She's With Me

by Jessica Cunsolo

  “Go.” Mr. Rogers dismisses me before looking back at his screen, and I quickly leave the class, and then the school.

  Once outside, I head toward Kaitlyn’s red Porsche, still parked right at the entrance of the school, in plain sight of the front doors.

  It’s a nice day, so she left the top of the convertible down, with the windows rolled up. Letting the adrenaline pumping through my veins guide me, I place the envelope on the driver’s seat, making sure Aiden’s writing is facing up and noticeable. She’s so obsessed with Aiden, she’ll know it’s his writing.

  I quickly run back into the school before anyone notices me and sit back down in class, trying to look inconspicuous and calm my racing heart. Now we just have to make sure we’re there for the show.

  After school, I meet up with the rest of the group. We get into position, standing off to the side of the school with a clear view of Kaitlyn’s red Porsche.

  “She’s going to freak! I think she’ll be so mad she’ll breathe fire from her nose! That’d be awesome,” Noah exclaims.

  “Shhhh.” We quiet down when we see Kaitlyn open her car door.

  “Oh my God, Makayla’s getting a ride with her. This is even better!” Annalisa enthusiastically whispers when Makayla gets in shotgun.

  Kaitlyn grabs the letter as she closes the door and rolls down her windows. She clearly recognizes Aiden’s writing, showing it off to Makayla and eagerly but delicately trying to open the envelope. She can’t; I sealed that shit.

  Abandoning trying to save the envelope out of curiosity of what’s inside, she violently rips it open, and the seven of us burst out laughing.

  Kaitlyn and Makayla’s faces are full of shock as glitter goes flying everywhere: all over their faces, clothes, skin, and especially all over Kaitlyn’s beloved car. If you know anything about glitter, you’ll know that it’s basically the herpes of the craft world. That stuff is impossible to get off, and you’ll be finding it everywhere for months. Harmless, yet so incredibly annoying.

  Best part is, she’ll never rat out Aiden if she’s trying to get with him—there’s no way she can spin this to her mom to get me suspended. Mom, an envelope stuffed with a glitter bomb that may or may not have been from Amelia was in my car? I don’t think so.

  Kaitlyn and Makayla get out of the sparkly car, frantically trying to shake the glitter from their hair. They’re shrieking, and their frenzied movements are attracting weird looks from the students who walk by.

  “How much glitter did you put in that envelope?” Julian asks, astonished.

  “It may or may not have been packed so much that glitter was escaping from the seams,” I giggle.

  “They’re going to look like sparkly strippers for weeks,” Mason adds.

  “Not to mention she’ll be driving the sparkle mobile for who knows how long. That stuff doesn’t vacuum easily,” Chase chuckles. “Great idea, Amelia.”

  “Honestly, I can’t take all the credit. I got the idea from some website back when I was at my old school, but I couldn’t wait for them to mail her the envelope, so I just made my own version,” I confess. “Still funny though.”

  Kaitlyn stops shaking around and her furious eyes zero in on me from across the parking lot.

  “That’s our cue to leave,” I announce.

  Aiden grabs my wrist and leads me away from Kaitlyn before anyone else can react. I turn back and wave to the rest of them as Aiden pulls me along. I hear them chuckling good-bye to each other, probably heading off their own separate ways before they incur the wrath of a glittery Kaitlyn and Makayla.

  “What’s the hurry, Aiden?” I smile and look up at him. “Scared of big, bad, sparkly Kaitlyn?”

  He glares at me, not slowing down, but his lips pull up on one side to make his famous one-sided smirk. “So far, we’ve had a confrontation a day with her. We had today’s this morning at your locker. Let’s save some excitement for tomorrow, yeah?”

  I laugh, slightly shocked that Aiden’s actually joking with me. “It’s probably for the best.”

  He lets go of my wrist and we walk side-by-side to my car. We don’t say anything, but I’m too busy chuckling quietly to myself, recalling Kaitlyn’s expression when she got a face full of glitter. I hope some got in her mouth. That’d be even funnier.

