueen?”
“Yeah,” Riley nodded.
Taking the phone back from Elena, she clicked off the photo to show them the forum that was full of comments and questions about Skylar and Elena’s assumed relationship. Skylar quickly scrolled through them as Elena read them beside her.
“Apparently it’s been a pretty popular forum since the tour started. A lot of people assume you two are together. Or they want to believe that’s true. So once this photo was posted, the forum lit up. One of my reporter friends called me about it, asking for a comment. By the time I was able to look into it, the photo had already been shared across social media.”
“What the fuck?” Skylar groaned. “We’ve been so careful. How could they do that? Just share a photo without permission?”
“Everyone is paparazzi these days,” Elena repeated the phrase Skylar had heard her say before. “How dare they do this? Who takes a private photo like that and posts it on the internet? This is an invasion of privacy.”
“I know.”
“Is there anything we can do?” Skylar looked at Riley, desperate for her to have an answer. But Riley just shook her head.
“Not really. It would be impossible to completely remove the photo from the internet. It’s probably already saved to hundreds if not thousands of phones.”
“I’m so sorry, Elena.” Skylar turned toward her. She could feel the tears nipping at the corner of her eyes. “I never thought this would happen.”
“It’s not your fault, Sky. We’re both in that picture as willing participants in the kiss.” She sighed heavily as her shoulders dropped. “We just have to deal with the consequences now. At least my parents know.”
It wasn’t much of a bright spot, but it was at least something. Skylar knew Elena was worried about the potential repercussions of the picture being posted online, and she wished she could make it all go away. But all she could do was pull Elena into a hug and hold her tight.
“I know this isn’t how you wanted it to happen.” Riley’s voice was gentle, calming even. “I know you both wanted to wait until after the tour to come out publicly about your relationship, but we don’t have that luxury any longer. And I am so sorry about that.”
“So, what do we do?” Elena asked the question Skylar was also wondering.
“Well, from the way I see it, we have two options. One is we ignore the photo altogether and hope it blows over. Or we can make a statement on it.”
Skylar furrowed her brow in confusion. “A statement? Like a press release?”
“Sort of.” Riley motioned for them to sit on the sofa as she explained her idea. “We already have the interview scheduled for tomorrow with the online news organization. I know the interviewer and know she would treat this situation delicately no matter which direction you want to take the story.”
“Take the story?” Elena looked at Riley, then Skylar, then back to Riley. “You mean if I come out or not?”
Riley plopped onto the chair across from them, looking as defeated as Skylar felt.
“Basically.”
“So all of this is riding on me?” Elena shook her head in frustration. Reaching out, Skylar tried to take hold of her hand, but Elena pulled it away. “This is so unfair. I should be able to dictate how and when I come out.”
“You should,” Riley affirmed. “And believe me, I wish you still could. But this is the best I can offer you. We can either deny the rumors, say you were hugging, or something. Or we can tell them the truth.”
