Lyla tries to flirt with Misha, but Misha has nothing but contempt for her. Misha thinks there is hope for Ryen because he sees flashes of Ryen being a good person. He also saw the words all over her walls. He worries she’ll lose herself in this false persona.

Ryen surprises Misha by pinning him against the library table and writing on his neck in retaliation. Misha likes that Ryen is bold enough to do this to him in front of everyone. Ryen flees the library when she’s finished. Lyla reads that Ryen has written “Needle Dick Douchebag Asshole” on Misha’s neck (116). Misha feels excited by what he’s awakened in her.

“Masen” is summoned to the principal’s office. Misha gives Principal Burrowes nothing to work with as she tries to talk to him about being new in school. Misha observes the family photos on her desk. Principal Burrowes apologizes for Trey being a handful. Misha leaves the office, satisfied that Principal Burrowes didn’t find him out.

Ryen and Misha banter in the hall. Ryen offers Misha a scarf to cover her writing, but Misha retaliates by wiping the ink with the cashmere scarf, ruining it. Misha knows he needs to stop messing with her, but he can’t help himself. He can’t stop thinking about her. He blames her for starting it by stealing his things from The Cove but admits to himself that he would have sought her out anyway. Still, he’s angry that she isn’t the person she led him to believe she was. He likes the flashes of her true self that he’s seen and hopes to see more.

Misha returns to his house and retrieves one of Annie’s old cashmere scarves, intending to replace Ryen’s. Misha feels guilty for not writing Ryen after seven years of correspondence. He wonders if Ryen will keep writing like she promised she would and if she’ll mention Masen. He feels guilty for messing with her as Masen when she’s been such a good friend to Misha for so many years. He thinks Annie would be disappointed.



Misha’s dad enters Annie’s room, having heard Misha. Misha hides. Misha’s dad talks about how Misha was always different and admits that he stopped finding ways to talk to Misha. He sobs. Misha hates this and feels he has no place anywhere. He misses and needs Ryen.

Misha returns to school and leaves Annie’s scarf in Ryen’s Jeep with a sweet note. However, when he gets back to his truck, he finds an antigay slur spray-painted on the hood. Misha confronts Trey, and they get fight until J. D. and Principal Burrowes break it up. When Trey won’t confess to the graffiti on Misha’s truck, Ryen takes the blame to prevent Principal Burrowes from punishing both boys. Misha thinks Ryen is stupid for defending Trey. Ryen vows to take care of the mess.

In Misha’s car, Ryen returns the scarf. By the time they get to the car wash, it’s pouring rain. Misha makes Ryen get out and clean the truck anyway. Misha recalls one of Ryen’s letters that helped him learn to be himself regardless of what other people wanted him to be. He wonders why she gave that advice but couldn’t take it. He loved that version of her.

Misha becomes turned on watching Ryen wash his car, and he feels conflicted about his attraction to her. Ryen playfully sprays Misha through a crack in the window, and he chases her around the truck. In the back seat, Ryen giggles as he catches her and corners her. Ryen asks what Misha’s lip ring feels like. Misha invites her to see for herself. Ryen uses her tongue to play with Misha’s lip ring gently, but when she calls him Masen, the moment is over.

Trey pulls up, demanding to know where Ryen is. Ryen hides in the back seat while Misha lies that she walked home. Trey makes sexual comments about Ryen, pissing Misha off.

Ryen fantasizes about kissing Masen’s lip ring, but she can’t help but call him Misha. He fits perfectly into Ryen’s existing fantasies about Misha writing dirty letters and sneaking into her room. Masen’s face just fills the role. Ryen adds the word “SHAME” to her list of Masen’s words on her wall. Ryen doesn’t understand why she can’t stop thinking about Masen, even though he’s been antagonizing her whenever he gets the chance. She worries that feeling closer to Masen means she’s drifting away from Misha. She still wonders if Misha is okay. She decides she’ll use her Saturday to drive by his house, just to see if anyone is there.

Ryen is surprised by Misha’s upscale neighborhood. His house is massive, gated, and has a fountain out front. Ryen can’t reconcile this residence with her image of bad boy Misha. She decides it’s worth knocking on the door to get answers.

Misha’s father answers the door. He says Misha isn’t there, and he doesn’t know when Misha will be back. Ryen says she’s a friend of Misha’s, so Misha’s dad recommends she try calling him. Ryen thanks him. She’s happy to know Misha is alive and still lives there, but she’s more confused about why he stopped writing. Ryen wants to keep writing as Misha’s loyal friend, but she’s growing angrier with his silence.

