The Book of Masks (Vol. 4)

Shopping for a Shift

Previously: "Fun and Punishment" 

Andrea's suggestion is not a shock: you were already planning to "let your double take the punishment" even before you went out last night, which is why you didn't worry about spending the night at her place. The only surprise is her suggestion that you get yourself a "new face" instead of switching into one you've already got.

"Like who?" you ask.

"Oh, anyone," she says, and you can hear the shrug in her voice. "One of my friends."

"Like who?"

There's a longer pause on the other side of the line. "Well, there's Charles," she says. "Or—"

"Okay, hang on, before we—" You grope for words. "You want me to become one of your friends. But I thought you wanted me out of a mask so we could— So you and me—"

"Oh, I want you out of the mask, Will." She snickers, softly. "I'll make you take it off when you're at my house. You'll even be spending the night with me as yourself, and we'll send—"

"Wait, doesn't your mom ever come home?"

She gasps.

"That would be perfect!" she gurgles. "We could switch you with my mom, add her to—! Then we'd have the house to ourselves!"

"You want me to become Andrea's mom?"

"It would be perfect!"

You have to take a deep breath before replying. "I'll have to think about it, Sydney. I'll have to think about who—"

"It can be almost anyone, Will. Though if you're going to be one of my main friends, you're probably going to have to be Charles. He's over here all the time anyway. In fact, I'm expecting him—"

"But I could be someone else?"

"Sure. What about Adam?"

What about Adam? you ask yourself after you've hung up from talking to her. She threw a lot of names at you, but his was the one that stuck.

* * * * *

You are not so grounded that you can't drive yourself to school, but your dad does warn that your mom will be expecting you home directly after classes have let out. You promise him you will be.

Then you're out the door, even though it's early, so you can swing by the old school and snag a blank mask, a metal strip, and the stuff to put them together. Because you've got a hunch you'll be using them today.

You didn't have that much of a social existence at school before all this mess started, but you've got less of one now that you are no longer speaking to Caleb and Keith (and Carson and James). But that doesn't matter. You slip into your new seat first-period seat (opposite side of the room from Caleb) and spend the time before class texting Andrea and Adam Dortch to find out what lunches they have. Adam has fourth lunch, but Andrea (hallelujah!) has fifth lunch the same as you. But when you mention this to Adam—explaining that you can't skip fourth period English to have lunch with him and his friends—he volunteers that he's got a study hall that period, and invites you and Andrea to come hang out with him in the library. You hesitate, then reply that you'll talk to him about it later.

"Later" for Adam means the start of fourth period, and because you mentioned to him that you had Ms. Gladstone's class, he is waiting for you in the doorway to her room. His hair, teased until it's standing almost straight up, is visible from the far end of the hallway as you squeeze your way through the crowds to class.

"Hey," he asks when you meet him. "Where you 'n Andrea hanging out next period?"

"Lunch? Between F-wing and the gym."

"Come hang out in the library. Bunch of us are in there. Lotta swimmers."

"We can't eat in the library."

"Oh, fuck that." Then he shrugs. "So me 'n Catherine'll come looking for you. If that's okay," he adds in a tone that suggests he'll be offended if you say it isn't.

You tell him it'll be "cool," then go into the classroom and slump into your desk and text Andrea to alert her of what's to come. While composing that text you glance up to see Cassie Harper gazing at you with an anxious expression. Cassie is a girl you've known for a long time. She's a redheaded chatterbox who is sweet in her way but who easily tires you out with all her inane and meaningless talk, but you are briefly tempted to invite her along to lunch, thinking that she might distract (and maybe even drive off) Adam and Catherine with her unending stream of gabble. But she'd be a distraction to you and Andrea as well, so you plunge back down into texting.

Andrea replies that she's also "cool" with having Adam and Catherine join you for lunch.

* * * * *

Even though you've now slept with her twice (including spending the night with her) you are excited to the point of terror at the prospect of having lunch with Andrea Varnsworth, and you are trembling all over when you explode out the doors leading behind the school. A quick glance confirms what you'd hoped: that Andrea has arrived at her spot before you, and you half-stagger, half-limp over to meet her.

