diff --git a/frontend/eslint.config.js b/frontend/eslint.config.js
index 4500b12e..3d1b998a 100644
--- a/frontend/eslint.config.js
+++ b/frontend/eslint.config.js
@@ -547,6 +547,15 @@ export default tseslint.config(
       // lib/*.contract.test.ts).
       "no-restricted-syntax": [
         "error",
+        // A next-page fetch called bare CANCELS the one in flight and sends the same cursor again;
+        // our requests ignore the abort, so the server ran both (E31 S4e: every feed page 2–3×).
+        // lib/nextPage.ts NEXT_PAGE makes the second call join the first.
+        {
+          selector:
+            "CallExpression[arguments.length=0]:matches([callee.name='fetchNextPage'], [callee.property.name='fetchNextPage'])",
+          message:
+            "fetchNextPage() cancels and re-sends a page already loading: call fetchNextPage(NEXT_PAGE) (lib/nextPage.ts).",
+        },
         // `enabled:` sees only the native attribute; a FocusSafeButton that holds the focus is
         // disabled by aria-disabled, so a bare `enabled:hover:` lit it up on hover as if it worked.
         {
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/AdminLogs.tsx b/frontend/src/components/AdminLogs.tsx
index bfc0a8e0..656ce33f 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/AdminLogs.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/AdminLogs.tsx
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ import { api, type LogFacet, type LogQuery, type ServerLogRow } from "../lib/api
 import { copyText } from "../lib/clipboard";
 import { formatDateTimeSec } from "../lib/format";
 import { nextNavId, notifyNav, rememberNavPosition } from "../lib/history";
+import { NEXT_PAGE } from "../lib/nextPage";
 import { LEVEL_GROUPS, type LevelGroup } from "../lib/log";
 import {
   DEFAULT_LOGS_STATE,
@@ -156,7 +157,7 @@ export default function AdminLogs() {
           ? "countsFailed"
           : null;
   const retryFailed = () => {
-    if (logs.isFetchNextPageError) void logs.fetchNextPage();
+    if (logs.isFetchNextPageError) void logs.fetchNextPage(NEXT_PAGE);
     else if (logs.isError) void logs.refetch();
     if (facets.isError) void facets.refetch();
   };
@@ -190,7 +191,7 @@ export default function AdminLogs() {
 
   const loadOlder = () => {
     setLive(false);
-    void logs.fetchNextPage();
+    void logs.fetchNextPage(NEXT_PAGE);
   };
 
   const copy = async () => {
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/Feed.tsx b/frontend/src/components/Feed.tsx
index a6fabbf5..3eb7d287 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/Feed.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/Feed.tsx
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import {
   useQueryClient,
 } from "@tanstack/react-query";
 import { qk } from "../lib/queryKeys";
+import { NEXT_PAGE } from "../lib/nextPage";
 import {
   ArrowLeft,
   Columns2,
@@ -556,7 +557,7 @@ export default function Feed({
               <div className="text-center pt-4">
                 <Button
                   variant="outline"
-                  onClick={() => ytQuery.fetchNextPage()}
+                  onClick={() => void ytQuery.fetchNextPage(NEXT_PAGE)}
                   loading={ytQuery.isFetchingNextPage}
                 >
                   {ytQuery.isFetchingNextPage
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/PlexBrowse.tsx b/frontend/src/components/PlexBrowse.tsx
index b147c691..a9fdfac2 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/PlexBrowse.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/PlexBrowse.tsx
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import {
 } from "@tanstack/react-query";
 import { User, X } from "lucide-react";
 import { qk } from "../lib/queryKeys";
+import { NEXT_PAGE } from "../lib/nextPage";
 import { healPlexField } from "../lib/plexSearch";
 import { healPlexSort, plexSortOptions, PLEX_SORT_FALLBACK } from "../lib/plexSort";
 import type { SortState } from "../lib/columnSort";
@@ -321,7 +322,8 @@ export default function PlexBrowse() {
     if (!sentinelEl) return;
     const io = new IntersectionObserver(
       (entries) => {
-        if (entries[0]?.isIntersecting && hasNextPage && !isFetchingNextPage) fetchNextPage();
+        if (entries[0]?.isIntersecting && hasNextPage && !isFetchingNextPage)
+          void fetchNextPage(NEXT_PAGE);
       },
       { rootMargin: "600px" },
     );
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/VirtualFeed.tsx b/frontend/src/components/VirtualFeed.tsx
index c227fa22..521d5d39 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/VirtualFeed.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/VirtualFeed.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 import type { Video, VideoStatus } from "../lib/api";
 import { FEED_VIEW_SPEC, type FeedView } from "../lib/feedView";
+import type { NEXT_PAGE } from "../lib/nextPage";
 import VideoCard from "./VideoCard";
 import { VideoMenu } from "./VideoMenu";
 import { useContextMenu } from "./ui/useContextMenu";
@@ -29,7 +30,7 @@ export interface VirtualFeedProps {
   onOpen: (v: Video, startAt?: number | null) => void;
   hasNextPage: boolean;
   isFetchingNextPage: boolean;
-  fetchNextPage: () => void;
+  fetchNextPage: (options: typeof NEXT_PAGE) => unknown;
 }
 
