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Her page only had six pictures on it, and from what I could tell, the page had been posted less than an hour ago.
Her Sports Illuminated cover. Caption: Break out photo! So grateful to @sportsilluminated @meshphotography for this stunning photo.
Rakell on the beach during the shoot, talking to another model. Caption: Thank you to the beautiful @camillekostek for your support!
Rakell with Lana and Levi. Caption: My forever friends. @levistormaustintv I'm so grateful my bestie found you and moved to Austin! @lanataylor We get to learn about Austin from the best!
A picture of her sandwiched between Jonathon and Matt wearing a flowy, flowered sundress, Matt’s eyes cast on her while Jonathon smiled broadly at the camera. Caption: The best friends a girl could ever have. One is for fashion, art, and fun @Jonathonartfinds, and the other is to give me financial advice. He doesn’t have Instagram, so I can’t tag him ??.
“Bah, I’m sure Matt loved being painted as the bore,” I said in a low whisper. Then in my head, “She’s so bad.”
Then, our photo, the one that was causing a stir.
She and I. The close-up we had taken that night, the night before we’d drawn our feelings on the mirror, Rakell kissing the apple of my cheek, her eyes beaming at the camera, and me, grinning like a boy who’d just hit the winning home run. The picture I’d promised I wouldn’t share on social media. That fucking picture, I thought, a chuckle escaping my mouth as I stared at it. The caption read: Hi everyone, meet my boyfriend! I’ve known for a long time you were the one…@Jakeskyler…thank you for waiting me out. Beginning a new chapter with you by my side is a dream. (kissing face) @stickyfingersbradshaw Thanks for sharing your bestie.
My lips stretched into that same “boy hits home run” grin as I re-read it, my brain not believing that she’d posted this for the world to see…and tagged so many people. A jolt ran through me as I thought about everyone seeing this, especially Bernardo.
“Holy, yes!!” I almost bounced up on my toes as I shoved the phone back toward Dwayne. “She told the world…hell yeah, buddy. We may need a celebratory drink! Actually, no, I need to go, I need to call her. I want her to know that…”
Dwayne’s eyebrows drew down on his eyes, grimacing. “Now you get why I never, ever want to be in love. You sound like you didn’t complete third grade, dude. Did her life-affirming words melt your fucking brain? Go call her. I’m out of here.”
I brought up my Instagram and immediately shared her post to my stories: THE ONE!! Then I used three of the pictures from that night, us face to face, and created my own reel. The caption read: The secret that’s been burning in my chest. This girl right here is mine! Yes, the Jumbotron cheerleader is my girl, and I can’t wait to do more of life with her. I tagged her and Jonathon. I was semi-suspicious that he may have had a hand in her new account…but I’d take it and make sure I bought Jonathan a drink in the future.
Chapter Fourteen
Rakell: Jonathon!!!! I said say something positive not all this BS that makes me sound like some lovesick Jake Skyler fan and you tagged everyone…is that normal? I hope Camille’s okay with it.…Send
Jonathon: You gave me creative license, so I took it. Yes, that’s normal, it’s a way to acknowledge people. I tagged Dwayne to make sure Jake saw it…Send
Rakell: Do you think it’s too late to tone down the caption?…Send
Jonathon: No, Dwayne already liked it and reshared and half the women in the world have been commenting…how lucky you are!...Send
Rakell: What? And the caption under you and Matt’s picture makes you sound amazing and Matt boring…Send
Jonathon: Matt didn’t like it either, but I believe in being candid and honest on social media ??…Send
Jonathon: Oh, lookie, lookie, Mr. Skyler wasted no time to join in the fun! He just posted a few pictures, and his caption is so sweet…albeit a little caveman…but he’s a football player, not a poet. He tagged you…Send
When she found his new post, she couldn’t believe there were already so many comments and likes. Reading some of the comments, she shook her head, thinking about living life in full view of others, giving people who didn’t know you or have any vested interest in your life an open forum to voice their opinions of you.
@Janie123: “I knew she was with you.”
@Candymanson: Wow, I’d love to be your cheerleader, Skyler.
@Ameliajones: She’s a lucky girl.
@Stickyfingersbradshaw: You got a great girl, Skyler. Happy for you!! FINALLY!!
She re-read Dwayne’s comment, laughing.
@Austin4everyone: Happy for you! The whole family is crazy about her!
Ahhh…Melissa, she thought as her phone rang.
“Hey you…” His voice was throaty; she could almost hear his Cheshire Cat grin on the other end.
“Yeah, you.” She was purposefully neutralizing her voice.
