“The tickets are all there,” she said out loud. “Can you come out now?”
“You’re no fun,” he said, holding up three tickets to WWE at Nassau Coliseum. One was for Todd, one for his father, and one for Tiny Nathan. “I’ll give you Nathan’s ticket if you want to go. I’d much rather see the show with you, Sugar Lips.”
“Puh-lease,” Alicia said, folding her arms across her chest. “What’s the point of a fake fight?” She quickly changed her tone once she realized Todd still had what she needed. “But if I did want to watch fat men act, there’s no one I’d rather go with.”
“Really?” Todd said, moving closer to Alicia.
“Really,” Alicia said, taking a tiny step back. “Now tell me what you know”—she swallowed hard—“Sugar Lips.”
Todd told her everything he heard Friday night while he was eavesdropping on GLU headquarters. He told her Kristen was poor, Dylan was going to St. Barf’s, and Massie liked Cam. Alicia listened to every word, making sure not to miss a single syllable.
When he was done, she stuck a yes sticker on his forehead and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. “You rule!” Alicia said.
She ran into her house and slammed the heavy oak door behind her—leaving Todd alone on her steps, where he stood motionless for the next half hour.
The next day Alicia went to school with two more scarves, one for Dylan and the other for Kristen. Now that she knew their secrets, they were as good as hers.
“Hey, guys, got a second?” Alicia called after Kristen and Dylan. It was the next morning when she cornered them on their way to art. She knew Massie was on another floor, headed for design.
“No,” Dylan said before they picked up their pace.
“Hey, Dylan, maybe if you moved that quickly all the time, you wouldn’t have to go to St. Barf’s.”
Dylan stopped in her tracks and looked around to make sure none of the passing girls heard what Alicia had said.
“What are you so afraid of?” Alicia asked. “I just want to give you something to show how much I miss you.” She dangled a scarf in the air.
Dylan turned around.
“I have one for you too, K.” Alicia held out her other hand.
Kristen refused to budge.
“And it’s free,” Alicia said.
Kristen whipped her head around and clenched her fists. And the three girls faced each other.
Kristen shook her head in disgust. “Six-letter word for snitch.”
“Massie,” Dylan snarled.
“Congratulations,” Alicia said. “It’s the first time you ever answered one of those right.”
Dylan rolled her eyes.
“Wear these scarves from now on and your secrets are safe with me,” Alicia said, handing them each a knockoff Louis.
Kristen twirled her blond hair around her finger. “And if we don’t?”
Alicia answered Kristen’s question with a shrug and a mischievous grin.
Kristen and Dylan looked at each other and Alicia knew exactly what they were thinking. If they wore the scarves to school, they would face Massie’s wrath. And if they didn’t, their secrets would spread among the students faster than a picture of Josh Hartnett’s bare butt.
Alicia waved the scarves at them one last time. “So? What’s it gonna be?”
Dylan yanked a scarf out of Alicia’s hand and wrapped it around her ponytail.
“I have a feeling I’m going to regret this,” Kristen said as she tied hers to the belt loop on her Juicys.
“We all will,” Dylan said to Alicia.
Alicia’s arms were suddenly covered in goose bumps. What if they were right?
THE BLOCK ESTATE GUESTHOUSE
4:47 PM
November 25th
Claire stepped out of the Blocks’ Range Rover, right behind Massie. It had been her fourth time carpooling as an official member of the Pretty Committee and so far, no one had said a single mean word to her. The hardest part had been trading in her gummy bears and sours for those healthy Dr. Juice drinks Massie was into. But it was a small price to pay.
They stood on the lawn between their two houses before parting ways for dinner.
“So you’re telling me you didn’t notice anything weird about Kristen and Dylan today?” Massie asked, shifting back and forth in her new gold ballet flats. “Nothing at all?”
“They were a little quiet,” Claire said. “Maybe they’re upset because we said we would do our homework together again tonight.”
“But we’ve been saying that since last week,” Massie said. “It’s never bothered them before.”
