Idk

*Kenzie*

I wake up before my alarm because it’s already too hot to sleep.

The kind of heat that presses into your skin and makes the air feel thick, like you’re breathing through cotton. My room smells faintly like last night’s laundry detergent and the window fan hums uselessly, pushing warm air around instead of doing anything helpful.

Summer in Tennessee doesn’t care about school dress codes.

I sit up and wipe my face, already annoyed, then swing my legs out of bed. Today’s the first real day back—not orientation, not schedule pickup. An actual school day. Which means hallways, people staring, and whatever chaos Madilyn is about to drag us into.

I pull open my closet and go straight for my baggy jeans. Everyone wears them now—loose, low on the hips, faded in a way that looks accidental but definitely isn’t. They’re the only thing that makes school bearable when it’s ninety-five degrees before eight a.m.

I grab a fitted baby tee, short sleeves, crew neck—fully dress code compliant even if it still feels unfair. The fabric clings just enough to be annoying, but at least it’s light. I throw it on and step back, tying my red hair into a messy claw clip. It’s the same copper-red I’ve always had, impossible to ignore, especially under this sun.

I look like myself. That’s enough.

Downstairs, my mom’s already gone for work, a sticky note on the counter reminding me to drink water. I chug half a bottle before heading out, the morning cicadas screaming like they’re late for something.

The drive to Hollow Creek High is short but familiar—trees, old houses, a gas station that always smells like hot asphalt and coffee. The parking lot is already full, heat shimmering off the hoods of cars.

I spot Elora first.

She’s leaning against Madilyn’s car, arms crossed, dirty-blonde hair loose and slightly wavy, catching the light. She’s wearing baggy jeans like mine and a cropped tee layered over a longer tank so it technically counts as dress code. Elora always knows how to get around rules without breaking them.

Madilyn stands next to her, scrolling on her phone. She looks different lately—not in a bad way. Her red hair is darker than mine, deeper, almost auburn, and she’s wearing fitted jeans instead of baggy ones, like always. Madilyn doesn’t follow trends unless she wants to. Her top is simple, neutral, and intentional. She always looks like she knows exactly where she’s going—even when she doesn’t.

I walk up and Elora grins immediately. “You look like you’re already over it.”

“I am,” I say. “It’s too hot for education.”

Madilyn glances up, smiling. “You say that every year.”

“And every year I’m right.”

We head toward the building together, the front doors already crowded with people laughing, yelling, pretending they didn’t miss this place even a little.

That’s when Madilyn slows.

“Okay,” she says casually, like she’s talking about homework. “We need to talk.”

Elora groans. “That tone never means anything good.”

Madilyn tucks her phone away and looks between us, eyes bright. “It’s your turn.”

My stomach drops. “No.”

Elora stops walking. “You’re kidding.”

Madilyn smiles—small, satisfied. “I’m not.”

The Three Kisses game started as a joke last year. Something stupid passed around between girls who were bored and curious and wanted to feel brave without admitting it. Three friends. Three kisses. One rule that mattered:

You don’t get to choose.

The **first guy you physically bump into at school** is the first kiss. No thinking. No backing out. Right then.

The **second**, you have to make *him* kiss *you*.

The **third**?

You have to make out with him.

Madilyn already went through all three.

And now she’s dating Dalton—the guy she finished the game with. Like it all somehow worked out.

“That doesn’t mean we have to do it,” I say quickly.

Elora raises an eyebrow. “It kind of does.”

Madilyn shrugs. “I did my part. You both promised.”

I stare at the school doors like they’re about to personally betray me. “You realize this is insane.”

Madilyn laughs. “So is falling in love in high school. But people still do it.”

Elora exhales slowly. “When?”

Madilyn’s eyes flick toward the doors as the bell rings. “Today.”

My heart starts racing. “That’s not—”

And then someone bumps into me.

Hard.

“Sorry—” a guy says at the same time I say it, both of us stepping back.

I freeze.

Elora’s hand clamps around my arm.

Madilyn’s smile disappears—then slowly comes back.

I look up at the guy I just collided with, heat rushing to my face, heart pounding so loud I swear he can hear it.

The game has rules.

And I just broke the first one by thinking too much.

---

Perfect — thank you. I’m going to **cleanly retcon** that moment so it fits the rule *and* deepen it emotionally.

**Key fixes I’m applying (quietly, in-story):**

* Kenzie **does NOT know** the “nobody can know” rule yet.

* During the kiss, **no one explicitly explains the game** to the guy.

* Dialogue stays natural, vague, and confusing — the way secrets actually happen.

* This section is **only the kiss**, stretched out in Kenzie’s head.

* Next chapter will deal with *after* and the rule reveal.

Here we go.

---

*Kenzie*

This is a mistake.

That’s the first clear thought I have as I stand there, too close to him now, the space between us shrinking in a way that feels irreversible. The hallway is still loud, still alive, but it’s like it’s happening behind glass. I can hear voices, lockers, footsteps—but they’re distant, blurred, like I’ve slipped underwater.

“Are you okay?” he asks quietly.

His voice isn’t teasing. It isn’t annoyed. It’s careful.

I nod even though my body feels like it’s buzzing apart. “Yeah. I just—” I stop, because I don’t know how to finish that sentence without sounding insane.

Elora shifts beside me. I don’t look at her. If I look at her, I’ll break.

Madilyn says nothing. That somehow pushes me forward more than anything else could.

“I’m sorry,” I say, even though I don’t know what I’m apologizing for. “This is just… a thing.”

He tilts his head. “A thing?”

I let out a breath that feels like it’s been trapped in my chest all morning. “I swear I’m not trying to be weird.”

A pause. Then he gives a small, uncertain smile. “Okay.”

That’s it. No questions. No jokes. Just okay.

My heart stutters.

I don’t think about rules. I don’t think about consequences. I don’t think about how public this is, or how my mom told me to be careful with my heart, or how Madilyn looks so calm right now it should scare me.

All I can think about is the heat. The closeness. The fact that if I don’t do this now, I never will.

I step forward.

He freezes for half a second, like he’s checking whether this is really happening. I can see the moment he decides not to pull away.

“Wait—” he starts.

I don’t let him finish.

I lean in, my body moving before my brain can interfere. My heart is pounding so loudly I’m sure he can hear it. I close my eyes right before our lips meet, because if I don’t, I’ll panic.

The kiss is soft. Too soft to be dramatic. Too brief to be meaningful—except it is.

His lips are warm. That’s the first thing I notice. The second is that I’m holding my breath.

For a split second, nothing exists except that contact. No hallway. No people. No game. Just this strange, suspended moment where I’m doing something I can’t take back.

Then my brain catches up.

Oh my God.

I’m kissing a stranger.

At school.

I pull back slightly, breath hitching.

“Sorry,” I whisper, instinctively.

He exhales a shaky laugh. “You don’t have to apologize.”

I open my eyes. He looks just as stunned as I feel, eyes a little wide, like he’s replaying it in his head already.

“Are you—” he starts, then stops. “Are you okay?”

I nod again, too fast. “Yeah. I just—yeah.”

The bell rings again in the distance, late enough to be annoying, loud enough to break whatever spell this was.

I step back fully now, my face burning, my hands suddenly very aware that they have nowhere to go. My lips still feel warm. I hate that I notice.

“Uh,” he says. “Well.”

“Yeah,” I say.

We stand there for one more second, neither of us knowing how to exit this moment without making it worse.

Then he gives a small nod and steps away, disappearing into the crowd like nothing just happened.

Except everything did.

I stand there, heart racing, skin buzzing, my mind spinning in a hundred directions at once.

What did I just do?