Ericka gave me a funny look but didn't say anything as she and Tori sat down. The movie started, and I stared at Vladi's profile while he watched. I stared at Yasmin, who was a few seats away from him, and she was watching him, too. His eyes stayed on the screen the whole time. He probably never knew he was the night's entertainment for two pathetic girls who needed lives.
As soon as the film ended, we got up to go. Our plan had been to see what was up with Vladi and then decide if we wanted to get ice cream or call Peyton's mom to get us. I still wasn't sure what to do, but I didn't want to ruin everyone's night just because I was afraid of running into him at the ice cream place, so I suggested we still go.
We started to walk out of the gym when Devon realized her lip gloss had fallen out of her purse.
"Did you leave it in your mom's car?" I asked.
"No, I put some on before we walked in, remember? It must have fallen out of my purse when I sat down."
We walked over to our seats and started looking.
"Hey, Landry."
I was squatting and peering under a chair when I glanced up to see Vladi standing there.
"Oh, hey. I didn't know you were here tonight," I said.
"Yeah, I wanted to see this movie. It was good. Did you enjoy it?" he asked.
"Yeah." No, I don't know if it was because I spent every moment staring at you and wondering if you missed me or if you're a cheating scumbag. "I thought it was pretty good, too."
"Yeah, so…you guys gonna hang out or anything tonight?"
"We're going to get ice cream," Peyton said, coming up behind me.
Good. Let him know we were going there so, if he says he's going, we won't look like we're copying him.
"That sounds fun. Steve and I are headed there, too. You guys want a ride?" Then he saw Ericka and Tori. "Oh, we can only squeeze so many people in his car. Not safe, you know."
Tori nodded. "We'll meet you guys over there," she said as she and Ericka walked out of the gym.
As soon as they were out of sight, Vladi leaned forward. "What are you doing with that girl? You know she's not a true friend."
"Well, at least she doesn't lie to me."
He seemed confused. "Well, maybe not. I don't know about that, I guess." He shrugged. The other girls pretended to be searching for the lip gloss, but I could see Devon had it clenched in her fist, and they were just listening in while trying to give us space.
"Can I talk to you alone for a minute?" I asked.
He nodded and we walked over to the bleachers.
"What's up?" he asked.
"I just…did you break up with me to date that Yasmin girl?" I asked.
"No, I'm not dating anyone. I…"
"Vladi!" a voice called.
"Oh no…it's my mother. Why is she here? And she's coming over here. Oh man. Landry, I gotta go."
I saw him rush over to an older woman waving her arms at him.
"What happened?" Devon asked. I told them he wasn't dating anyone but that we got interrupted by his mom. Peyton put her arm around my shoulders, and we went to call her mom for a ride.
Chapter Twenty-One
The next day, the mail came. Dad had sent me the money to get the necklace for Ashanti and me. Since India had gotten me one already, I texted my dad and asked if it'd be okay if I used the money to buy someone else a necklace with my half of the money. I told him I wanted to get Thalia one, too. He wrote back that was a nice idea to include her.
Mom took me to the mall, and I went to the jewelry shop. The crystal butterfly pendants were in the back. I picked out one that had pink, green, and blue in it for Ashanti that would look beautiful on her, and a blue, yellow, and green one that would look pretty on Thalia. The lady behind the counter wrapped the boxes for me in blue paper with silver stars.
"Can I call Ashanti and see if I can drop it off?" I asked. I didn't want to tip Mom off that we were fighting, so I didn't want to go through the trouble of asking her if I could have a friend over and then have to explain why Ashanti wasn't coming over if she hung up on me.
"Um…yeah, I guess that's not too intrusive if you call first. But why not just wait until you have plans to hang out?"
I shrugged and texted Ashanti, saying I wanted to drop something off for school and hoping that would get Ashanti to open the door.
"Fine," was all she wrote back.
Mom pulled up, and I walked to the door. I didn't remember the pathway to Ashanti's house being so long. It was like the aisle at St. Faustina's church, maybe longer. I rang the doorbell and waited. Her dad answered.
