Empire High Elite

by Ivy Smoak

  Justin laughed. “Well, maybe you should have won,” he said. “That’ll show that nasty bitch. Maybe it’ll teach her some manners.”

  He almost made me laugh. Not because it was super hilarious, but because Rob had said something so similar about Isabella before. Was it possible that Rob was gay? What am I even thinking about? I need this crown off my head! “I’m a sophomore, I couldn’t have won. Please just take it out.” I lifted up my hand but Justin smacked it away.

  “You’re a masterpiece,” he said. “A vision. And you will not ruin my work. Now let’s get you girls in your dresses before you give me a coronary.” He sashayed off toward our dresses. It seemed like the angrier I made him, the more his hips swayed.

  “Really, Brooklyn,” Kennedy said. “Screw Isabella. She literally destroyed every piece of clothing you’ve ever owned. And then had her demon dog pee on everything. And then tried to blame it on me. She deserves to be knocked down a level.”

  “I know that. But I’m just scared of what she’ll do when it happens.”

  “Nothing to be scared of. I’ll be with you the whole time.”

  “Not when I come home.” God, did I just refer to this horror house as my home?

  “Maybe we can convince your dad to let us have a sleepover. Come on, don’t worry. Tonight is supposed to be fun,” she added before standing and walking over to Justin.

  Isabella was going to kill me. I didn’t dare glance in the mirror again. Maybe if I pretended the crown wasn’t there, it would magically disappear. Just like Justin had magically made me look exactly like my mom.

  Kennedy and I both changed. She didn’t seem at all concerned that Justin didn’t leave the room. I covered my chest awkwardly as I pulled on my dress. He walked over as I tried to reach around my back to pull the zipper up myself.

  “I’ve got it,” he said and pulled it into place. “It fits you perfectly. And vintage is all the rage. You’re absolutely slaying this look.”

  I looked down at my mother’s dress. Maybe it wasn’t magic that had made me look like her. Maybe I was just growing up.

  “Twirl for me,” Justin said.

  I pictured my mom twirling me around as we danced in the kitchen together and smiled. I turned in a circle and the dress flared up around me. It really was perfect. I felt like Cinderella.

  “What in the hell?” Justin asked. “Oh my God, no. Just. No.”

  “What?” I asked.

  “Your shoes.” He lifted up the hem of my dress and stared at my Keds in horror. “You need to change them this instant.”

  “But I can’t leave them here unattended. Isabella’s trying to ruin everything I own. Besides, I think they look kinda cool with the dress.”

  “No,” he said with zero sass. He was all business.

  “But, Justin…”

  “No. Absolutely not. No one wears a crown with sneakers.”

  “Isabella destroyed all her shoes,” Kennedy said. “She doesn’t have any other ones to wear.”

  “Don’t you have like millions of dollars?” Justin asked. “I’m already late for my next appointment but I’ll literally go buy you a pair right now if the tip is right. And any tip is right because this is literally a fashion emergency.”

  Kennedy grabbed his arm. “Her mom got her those. I think they’re cute, Brooklyn. It’s very rockstar of you.”

  “You think?” I lifted the skirt of my dress and looked down at my Keds.

  Justin looked horrified but then he pinched his face and looked away. “Very rockstar,” he agreed.

  I knew he was just saying it to be polite, but I appreciated it none the less.

  He clapped his hands to end the discussion. “No matter how sweaty you get dancing, don’t wipe your face. Blot it. It’s all about the blotting, ladies. Your makeup and hair should have no problem lasting through midnight.”

  Midnight? It was the last Cinderella coincidence I could take. “Justin, you’re like my fairy godmother.”

  “Did you just call me a fairy?” He put his hand on his hip. “Do you have any idea how offensive that is?”

  “Oh…I…I didn’t mean…”

  He laughed and leaned in to hug me. “I’m just kidding. Knock ‘em dead tonight. And call me before your next event. I’ll bring an even bigger tiara.” He winked at me as he let me out of his embrace. “I gotta run. I can’t believe you two made me late! I’m never late!” He grabbed his boxes of beauty products and hurried out the door.

  “I freaking love him,” Kennedy said.