“Well, I dunno,” Claire said, searching her mind for the right thing to say. Massie was finally confiding in her and Claire didn’t want to let her down. “Maybe they don’t like having me around.” As soon as the words left her mouth, Claire regretted saying them. What if she was right?
“Puh-lease,” Massie said. “If I like you, they like you.”
“Oh,” Claire said. Something about Massie’s answer didn’t sit right with her. It left an empty, almost hungry feeling inside her stomach.
“Anyway, I’m sure it’s nothing.” Massie shook her hand in the air like she was waving hello in fast motion. “Wanna work in my room tonight?”
“Sure. I’ll burn a new CD.”
“Perf. I’ll call you after dinner.” Massie’s smile reappeared. “Cheers, big ears.”
“Same goes, big nose.” Claire giggled and the girls took off in opposite directions.
Claire burst through the door to the guesthouse and stood shivering in the hallway. Once her hands stopped shaking, she began peeling off her layers. These days she wore a long john shirt, a turtleneck sweater, a cardigan, her yellow raincoat, and two scarves to keep warm. Her winter coat was still at Cam’s. He had e-mailed her at least a dozen times to let her know he had it, but Claire simply replied, Thx , and other blasé things like that. She secretly liked that Cam had something of hers and hoped he wouldn’t burn it out of spite. Besides, Massie promised to take her coat shopping on the weekend, which was only three chilly days away.
“Score!” Claire heard Todd call from the living room. The explosive sound of the cheering crowd made Claire roll her eyes. She didn’t understand why boys got so excited over video games. Then she thought of Cam again. Would it ever stop?
Claire hung her second scarf on a plastic hook inside the front closet.
“You are such a gawd!” she heard another voice yell.
Claire crinkled her eyebrows in utter confusion. It was a girl. That meant an actual female was hanging out with her brother. Claire kicked off her Keds and hurried toward the living room.
A silky black ponytail hung over the back of the couch. Claire could feel her heart starting to race, as if it knew who the girl was before she did. As Claire crept closer, she became engulfed by a thick cloud of Angel perfume.
“Alicia?” she said. “D-did we have plans today?”
Todd sighed and hit pause on the game.
“No,” Alicia said casually, as if it wasn’t completely freakish for her to be hanging out with Claire’s ten-year-old brother.
“So, why are—”
“She’s my guest,” Todd said, putting his hand on Alicia’s knee. Claire couldn’t help chuckling when Alicia picked it up like a stinky sock and dropped it back on Todd’s leg.
Alicia tilted her neck back so her face was upside down when she spoke to Claire. “Harris is pretty into video games, so I thought I’d come here to get a little practice.”
“Wait, who’s Harris?” Todd asked, tossing his new cordless controller on the brown couch.
Alicia ignored him. “I bet Massie is practicing too.”
“Huh?” Claire was tired of looking at Alicia’s upside-down head and walked around to the front of the couch. “Why would Massie be practicing? She thinks video games are for boys who suck at sports.”
“Because Cam loves them,” Alicia said.
“So?” Claire felt
a rush of prickly heat all over her body. It made her palms itch.
“So,” Alicia said with a trace of “duh” in her voice. “Massie likes Cam.”
“She does not!” Claire shouted a lot louder than she meant to. But the thought of being double-crossed at this point seemed beyond evil. Even for Massie.
“Then why did she make you dump him?” Alicia shouted back.
“Because he’s a wannabe and she thought I could do better.” Claire tried to sound convinced as she lowered herself onto the glass coffee table. She had no idea who to trust and it was making her knees feel weak.
“Alicia’s right,” Todd said.
“How would you know?” Claire snapped.
“He was eavesdropping on GLU headquarters when Massie told Kristen and Dylan.” Alicia’s tone would have been the same if she was talking about her class schedule.
Suddenly memories of Massie talking about Cam flashed in Claire’s mind with sharp clarity, as if they were photographs she had taken with her digital camera. She began scrolling through them one at a time. …
The big smile on Massie’s face when Claire said she’d ended things with Cam, Massie’s offer to buy Claire a new coat so she could avoid seeing Cam, the heartless way Massie destroyed his letter, the BO rumor, and the constant “checking in” to see if Claire returned any of Cam’s e-mails. The images came faster and faster until they played like a horror movie. Claire could feel the tears starting to come.