At school on Monday, people are still talking about Masen’s fight with Trey. Masen stares Ryen down, as though he’s waiting to pick up where they left off. Ryen continues to tell her friends that Masen can look but not touch because she’s going to the prom with Trey. Masen interrupts the conversation by launching his soft drink into the trash can next to them, splashing them. Masen walks by and comments about accidentally making Ryen dirty, meaning it as an innuendo.

As Ryen walks to the lunchroom, Masen sweeps her into a dark, empty classroom and presses her against the wall. The sexual tension between them is palpable, and after some banter, they begin to make out. Ryen can’t believe how much she wants him. They grind on each other. Ryen worries about the sounds of students in the halls outside, but Masen holds her attention, physically manipulating her body as they kiss and grind. He asks if she thought about him this weekend, and Ryen replies that he wishes. Masen talks about how he should’ve punished Ryen for badmouthing him to her friends when he knows she wants him.



Masen tells Ryen not to call him Masen when they are in the heat of the moment like this, confusing Ryen. Masen tells Ryen to go sit on Trey’s lap so he can watch, knowing Ryen is his. Ryen feels Masen is a jerk and wonders why he winds her up.

Misha works on a song he’s been writing since Ryen first wrote to him about the cheerleader in her school. Touching Ryen has made it easier for him to write again. She drives him crazy with her Queen Bee attitude and secret, tender longing. He likes that she lets him see that side of her, but he corrects himself: she lets Masen see that side of her. Misha feels guilty about seducing Ryen as Masen. He knows this betrays their trust.

Dane is happy to find Misha writing lyrics again. Dane warns that he went by Misha’s house, and Misha’s dad isn’t looking good. Dane thinks it’s because Misha abandoned the house. Misha says he’ll return soon. 

Misha drives by Trey’s house, scoping it out for an eventual break-in. What he needs is in there. He goes to Ryen’s house next, hoping to talk to her, but he doesn’t know how to start. He just wants to cuddle with her and forget this mess he’s created.

He goes to the school to shower. He hears security guards. Misha takes off running, looking for another unlocked exit. He passes a fresh message from Punk, a poetic musing about being unable to touch people in pictures. He wonders how Punk is getting in.

Misha hides in the classroom where he and Ryen snuck off to a few days ago and runs into Ryen, who is also hiding. It turns out Ryen is Punk. Misha likes her even more now. Ryen begs him not to tell anyone. Misha drags Ryen to the next classroom for safety. Misha points out how horrible Ryen’s friends are and how Ryen leads a double life. Their conversation alerts the guards, so Misha takes off running again, dragging Ryen behind him. They hide in the library, and Misha helps Ryen retrieve her inhaler to manage her asthma.

Misha holds Ryen close to him while she recovers. He feels protective of her. Misha asserts that Ryen’s friends already hate her, so she shouldn’t keep hiding her true self. Ryen explains that she’d rather have their respect than their laughter. It’s better to be in than out, even if her friends are terrible. Ryen explains she needed a place to vent, so she started writing on walls. Misha realizes she started vandalizing the school when he stopped writing her. He realizes that she relied on him as much as he relied on her.

Ryen and Misha tease each other, and they fall to the floor in a struggle. Their struggle quickly turns intimate, and Misha gropes Ryen before beginning to finger her. Ryen admits she’s afraid for her friends to know she likes this, and she likes Masen. Misha promises to keep her dirty secrets. She moans Masen’s name, and Misha wishes she could use his real name. Their encounter grows more intimate and sexual, and they continue to tease each other verbally. Misha brings Ryen to orgasm with his hand, and she begs him not to tell anyone, promising whatever he wants.

After, Misha feels guilty again, knowing every encounter where he isn’t honest with her makes things worse. He misses Ryen talking to him as Misha, not Masen. He feels his affection for her growing every day. Ryen makes a snippy comment about him waiting for a blowjob, but Misha assures her he can get one if he wants one. He’s angry that her attitude came back so quickly.

Ryen hasn’t seen or spoken to Masen in the two days since their library tryst. She tells herself she shouldn’t care. He’s bad news. However, she wants to be alone with him again. Their secret moments of intimacy are a welcome replacement for Misha’s letters. Ryen recalls how she started vandalizing the school because she missed Misha. Ryen didn’t write the message about Lyla cheating, though, and she isn’t sure who did.

