by J. Minter
We laughed and hugged some more.
"So, this is where the party is!"
I turned around to find TZ coming down the steps. He was decked out in a Ferragamo sweater and was accompanied by a nicely dressed crew of guys— including Danny, whom I almost didn't recognize because his muscles were covered up by a sweater; Rob, who I almost didn't recognize without his guitar looped over his shoulder; and Alex Altfest, who I definitely did recognize, especially when he gave me a tight squeeze and whispered in my ear, "I was wondering when you'd invite me to one of your famous parties."
I wanted to do something cute and coy like wink at him or give him a witty comeback, but all I managed to do was turn beet-red and say, "I'm glad you're here."
When I'd recovered from my blushing incident with Alex, I turned around and realized, to my pleasant surprise, that the entire yard had filled up with my friends.
"Flan's coming to Thoney! Flan's coming to Thoney!" Camille shouted to anyone who would listen. She was practically doing cartwheels as she raced around the party to tell every single person she could find.
"Good news travels fast,"TZ said. "Looks like you have a lot to look forward to."
"If your social life at Thoney is anything like this party, I would say you do," Rob agreed.
I looked around the party that had formed around me and thought about how right everything had felt about my decision to switch schools. I'd invited both Meredith and Judith to come tonight, but both of them had already left town for Christmas break. I wasn't exactly sure what the future would hold for the three of us—there might not be any more Boy Circles in our near future, but I knew that I would definitely make an effort to keep in touch. Maybe having a little bit of space would be a good thing for our threesome.
But for now, I could just kick back and revel in the fact that the music was pumping, the lighting was perfect, and everyone was laughing and having an awesome time. I had to hand it to Feb and Emerald; this party put my Nevis party to shame.
"Having fun?" Feb said, coming up from behind me.
I put my arm around her, and we looked out at the revelers below. "Thank you so much, Feb. I'm having an awesome time."
"Don't thank me. I just bossed some people around and hit the clearance aisle at pinatas.com."
"Yeah, but my last party was nowhere near as—•"
"Don't be so modest, Flan. This party's awesome because you have a ton of friends who want to celebrate with you." She squeezed my hand. "Don't ever tell Emerald I said this," she said. "But some of her guests have been spotted sneaking out here. Apparently the vibe is just a lot more chill."
"Obviously," I laughed. "It is winter."
"Yeah, right," she said, giving me a wink. "You know it's you."
Chapter 23
HOME IS WHERE THE MINI DISCO BALL IS...
The next day, SBB called me early in the morning. The crew had just finished wrapping up the Bonnie and Clyde set, and she was flying back from Texas.
"First things first," she said. "I must stop by to check in on my steamer trunk. I've been such a neglectful mother."
When we left Nevis, I'd had her trunk shipped back in cargo, and it had been sitting in my dad's parking spot in the covered garage across the street ever since. Talking on the phone with Sara-Beth, I could look out our library window and see the massive thing sitting like sunken treasure in between two Beamers.
A couple of our neighbors were circling it, probably wondering whether they were seeing things— just like I'd been wondering when I first saw it come off the plane on the beach. Now I noticed that my neighbor's two twin daughters were beginning to climb up the sides of the trunk as if it were playground equipment. SBB would definitely not like grimy two-year-old handprints on her precious happy place.
"Um, why don't you swing by my place on your way back from the airport?" I suggested.
When SBB arrived at my place, she looked even more energized than normal. She'd had really short bangs cut bluntly across her forehead and was wearing all black except for her hot pink snow boots.
"How's my baby?" she asked me, plopping down on the leather couch in my living room.
"I'm good, thanks," I said. "But I do wish you'd been in town last night. We had the sweetest—"
"Not you, Flan, sorry," she said. "My happy place. I just want to make sure it's still in one piece."
"Oh," I said, laughing and sitting down next to her. "Yep, it survived the trip. That trunk was a lifesaver, SBB. Thank you so much for the loan."
"Phew" she said. "I was a little concerned. I know what you did when you were entrusted with a frog in Bio last month. I didn't want you releasing my trunk back into the wild."