  “Thanks for walking me to my car and making sure I don’t get ambushed by Kaitlyn and friends.”

  “Be careful tomorrow,” he warns.

  “Yeah, yeah, she’ll be on a sparkly warpath. I’ve got my insect repellent,” I joke as I get into my car.

  I look at Aiden standing outside my door and give him a smile, then start my car and drive away.

  Despite how great it felt to get even, I was wary going to school the next day. I wasn’t ready for another confrontation. I was starting to worry about the constant escalation—what it could lead to, how it could all end up. But it turns out, I didn’t need to be concerned.

  As soon as I get out of my car, Mason and Noah are immediately at my side. I literally didn’t even close the driver’s-side door before the pair are shoving each other, trying to determine who gets to be the first to hug me. Growing tired, I wrap my arms around both of them at the same time in greeting.

  “Were you guys waiting for me to pull up?” I lock my car door, then walk in sync with the boys on either side of me toward the school.

  “What are you talking about? It’s not like we waited for you in Mason’s car, saw you pull in, drove to where you parked, then”—Mason reaches behind me and smacks Noah upside the head—“Ow!”

  I laugh. “I know you guys are worried about Kaitlyn and friends attacking me, but I’ll be fine. I promise. I don’t need you guys as my bodyguards.”

  “Aiden told us to make sure someone’s always with yo—” Noah glares at Mason, who just hit him again. “Ow! Cut it out!”

  Mason meets his glare, muttering something about why they never tell Noah secrets.

  “I can so keep a secret! You just never told me that this was a secret!”

  “Common sense, Noah.”

  I stop walking, and the boys keep going and bickering, not even noticing I’m missing. Great bodyguards they make. They stop arguing long enough to notice that I’m not between them anymore, and turn back to look at me expectantly.

  I cross my arms and rest my weight on my left hip, with my right knee propped out. Classic I’m-through-with-this-bullshit pose. They slowly make their way back to me.

  “Aiden asked you to watch me?”

  “Well, not just us—” Thwack! “Dude!” Noah rubs his head for the third time. “She already knows! Might as well just tell her straight up!”

  Mason sighs. “He’s got it down to a science. You pretty much have someone with you in every class. We’re with you first period; we walk you to second. Aiden and Julian are in your second; they walk you to third. Chase and Charlotte are with you until lunch, where we all are, then fourth—”

  “What if I have to pee?” I cut him off, bewildered.

  Noah smiles. “I thought of that, so we got it covered too. You wait until you’re in transition. Anna or Charlotte go in with you, the guy who’s there waits outside to make sure no one comes in to ambush you.”

  “Aiden actually planned out the rotations of my bodyguards? And you organized my bathroom schedule?” I’m so overwhelmed I don’t know what to think right now. “I didn’t know he cared so much.”

  “I told you Aiden’s actually a great guy. He’s just—”

  “Guarded?” I finish.

  “Yeah.”

  “Prickly?”

  “Like a cactus.” Noah nods.

  “Angry? Easily agitated? Permanently unimpressed? Always scowling—”

  “He has his faults,” Mason cuts me off.

  No fair. I could’ve named at least seven more, not including gorgeous. Or brillia
nt. Or intuitive. Not that I would’ve said any of that out loud.

  “But moral of the story is that he’s a great guy,” Mason continues. “You just don’t know him like we do.”

  I do know that he’s a confusing pain in my ass.

  “Why all this precaution anyway? I’m sure Kaitlyn won’t do anything so bad that I need to be chaperoned when I pee.”

  Mason sighs. “Kaitlyn’s ruthless. We’d all rather prevent something from happening, than get a call that you ‘fell’ down the stairs or something.”

  My eyes widen. “She’d push me down the stairs?!”

  That it wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been pushed down the stairs, is what I don’t say.

  “Who knows what she’s capable of? No one has ever stood up to her so blatantly. All we know is that she’s seriously pissed and I don’t want you to end up in the hospital. Again.” Mason fits his hand in mine and starts walking, pulling me along with him.

  “Do you think she’ll leave me alone if one of you guys are with me?”