  I laughed. “I’m 99% sure he’s gay.”

  “Why only 99%? Girl, he’s definitely gay. There’s not a doubt in my mind. Trust me, I don’t want to date him. I don’t want to date anyone for a long time. I just meant that he’s the coolest person ever.”

  “He really is.”

  “But if he was straight, I’d marry him in a heartbeat. I love being pampered like this. That was so much fun. When can we do it again?”

  I laughed. “Hopefully soon. I feel like we’re in one of those makeover shows.”

  “Queer Eye for the Straight Teenager,” Kennedy said.

  “We should pitch that idea to Justin.”

  “We really should. I’m going to run to the bathroom real quick and then we can go?”

  I nodded and she went over to the bathroom. Even she knew it was attached to my room. I bit the inside of my lip. Every ounce of me wanted to ask her about Felix. I’d heard her the other day when she said she always fell in love with drug dealers. Plural. And Felix and Cupcake were the only two drug dealers we knew. I wanted her to open up to me about it. But I couldn’t yank the information out of her.

  Regardless of whether she wanted to tell me or not, I had a plan for tonight to fix everything. First I had to talk to Felix and apologize. He’d been avoiding me at gym ever since the fight at his house. The longer I had to think of it, the more I realized how much I was in the wrong. I needed to tell him I was sorry for leading him on. And then I needed to somehow get Kennedy and him to dance together. If she wouldn’t admit that she had feelings for him to me, maybe she’d admit it to him. Operation Felix. It had a name now, so I had to go through with it.

  “You all ready?” Kennedy asked. She emerged from the bathroom fidgeting with one of the loose locks that fell from her updo.

  “Mhm. You better stop touching your hair, or you’ll give Justin a heart attack from miles away.”

  She let her hand fall. “You’re right. Now we just need to remember to blot and not wipe and we’ll have a fabulous evening.” She looped her arm through mine as we made our way down the hall.

  We froze at the top of the steps. We hadn’t planned this out at all. I just assumed that Isabella would have been long gone with weird homecoming queen duties or something. But she was standing at the bottom of the stairs with her minions. They were all giggling as they took photos in the foyer. Their generic dates all looked the same in their black tuxes, except for Mason Caldwell. He was dressed the same, but he filled out his tux differently than the rest. I had no idea how much he knew about me and his brother. But I wasn’t about to find out. Or let Isabella notice me.

  “We should go back…” I whispered just as Isabella turned.

  The look on her face could only be described as vicious. I took a step back even though we were a whole staircase apart.

  “Sissy, what on earth are you wearing?” Isabella said with a laugh. “It looks like it’s straight out of the 80s.”

  I probably would have tried to cover my dress if Kennedy’s arm wasn’t still looped in mine. Kennedy tugged on that arm.

  I knew what she wanted me to do. I needed to stand up to Isabella if this was ever going to stop. I tried to hold my head up high even though her jabs stung. “It was my mom’s.” They weren’t fighting words. And I had no idea why I thought something personal could work against a monster.

  Isabella laughed. “You’re wearing a hand-me-down? Good God, you’re so pathetic.”

  I loo
ked down at my dress. It was beautiful, even if it was old. And Justin had said that vintage was in.

  “And I bet those aren’t even real diamonds on your tiara?”

  It seemed to be a rhetorical question, so I didn’t say a word.

  “My dear sweet, ugly half-sister. Take off the crown you don’t deserve. And then do the world a favor and stay locked in your room tonight like the hideous ogre you are. No one wants you at the dance.”

  “Isabella,” Mason said. “Isn’t that enough?”

  “No, I’m not nearly done…”

  “You look fucking hot, Brooklyn,” he said. “And I know my brother is excited to see you at the dance.”

  My cheeks flushed.

  Isabella’s mouth was hanging open. Apparently she wasn’t used to being cut off mid-sentence. She was used to doing the cutting. “Who even invited you here, Mason?” Isabella spat.

  “My date. Laci.” He pointed to one of Isabella’s minions.

  “Freaking Laci,” Isabella said under her breath, but loud enough for everyone to hear.