"Hi, Landry. Come on in. Is your mom in the car? Have her come in." Then her dad stuck his head out the door and started waving for my mom to come in. Oh man, this was not going to be cool if Ashanti threw this thing in my face and told me to get out.
Mom sprinted up the path, and soon Mrs. Russell was in the hall chatting, too. She told me to go find Ashanti in her room while they talked in the living room.
I knocked on Ashanti's door. "Hey, can I come in?"
"Whatever."
I walked in, and she was sitting on the floor with a magazine on her lap. "Nice necklace," she said, raising one eyebrow.
I handed her the box.
"What's this?" she asked as she opened it.
"I told you I had been saving up to get you one, but my dad forwarded me the money."
"Is this a guilt thing?" she asked.
"Of course not. I was serious when I told you I planned on including you all along. I got Thalia one, too. India bought mine, so I had extra money for another."
"Wow, you must feel guilty. Seriously, do you know how many paperbacks and book downloads that would buy? It's at least two lip glosses, too," she said. Then she smirked.
"Are you laughing at me or with me?" I asked.
"Not sure yet." She made a face. "No, I forgive you. I saw the look on your face when you saw me hanging out with Halle, and at first I thought you felt left out. When I saw you wearing the necklace like the rest of them, I was like, is she just being weird because I saw it or what? But I know you better than that, and I should have…I don't know, tried to talk to you about it."
"I understand how you must have felt with me saying that and all, but I hope you know that what I said just didn't come out right. So…friends?"
"Yes. By the way, I am sorry Maggie was being such a jerk to you. Halle told me she thought Mags was way out of line over that Vladi thing, but Yasmin told her to do it, and she was trying to get on her good side."
Why did girls always do everything Arianna and Yasmin asked? Arianna could at least be sweet, but Yasmin wasn't even a nice person — well, unless she was talking to someone who was either a guy or met her standards of being cute, popular, and rich.
"I saw you talking to Vladi at movie night. What's up with that?" she asked.
I told her nothing got resolved because his mom showed up.
"Aren't you going to ask me what I thought of how he was looking at you and stuff?" she asked.
I shook my head. "No, Devon told me she felt left out when all I'd talk about was him. I'm done making some guy the center of my universe…not that I completely did that, but I did get a little obsessed."
"Well, he was your first crush, and not many girls get to date theirs."
"And get dumped. I never thought I'd be one of those girls who put a boy first. Did I do that?" I asked.
"I didn't think so, but Devon may see it differently because of what she was going through with Doug at the time."
My mom came to the door and said we had to get going. I gave Ashanti a hug, and we promised to text later. As I walked out of Ashanti's house, I felt better than I had in a long time.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The next day at school, I gave Thalia her butterfly necklace. She squealed when she saw it.
"I love it," she said, slipping it on. "I thought Peyton's was so pretty, and I can't believe I have one now, too."
However, not everyo
ne was as thrilled with the idea of the matching butterfly necklaces. Tori asked me at lunch why everyone was now wearing those. I shrugged. I didn't want to get into it with her, and I didn't feel like I owed her an explanation after she had apparently told Ericka that Vladi dumped me. It would have been an argument I couldn't win with the he said/she said mess, and I thought it was better just to let it go.
After class, I saw Kyle at his locker. I pretended I had a question about the math homework and started playing with my necklace as I talked so he'd notice it.
"Cool butterfly," he said.
"Oh, thanks. Yeah, a bunch of us have them: Devon, India, Peyton, Ashanti, Thalia, and me."
He snorted. "You guys must have loved Thalia copying you on that."
"What are you talking about? India got me mine, and I bought Thalia's. It was planned," I said.
"Yeah, right."
"Why wouldn't we get her one? She's part of our group, after all," I said. "Well, thanks for the homework, but I think I'll ask someone else. Don't take this the wrong way or anything but…I want to get at least a, 'B.'" He looked shocked as I turned to walk away.
