It's probably just as well that Caleb took so long getting back to you. You took advantage of the empty afternoon between the end of basketball practice and suppertime by going up into the fuck room and rummaging through the mask collection. You needed ideas for where to infiltrate the Warehouse, and you found them in Karl Hennepin's mask.
Still, it took you a surprisingly long time, as you lounged on the crusty old gym mats—and had flashbacks to fucking Kelsey Blankenship from beneath—before you figured out what you needed to do and how you should go about doing it. You started by using Hennepin's own instincts to tell who in the theater program was hot and likely to get lots of pussy. Eventually, though, you realized that, if you were going to copy lots of girls into masks, you would be best off striking from inside the mask of a girl yourself—girls are more likely to hang out with each other, and to lower their guards around them.
Even then, it took you awhile to endorse the idea—it is too easy to imagine Patterson and the others mocking you as "gay" or worse for wanting to adopt a girl as your identity. It was only when you remembered how Patterson promised you "two exclusive identities" that you settled on a plan. You'd pick a guy to be one of your "permanent" identities, and tell everyone else that the girl was who you'd use to steal faces for the gang. You might still get some teasing, but it would be better than if you just gave them the name of a girl when they asked where to find you.
But it still left you with a choice of whether to start off with a male identity or a female identity. Starting with a male identity would spare you maximal teasing. On the other hand, you don't want to lock yourself into a life that, once you got inside it, might not be as good as it looked on the outside.
The best choice by far, you thought at first, was Josie Holden, who isn't really a member of the drama department but is taking an acting class. Josie is a cute, athletic brunette who plays on the girls' varsity soccer squad. Between those two connections and whatever other friends she's got, hers is a face you could probably use to get lots of masks. The main downside—apart from the teasing you would get for giving yourself a pair of boobs—is that as a soccer player she might be too close for your taste to the guys you're trying to get some distance from.
For other girls, you found yourself avoiding the more obvious choices, such as Elle Moore and Laura MacGregor, in favor of some more adventurous ones. Hennepin doesn't really know Avery Ayela or Ximena Calderon that well. But Avery is a giggly extrovert who is also taking gymnastics classes—and as a sophomore she would put lots of distance between you and the other guys while also giving you access to a whole lot of faces you couldn't otherwise reach. Ximena is a senior, a Hispanic girl with a thick, almost indecipherable accent, who is tight with all the other Hispanic students in the school. You're not sure how popular she is, but she gives the impression of trying to be popular, especially with the guys, because she is always dressed up (and made up) like she's on her way to a party.
The last girl on your list is one that Hennepin knows well, a cute little geek-pixie named Emily Sparks. Like Josie, Emily isn't really in the drama program—she is simply taking an "Intro to Acting" class as a lark. Mostly she's a bohemian-type who loves to hang around with the artsy crowd, and she's real good at nosing her way into lots of situations. She also plays in the orchestra, which means that, as with Josie, you could have lots of places to look for faces from behind hers.
As for guys, there are a lot to choose from. Unhappily, though, you know that the best choice is one that would get you lots of grief from your fellow club members. No, it's not Charles Hartlein, around who the entire drama department seems to revolve. Charles has lots of connections, but his snotty and arrogant manner means he is not nearly as popular he probably supposes himself to be. But your best choice is almost as bad: Christian Padilla, who one of Charles's friends, and who is just as gay as Charles is. But Christian is a lot friendlier, and from what Karl has seen, he has little trouble getting close to and private with girls.
After settling on these, you took Hennepin's mask off and went home for dinner. At home, you let your own instincts then come to the fore, and later one, up in your bedroom, you came to a decision on where you should start.
So when you call Caleb back at Seth's number, you're ready to tell him that you've settled on:
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