  I swore a few of Isabella’s other minions inched slightly away from the girl in question. Poor Laci.

  “Well you can both get the hell out,” she said to Mason and Laci. “Talking to an ogre makes you an ogre.”

  Mason leaned against one of the tables displaying a vase. Somehow his bulky frame didn’t knock it over. “You were literally just talking to her, Isabella. So doesn’t that make you an ogre too?”

  Laci had the audacity to laugh.

  Isabella took a deep breath, but it looked like her head was about to explode. “Semantics. None of this matters. Sissy, you aren’t going to the dance. Now be a dear and go back to your room. Now.”

  “She’s not a dog,” Kennedy said.

  “Right.” Isabella glared at her. “She’s not dirty and living in a cesspool. That’s you.”

  “I’m gonna kill her…”

  I grabbed Kennedy’s hand to stop her from storming down the stairs and doing God knows what to Isabella. Even though Isabella most certainly deserved it.

  Isabella put her hand over her mouth, stifling a laugh. “You’re literally on a leash, Kennedy.”

  Kennedy tried to lunge for her again, but I didn’t let go of her arm.

  “It’s fine,” I said. “We’re just going to go back to my room. And we’ll leave after you’re done taking pictures down here.”

  “No. You’re not going to the dance at all. Get it through your thick skull.”

  “Why don’t you want me to come?”

  “Because I said so.”

  “That’s not a reason, Isabella. Why are you so hellbent on torturing me? Why do you hate me so much? What did I ever do to you? Can’t we please just start over? Or at least be civil?”

  Her lips were pressed in a thin line so hard that I could barely see them.

  “Is everything alright out here, princess?” Mr. Pruitt asked as he emerged from his study. “Or should I say queen?”

  Isabella spun around. “Yes, Daddy. We were just having a bit of fun.” Her voice was laced with sugary sweetness.

  “You look beautiful,” he said.

  Isabella beamed and adjusted the crown on top of her head. “Sissy was just telling me she felt ill. I’m worried about her. I think we should make her stay home.”

  What the hell? She couldn’t lie her way into preventing me from going to homecoming. Could she?

  Chapter 28

  Saturday

  Mr. Pruitt’s eyes traveled up the stairs to me. For a second, I thought he looked horrified. I was wearing a dress from the 80s. It wasn’t vintage. It was just old. I could practically feel his embarrassment. I just wasn’t sure if he was embarrassed of me or for me. But then he smiled. A real one. Way more genuine than I’d ever seen. “You’re breathtaking, Brooklyn.”

  My dad thought I was beautiful. I wasn’t an ogre. I didn’t deserve to be locked in my room. He’d let me go to the dance.

  Mr. Pruitt walked up the stairs, stopping one step below me. “She kept it all these years?” He reached out and touched the fabric. It barely seemed like he was looking at me. It was more like he was looking through me.

  “You knew my mom used to wear this?”

  He smiled. “I bought it for her.” His hand fell from my shoulder strap.

  She kept it all these years.

  “You look just as gorgeous as she did.”

  “Thank you.” I almost tacked on a dad at the end of my sentence. I wasn’t even sure why. Maybe because he was looking at me like he loved me. Like he loved my mom too. Like I wasn’t a mistake.

  “Are you really not feeling well?” He gently put the back of his hand against my forehead. “You don’t feel warm. But I should probably call Dr. Wilson just in case.” He was already pulling out his cellphone.

  “I’m fine,” I whispered. “Isabella just didn’t want me to go.”

  His eyebrows drew together. “But you’re sure you’re alright?” he whispered back.

  “Positive.”

  “Then I can handle this.” His smile was back. “I’m so glad you’re feeling better,” he said loudly enough for everyone to hear. “Come on, I want that picture with you.” He put his arm out for me. “You too, Miss Alcaraz,” he said and offered her his other arm.

  Kennedy laughed and took it.

  I couldn’t help but glance at Isabella as her father escorted Kennedy and me down the stairs. Pure venom. And so priceless.

  “Do you mind if I get a shot?” Kennedy asked and pulled her camera out of her back.