Alicia bit her lower lip and put her hand on her heart to show how sorry she was for Claire. But that brought little comfort. Lately it seemed like everyone was pretending to care about Claire when they were really just scheming and backstabbing.
“Maybe this will help.” Alicia pulled a scarf out of her pocket. “Wear it to school and no one will mess with you ever again.”
Claire dabbed her eyes with the silky cloth. She wanted to know how a stupid scarf could possibly protect her, but she couldn’t bring herself to ask. All she wanted to do was get to her bedroom before Todd saw her cry. He’d never let her live it down.
Claire stood up without saying another word to either of them and made a run for the stairs. When she got up to her room, she slammed the door and locked it behind her. Then she marched straight over to her window, pulled the string, and lowered the curtains so Massie couldn’t see her. She ripped the phone jack out of the wall and wrote an IM away message that said, I am sick. Please do not disturb. Claire didn’t want to hear from Massie now, after dinner, or ever again.
THE WESTCHESTER MALL
1:12 PM
December 2nd
Two BCBG’s saleswomen were fussing over Massie, Kristen, and Dylan, and they wouldn’t have had it any other way. Between Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Year’s, Massie had six invitations stuck to the purple magnetic board in her bedroom, not including the OCD/Briarwood Nondenominational Tree-Lighting Ceremony. And she didn’t have a single new thing to wear.
Dylan burst through the door of the dressing room wearing a pink beaded V-necked tank top and silver wide-legged satin pants. She did a full 360-degree turn, then froze with her hands on her hips as if the famous fashion photographer Patrick Demarchelier were about to take her picture.
“Does this make me look too sexy?” she asked, laughing at her own goofy model pose.
“I dunno, but does this make me look too gorgeous?” Massie said. She emerged in a gold-and-green halter dress.
But no one even looked at her outfit.
“Dylan, you look like an eight-letter word for great,” Kristen said as if Massie weren’t even there.
“Ah-mazing?” Massie shouted immediately.
“I was talking to Dylan,” Kristen snapped. She was sitting on a fold-out chair outside the dressing rooms, doing a crossword puzzle.
“Are you pissed because I said I didn’t want to go to Abercrombie?” Massie said to her own reflection in the three-way mirror. “‘Cause you know they won’t have anything party-worthy at A&F.”
“I don’t need any holiday clothes,” Kristen said. “I have tons from last year.”
“Why not drink a carton of expired milk while you’re at it?” Massie said, expecting to hear Dylan laugh. But the dressing room was silent.
“Kristen, want me to buy you something?” Dylan asked Kristen.
Massie turned away from the mirror and looked at her friends. Of course! Why didn’t she think of it sooner? Kristen was just upset because she couldn’t afford new holiday clothes. She wasn’t mad at Massie. Kristen was mad at her poverty-stricken parents.
“Yeah, we’ll get you something new,” Massie said.
“No thanks, I don’t need your charity,” Kristen said, stuffing her crossword puzzle book in her bag.
“But that’s what friends are for.” Massie put her arm around Kristen’s shoulders.
“Yeah, some friend,” Kristen murmured before pushing Massie’s arm away.
“What’s your problem?”
“Nothing,” Dylan chimed in. “She doesn’t have a problem, do you, Kristen?”
“No.” Kristen crossed her legs.
“See,” Dylan said. Then she turned to Kristen. “Hey, why don’t you try something on anyway? You know, just for fun.”
“‘Kay.” Kristen shrugged. She stood up and started browsing.
Massie looked at Dylan and whispered, “What’s up with the female dog?”
Dylan shrugged and went back into the dressing room.
Massie rolled her eyes and did the same.
“Can I help you find any sizes?” someone shouted.
“No thanks, I’m all done.” Massie stepped out holding an armful of clothes. “Here you go,” she said as she unloaded them on her salesgirl, Ava-Jade. “I’ll take everything plus whatever my cranky blond friend wants.”