"No danger of that," I said. But I had to admit, I was a little surprised SBB hadn't asked me about the rest of the trip. I'd been in pretty rare form the last time she'd seen me.
"What's that face?" she said. "Chin up, frowny, you'll get wrinkles." She put two fingers around the corners of my mouth and turned my lips up. "What do you think," she said, "that I'm putting my trunk before you?"
"No . . . I don't know . . ."
"Flan, I knew you were fine the rest of the week." She rubbed her hands together conspiratorially. "I had a spy in Nevis."
"What do you mean, you had a spy?" I said.
"Don't you remember Guy?" she said. "You know, the pool guy? I had him report back to me via e-mail every day to discuss how you were doing. I didn't want to be overbearing and bug you all the time, but I was worried about you. I wanted to make sure you were okay."
"So you hired the pool guy to spy on me?"
"More or less, yes," she said with a shrug, like this was a completely normal thing to do.
"Wait, were you behind the apology pancakes from Meredith?" I asked. Suddenly, everything that happened on the trip seemed to have a double SBB meaning.
"Not entirely," she said. "But Guy did tell me that your friend Meredith wanted to spell out her Tm sorry' in parsley on top of an omelet. That's when I interfered. Obviously I knew you'd prefer chocolate chip pancakes!"
"I can't believe this," I said.
"No biggie. And anyway, when I heard Camille was in town, I was able to lay off a little bit. I knew you'd forget about all the drama and just have a blast. Rumor has it that girl's got it going on."
"SBB, you're too much," I said, hitting her lightly with a pillow.
"I'll tell you who's too much," she said, fending off my attack. "Jake freaking Riverdale."
"Uh-oh," I said. "Don't tell me he's still being a total micromanaging control freak."
"Um, actually . . . there's some news I should probably spill," she said. "Hold on." She took out her keys. "Let's go get into my trunk before I dish the whole story."
We walked outside and crossed the street. Once we made it inside the garage, I glanced around to make sure no one else was there, knowing how crazy we'd look to any of my neighbors if they caught us lounging in a steamer trunk with the disco ball.
But then, my intrigue over the Jake Riverdale story outweighed any anxiety about being taken for a crazy person, so I climbed in next to SBB.
"Okay," I said. "Spill."
"Well," she said, squirming a little. "JR and I . . . well, we kind of . . . fell in love on the set."
"Excuse me?" I said.
"It's true!" she said, throwing out her arms in a big open shrug. "But don't worry; I already told him I'm keeping my name."
"Oh," I laughed. "Phew."
She nodded gravely. "Sara-Beth Benny isn't just a name anymore, after all. It's a brand-now, too. Did I tell you I'm starting my own perfume line?"
"Hold on, back up. Perfume talk in a minute. First, I need to know all the details about you and Jake Riverdale. How did you get together? When did you two stop drinking the Haterade? What about your hot pilot from Nevis?"
"Oh, Luke's ancient history! And with JR, it was a whirlwind of things. The south was just such a perfect background for a romance. We'd go line dancing every nigh
t and, you know, one thing led to another, and suddenly, we were mugging down. That's how they say 'making out' in the south."
"You lost me at 'line dancing.'" I said, shaking my head.
"Love makes you do crazy things," she said. "Anyway, it's all so new, and I really don't want to jinx it." Her eyes darted from side to side. "Or let a single detail leak to the press." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "So, let's change the subject. Tell me more about your trip. Our darling espionager only picked up on so much, being male and all."
"Okay," I said. "Here goes."
As we settled back against the Murphy Bed, I delved into the whole trajectory of the trip—from good, to bad, to worse, to borderline agonizing, and then finally to totally awesome.
"Hmm," SBB said when I was all talked out. "This TZ character. Very interesting development. Guy sent me a picture of him from his cell phone, but it was too blurry for me to make out any good details."
"SBB, I cannot believe your stalking tendencies! I'm surprised at you. And I feel slightly violated."
"Oh, please," she said, shrugging off my surprise with a wave of her hand. "I have paparazzi on me at all hours, and I've lived to tell the tale. You can handle it for three days. Plus, I only had your best interest at heart."
