Erin’s information about Jackie’s ex-boyfriend was surprisingly spot on. Even though Jackie squashed the pathetic attempt from the co-captain of the cheerleading squad, she wasn’t done with her yet. Not after Erin almost spread the truth. If there was going to be any rumor about her, then Jackie would start it herself.
The sparkle in Erin’s eyes as she watched Mr. Curtis talk to the other football players was unmistakable. For once, she was happy to have mousy Yvette around to witness it. She’d have to keep her a little while longer. Erin only had a few more months of school, but Jackie would make sure they were miserable.
She would have preferred a different rumor. There were so many swirling about the school with Mr. Curtis at the center. Everyone liked him. He was attractive, which made most of the girls swoony around him. And since he was the coach of a winning football team, most of the guys looked up to him.
‘He’s such a creep,’ Jackie said to Yvette. She had to start the story slowly, plant the seed and then carefully fertilize it until it grew into a rooted weed, one that would continue to come back if Erin and her friends tried to cut it off at the head. ‘I heard they kicked him out of his old school for sleeping with a student.’
‘Really?’ Yvette asked, leaning closer.
Jackie had no idea if it was true, but it sounded plausible.
‘They kept it on the down low,’ Jackie said. She made sure to meet Erin’s eyes as they walked by.
The love-struck grin on Erin’s face turned into a grimace as Jackie approached.
Jackie smirked, sending a ‘don’t mess with the best’ vibe to the girl before turning away.
‘Erin seems like his type,’ Jackie said. ‘Desperate and stupid.’
Yvette nodded. ‘Do you think they’ve already done stuff?’
Jackie sighed. ‘I wouldn’t doubt it. Ever since Ben broke up with her, she’s tried to get back at him. But none of Ben’s jock friends will touch her.’
Yvette soaked in the information like a pathetic sponge. With her need to fit in among Jackie’s group, the movement of information would already be halfway around the school by lunch.
She felt rejuvenated as if she had an IV of strong coffee attached to her veins. Her heart drummed in her chest. She couldn’t wait to see the look on Erin’s face when the rumor reached her.
Jackie parted ways with Yvette when she arrived in class. She stopped by several desks on the way to hers, carefully tailoring the conversation back to her. She left the guys smiling and girls pining to be like her.
She skipped past the desk in front of her assigned one, slightly frowning at the occupant.
Q Roberts.
She wished someone cooler sat in front of her, but she couldn’t always be lucky. Her lip automatically curled when he looked up at her.
He said nothing and neither did she. But the hairs on the back of her neck stood up.
She hated how he made her feel. It was almost as if he was the male version of her, but played the game differently. Almost like her brothers had. He said what he wanted without any purpose or planning. He appeared as if he didn’t care, but he had to, right? No one could be feared and revered at the same time without forethought.
What must it feel like to not try so hard and still get the results she wanted? In a way, she was almost jealous.
‘Settle down, everyone,’ Mr. Powell said as the bell rang. He adjusted his thick glasses, which he probably bought in the sixties. ‘I have the results of the pop quiz from yesterday. While most of you did well, some of you need to keep up with the assignments. Since we have a lot more material to cover, I won’t go over the results. If you need some assistance, please see me individually.’
Jackie glanced around the room. A few of her classmates were eagerly awaiting their results. She knew she’d done fine. She had no issue with this class and had found the exam quite easy.
While Mr. Powell passed out the graded tests, Jackie daydreamed about Erin’s reaction to the rumor. She wanted to be right there when the girl heard it from her friends or someone close to her, but it rarely worked out that way. She’d at least be able to see the aftermath at practice later that afternoon.
Jackie could hardly suppress her smile.
Mr. Powell returned to his desk and picked up his notes to start the lesson.
Jackie looked down at her desk and saw nothing in front of her. Where was her test?
