The Book of Masks (Vol. 4)

The Girls From Different Worlds

Previously: "The World Smashers" 

You doubt you could talk the others into going along with your idea of swapping Geoff Mansfield with anyone. You're not interested in their private vendettas, so why would they be interested in yours?

And tempers seem short. Chelsea is flushed, Maria's mouth is a grim line, and Jessica has her hands clenched around her temples.

"Let's go the first idea," you blurt out. "The one with Kelsey and Sienna."

"Maybe we should sleep on it, Will," Maria says.

Jessica lurches to her feet. "No, let's just doing something," she snaps. Before anyone can react, she strides out of the studio. Eva watches her go, gives the room a quick glance-round, and runs after.

"Yeah, we better sleep on it," Cindy says. Like a lean housecat, she leverages herself to her feet. "See you tomorrow at practice?" she purrs at her arch-enemy, Chelsea Cooper, and slides an arm through hers. Chelsea looks startled, then grins back. "Make it a memorable one, like this morning's" she says, and kisses Chelsea on the temple.

"Jesus, what was that about?" you ask Keith when you and he are outside by your cars. The others are still inside.

"Carlos? He sometimes gets wound up, especially when he's got an idea he's hot for but—"

"No, you and Josiah." You lean in to peck Cindy on the temple.

Keith affects a surprised gasp. "Why Jenny! I should've guessed!" You punch her in the arm, and she laughs. "Just keeping things friendly like between me and Shank. He's off in his own little world. Or haven't you noticed?"

"I've noticed he doesn't seem to be around much."

"Well, that was just to remind him that he's loved and respected. And thank God you didn't push your idea for swapping Chelsea and Kim. You do not want Shank pissed at you."

"Whatever." From what you remember of Josiah Shank in his natural form—a rat-faced little nobody with a boob fetish—you can't really believe you'd ever have anything to fear from him.

* * * * *

Meanwhile, you've got your own love life to worry about. Will Prescott's love life, that is.

You text your beta at supper time to invite him out for a study session. Naturally, he agrees to meet you. You rendezvous in the parking lot of the municipal library; inside, you wind your way through the stacks until you find a secret little alcove in a very back corner where you can curl up in a couple of plush chairs with your books in your lap.

You open by asking who he's seeing these days. He tenses up. "No one officially," he says.

"But you are hanging out with girls, aren't you?" you prod him. "Caleb and those guys assume you are."

"Well—"

"Who are you having lunches with?"

He pales. "Uh ... Couple of girls on the volleyball team. I feel like they want me to be their team mascot," he adds.

"You could do a lot worse." Mention of the volleyball team causes your thoughts to bounce (like a volleyball) from one possibility to another. "Have you been out to Catherine Muskov's place yet?"

"Uh, no."

"You need to start hanging out there. You can't just sit around and wait for the girls to pick you up and carry you over the finish line, Will." He hunches under your hectoring. "You need to be out there. Available, yes. But following up. Talking to. Going up to. But without being a pest." You sigh and rein yourself in as his shoulders bunch up around his ears. "That's why you should to out to Catherine's," you conclude. "Just being there will get you doing all the right moves. You know?"

"No I don't."

That's right, he doesn't. You wouldn't know it either, but for Jenny's brain.

"Look, you know Catherine, right?"

"Track-team Catherine?"

"Yes, her." You pause as a furtively lascivious light comes into his eyes. "Yeah, Catherine's a babe," you assure him. "But she's got a boyfriend. Point is, she's always got people over at her house after school, just hanging out. You can just show up if you want, no one'll flip out."

He gets that rabbity look, and you wince a little to realize that Jenny has classified one of your usual facial expressions as "that rabbity look." "Uh," he stammers, "I'm not real good at just 'showing up'."

"I know that too. But it's not hard. You just show up."

Then you to break off. Jenny is a great one for "just showing up," and with her personality you can barely conceive that anyone ever would object to her "just showing up." But now you have to wonder if people have been bitching behind her back about her habit of "just showing up."

But that's Jenny's long-term problem, not yours, so you shake it off.

