Part 15 (2/2)
”What? NO! Why?”
”'Cause they were in trash bags!” Claire shouted. ”Remember, you didn't trust me. You thought I would peek at your masterpiece. Well, now your masterpiece is probably on its way to a furnace to in Peekskill burn up.”
Ma.s.sie caught herself wondering how Claire, a girl from Orlando, knew that trash in Westchester went to a furnace in Peekskill, but she was too upset to ask.
Her chance to become famous for leading a style revolution at OCD was gone.
Ma.s.sie suddenly felt sorry for the white tennis skirt she spent half the night sewing. It was probably in the back of a smelly trash truck buried in rotten eggs and poo-covered diapers, wondering how it got there. The more she thought about it, the more Ma.s.sie felt sad for everyone: her mother, who took her shopping after school for the material; her proud father, who couldn't wait to see his daughter's masterpiece; Bean, who sacrificed her nightly walk; and even her mannequin, which stood by her all night while she worked. She considered feeling sorry for Claire, but there just wasn't room. She was full.
Claire sniffed and wiped her palm across her moist nose. ”It was the first thing I ever made. And it was pretty good.”
”Well, I was on my way to making history,” Ma.s.sie said, as if her loss was ten times bigger than Claire's.
”You sew pretty fast,” Claire said. ”You could probably get something together by Sat.u.r.day night.”
”That's in four days! Do I look look like I'm from Moscow?” like I'm from Moscow?”
”No.”
”Then why do you think I'd be into Russian?”
Claire laughed. Ma.s.sie smiled back. She had tried the joke before on Dylan and Kristen and they didn't get it.
”Maybe if we do it together, we could-”
”Not a chance,” Ma.s.sie interrupted. ”I want to go down in history alone.”
”Hmmm,” Claire said.
”What?” Ma.s.sie gathered her hair in a ponytail and then let it drop back to her shoulders.
”I was just thinking. Nah, forget it. You'd never go for it.”
”WHAT?” Ma.s.sie snapped.
”Wouldn't you love to stand onstage in front of the Teen People Teen People editors in a brand-new outfit when you present the school with your, I mean editors in a brand-new outfit when you present the school with your, I mean our, our, new creation?” new creation?”
”Kuh-laire, I am so not doing this with-” Ma.s.sie paused. She leaned closer and whispered, ”Are you saying you'll call off the bet if I let you partner with me?” I am so not doing this with-” Ma.s.sie paused. She leaned closer and whispered, ”Are you saying you'll call off the bet if I let you partner with me?”
Just then Ma.s.sie noticed Claire was a full inch taller than she was. She looked down at her feet and noticed the girl was wearing a pair of high-heeled black Capezio dance shoes with white sweat socks. white sweat socks. At that moment Ma.s.sie actually found herself missing the Keds. At that moment Ma.s.sie actually found herself missing the Keds.
”Yup,” Claire said. ”The bet will be over.” She s.h.i.+fted her weight from her left foot to her right. ”But you'd have to really really partner with me this time. Not like you did for the Halloween party. This time you have to partner with me this time. Not like you did for the Halloween party. This time you have to mean mean it.” it.”
”Hmmm.” Ma.s.sie tapped her French-manicured finger-nail against her bottom lip. ”Let. Me. See.”
Claire let out an impatient sigh.
”'Kay, I'll do it!”
Claire's face lit up.
”But I'm only doing this for fas.h.i.+on,” Ma.s.sie added. ”And for our mothers, of course.”
”Really?” Claire turned on her high heels and made her way toward the front of the bus. ”'Cause I'm doing it to win.”
Claire pushed her way through the aisle and bounced down the steps of the bus. She ran all the way back to cla.s.s on her tiptoes to keep from spraining her ankle. Her blond hair whipped across her face, but she never stopped to fix or tie it back. She didn't seem to care.
Ma.s.sie watched Claire at that moment as if it were the first time she had ever seen her. And in a way, it was.
THE BLOCK ESTATE.
FRONT LAWN.
3:58 PM PM.
November 6th Todd Lyons bolted off the Briarwood Academy bus in a flurry of flying juice boxes. He picked one up off the ground and whipped it back on the bus before the driver could get the door closed.
”That's for you, d.i.c.k,” Todd said. He was doubled over, laughing.
”My name is Richard!”
Ma.s.sie watched the bus pull away from behind a thick oak on her front lawn. She had been walking Bean and was in no mood to see Todd. She'd taken cover behind the tree and decided to wait there until he was inside the house.
He walked up the driveway, kicking the white stones beneath his feet with every step. The sound made Bean jumpy.
”Shhh.” She covered the dog's mouth with her hand.
Todd was almost at the house when the bus pulled up again. It hissed when it stopped and screeched when the doors opened. Someone was getting off.
”Hey, Todd, wait up.”
Ma.s.sie poked her head out from the side of the tree to see who it was.
”TODD!”
”Cam?” Ma.s.sie said to Bean. ”EhmaG.o.d.”
Cam ran up the driveway toward Todd and the two stopped and talked. Ma.s.sie darted behind another tree, hoping to get closer so she could hear what they were saying. There was enough gra.s.s between her and Cam to do at least twenty cartwheels. She couldn't make out a single word. She couldn't smell his Drakkar Noir, couldn't look into his blue or green eye, and couldn't tell what kind of sweater he was wearing under his leather jacket. All she knew for sure was that his skinny b.u.t.t looked ah-dorable ah-dorable in his dark wash Diesel jeans. in his dark wash Diesel jeans.
She watched Cam tilt his shoulder so his green canvas messenger bag could slide off and fall to the ground. He dropped into a squat and fished around inside until he found what he was looking for: a CD-shaped case wrapped in what looked like a bunch of rubber bands. He pulled it out and handed it to Todd, who put it in his knapsack immediately.
Cam gave Todd two friendly slaps on the shoulder and ran toward the street. Todd stood and waved goodbye, looking just as smitten as Ma.s.sie did.
She waited until Cam was halfway down the block before she jumped out from behind the tree. ”Todd,” Ma.s.sie shouted. ”How was your day?”
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