She didn’t think much about it since she didn’t want to draw negative attention to herself. She shrugged it off until she approached Mr. Powell after class to ask about the mistake. Maybe her test was stuck to his notes, and he hadn’t realized.
‘Jacqueline,’ he said to her.
‘I didn’t get my quiz back,’ she said.
She glanced at the doorway where Yvette stood, shifting from foot to foot. She knew Yvette would wait for her. Jackie rarely moved through the hallways without someone by her side.
‘I wanted to talk to you about that,’ he said, pulling out a sheet of paper from under his notes. ‘I have to say I’m disappointed in you.’
Her attention snapped to him. ‘Excuse me?’
‘You normally do well on these tests. I don’t know why you resorted to cheating.’
‘Cheating?’ she asked. ‘What are you talking about?’ This was not going the way she expected.
He pulled out a photocopy of an exam with different handwriting. The name was blacked out. ‘This is another student’s quiz from last semester. I confiscated this copy from the boys’ bathroom. As you can see here, the answers are identical, even the incorrect ones. Since this is your first offense, I’m going to suggest you attend detention this weekend to think about what you’ve done.’
‘What?’
‘If this happens again, I will have to take stronger action.’
‘This is ridiculous! I’m not a cheater,’ she hissed.
Jackie tried to swallow, but her throat closed up. She glanced over at Yvette who was again soaking up more information. She had to stop this new information from leaving this room. She rounded the desk, so her back was to Yvette.
She lowered her voice. ‘I can’t go to detention.’
‘I have to do something,’ Mr. Powell said. ‘There is a zero-tolerance policy for cheating.’
‘I didn’t cheat,’ she said through gritted teeth. ‘I’ve never seen that test before in my life.’
‘The evidence suggests otherwise,’ he said. ‘This is my final decision. You should go to your next class before you’re late.’
He turned away from her.
Her hands clenched into fists, and her cheeks flamed.
She gathered her composure quickly and smiled at her teacher. She had to turn this situation into her advantage.
‘Thanks, Mr. Powell,’ she said and bounced away.
‘What was that about?’ Yvette asked when they reached the hallway.
‘Apparently someone cheated off my test,’ Jackie said. ‘He was warning me to keep a lookout for the culprit.’ She scanned the hallway trying to find out who had done this to her. She knew she hadn’t cheated. Someone had set her up. There were plenty of people who suffered because of her rumors. She had to narrow it down to one person and destroy him or her.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
JACKIE
Saturday
The hairs on the back of Jackie’s neck started to tingle. She held her composure, feeling the eyes of everyone in the group on her. The limelight was her home. Today, however, she wanted nothing more than to crawl into a hole. She wouldn’t let her composure crack, not like Cece. Cece was dramatic on a typical day. Jackie loved it when all eyes were on her, but she rarely used negative emotions to get there— she was no amateur which was why she didn’t associate with the drama queen.
Before, she held back from calling Cece ‘princess’ even though the nickname was perfect for her. Jackie didn’t want to agree with anything Q said. That would reveal she didn’t hate him as much as she let on.
Cece
almost ruined this for them. Jackie was determined to complete her task with style and grace to get this person off her back for good.
Jackie knew she pissed off a lot of people, but it was worth it for the adoration or fear she inspired in most. Besides, for someone to pull off a stunt like this, they had to think about her a lot. Which was fine with her. Adoration came in many forms.
‘What does it say?’ Teddy asked.
Poor Teddy. Too bad he’d gone first. Two strikes against her classmates. She was determined to keep it that way with a win in her pocket.
‘Who are you without your looks?’ Jackie read, feeling the swirl of pleasure from the attention. There was nothing like it. At least this person appreciated her effort. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. ‘They can be deceiving and so can what you present to your peers. Unlike the others, you have a choice between two missions, permanent humiliation or temporary. Your opportunity for each is inside separate envelopes taped to the underside of the table. You have thirty minutes.’
Jackie flipped the slip over, making sure she didn’t miss any part of the instructions.