  “That would be delightful, thank you,” Mr. Pruitt said. “The tiara suits you,” he added right before Kennedy snapped a photo.

  He didn’t actually call me princess like he called Isabella. But it was pretty much the same thing. I smiled harder when Kennedy took another shot.

  “Would you be able to send me copies?” Mr. Pruitt asked.

  “As long as I can sleep over tonight,” Kennedy said.

  He laughed. “You strike a hard bargain. Very well.” He turned to Mason. “Mason, why don’t you come over and get a picture with Brooklyn too?”

  Oh my God. I thought about my conversation with Mr. Pruitt earlier. About how he thought Mason was the better choice. Was he seriously trying to push us together? I just wanted to laugh. Because it was such a protective father thing to do. I was even a little embarrassed. My dad’s so embarrassing.

  Mason shrugged and walked over to me. “You okay?” he asked. He didn’t even have to do the head nod toward Isabella for me to know what he was talking about.

  “I’m used to it.”

  “You shouldn’t have to be used to it.” He smiled for the camera.

  I looked up at him. “It’s kind of the new normal, right?”

  “You could always crash at our place. James and Rob are there half the time anyway.”

  I didn’t know that.

  “Well. They used to be.” He shoved his hands in his pockets.

  Used to be. They didn’t come over anymore since the fight? I’d expected as much. I hadn’t seen any of the Untouchables together in days. But it still made me sad. The four of them were best friends. How could everything crumble with one secret? Weren’t the elite propped up with secrets and silicone?

  “I can’t,” I said. “Mr. Pruitt is really strict. And I don’t even know what’s going on with me and Matt.”

  “Well, I do. Matt’s never been this into someone before.” Mason looked down at me. “You gotta give him another chance. He’s a mess without you.”

  Mason was a playboy. Everyone at Empire High knew it. So it was shocking to hear him talk like this. First being open about the riff between the Hunters and Caldwells. And now about his little brother missing me? I could have been wrong, but it seemed like Mason Caldwell had a soft side.

  “Time to go,” Isabella said.

  “Make sure to let Brooklyn and Miss Alcaraz ride in the limo with you,” Mr. Pruitt said to Isabella.
/>   “But Daddy. She can’t come. She’s wearing a crown and she wasn’t voted queen. It isn’t fair.”

  “You will be nice to your sister or you’ll be the one staying home.”

  Isabella’s eyes grew wide. “But…”

  “No buts.” He turned to me. “And Brooklyn, if you do feel ill, please call me right away. I’ll come get you.”

  It was silly and overprotective. But I was smiling so hard.

  Mr. Pruitt walked back to his study and closed the doors.

  For a few seconds the foyer was eerily silent.

  “When hell burns over we’ll take the same limo,” Isabella said. “Come on, ladies. We’re leaving.”

  “Do you want me to call a ride for you?” Mason asked me.

  “It’s okay,” Miller said.

  I hadn’t even seen Miller approach.

  He stopped beside me, sizing up Mason. “I’ll be taking them.”

  “Cool.” Mason lifted up his hands like he was innocent. Which he was. “See you at the dance, Brooklyn,” Mason said. “You too, Kennedy,” he added before joining his date.

  “Well that wasn’t the best start,” Kennedy said as Isabella and her friends left. “But at least we get to have a sleepover!”

  I laughed. “I can’t believe you want to spend the night here.”

  “Both of you can’t fit in my bed,” Miller said with a smile.

  I shoved his arm. And then immediately pulled back. Mr. Pruitt was probably watching us right now. But I didn’t want to have this conversation with Miller right in front of Kennedy.

  “Obviously I’m sleeping in Brooklyn’s bed, perv,” Kennedy said.

  Miller laughed. “Let’s get you girls to homecoming.”

  “While we’re at the dance, would it be possible to have all of Isabella’s clothes cut up?” Kennedy asked.

  That was a great question. We all laughed, even though I actually wanted to know the answer. How was I going to get through living with Isabella until she went off to college next fall?

  I looked over my shoulder at Mr. Pruitt’s study door. I was only safe from Isabella when he was in the same room as us. And for the first time, I felt a chill run down my spine when I left the apartment instead of when I entered.