"Okay, but can this be the last time you hire foreign men to spy on me?" I asked.
"Deal," she nodded. "I'll even make it up to you with brunch. My treat."
I hadn't realized how hungry I was until she mentioned brunch. "Great idea," I said, standing up. "Where should we go?"
"Sit down," she said, giving my shirt a yank. "We'll have it delivered here from EJ's. It'll be like breakfast in bed!"
Thirty minutes and a strange look from the delivery guy later, we spread the food out in front of us. SBB nibbled on her egg white omelet and stole several large bites of my Belgian waffle.
"So after everything you went through on this trip," she said, "do you feel like you had your happy ending?"
I nodded. "And now I think I'm going to have a happy beginning."
"What do you mean?"
I paused. I knew SBB wouldn't judge me, but I was still getting used to telling people about Thoney. Finally, I swallowed my waffle and my hesitation and said, "I decided to transfer schools again. Stuy was a good experience, but I guess I am a private school girl after all."
SBB's eyes lit up. "You know what," she said, "I had a dream the other night that you were going to Thoney and were totally ruling the school. Weird."
"Was Zac Efron in it, by any chance?"
"No, Flan, it wasn't that kind of dream. Sorry." She laughed.
"So do you think I'm making the right choice?" I asked her.
"Absolutely." She nodded. "After we finished shooting, JR and I took a few days off and went down to Savannah to veg out. And that was when I realized that falling for him was the right decision. Just like you with school. Sometimes, I think all you need is a vacation to clear your head and show you what it is you really want."
"Are you equating your desire for JR with my desire to have an easier time in high school?" I said, shaking my head at her.
"Shhh," she said, practically covering my mouth with her hand. "I swear I just saw that sleazy tabloid reporter from AM New York. We're not supposed to leak the details of our love to the press until a week before the premiere."
"Sorry," I said, even though I was pretty sure that the person she saw was just Mrs. Kelmer, the oldest tenant on our street, who'd lived in the same brownstone for the last eighty-five years.
"Anyway," SBB said, recomposing herself, "I know you're going to have a better time at Thoney. But I must warn you. High school is hell wherever you are. I'm sure there will be some haute drama going down there, too. But of course, none that you won't be able to handle."
"I know, you're right," I said. "I'm not trying to run away from anything difficult. I'm just trying to find the right fit."
"Omigod. Speaking of the right fit," SBB said. "I must take you home with me right now."
"Why's that? Is Jake lounging around in tight-fitting pants?"
"Better! Okay, maybe not better. But I just got a shipment from Zac Posen. His new line is ready and not a single piece in the collection fits me. Can you believe it? It's torture. I do hate you for being so tall, but I can't stand to see so much good couture go to waste."
"Are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?" I said.
SBB stood up, whisked the remnants of our brunch into a trash bag, and closed the happy place for business.
"You do have a first day of school coming up, don't you?" she said. "And let's face it, this is Thoney.
You're going to have to look seriously chic if you plan to rule that school."
"I don't know about ruling the school," I said. "Let's just aim for being happy there."
"Flan," she said, putting her arm around me and leading me back to her brownstone. "Don't underestimate the clairvoyant power of my dreams. If I say you're going to rule the school, you're going to rule the school. Now come on—let's see if Zac sent any extra long pairs of pants!"
I just laughed and followed her inside. I was so lucky to have a best friend who fit me perfectly.
Can't wait to find out what happens with
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Turn the page for a sneak peek of
ALL THAT GLITTERS.
the fourth book in the Inside Girl series.
Repeat after me," SBB said. She was sitting half-in M and half-out of a pair of Gucci riding pants with her eyes closed and her hand placed over her heart. "I, Sara-Beth Benny."
Camille and I gave each other a sly grin. We were standing in a private dressing room on the fifth floor of Bergdorf Goodman on 58th Street, surrounded by champagne flutes of Pellegrino and a tray of chocolate-covered strawberries the shopgirl had brought in. We were waiting for her to return with the wheeled rack of winter clothes for some back-to-school shopping, and in the meantime, SBB was making us vocalize our New Year's resolutions.