‘Well, I guess I should get started,’ she said and shoved her chair away from the table. She bent over and spotted two card-sized envelopes stuck to the underside of the desk. She pulled them both off. One had a bold ‘1’ and the other had a ‘2’ emblazoned on the front. The one with the number one on the front was bulkier, and there was something inside that was almost the length of the envelope. The second envelope had a smaller bulge, thin, like a pencil.
‘I guess they are choices based on each of the outcomes the note mentioned?’ Jackie guessed.
‘Which are you going to choose?’ Q asked.
‘Well, of course, I’m going for the temporary,’ Jackie said. If she was going to suffer humiliation from this unknown person, then temporary was the way to go. Her reputation could handle either, but she’d be a fool for choosing number one.
She ripped open the second envelope and took out a red slip of paper. Reading it aloud, she said, ‘You’re looking for the truth. And I want to expose your lies. They are one in the same. Find five red letters among the slips. Place them in the correct order and apply to face. Leave until I say so.’
Jackie pulled out a tube of her favorite hypoallergenic lipstick from the envelope. It was in her signature shade, Pink Blossom.
‘Apply to face?’ Teddy said.
‘Temporary humiliation,’ Jackie said aloud. ‘Depending on the word I write on my face in lipstick, I guess.’ She couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed by her task, though she wasn’t complaining. It was better than Cece’s task. Jackie would have hesitated as much as Cece if she had to post a nude photo of herself anywhere.
‘You might want to hurry, there are a lot of slips here,’ Holly said.
Jackie placed her hands on the desk and smirked at the group. ‘You all agree to help me, and I’ll do whatever it takes to help you.’
‘That’s funny coming from you,’ Q said.
‘Look,’ Jackie said, letting out a sharp breath. ‘We’re in this together whether we like it or not.’ She couldn’t believe these jerks. They were going to be sorry when it was their turn.
The doors to the library opened, and Cece shuffled to the table.
‘How are you?’ Zoe asked when she sat. She raised her red-rimmed eyes to the others.
‘How do you think I am?’ Cece asked.
‘Zoe didn’t do this to you,’ Teddy said.
‘I don’t know that,’ Cece said.
‘Are you serious?’ Zoe asked.
‘No,’ Cece said, rolling her eyes. ‘Sorry. I’m in a crappy spot right now, and I really don’t want to talk about it. But even if it’s not someone in this room, he or she is watching us.’
‘What makes you think it’s a she now?’ Jackie asked.
Cece sighed. ‘I don’t. I can’t imagine a girl would ever do that to another girl.’
‘Girls can be vindictive,’ Holly said.
Teddy nodded in agreement.
Everyone’s eyes were on Cece. Jackie wanted to change that.
‘Hey! Guys, this is about me now,’ Jackie said. ‘Let’s talk about who it might be after my turn.’
‘You were chosen next?’ Cece asked.
‘Yes,’ and then Jackie proceeded to fill her in on the task.
‘Writing something on your face with lipstick?’ Cece asked as if it were something more complicated than that.
‘We do have to find the word first,’ Jackie said, though she knew it wouldn’t be a problem. Unless it were a foreign word, she was sure she’d finish in time to be the first to complete the tasks successfully.
Teddy started shuffling through the chain he’d already completed.
‘What are you doing?’ Holly asked.
‘I found a red letter on one of these slips. I didn’t think anything of it before.’
‘Let’s do this,’ Jackie said.
While they all silently searched for the red letters, Jackie glanced at the other envelope, wondering what this person had in mind for the permanent humiliation. She couldn’t be distracted. She’d read the other one later.
‘It’s a B!’ Teddy said, ripping the piece of paper from the chain in front of him.
‘I have a J,’ Zoe said a few minutes later.
Jackie grinned. They had plenty of time to find all of the letters and with Teddy the brainiac in the room, they had a chance of figuring out the word with time to spare.
