Chapter 61

When we’re alone in the green room, Zelda kisses me again. It’s not the goodbye kiss of yesterday, it’s the hello kiss of the future. I want to get lost in it, but I can’t. Because I’m thinking about Ava.

“Something wrong?” Zelda breaks only a sliver away so that she murmurs her question into my mouth. It’s crazy sexy, but I force myself to put some distance between us.

“Ummm . . . I’m not sure how to put this . . .”

“You’re in love with Ava,” she states. She doesn’t look upset about it though, just thoughtful.

“I don’t know.” Where I feel fluttery and euphoric around Zelda, I feel cozy and carefree around Ava. “There’s so much going on right now, and I guess I need some time to process it all.”

Zelda winks and slugs me tenderly in the shoulder. “Same. No need to rush into anything. I want the space to figure out who I am beyond the label I’ve been given.”

The door flings open. “Oh,” Nebraska says innocently. “Am I interrupting a private moment?” Ava stands beside her, looking a little bit lost.

“Not at all,” Zelda says without a trace of malice. “Come on in, Ava. It’s so awesome to finally meet you.”

Ava beams at her and approaches us with pep in her step. “Thank you. It’s been a whirlwind couple of days, hasn’t it?”

She turns to me with her goofy grin, and I envelop her in my arms. It feels so right to have her back in my life.

Nebraska wrinkles her nose. “Indeed. Bridget thought I should bid you farewell before I go, so here I am.”

Wait. Nebraska is leaving? A wild thought occurs to me. “Are you taking the Termination Train after all? To Reader World?”

“Still on that kick, are you? I already told you—I’m not interested in putting myself at the mercy of reality.”

Zelda’s eyebrows scrunch together as she looks back and forth between Nebraska and me. “Riley, even if the train really does lead to Reader World . . .”

“It does,” Nebraska interrupts.

Zelda pauses and repeats, “If it does . . .”

“What?” Nebraska protests. “I have no reason to lie to you now.”

Zelda continues. “Now that our Trope has been saved, there’s no longer any pressure on us to risk so much.”

“And Bridget is offering everyone in our therapy group promotions to Legacy and big houses in TropeTown Heights,” Nebraska singsongs. “The others already accepted.”

Legacy. A big house. It sounds like a dream.

But it’s not my dream. And now that I know Reader World is within my grasp, I could never be satisfied living out other people’s stories. No way.

“I’m taking the train,” I declare with all the confidence I have stored up. “Because my destiny is to embrace possibility.”

“Mine, too,” Ava says. I expected nothing less of her.

I turn to Zelda, and so many of our times together flash through my mind. Stargazing at Winter Lake. Going Off-Page. Breaking out of Jail. Being with her may not turn out to be my destiny after all, but I’m not ready to rule it out yet. “And you?” I ask her.

“I’m taking the train, too,” Zelda says. “Because even if it ultimately turns out to be short-lived, it will be an adventure I choose.”

“Whatever.” Nebraska slicks her jagged hair back into a sleek bun. “As a reward for practically singlehandedly saving the Trope, the Council granted me a transfer to Mean Girl Mastermind, so I don’t really care what all you Manic Pixies do now.”

“So you confessed to the arson!” Zelda exclaims. To be transferred to a villain role, Nebraska would’ve had to confess to committing a crime.

“I did indeed,” Nebraska confirms. “Georgina’s name is officially cleared. That’s something else you can thank me for.”

Of course we know that justice for George wasn’t her motivation, but I’m still immensely relieved for George’s sake. And Mean Girl Mastermind is a perfect fit for a devious egomaniac like Nebraska.

As she turns to leave, she says, “You can do me one favor, though. When you see Finn, tell him I’m sorry.”