Rival Revenge

by Jessica Burkhart

  Ryan nodded. “I’m in.”

  Tonight was going to be fun. Paige and Ryan would be together and I didn’t have to do anything but relax.

  F-LIST CELEBS AND CHINESE FOOD

  TOGETHER, WE WALKED INTO THE ALREADY-crowded media center. It was packed, like it was every

  other Saturday night, and the busyness of the place made me want to escape to one of the quiet rooms. I had a feeling that Eric, Jacob, or Callie could be here, and I didn’t want to be standing in the lobby if they walked through.

  “I’ll go get the Chinese food menu,” Ryan said. “Be right back.”

  Ryan went over to the media center monitor and came back with it, and we headed away from the concessions and theater and toward the TV rooms. At the end of the carpeted hallway, we found an empty room. The sand-colored walls made it feel relaxing and it was one of the smaller rooms with a couch, single recliner, flat screen, and coffee table.

  “This okay with you guys?” Paige asked. Her eyes darted from mine to Ryan’s. I had a feeling the look she had in her eyes was the same as when I’d met up with Jacob at the media center for the first time.

  “It’s great,” Ryan said.

  I nodded. “It’s ours now.”

  We all put down our bags. I sat on the cushy black leather recliner and popped up the footrest. “Ahhh,” I said. “This so beats the library.”

  Paige and Ryan laughed. Ryan sat down first at the end of the couch and Paige scooted next to him. I hid my smile—I liked seeing them close together and it made me happy that Paige was getting more and more comfortable with Ryan.

  “Totally,” Paige said. “It’s ridiculous. Sasha and I did homework on Friday, we did more today, and we’ve still got to study tomorrow.”

  “You’re not alone,” Ryan said. “It’s crazy for me, too. I thought the teachers expected a lot out of us from seventh grade, but this year has been insane and it’s barely started.”

  “I think we should make a pact not to talk about school anymore tonight,” I said. “Deal?”

  Paige and Ryan nodded.

  “Let’s order and watch TV,” Ryan said. We all leaned over the menu and decided what we wanted.

  “Want to get a bunch of stuff and share?” Paige asked.

  “Definitely,” I said. “Let’s do it.”

  We picked cold sesame noodles, spinach dumplings, sesame chicken, and an order of wonton soup. Ryan placed the order and my stomach growled as I listened to him list the different foods.

  “It’ll take about half an hour,” Ryan said. “I’ll go pick it up at the counter.”

  We settled into our seats. Paige picked up the remote and turned on the TV. She flipped through the channels and at the same second we all said, “That!” when the reality TV show that only everyone was talking about came on. The show had F-list celebrities who’d never done anything other than acting work “regular” jobs.

  “This is only the most ridiculous, and by ridiculous I mean awesome, show ever,” Paige said.

  “It’s at that embarrassingly awful level,” Ryan said.

  We laughed as pop star Nala spent the day as a zookeeper. She tried to feed the seals and when one started to move toward her for a fish, she screamed, dropped the fish, and ran. The episode ended and just as a rerun started, Ryan got up.

  “Almost forgot about the food,” he said.

  Paige and I hopped up and grabbed our student cards for Ryan to split the food on all of our cards.

  He walked out and Paige turned to me, her eyes bright. I knew what she was feeling—just like I’d felt the first time I’d gone out with Jacob.

  “It’s going great, right? Or is it just me?”

  I smiled. “It’s going perfect. He’s having so much fun and he keeps looking at you.”

  “He does?” Paige asked, blushing.

  “He does. He really likes you—he’s obviously enjoying hanging out.”

  I could relate to Paige’s insecurities. I’d felt the same way when Jacob and I had been paired up in film class

  and had to spend time together. I’d thought about every word out of my mouth and wondered if everything I’d

  said had sounded dumb.

  We both turned to the door when Ryan walked through, carrying our bag of food.

  “Thanks,” Paige said.

  “Sure,” Ryan said, smiling. He set the bag on the coffee table and we all moved to the floor to spread the containers on the table. We piled our plates with food and dug in.

  “So. Good,” I said, my mouth full.