“Great,” Ava-Jade said with an elated smile that showed off her over-bleached teeth.
Massie reached into her red suede Prada push lock bag and pulled a card out of the inside zipper pocket. She placed it on top of the pile in Ava-Jade’s arms. “Charge it.”
Ava-Jade looked confused. “Uh, we don’t accept the OCD student ID, just Visa, American Express, and MasterCard.”
“Oops, sorry.” Massie giggled. She sat down on the fold-out chair and began searching the inside of her bag. “I know my Visa is in here somewhere.”
Massie took out her cosmetics case, Chanel compact, cell phone, iPod, PalmPilot, house keys, dog treats, and silver Tiffany pen. Then she turned her Prada upside down and shook it. She looked up at Ava-Jade and bit her bottom lip. “Uh, I think I left my wallet in the Hermes.”
Ava-Jade dumped the pile of clothes onto Massie’s lap and walked away.
“That sucks,” Dylan said when she stepped out of her changing room. She made a big show of handing a heap of clothes to Collette, her salesgirl. “I know there’s a lot here; do you need some help taking it all to the register?” Dylan placed her mother’s ultra-exclusive black American Express card on top of the pile.
“No, Miss Marvil, you wait here. I’ll be fine.”
“Great.” Dylan smiled and sighed. “I hope I can carry it all home.” She chuckled.
Massie rolled her eyes and looked away. “My life sucks,” she muttered under her breath.
Kristen walked back into the changing area holding a navy blue T-shirt dress.
“Massie brought her OCD card,” Dylan announced. “But don’t worry, I’ll pay for it.”
“Thanks,” Kristen said with a relieved smile. “You’re the greatest friend in the world.”
As soon as Kristen shut the dressing room door, Massie slapped Dylan’s arm. “What’s going on here?”
“Massie!” Dylan shouted when Massie’s slap knocked her Marc by Marc Jacobs cross-body bag to the ground. Everything spilled out. “You broke my bag.”
“I did not.” Massie dropped to her knees. She started scooping up the various lip glosses, brushes, Luna bar wrappers, and loose soy chip crumbs. She had never felt
so pathetic in her entire life.
Suddenly Massie recoiled. “What’s this?” She picked the shiny white scarf off the floor and rubbed it against her cheek. Then she held it up to the light and examined it from both sides.
Dylan’s face went white. “Oh, that’s my mom’s hankie. She used my bag last night and must have forgotten to take it out.”
“Don’t lie to me,” Massie said as she bunched it up in the palm of her hand and whipped it back on the ground. “It’s a knockoff! Your mom wouldn’t even use this to wipe dog poo off her shoes.”
“Yes, she would.” Dylan grabbed the scarf from the floor and stuffed it back in her bag.
Massie felt her entire body starting to quiver. She stood up, gently resting her hand on her stomach, fighting the urge to puke on Dylan’s new Dolce & Gabbana mules. “You got this from Alicia, didn’t you? How could you?”
“How could I?” Dylan stood. “How could you?”
“What?” Massie felt dizzy. She leaned against the mirror. The cool glass felt good against the back of her neck.
“Whaddaya think?” Kristen bellowed as she threw open the dressing room door. She walked out modeling the navy T-shirt dress.
“Kristen, do you have any lip gloss in your bag?”
Kristen crinkled her blond eyebrows and nodded, obviously confused by Massie’s reaction.
“Can I grab some?” Massie kept her eyes on Dylan, making sure she didn’t throw any signals to warn Kristen. But before Kristen could answer, Massie had already locked the changing room door and was rifling through her LeSportsac.
“What do you think of this dress?” she heard Kristen ask Dylan.
“Who cares?” Massie heard Dylan say.
“What’s wrong with you?” Kristen asked.
Dylan was silent.
Massie got a paper cut from brushing her hand past Kristen’s crossword puzzle book but ignored the stinging pain. She was determined to find what she was looking for.
“Aha!” Massie pulled the scarf out like a birthday party magician would. She stepped out of the changing room, waving it like a victory flag. “Et tu, Brute?”
Revenge of the Wannabes Page 16