I went over to meet Tori. We walked to the cafeteria together and I picked a bowl of chicken noodle soup and some crackers along with some fruit and a bottle of water.
"You got the last bowl of soup," Tori said.
"There are still cups of it on the tray," I said.
"I wanted the big bowl."
Too bad. Those days of me giving in were over. "Sorry, I got it first."
I stopped to get a napkin and started to move toward the table I usually sat at with Devon. Ashanti and Hana were already sitting with her, and there was only one chair left. I decided that if Tori had nowhere else to sit, I would make room, but when I went to tell her that, I saw her rush past me. She was headed over to the lone chair and sat down between Devon and Ashanti without even looking back to see if I had a place to go. I glanced around. Ericka was at Halle and Maggie's table. I'd have rather sat with a den of vipers than go over there. Then I saw Ashanti get up and drag another chair over. I went over to the table and thanked her for getting me a chair.
"That soup smells amazing," Devon said to me. The fake smile on her face implied Tori must have complained I got the last bowl.
"Doesn't it? Looks homemade," I said taking a big spoonful. "Oh wow, even better than it smells."
Tori shoved her turkey sandwich in her mouth. I guess all those times I let her take the better lunch were lost on her.
Devon started talking about how the first high school information night was coming up. She and Ashanti started talking about all the people they knew from the public school and other private schools who were going to the same high school as us next year. Tori's parents still hadn't decided if she was going to the public or private high school, but my mom told me that both schools had great ratings, so she would let me make the final decision on which one I felt more comfortable going to. Both schools seemed equally terrifying, but in different ways. I knew more people going to the public school, but there were also going to be a lot more students there, so I could get lost in the crowd and there was no guarantee I'd see any of my friends at all.
I had heard so many horror stories about the high school — especially what they did to freshman girls, like putting "F's" in lipstick on their foreheads so everyone would know they were freshman, throwing their purses into the toilet, and if they didn't like you, then they might throw dog poop at your house. The worst part was that the school was notorious for purposely nominating girls for homecoming princess just to humiliate them. Devon knew one of the girls and said she was cute and had friends so she never knew anything was up with her nomination until the day of the parade, and someone filled her float with pictures of ugly clown dolls and wrote "Nice makeup" all over. I remembered seeing her picture in the paper as one of the nominees. Her makeup was a little on the heavy side but not too bad. So if normal-looking girls got picked on, what hope did that leave for anyone? Why did people have to be so mean?
"Landry, it's gotta be so awkward for you to be going to Vladi's school next year," Tori said. "I mean, what if you run into him during the tour?"
"It's a huge place," Ashanti said. "People break up all the time. It's not a big deal."
Tori raised her eyebrows as if to say, "Yeah, right," and went back to her sandwich.
Meanwhile my delicious homemade soup was no longer sitting well. It never occurred to me Vladi might be around during the first pre-freshman tour. I would be mortified if I ran into him and he was with a girl. Or worse yet, running into him, and he was with Yasmin. Plus, I hadn't told my mom about the breakup, so if she saw him, she'd probably go over to talk to him. I could already imagine it: "Landry, Vladi's here! Hon? Why are you hiding behind the garbage can? Your boyfriend, Vladi, is here. Come say, 'hello.' Stop trying to run away. Why is everyone laughing and pointing at you and calling you a 'loser dumpee'? What does that mean?"
Well, maybe the world would end and I wouldn't have to deal with high school or Vladi and my mother running into each other.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Sadly, the world did not end, and on Thursday, we all had to go to the high school for a freshman information night from 6 to 9 p.m. The universe did throw me a bone, though, because my mom ended up having to work, so I went with Ashanti and her dad. I was a little relieved that I wasn't going with my own parents. Sure, I loved my mom and dad, but sometimes it was just easier to be with somebody else's family. In the car, Ashanti went through a list of stuff that her dad wasn't supposed to say in public.