  “Mmm hmm,” Paige said.

  Ryan, Paige, and I ate and watched the repeat episode. Paige, sitting between Ryan and me, kept sneaking glances at Ryan and I wondered if I’d been that obvious when I’d crushed on Jacob—the first guy I’d ever liked. Paige had also never sat that close to Ryan and I watched as they were almostbutnotquite touching.

  I ate another bite of my spinach dumpling and when I glanced at Paige and Ryan again, I saw Jacob and me. The way Ryan interacted with Paige was how things had started with Jacob. Easy. Friendly. I tried to concentrate on my food, but I suddenly couldn’t swallow. I saw images of Jacob and wondered what would have happened if that awful night at the Sweetheart Soirée had never happened. Then that made me start to think about Eric.

  I took a breath and forced myself to sit up straighter. It did no good to think about that now. I couldn’t be with either guy, so what was the point of thinking about them? Watching Paige and Ryan together made me happy for them—not jealous. I’d done everything I’d needed to do to protect my friends and I wasn’t going to think about Jacob now.

  Or ever.

  We finished eating and stuffed our trash into the bag.

  “I’m so full,” Paige said. “That was amazing.”

  “Me too,” Ryan said. He flipped open his phone, checking the time. “I can watch another episode, but then I’ve got to go for a dorm meeting.”

  “Cool,” Paige said.

  The episode flew by and Ryan stood and stretched when it ended.

  “I had fun,” he said. “I’ll text you?”

  For a second, I thought Paige wouldn’t be able to speak. But instead, she grinned and took a step closer to Ryan. “Sounds good,” she said. “See you.”

  Ryan smiled at both of us, got off the couch, and walked out of the room. For a second, I saw Jacob walking away—not Ryan. I shook it out of my brain.

  Paige waited exactly five point two seconds before turning to me and grabbing my arms.

  “Ohhhhmmyyygod,” Paige said. “That was awesome!”

  “You were so cool,” I said. “He likes you so much. He already wants to text you but doesn’t want to look like a dork, I know it.”

  “Just knowing that you think he wants to text me already is enough,” Paige said. Her eyes sparkled and she bounced up and down.

  We gathered our stuff, linked arms, and left the media center.

  “That was the perfect distraction from tomorrow,” Paige said.

  “What’s tomorrow?” I asked.

  We walked down the stairs and to the sidewalk.

  “Nominations for Homecoming prince and princess will be posted!”

  I made a face.

  “C’mon,” Paige said. “It’ll be fun. Everyone gets into it—it’s almost like a break from school because even the teachers realize everyone’s so excited about it that they don’t expect us to concentrate.”

  “I’m excited for you, ’cause you’ll definitely be nominated,” I said. “But I really could skip everything else and be happy.”

  Paige bumped her shoulder against mine. “You’re not going to skip everything, and we’ll have fun together—I promise.”

  I smiled for Paige’s benefit, but started thinking of ways to attend as few Homecoming events as possible. I needed a list of excuses ASAP.

  THE LIST

  “OMIGODOMIGOD!” SQUEALS RANG DOWN the hallway and bare feet slapped against the wooden floors as what sounded l
ike a dozen people ran by Paige’s and my room verrry early the next morning. Like six fifteen early.

  I sat up straight in bed, heart pounding, and watched as Paige jumped out of bed, put on her pink robe, and slid her feet into flip-flops.

  “What’s going on? Is there a fire?!” I asked. I didn’t hear an alarm, but maybe they were broken or out of batteries. What would I grab first? I threw back my covers and headed for my lip gloss collection.

  Paige laughed. “It’s not a fire. Homecoming nominations must have been posted in the common room. C’mon!”

  “I thought it was something serious!” I grumbled. “People were running down the hallway for nominations?” I flopped back onto my bed and pulled my blanket over my face.

  “Sasha!” Paige grabbed me by the wrist and pulled me up. “You’re coming. Right now.”

  “Okay, okay,” I said, my whining only half-serious.

  Paige shifted from foot to foot as I pulled on my own robe and started looking for shoes. I couldn’t find the pair I wanted and I could tell Paige was about to implode if we didn’t leave.