"Wait," Camille said, nudging me and giggling. "If it's your resolution, why do we repeat after you? We're not Sara-Beth Benny, last time I checked."
SBB opened one eye and looked at Camille. "Collective affirmation of resolutions has the highest rate of follow-through." She pinched Camille playfully on the arm. "Don't worry—we'll get to you guys next."
As someone who was used to indulging SBB's crazy ways, I gave Camille a nod and joined SBB on the gilded carpet. Camille plopped down next to me, and we followed Sara-Beth's instructions:
"I, Sara-Beth Benny," we repeated, as mock-solemnly as we could.
In the three-way mirror in front of us, I could see our reflections from all angles. Camille was still glowing from her family's New Year's trip to Cabo, and SBB looked fresh faced from a week off of filming and a week on with her new boyfriend, actor-musician Jake Riverdale.
As I looked up at my reflection, I was pleased to see that I had my own sort of glow. It wasn't from a vacation tan, and it wasn't from a boy, but it was satisfying in a very Flan way. It had to do with my decision to return to Thoney this semester, and even though my excitement was tinged with a case of nerves, I was happy.
SBB continued. "I, Sara-Beth Benny, promise to donate a portion of all of my movie and TV royalties, as well as my perfume line profits, to help those in Africa who are less fortunate than I. And maybe to adopt a child who needs love and who I could cart around in one of those cute Karma Baby slings. And to grow at least six inches by July."
"Whoa," Camille said. "I was just going to try to start recycling more."
Just then, the salesgirl returned, wheeling in a giant clothing rack full of gorgeous-looking sweaters, pants, and slinky dresses. Instantly, we forgot our collective New Year's affirmation and pounced on the clothes like wild animals.
"Omigod," SBB said, grabbing a sheer polka-dotted dress from the middle of the rack. "Is this so 'Flan on the first day of school' or what?"
I held up the
tiny Geren Ford dress to my body. It was asymmetrical, and tied around the left shoulder with an almost nonexistent green silk strap. It barely covered my hips.
"It's cute," I said, stalling to find the right words so I wouldn't offend SBB. "But it looks more like 'Flan gets thrown out of school before third period.'" My hand reached for a supercozy navy Autumn Cashmere drape sweater. "How about something more like this?" I said.
"Okay, Mister Rogers," Camille said, taking it from my hands and hanging it back up. "Believe me, I know that rocking the five-foot-ten frame does present its own set of fashion challenges, but I will not let you be Frump Master on the first day of school." She rooted through the rack of clothes and pulled out a shrunken gray blazer with three-quarter sleeves and a really unique notched collar. "How about something like this?"
"Cutel" SBB and I said simultaneously.
"Ooh," SBB continued, looking at the label. "And it's my old costar Waverly James's new line. She was showing me how to wear this . . . there are these really cute leggings that go with it. . . ." Her voice trailed off as her tiny body virtually disappeared into the rack of clothes.
"SBB," I said, sticking my head in after her. "Are you still in here?"
"Ta-da!" She jumped out, holding a pair of stretchy black leggings with a row of brass studs around the ankles. She waggled them at me. "Terrick Zumberg, here you come!"
Camille squealed. "Um, speaking of New Year's resolutions! Flan, you must wear those leggings with this blazer on the first day of school. Because you know what happens on the first night of school, right?"
I shook my head. "Homework?" I asked hesitantly.
"No! All the Thoney girls go to David Burke's to meet the Dalton boys for pizza—and then TZ will see you in thisl"
I let my friends hold up the clothes against me and looked at myself in the mirror. The ensemble was totally my style, but I was suddenly feeling a little overwhelmed. It made me nervous that Camille just assumed I'd be up on all the Thoney protocol. And now there were all these expectations about impressing TZ, whom I'd barely seen since we'd hung out over Thanksgiving break in Nevis. The old fears that I thought I'd rid myself of were creeping back into my mind. What if I couldn't keep up?