Take that, creepy stalker person.
She dug into the pile in front of her. After a few moments, she felt someone’s eyes on her.
‘What?’ she asked Q.
He sat in his chair, continuing to staple the paper chain together. He wasn’t even looking at the papers. ‘I’m wondering why I should help you.’
‘Because if any part of you is human, you will. I’m sure you don’t want your secrets exposed.’
‘I have no secrets,’ Q said.
‘Please,’ Jackie said. ‘You’re here for a reason. Just like the rest of us. Your time is coming.’
Q slid down into his chair and flipped over a slip of paper in front of him.
Jackie sifted through her pile, satisfied that everyone was working for her now. Sure, she’d help them when the time came but only if it didn’t involve too much from her. They had to make the chain anyway, so in a way, she was helping them complete the task for Mr. Curtis.
Before she knew it, ten minutes had already gone by, and no one else had found any more red letters. She had three to go and time was ticking.
‘Anything?’ she asked, exasperated.
‘We’re looking,’ Cece said.
‘Look harder!’ Jackie hissed.
‘We don’t have to do this for you, you know?’ Teddy said, more under his breath than anything. Standing up to people wasn’t in his nature.
She’d use that to her advantage if she needed to. That was her specialty.
‘There’s like a thousand of these,’ Jackie said. ‘We’re never going to find the letters and figure out the word.’
‘Yes, we will,’ Zoe said.
Jackie eyed her classmate. Zoe was rarely on Jackie’s radar. She was an outcast, someone she’d never associate with. She had enough people to keep in line, Zoe was the least of her concern.
It wasn’t hard. Zoe was as weird as they came. She dressed like she picked the first semi-clean thing from her hamper. She doubted Zoe had seen a hairbrush in who knows how long. And that tragic haircut, which looked as if a blind person had held the shears, was now showing Zoe’s roots. All around a hot mess.
Jackie had never been overly mean to the girl, but she hadn’t been nice. So why was Zoe helping her? Was it to get on her good side? She supposed she might turn a blind eye to Zoe’s fashion choices in the hallway if she helped her escape the punishment from whoever wanted to see them suffer.
‘A, here,’ Q said, turning a slip around, showcasing the red letter.
It was all about those bold red letters. She could have kissed Q if it didn’t mean totally ruining her reputation.
Two more letters. That’s all she needed.
‘Okay, we have a B, J, and A,’ Teddy said, writing those letters down in the notebook he’d lifted from his bag. ‘With two other letters in the word, that’s a lot of possibilities. We need to narrow it down.’
Duh, Jackie thought, though she didn’t say it aloud. He was helping her, but he wasn’t being helpful at that moment.
‘This is impossible,’ Cece said. ‘We’re never going to make it in time.’
‘Don’t be such a downer,’ Holly said.
‘Don’t look like you’re enjoying this,’ Cece said.
‘I have plenty of other places I’d rather be,’ Holly said.
Like screwing some guy?
It was hard for Jackie to keep her thoughts to herself, but she needed these losers. At least until her turn was over.
As her time ticked down to the end, everyone started moving quicker through their slips of paper.
Jackie’s heart felt as if it were going to beat right out of her chest. The other envelope stared at her like a challenge. She wanted to know her other option. Even though this one claimed to be permanent humiliation, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.
She grabbed the envelope, and the movement caused a few of the others to lose their focus.
‘Is that against the rules?’ Zoe asked.
‘The rules said I had two choices,’ Jackie said.
‘It wasn’t explicitly stated,’ Holly said, staring at the envelope.
‘Whatever,’ Jackie said. ‘I want to see my other option.’
She ripped open the envelope and tilted it over. A piece of metal fell to the desk as she pulled out the paper inside. It was sharp at one end, resembling a surgical knife, like the ones she saw on television.
‘What?’ she murmured to herself before opening the note.
Six Little Secrets Page 7