  “Oh, no. Shit’s gonna go down. At least if one of us is there, you won’t have to face it alone.” Noah beams at me. “I hope it’s when I’m there. I don’t want to miss any of the action!”

  This time, Mason and I both glare at Noah.

  “Aiden is behind all this? Why does he care so much anyway?”

  Maybe, just maybe, Aiden considers me a friend? And that would explain the sudden protectiveness? I know I’ll never be as close to him as the Boys are, but that’s to be expected. Just making sure I don’t get ambushed by his psycho stalker is enough in my books. He doesn’t have to open up to me or tell me his deepest secrets, but he chuckles around me. For a guy like Aiden, whose emotional range is either bored or mad, that feels like a big step forward.

  Noah makes a face. “I think he feels bad.”

  “About what?” I ask as we walk through the front doors and down the halls.

  “Kaitlyn’s only out to get you because she told you to stay away from her imaginary boyfriend: Aiden. I guess he kind of feels like she’s attacking you because of him,” Mason explains.

  “He’d never say it out loud, though,” Noah says, as if reading my thoughts. “You can kind of just tell. Or we can. We’ve known him since we were kids.”

  “He doesn’t need to worry about it. It’s not his fault his booty call from hell decided to go all psycho on me. I guess I kind of made it my own fight officially yesterday when I glitter bombed her,” I reply honestly, and they laugh.

  As we round the corner, we see Aiden at his locker, clearly identifiable by his tall, muscular frame, easily towering over the other students. He turns to look at us and meets my eyes. I smile at him. Maybe he’ll smile back? His eyes zero in on my hand, held comfortably in Mason’s. His scowl deepens and he turns around to finish pulling books from his locker. Okay, maybe no smile. We’ll get there. Baby steps. Mason pulls his hand from mine as we continue toward Aiden’s locker.

  When we get there, Mason leans back against the locker beside Aiden’s and crosses his arms across his chest. “Hey.”

  Aiden grunts in response.

  “I’m going to get a breakfast bagel!” Noah announces. “The cafeteria lady who works Wednesday morning always gives me extra bacon!”

  I laugh at his retreating form. That kid could get a telephone pole to like him.

  “So, I hear you’ve taken up detail as head of my security brigade,” I say casually, trying to hide my smirk and ignoring Mason glaring a hole in my head.

  Aiden shuts his locker and narrows his eyes at Mason, who gives him a shrug, before looking at me.

  This is gonna be good. He’s going to admit he likes me—or at least doesn’t hate me.

  “I just don’t want to have to explain to anyone why Mason had to drive you to the hospital. I’ve got enough problems.”

  Wow. His heartwarming concern is touching.

  “There you are, you evil little troll!” The screech erupts from down the hall, and Mason and Aiden straighten up on either side of me.

  Kaitlyn bulldozes through the hall, angry-looking friends on her tail, leaving a path of confused and intrigued students behind her. Looks like the drama’s starting early today.

  Resisting the urge to laugh as she gets closer to me, it’s hilarious that she’s still sparkly. Like really sparkly.

  “Wow, Kaitlyn. Someone looks extra radiant today. Did you do something with your hair? No, no, your makeup is different. No . . . I don’t know. You just seem to . . . shimmer . . . today.”

  The giggle escapes before I can contain it. The residue of my fun prank is still evident, and it’s impossible to take her mean face seriously. Mason laughs beside me.

  “You think this is funny?” she shrieks. “How dare you do this to me!”

  “Do what? Oh, I get it. You’re all sparkly because you’re embracing your future career. Good for you, Kaitlyn. I always thought you’d make a good stripper.”

  The crowd laughs, and Mason does as well. Aiden stands tense beside me, like he’s preparing to jump in front of me in case she pounces.

  “This didn’t come out of my hair! I washed it, like, ten times yesterday!” Makayla whines.

  “Good.” I laugh harder.

  “Shut up, Makayla!” Kaitlyn says harshly to her best friend. “I know you did this, Amelia, and you’ll pay.”

  “Do what? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “I know it was you, bitchface—” she starts.