  “Let’s go,” I said. “Who cares about shoes this early in the morning.”

  Paige yanked open the door and hurried into the hallway. I closed it behind us and we followed girls who seemed to be coming from every level of Winchester to the common room.

  I let Paige—who was usually the most polite person ever—elbow her way through the crowd of girls and get up to the corkboard. Posted on the side was a pink sheet of paper with a clear tack.

  “Omigod! She got nominated!”

  “Aww, I didn’t.”

  “Ooooh, but you did!”

  The endless chatter about who made it and who didn’t filled the common room.

  “Sasha,” Paige said. She reached back and dragged me forward. A couple of girls glared at me and moved away. I scanned the list and started blinking at what I was seeing. This couldn’t be right.

  8th-grade girls:

  Paige Parker

  Heather Fox

  Nicole Allen

  Callie Harper

  Sasha Silver

  8th-grade boys:

  Eric Rodriguez

  Jacob Schwartz

  Troy Brown

  Ben Wells

  Ryan Shore

  “Please tell me that my name is not on that list,” I said to Paige. “Who would do that? I don’t even want to go to Homecoming!”

  “Wow, talk about ungrateful,” I heard someone stage-whisper behind me. I didn’t even turn around to try and figure out who it was. I didn’t want to see Jasmine’s face.

  Paige put her hand on my arm and steered me through the crowd and out of the common room.

  “Sash, you should be thrilled to have your name on that list,” Paige said. “It’s a huge honor. I know you’re upset about whatever happened last weekend, but this will be good for you—trust me. It’ll be a distraction from everything going on.”

  I shook my head. “But I don’t need a distraction. I’m busy enough with school and riding. Can I go to Headmistress Drake and ask to have my name taken off?”

  Paige shook her head. “No way. You were voted by your peers—she’d never let you do that.”

  I groaned and walked with Paige back to our room. Now I was forced to go to every Homecoming-related event. Ridiculous. I wondered it was some kind of joke and that people just chose my name to force me to be in the spotlight when they had to know I didn’t want to be. Maybe they just wanted to see me sweating next to Callie, Jacob, and Eric.

  Back in our room, I put on my riding clothes. Then I realized something awful.

  “Oh, Paige,” I said, turning to her. “I’m such a jerk. I didn’t even say congratulations. This is a big deal for you—it’s HUGE. Seriously, I’m sorry.”

  Paige nodded. “It’s okay. You were upset—no big deal.”

  “No, it is a big deal. Even if I’m not into it, I’m excited for you. We’ll have to get something from the Sweet Shoppe later. My treat.”

  Paige smiled. “That sounds great.”

  UNWILLING PRINCESS IN TRAINING

  WHEN I REACHED THE STABLE, I WENT straight to Charm’s stall and threw my arms around his neck. He sniffed my hair and held still, letting me lean against him. He was my only constant.

  “Argh!” I said. “Are you kidding me?” I let go of Charm’s neck, leaned against the stall wall, and sank into the sawdust.

  “I did not want to be Homecoming anything,” I continued. Charm lowered his head, taking in my rant and listening to every word. “I know it’s just a nomination and there’s no way I’ll win, but I don’t even want to participate at all.”

  All I wanted to do was focus on school and riding. Homecoming was supposed to be Paige’s thing where she’d tell me about it, and just hearing stories from her would be fun. That I could’ve handled. But now I had to be involved in everything and around everyone. Callie. Jacob. Eric.

  Last year, I’d been so overwhelmed by being the new girl that I’d missed anything Homecoming-related. So I had no clue how any of it really worked, what I’d be doing, or how much time I’d have to spend with Jacob, Eric, and Callie.

  I looked up when a head poked over the stall door.

  “Hey,” Paige said. “Can I come in?”

  “Sure.” I got up and helped her unlatch Charm’s stall. I had to smile when I watched Paige pat Charm’s shoulder and look comfortable around him. I remembered how tentative Paige had been around Charm the first time she’d met him. But now she was a total pro—she knew how to groom and she could walk and trot.

