Free Nerve by Jeanne Ryan

not part of the crowd or a Watcher. Besides, no one’ll know.”
    I tell him.
    His expression remains neutral, but there’s a hardness in his eyes. “Well, at least let me go with you. It would be crazy to meet him alone.”
    “I kind of have to.” I show him my phone.
    His jaw tightens the way it did when Ms. Santana, the drama coach, tried to slash his budget for set construction. “You’re too smart for this.”
    “It’s not like I’m taking off with the guy. The bowling alley’s a public place.”
    He takes out his own phone. “I’m signing up as a Watcher.”
    “You don’t need to spend money to keep tabs on me.”
    He shrugs. “I would’ve signed up anyway. Cast parties don’t interest me much.”
    “You sure? Matthew’s planning to add an extra ingredient to the punch.” Ms. Santana isn’t known for her chaperoning skills, and I think Tommy could have some fun if he loosened up.
    He sighs. “Just be careful. Promise?”
    “As long as you promise to only sign up as an online Watcher, not an in-person one, otherwise you’ll get me disqualified.”
    He nods. “It’s a deal. Remember, you can quit whenever you want.”
    “Of course. The minute anything sounds sketchy, I’m out.”
    There’s no time to determine whether it’s hope or doubt flickering across his face. I hustle to my car and check the driving directions NERVE sent along with the dare. I also start downloading the app they gave me. It’s too bad Tommy can’t join me to discuss strategy. But the dare seems straightforward enough. Of course, so did the water-dumping one. A tremor goes up my spine with the memory of that cold fabric plastered to my chest.
    I try to take my mind off of the upcoming mission by tuning in to a hip-hop playlist. But it only makes my heart pump faster. Twenty minutes later, I pull into a parking lot full of SUVs and mini-vans. Ian’s next to the front door, shuffling his feet. Heh. It’s only fair that he had to wait for me this time.
    I check the lot for Watchers. Shouldn’t we have a few to record us? Maybe they’re on their way. No reason to hold off getting out of the car to greet my partner, though. When I reach him, I notice a sign on the door that says: “WELCOME PURITY PROMISERS!”
    “This dare just got a lot harder,” I say.
    He shrugs as if he expected this. “Just remember, the dare says we’ve got to ask. It doesn’t say anything about waiting for an answer.”
    Why didn’t I figure out that angle? I’ll need to step up my game if I want to win anything tonight. “Good thinking.”
    He taps my Jimmy Carter button. “I met him once at a Habitat for Humanity project.”
    Wow, a guy who notices accessories and helps the homeless. See, Tommy had nothing to worry about. “So, how long should we wait for the Watchers?”
    “Why wait? We can film this ourselves. The NERVE app includes a video chat link to use.”
    I check my phone, which now has a little NERVE app, front and center in my faves section. As instructed, I run the program, which displays my dare, along with a video chat button and a little status bar that reads: T ASK N OT B EGUN .
    I say, “The camera on my phone is a piece of crap.”
    “No worries. You can just open the link to catch some audio as a backup. We’ll use my phone for the main video. How about I film you first, before we get them too riled up, and then you do me?”
    I thank him, glad for his consideration, but twinging at the thought of what riling people up entails.
    A pink-cheeked girl and her boyfriend stroll past us on their way inside. They giggle and hold hands, their shy glances suggesting they haven’t had their first kiss yet, which makes me feel worldly in comparison, although I haven’t gone much beyond the kissing stage myself.
    My shoulders tense. “I feel like a jerk. These kids’ll think we’re teasing them. They don’t deserve that.”
    Ian takes a deep breath, staring inside. Then he types into his phone. After a minute of