Plot Twist: A Novel by Carmen Sereno

Author:Carmen Sereno [Sereno, Carmen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Amazon Crossing
Published: 2024-08-06T00:00:00+00:00

“Calm down, man,” said Alex, pouring him a double whiskey. “You’re making a mountain out of a molehill. The image isn’t even hi-res. That’s what happens when you take a photo on a phone and zoom in too far.”

Marcel frowned.

“You too, Alex? I’m grouchy as fuck, so I would advise you not to contradict me for the rest of the year.”

He hadn’t gone to his friend’s penthouse to listen to sermons. He had asked the Uber driver to take him to Tribeca because he needed to vent. The journey from Coney Island had been hellish. Against his principles, he had downloaded Twitter to his cell to monitor the real-time development of @grl18’s tweet, which was going viral at breakneck speed.

Refresh.

Refresh.

Refresh.

How was it possible that there were already memes circulating? Although some users had the courtesy to ask for confirmation that the man in the photo was indeed him, the majority took it as fact. Some praised his appearance and were happy to finally see the face of the mysterious Marcel Black, even just from a side angle. Others accused him of racism, as if being Black limited an author to telling only Black stories. And then there were the romantics who were going wild over the possibility that he and Siobhan had gone from enemies to lovers in real life. This group tweeted their feelings on the subject using the hashtag #Sioblack.

Alex placed the whiskey on the coffee table in the living room and sat down facing Marcel.

“You must admit the hashtag is ingenious. Right now, you and Siobhan are like the lead characters in a Shonda Rhimes series, and all your fans have set that photo as the background on their cell phones. Isn’t that frickin’ amazing?”

“That’s right, you laugh. Mock me all you like,” Marcel said reproachfully. “Can’t we take legal action against the account that posted it?”

“But she’s a child, Marcel! You really want to sue a teenager? Besides, that would only confirm that it’s you in the photo. The best thing to do is nothing at all. Believe me, in a few days everyone will have forgotten about it. TMZ will give them a juicier story.”

“People might. But Google? Google doesn’t forget.”

“Hey, you focus on finishing the novel and—”

“No,” he said abruptly. “I’ve decided I don’t want to continue. It’s over. Call Gunton right now and tell him I’m out.”

Alex’s strawberry-blond eyebrows knitted together.

“What? Give me that whiskey,” he said. He grabbed Marcel’s glass, drank almost half in one gulp, and handed it back, ignoring his friend’s disconcerted expression. “I don’t think you quite know what you’re saying. Did you get sunstroke at Coney Island or something? Take a deep breath.” He waved his hand gently. “Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exha—”

“What the fuck are you doing? This isn’t a yoga class.”

“I’m just trying to get you to calm down before you make”—and here the pitch of his voice went up an octave—“a very bad decision in the heat of the moment. To begin with, you’ve got a contract with Baxter Books.

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