  But as I watched Paige closer, I knew something was up. She was tugging at the ends of her hair like she did when she was nervous. Paige sat on the clean sawdust next to me and we both giggled when Charm meandered over to us and stuck his head down to nose Paige’s hand with his muzzle.

  “He’s offended that you came to visit without a treat,” I said. “How dare you.”

  Paige bowed her head. “So sorry, Charm. I’ll come back with two carrots next time—promise.”

  That seemed to satisfy Charm. He walked to the other end of his stall, cocked a hind leg, and started to fall asleep.

  “I wanted to talk more about Homecoming,” Paige said, turning her head to look at me. “I know you don’t care about it. And I get it! I really do—you have to be around people that will make you feel uncomfortable. But you can’t let them ruin it for you.”

  Interest level? Still zero.

  “The whole thing is just supposed to be fun. Not something to make you anxious.”

  I nodded. This wasn’t about Homecoming. Paige was working up to talk to me about something else—something bigger.

  “We can do everything together,” Paige continued. “Whatever activities there are—I’ll be there, obviously. I won’t let Callie, Jacob, or Eric make things weird for you. I promise.”

  “Thanks,” I said. “I knew you’d be there for me. But …

  I know you.” I eyed Paige. “Why do you really look so worried? You didn’t come here to talk more about Homecoming.”

  Paige drew her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on top. “You’re right—this isn’t just about Homecoming. I mean, part of it was because I really do want you to give Homecoming a chance, then decide if you really hate it. But I’ve watched you since last weekend, Sasha, and I’m worried.”

  I shook my head. “I know I scared you when I fainted. And sleeping over with the Trio probably hurt your feelings and I’m sorry if it did.”

  “It’s not that. I want you to do whatever makes you comfortable, and you did. I’m worried about why you fainted. You passed out because you were stressed and crazy exhausted. You’ve been doing this to yourself since the weekend and it’s not like you.”

  I swallowed and looked down. “Paige, I—”

  “Just let me finish.” Paige’s voice was soft. “I expected you to be devastated about Eric and Jacob and Callie. I thought we’d get through it and eat
tons of brownies together and that you’d let me help you. I’m your best friend, Sasha, and you’ve shut me out this week. If I did something—if there’s something going on—I’m asking you to tell me. Trust me like you used to and just talk to me.”

  I glanced at Paige and saw a mix of hurt and worry on her face. She had always been the first one I’d gone to about everything and she obviously sensed I was hiding the real truth about what had happened. It made me feel sick that I’d hurt her or caused her to worry about our friendship. That was the last thing I wanted to do.

  “Paige, I …” my words trailed off. I couldn’t even finish my sentence. Paige and I looked at our laps for a couple of minutes, waiting for me to talk, but I fell silent. There was no explanation I could give her. I’d resigned not to tell anyone and I had to stick to it.

  “I’m going back to our room,” Paige said, getting up and brushing off her jeans. “If you can’t talk to me, I guess … I guess I’m just wasting my time.”

  Paige reached over Charm’s stall door, feeling for the latch.

  “Nothing’s changed between us,” I said, not wanting to let her walk away. “You’re still my best friend.”

  Paige stared at me for a second. “If that was true, you’d let me help you.”

  She walked out of the stall and secured the door behind her. I dropped my head into my hands. I had to do something. If I lost Paige, I’d have nothing. Tears burned my eyes. I didn’t even know if I wanted to stay at Canterwood if Paige and I weren’t friends.

  I went back and forth with two options—either telling Paige the truth, which I suspected she already knew, or come up with a believable lie that she would accept. I hated even thinking the word lie since it had gotten me into so much trouble last week. But Paige was way off this time. I was doing what I needed to do with school, riding, and everything else. I couldn’t slow down or I’d never stay on the YENT, my grades would slip, and I’d be kicked off the team.

  Paige, who hadn’t lost any of her friends and was just starting a relationship with Ryan, didn’t understand one important thing—that when you lost everything, you had nothing to lose. And if I stopped for one second, I knew I’d realize how much I’d really lost.