Dante’s POV
The request comes through Coach.
He calls while I’m still half-awake, voice clipped but trying to sound casual. “Local reporter wants to talk. Claims she isn’t after gossip. Says she wants to ‘set the record straight.’ ”
“Who?” I ask.
“Emma Riley. Senior journalism major. Runs the campus online paper that everyone actually reads.”
He pauses. “It might be worth it, Moretti. Tell your side before someone else fills the space.”
I sit up, rub my eyes. “Let me think about it.”
“You don’t have long. She’s holding a slot tomorrow afternoon.”
After we hang up, I stare at the ceiling for a while. My phone’s already full of notifications, half of them recycled quotes, half wild guesses. I scroll past them all until I see Sera’s text.
You okay?
Coach wants me to do an interview.