  “All right, listen here, you sparkly demon slut. I don’t know what you’re talking about so let’s just hold today’s confrontation to a few short minutes. Whatever it is you think I did,”—or what I actually did, but she’s got no proof—“I didn’t. I want to go to class today without causing a scene. If you have a problem with me, I ask that you please write it nicely on a piece of paper, fold it up, and shove it up your ass.”

  My smile is so obviously fake that it makes the vein in her forehead bulge and I mentally high-five myself. Instantly, she loses her composure completely and lunges at me. Tossing my arms up in an X in front of my face, with my eyes closed, I brace for impact.

  There is none.

  Aiden’s got Kaitlyn’s forearms, holding them out and away from him as she tries to swing at me. I resist the urge to laugh as I lower my arms. It just looks so comical: this sparkly five foot five blond, with a bright-red face and crazy eyes, urgently trying to get past the six foot three muscular wall who looks like he’s extremely bored of the situation already and is not even breaking a sweat.

  “You cocksucker!” she yells.

  “No, I’m afraid that’s you, sweetie.” I smile sweetly at her as I peek around Aiden.

  “ARGHH!” She lets out a battle cry, and Aiden holds her out a little farther from him.

  She seems to realize who she’s battling to get to me before going slack and stopping altogether.

  “You!” she accuses Aiden. “You helped her with this! You participated in tormenting me?”

  She yanks her arms from his hands and he lets her go easily. “We are over, Aiden Parker! You hear me? Over! I want nothing to do with you!” she announces, then looks at Mason. “Any of you.”

  Mason rolls his eyes. Aiden sighs and tells her for the umpteenth time, “We were never together.”

  Kaitlyn shouts, “UGH!” and leaves with her friends, a mist of glitter trailing along behind them.

  With the threat gone, my stomach drops as I realize some people in the crowd are recording. Immediately, I cover my face and turn my back to anyone holding up a phone. Aiden notices and steps in front of me.

  “Get to class,” he orders, and like magic, the crowd disappears.

  Right then, Noah bounds down the hall toward us, his smile fading as he realizes he just missed the drama.

  “Shit!
I told you I wanted to be here when the drama happens! All the fun stuff always happens when I’m not here.” He pouts.

  The three of us glare at him, but this time he ducks before Mason can smack him upside the head for the fourth time this morning.

  9

  For the first couple of days, we were all on guard, worrying that Kaitlyn would enact some kind of revenge. But it’s been one whole week since Kaitlyn “broke up” with Aiden. Seven days of absolutely nothing interesting or significant happening. With the quiet lately, I don’t know if I should be worried or not. But Kaitlyn moves on pretty fast; she already found another guy to latch onto and obsess over. She’s been getting rides to and from school from some guy in a red Mustang. I don’t recognize him, and he doesn’t go to King City, but he looks around our age.

  Kaitlyn may have moved on, but I don’t think she’s quite through with her vendetta against me. Good news is, the Boys have loosened up their watch on me since there appears to be no risk of an imminent attack, and I can now pee unchaperoned.

  “Oh my God, have you seen this video?” Annalisa asks.

  The eight of us are at our usual table, just starting our lunch period.

  “What video?” Mason pulls his sandwich from his backpack.

  “The one showing Kaitlyn going all ballistic and trying to attack Amelia in the hall after the glitter bomb prank.” Annalisa laughs, pulling out her laptop.

  “What?” My face drains of color.

  “Someone must have recorded it because it’s on Facebook. Kaitlyn made such a fool of herself, it’s hilarious.” Annalisa’s now searching on her laptop to show us the video.

  No, no, no, no, no, this isn’t happening.

  “Am I in the video? Like, do you see my face?”

  Shit, shit, shit, shit, this is not good.

  No one seems to notice that I’m having a slight panic attack as we huddle together to watch the video. It begins when I call Kaitlyn a sparkly demon slut, my voice and face clearly visible, and ends when Aiden commands everyone to go to class. Everyone laughs, making comments about how ridiculous Kaitlyn looked or how red her face was or how unconcerned Aiden looked. No one notices that I haven’t spoken a word.