"Look, the cool people just show up at Catherine's," you explain to Will. "So if you just show up, people will take it that you're one of the cool people. You're looking like it these days." You bat at the brim of his new leather fedora. "But if it makes you feel better, tell them you were looking for me over there. I won't be, I got things to do tomorrow, but you can—"

"Tomorrow?" His eyes widen. "I have to do this tomorrow?"

"Didn't I say that? And don't shit yourself. Will!" You can't help it, you have to lean over to grip him by the knee. "I can't believe I'm telling you this, but it's the God's own truth from someone looking at you from the outside. You're actually attractive. You look good anyway, and Jessica and Cindy and them have made you look even better. Just stand up straight, keep your shoulders back, look people in the eye, and smile. The guys will respect it and the girls'll get a flutter. Trust me!" You pinch his thigh as he blushes.

* * * * *

The next morning brings good news from Eva when you hook up with her at study hall.

"We're all set for the Kelsey-Sienna thing," she hurriedly informs you. "My darling sister and I had a heart-to-heart yesterday, and we got everything fixed up. But do me a favor, okay?" She squeezes your forearm. "The next time Carlos suggests something," she says in a low voice, "back him up on it."

It worries you a little, the idea of giving Carlos a blank check like that, but you nod.

"Good," Eva says. "I already talked to—" She looks over your shoulder, then hurriedly adds, "Philip and everyone else. They're all good with it and are setting it up. Hey girls!" She beams at Rachel and Audrey as they slide into the seats opposite you.

* * * * *

You catch up to Jessica at her locker at the start of lunch. "So I hear we're all on the same page?" you ask her anxiously.

"Huh? Oh, sure, Jenny." Her smile is bright, and you can detect no trace of bitterness behind it as you study her. "How's your day been?"

"Fine," you answer, a little warily. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Don't think so. Unless," she adds as though it's just occurred to her, "do you know Sienna Goldman? I mean, like, to talk to or hang out with?"

"Uh, not really, not like—"

"Well, in that case—"

She closes her locker and leans up against it, pulling her books tight to her chest.

"Me and Eva," she continues in a voice loud enough to be heard over the growl and mutter of the surging crowd, "I think, we're gonna try getting together with Jelena, you know, Petrovic. It's an idea we had for the squad, getting her band to record some music we could use in our routines. Or maybe, who knows, putting on a live show with us? That'd be cool, don't you think?"

"Yeah, that sounds awesome." But you tense. Where is she going with this? If anywhere?

"So we'll gonna try to get together with her," Jessica continues. "I bet we can talk her into it, talk someone into talking her into it. But if she doesn't like it, maybe we'll go talk to Sienna and her band instead. Who are you having lunch with?"

"Um ... You?"

She gives you a look. "I've got other lunch plans, Jenny," she says. She touches your forearm. "But we'll get together later."

With that, she pushes her way into the crowd, leaving you with a chill.

* * * * *

So you could and usually would go off to eat with Carson and James. But instead, after changing out your books at your locker, you go off to the cafeteria. Chances are that Jessica's "lunch plans" are going to take her elsewhere. But you are feeling incorrigibly nosy, and are hoping a quick glance around the cafeteria might tell you what Carlos is up to, if anything.

No, scratch that. You've got enough hints that he's definitely up to something.

But if Jessica's in the cafeteria, she's hiding under a table, because after two circuits you still haven't spotted her. You're making a third when you stop short.

Sienna Goldman is sitting at a table of in a corner. Sitting with her are Jelena Petrovic—the girl that Jessica mentioned—and Fatima Zahedi. As you watch, Jelena gets up and takes her tray—still full—to the trash can, where she dumps it out. Back at the table, she lays hands briefly on Sienna's shoulders, then strides out.

You could chase after Jelena and try setting up that meeting that Jessica was talking about. Instead, you stay and regard Fatima speculatively. Jenny has had a couple of classes with her, and has worked on school projects with her. It occurs to you that, unless appearances here are deceiving, someone could use Fatima instead of Jelena to get to Sienna to make that body swap. And it might get you in better with the guys—with Carlos in particular—if you offered to be that someone.

Next: "Fatima's Fate" 

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