"Okay, if I see one of my friends, and we hug or something, you can't do that squealing thing and go, 'Oh wow,' like you're making fun of us," she said. "And don't mention my age, okay?"
"Ashanti, everybody there is going to be a freshman. You're all going to be about the same age, so it doesn't matter…"
"Trust me, it matters," she said.
I felt a little uncomfortable, because I was a little younger than most of the girls in my class. Tori and Thalia were the youngest of my friends, and even Tori was a little older than me. It helped that I was tall, so I passed for older, but it still made me nervous. Ashanti seemed so calm and confident as she talked about how she couldn't wait to take the tour. Plus, she looked so mature that she could pass for at least sixteen.
Mr. Russell parked the car, and we walked into the high school. There was a group of older girls standing by a juice machine. One girl was fixing her mascara, and the others were trying to see their reflection in the glass trophy case. Please tell me all high school girls weren't like this. Was high school going to be like an Ingénue competition? I wondered where the eighth graders were supposed to go, and then I realized those girls were eighth graders. Even Ashanti seemed a little intimidated. A few more girls came down the hallway. They didn't seem shallow as they had messy ponytails and weren't wearing makeup, but they sure did seem confident as they talked loudly. It felt like everyone there already knew each other. There was no one standing shy and alone in the corner. I was grateful I had come with someone, because I was not the type to go up to a stranger and introduce myself.
Mr. Russell saw Ericka and her dad over by the gym, so we went to join them.
"Public school girls sure look a lot different from the Hillcrest girls," I said.
"Ya think?" Ericka said, rolling her eyes. "I saw a girl in the bathroom with her bra sticking out of the top of her shirt. Did she think she was going to a music video audition or something?"
The three of us stood huddled at the door while Mr. Russell and Mr. Maines talked about how kids "sure were different" since they were in school. Mr. Maines seemed nervous as he watched a bunch of kids, dressed all in black, walking into the gym. Ashanti's dad started to say something about one boy who was wearing blue lipstick until Ashanti elbowed him.
"There's India," Ashanti said.
India walked in, tossing her shiny, honey-blonde hair behind her. She walked rig
ht over to the girls at the juice machine and hugged the one with the mascara problem. Then India pulled out her Little Rose compact and started applying pink blush right in the hallway. She totally fit in with those other girls — India appeared about sixteen, beautiful, and like she belonged there. Meanwhile, I was standing in a corner with Ericka, who had a snowman sweater on and was wearing a hair scrunchy — a scrunchy. It wasn't as if she was trying to be retro either. Only little kids and my bus driver, Mrs. Jackson, wore scrunchies. At least Ashanti was super pretty, but I wasn't so sure about how I came across. Did I look like a kid or a teenager? I had worn a royal blue turtleneck and jeans because I didn't want to call any attention to myself. Part of me would have liked to have the effect that India did when she walked in, but there was also a part of me that would have been perfectly comfortable wearing an invisibility cloak for the next four years of high school. At least being a "nobody" would have been better than being a friendless loser.
"Girls, let's go get a seat," Mr. Russell said. "Preferably away from any boys wearing more makeup than all of you put together."
We ended up sitting next to some skinny person in combat boots who had a snake tattoo. He had short hair in the back with super long bangs so I could only see half of his face, but I could see some black nail polish and the word "hate" tattooed across his fingers. Ashanti nudged me, and I noticed Ericka was gripping the bleachers so hard that her knuckles were white. It seemed like most of the people filing into the gym already knew each other. People were waving to one another and shouting, "I saved you a seat," to each other. Devon and Peyton had come together, and even they seemed to know some of the public school kids. I tried to wave to Peyton, but she didn't see me. Thalia waved to me, and she and her mother made a beeline for us.
"Oh wow, it's crazy in here," Thalia said. I liked Thalia, I truly did, but I wished she had changed out of her school uniform before she had come. She appeared at least four years younger than everyone else in the gym.
Best Friends...Forever? Page 13