 // The feed's videos on the shared VirtualGrid engine — this wrapper only maps a FeedView to the
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/ui/VirtualGrid.tsx b/frontend/src/components/ui/VirtualGrid.tsx
index 98ff4a8e..fcc95e92 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/ui/VirtualGrid.tsx
+++ b/frontend/src/components/ui/VirtualGrid.tsx
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ import {
 import { useVirtualizer } from "@tanstack/react-virtual";
 import { useListNav } from "../../lib/listNav";
 import { scrollParent } from "../../lib/listPaging";
+import { NEXT_PAGE } from "../../lib/nextPage";
 import { GRID_GAP, columnsFor, itemWidthFor } from "./gridColumns";
 import { shouldPrefetchNext } from "./readAhead";
 
@@ -66,7 +67,8 @@ export interface VirtualGridProps<T> {
   /** Infinite scroll — omit all three for a finite client-side list. */
   hasNextPage?: boolean;
   isFetchingNextPage?: boolean;
-  fetchNextPage?: () => void;
+  /** Called with `NEXT_PAGE`, so a read-ahead that fires again joins the page already loading. */
+  fetchNextPage?: (options: typeof NEXT_PAGE) => unknown;
 }
 
 export default function VirtualGrid<T>({
@@ -167,7 +169,7 @@ export default function VirtualGrid<T>({
     const last = virtualRows[virtualRows.length - 1];
     if (!last) return;
     if (shouldPrefetchNext(last.index, rows.length, virtualRows.length)) {
-      fetchNextPage();
+      fetchNextPage(NEXT_PAGE);
     }
   }, [virtualRows, rows.length, hasNextPage, isFetchingNextPage, fetchNextPage]);
 
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/nextPage.contract.test.ts b/frontend/src/lib/nextPage.contract.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..cefb3f5f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/nextPage.contract.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+
+import { eslint } from "./lintProbe.testkit";
+
+// eslint.config.js: a bare `fetchNextPage()` cancels the page already loading and sends it again
+// (E31 S4e). Pins that the rule keeping every call on NEXT_PAGE actually fires.
+const MESSAGE = "fetchNextPage() cancels";
+
+async function hits(source: string): Promise<number> {
+  const [result] = await eslint.lintText(source, { filePath: "src/components/__probe.tsx" });
+  return (result?.messages ?? []).filter((m) => m.message.startsWith(MESSAGE)).length;
+}
+
+describe("a next-page fetch", () => {
+  it("is refused bare, on the query or destructured", async () => {
+    expect(
+      await hits("export const a = (q: { fetchNextPage(): void }) => q.fetchNextPage();\n"),
+    ).toBe(1);
+    expect(await hits("export const b = (fetchNextPage: () => void) => fetchNextPage();\n")).toBe(
+      1,
+    );
+  });
+
+  it("passes with NEXT_PAGE", async () => {
+    expect(
+      await hits(
+        'import { NEXT_PAGE } from "../lib/nextPage";\nexport const c = (q: { fetchNextPage(o: unknown): void }) => q.fetchNextPage(NEXT_PAGE);\n',
+      ),
+    ).toBe(0);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/nextPage.dom.test.ts b/frontend/src/lib/nextPage.dom.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..46eff88b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/nextPage.dom.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+// @vitest-environment jsdom
+//
+// A next-page call while that page is still loading joins it instead of sending it again (E31 S4e):
+// on prod every feed page went out 2–3 times with the same cursor.
+import { InfiniteQueryObserver } from "@tanstack/react-query";
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+
+import { NEXT_PAGE } from "./nextPage";
+import { createQueryClient } from "./queryClient";
+
+describe("NEXT_PAGE", () => {
+  it("sends each page once when the read-ahead calls twice in a row", async () => {
+    const sent: (string | null)[] = [];
+    const observer = new InfiniteQueryObserver(createQueryClient(), {
+      queryKey: ["probe"],
+      initialPageParam: null as string | null,
+      queryFn: async ({ pageParam }) => {
+        sent.push(pageParam);
+        await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 5));
+        return { next: `c${sent.length}` };
+      },
+      getNextPageParam: (last: { next: string }) => last.next,
+    });
+    const unsubscribe = observer.subscribe(() => {});
+    await observer.refetch();
+
+    // Two scroll frames before `isFetchingNextPage` reaches the component.
+    void observer.fetchNextPage(NEXT_PAGE);
+    await observer.fetchNextPage(NEXT_PAGE);
+
+    expect(sent).toEqual([null, "c1"]);
+    expect(observer.getCurrentResult().data?.pages).toHaveLength(2);
+    unsubscribe();
+  });
+});
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/nextPage.ts b/frontend/src/lib/nextPage.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..60798abd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/nextPage.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+/**
+ * What every `fetchNextPage` call passes (lint-enforced). By default react-query CANCELS a next-page
+ * fetch that is still in flight and sends it again with the same cursor. Our requests do not take the
+ * abort signal, so the first one is not stopped: the server ran both. The feed's read-ahead effect
+ * re-runs on every scroll frame, and a frame that lands before `isFetchingNextPage` turns true calls
+ * again. On prod (E31 S4e) every feed page went out 2–3 times; on a 0.8 s title sort the copies
+ * queued to 2.3 s. With this a second call joins the fetch already running.
+ */
+export const NEXT_PAGE = { cancelRefetch: false } as const;