She's sitting under a window with her back against the outer wall of F wing, her legs crossed neatly under her. She's dressed in dark track pants, a sky-blue t-shirt, and a soft gray hoodie (unzipped). She is sitting up very straight so that her boobs thrust out over the inward curve of her tummy, and her chin is tilted up. Her glance is cool but friendly as you approach. You and her both ignore the clusters of students that pass by, seeking out their own eating spots in the pocket formed between F wing, the gym, and the trunk of the school.

"Hey," she says as you drop down next to her. "I'm sorry you're grounded."

"It's okay. I got an idea for getting out of it."

"Yeah?"

But then her eyes flick over your shoulder, and she hushes you with a gesture. You glance back, expecting to see Adam and Catherine, but it's a small girl with long, wavy, butter-colored hair who is coming up to join you. With a shock, you recognize her from the class you just left: Bethany Lewis!

"Hey Will!" she chirps as she settles in next to you. Her expression is friendly, but also slightly puzzled, though she seems to be trying to hide it.

"You know each other?" Andrea asks.

"We have English together," Bethany says. "Last period." She smiles at you.

"Will's going to be eating lunch with us from now on," Andrea says. You jump a little, startled by the brazenness of the announcement (and also, truth to tell, shocked at this confirmation that you will be a regular part of Andrea's public life).

Bethany also looks surprised. "Yeah?"

"Uh huh." Andrea rubs your knee. "He's part of things now."

All the sap rises in you, and you return Bethany's look of surprise with a gaping incredulity of your own.

Before anyone can say anything else, though, Adam and Catherine come wandering up. Andrea greets them with a cool, vague indifference as they plop down to make your trio into a quintet. Adam wastes no time before coming to a blunt point.

"So how come," he asks Andrea, "you hang out here instead of the library?"

"Because they don't let you eat in the library," Andrea says, and rather pointedly opens up the plastic container she's been nursing in her lap. It contains some kind of pasta salad.

"The natatorium, then. Or the gym. That's where some of your other guys hang out."

"Other guys?"

"Mark and Jamie and Rachel."

"I see enough of them at practice," Andrea sniffs.

"Is that Rachel Burton?" you ask, but only because you feel yourself in danger of being sidelined.

"Yeah. You do much swimming, man?"

"No."

He grins. "Bet'cher gonna start."

"How was the Warehouse this weekend?" Andrea interrupts while you're scrambling for a reply. "Who was playing?"

"Saturday was dee-jay night. I think it was Robert Vargas. We didn't go Friday." He rubs Catherine's back and smirks into her face. "We did something just the two of us.

"What do you do the other nights of the week?" Andrea asks, with a hint of challenge in her voice.

"Same thing, but not as much." Adam's smirk deepens. You can't help noticing the look of unease that appears on Catherine's face.

"Don't you hang out with friends?"

"Sure. That's how come we don't do so much of it then."

Andrea's eye flicks in your direction. "Will's grounded this week," she says. "I don't know if he can have people over, but you should go over to his place, keep him company, if you can."

You stiffen, but do your best to hide your reaction as Adam casts a speculative glance at you. "Sure," he says. "We can make it a party wherever."

* * * * *

"What did you do that for?" you hiss at Andrea after the bell has rung, and you and she are gathering up your stuff. "That stuff about Adam coming over to my place?"

"I thought you were trying to become friends with him," she replies. "Or more."

"More?"

"You're looking for a new face," she says through unmoving lips. "If you were him, you could make sure you got into his group. Unless," she adds, as though reading the doubt in your face, "you want to join the swim team."

That gives you a lot to think about sixth period. You have a mask and a chance at a new face, and she's right that Adam would be a good choice. So would the swim team. Nathan Cruz, for instance. Not only would that be sweet revenge on that asshole, but he could tie you back in close to Kirkham. But there are others on the swim team you could pick. Charles Hartlein, of course, is another possibility.

And if you want to spend every night with your girlfriend, there's the really wild suggestion she made this morning: Switch places with Andrea's mother!

Next: "The Candidate Pool" 

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"Table of Contents (Vol. 4)" 
"The Book of Masks (Vol. 4)"