Ryen regrets being mean to Masen after their intimate moment the other day. She appreciates that he didn’t push her for more than she was comfortable with. She’s excited by Masen, but she knows this is only a temporary fling. 

Trey confronts Ryen in the parking lot, upset that Ryen gives him nothing while something is going on with Masen. Trey tries to kiss Ryen, but she turns her head. Masen watches them. Lyla warns Ryen to be nicer to Trey before he finds someone else. Ryen retorts, asking if Lyla means herself, and gestures to J. D., who appears to be friends with Masen now. Lyla and Ryen exchange catty words. Ten points out that a fellow cheerleader, Katelyn, is giving Masen her number. Katelyn approaches them and confesses that she and Masen hung out after cheer practice the previous night. She hints that they got sexual. Ryen is furious and desperate to believe she’s lying, but she remembers Masen saying he knew where to get a blowjob if he wanted one.

Ryen’s friends meet at the drive-in that evening. Masen catches Ryen at the concession stand and returns her inhaler. Ryen is standoffish with him. Masen follows her, antagonizing her with details about Katelyn. Ryen can’t stand hearing about it. Ten tells Ryen it’s obvious that Masen wants her badly.

Ryen climbs into the backseat of his truck and searches for a way to vandalize it, but Masen catches her. He traps her in the back seat and climbs on top of her, whispering in her ear about how jealous she must have been to climb in his truck like this. Ryen struggles against Masen as he goes on about his encounter with Katelyn. He urges Ryen to admit her jealousy or to tell him anything true about her. Ryen is on the verge of tears, but she refuses to talk to him. Masen is disappointed that she can’t talk to him. He fogs up the window and writes FEAR. Ryen adds it to her mental list of Masen’s words.

Masen admits nothing happened between him and Katelyn. He doesn’t want to hurt Ryen; she’s all he thinks about. Ryen tries not to cry as Masen comforts her. She wants to be the only girl he sees. The mood shifts, and they become playful and intimate in the backseat. Masen asks again for something true, so Ryen tells him details about her life. She admits to not letting people in anymore and their dislike of Lyla. She confesses to thinking about Masen in bed. She wants to have sex with him.

Masen eats Ryen out and proceeds to have sex with her. Ryen is thankful she doesn’t have to hold her true self back with Masen. It’s Ryen’s second time having sex, but it’s the first time she doesn’t regret it. When they are done, Ryen worries about people outside seeing the truck rock. Masen almost confesses something to Ryen, but he stops himself.

On the ride home, Masen is quiet. Ryen is frustrated that Masen was talkative before they had sex but now won’t say anything. A song on the radio reminds Ryen of Misha, and she tells Masen about her pen pal. Ryen admits that she isn’t honest with Misha, presenting herself as the person she’d like to be. When Masen drops her off, he asks for the pen pal’s name and kisses Ryen deeply when she says Misha, leaving Ryen confused.

Ryen writes several more letters to Misha, but she throws away the one in which she talks about Masen. At school, Masen has written romantic song lyrics on Ryen’s locker. In art, Masen sneaks Ryen a note about wanting to kiss her. Trey flirts with Ryen in front of Masen. Ryen hopes it will motivate Masen to ask her to the prom. Trey threatens Masen and Manny before Ryen shoos him out of class. She wants Masen to tell her he’s jealous. Masen replies that he’ll tell her everything soon. Masen asks about Ryen’s art. She admits it’s an album cover for Misha. She doesn’t understand why Masen reacts strangely. She wishes he’d tell her what he’s thinking.

At lunch, Lyla confronts Ryen about leaving the drive-in with Masen. Lyla warns that Trey probably also figured it out. Ryen puts Lyla in her place and cuts her off from any attempted rebuttal. Ryen has a confrontation with Lyla at lunch about leaving the drive-in with Masen, abandoning her friends. Trey grabs Ryen’s hips. He asks Ryen to lure Masen to his party. Ryen knows Trey intends to beat up Masen, but she goes along with it. She approaches Masen with Trey watching and tells Masen what Trey’s planning. Masen pulls Ryen into his lap. He asks why she cares when Trey is still her prom date. Ryen responds that Masen needs to ask her. Principal Burrowes yells at them for sitting inappropriately. Masen holds Ryen in his lap and backtalks the principal. When he finally gets up, he leaves school.