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“Come on Sis, your friends are here to help.”
I sit up suddenly. Why is my brother in my room? I see he’s standing on the other side of my bed. Tessa is by his side. She gives me a little wave.
“You’re not supposed to be here,” I say.
“Says who?”
“Shouldn’t you be at school? All of you?”
“School ended like thirty minutes ago,” Dylan says.
“What are you doing here?” I ask.
“We’re here to help,” he says. “No one is allowed to bully my sister…except me.”
I try not to smile. I’m touched. I didn’t think Dylan cared.
Stephanie gets up and comes closer to me. “We’re worried about you, babe. This isn’t like you to skip school.”
“It’s also not like me to get nominated for prom queen,” I say sardonically. “Or be made into a joke in front of the whole school. I can’t do it anymore, Steph. I just can’t.”
“So, you’re going to just stay in bed and sit by while your GPA plummets?” Adika asks. “That’s not like you at all.”
I push the covers off my feet. I feel overwhelmingly hot. And I’m super self-conscious that I haven’t showered since the assembly three days ago.
Tessa plops down on the bed beside me and takes my hand.
“Those videos were obviously not intended for an audience. They were shown at the assembly just to bully you. We’re here to help,” she says cheerfully.
Adika swoops in. “I’ve been digging,” she says. “Turns out the kid who works on stage crew and showed your videos is Taylor’s cousin.”
“Aiden?” I ask.
“Yes, Aiden.”
I laugh bitterly. My suspicions were right.
Adika continues. “Taylor promised Aiden dates with several of her best friends in exchange for his help. She even asked me to go out with him,” she says, shuddering.
Tessa looks confused. Her face is scrunched up and her eyebrows are narrowed.
“What’s up?” I say, looking at her.
“But Taylor is so nice,” she says. “I can’t believe she would do that.”
I wonder what it’s like to be Tessa, and only see the good side of people. Her world must be nice, what with all the magical unicorns and pink fairies.
“How’d she get my phone then?” I ask.
Adika looks nervously between Stephanie and me. “I guess you left it on a bench at an ice cream shop. One of Kylie’s friends picked it up. Then it got passed on to Taylor. Who got help from Aiden in hacking into it. She was hoping to find some incriminating photos or something.”
“What she got was much worse,” I say, groaning. I cover my face with my hands.
Stephanie’s eyes flash and she swears under her breath. “I hate her,” she spits out bitterly. “She’s been awful to you since your nomination was announced.”
“It’s because I don’t fit into the same perfect, tiny mold. She doesn’t think I’m in the same class as her and the rest of you,” I say, directing towards Tessa and Adika. “She’s trying to remove me from the competition.”
“I think she’s intimidated by you,” Dylan speaks up.
