Author's Note: For Maddie (Welcome to Maddieland) for the Secret Santa Fic Exchange!
P.S. I figured out how to make it snow on my computer. GOOGLE CHROME, FTW!
P.P.S. If anyone can tell me what book AND series the text from Alicia is from in this fic, you'll have my next update dedicated to you cause you're cool like that :D
Disclaimer: The names of the characters, the city of New York, Chanel, Tadashi Shoji, the Angel Orensanz Center and the Clean Water Charity Ball were not my ideas, nor do I own them. I also do not own the text that was sent to Massie.
Prompts: Marie Antoinette, Fall Out Boy, obnoxious headbands, feathers, a holiday party
*Officially done stalling, blabbing, procrastinating.
;-;
The annual Clean Water Charity Ball was hosted by the Rivera family ever year, and every year Massie Block had to sit in the audience and watch as her "best friend" took her spotlight. This year, however, she had to watch as "the enemy." Massie didn't want to go, of course, but she had to. Anyone who was anyone was going, and if she didn't go, she knew her standings as a socialite would be in utter ruins-worse than it already was, that is. She scoffed as she watched Alicia Rivera walk onto the stage with her parents and take the microphone from her father with a smile plastered to her tanned face as she flaunted her new Tadashi Shoji pleated chiffon one-shoulder gown.
"Tonight is the Clean Water Charity Ball 2010. An evening to benefit the work of bringing clean, safe drinking water to communities in need," Alicia started and Massie started to drift off. The night progressed with a series of speeches and drinks. After about an hour, Massie heard Benedict Friar, a close associate to Mr. Rivera, walk up to the podium and smile.
"It is time for you, as members of the Charity Committee, to see the faces of the new Junior Members!" he said happily. The Charity Committee was composed of the sons and daughters of the richest families of the Upper East Side who were of the age of 16 or above. Seeing her cue, Massie gracefully slid out of her seat and took her place in line on the left side of the stage, just behind a girl with flowing red hair and emerald green eyes who Massie had all her life known as Dylan Marvil. One by one, children of rich socialites glided onto the stage to show off their flashy jewelery and clothing. She rolled her eyes as her ex best friends Claire Lyons, Alicia Rivera, Dylan Marvil and Kristen Gregory took the stage. She couldn't stand that people still adored them. Alicia stood out the most in her gown. The bottom of her dress puffed out, like Massie's but was covered in feathers like a bird.
People cooed and clapped as Massie's name was called. She flaunted her vintage Chanel dress and plastered a toothy grin on her face. Her dress puffed out and reminded Alicia of Marie Antoinette. I hope this is over soon, Massie thought. Once, almost 3 months ago now, Massie would have loved receiving the attention of everyone in this room; she would have searched the crowd for her long-time crush.
But times were different now.
As Massie once again took her seat in the crowd, she felt her phone vibrate. Ever since her break-up with her old "friends," she hadn't had much of a social life, so imagine her surprise when she found that her new text was from Alicia Rivera, her ex-best friend.
After-party. Angel Orensanz. Masks a must. No text, no entry.
Massie was utterly confused. She didn't understand why Alicia of all people would be inviting her to a party of any sort unless it was to humiliate her. But how could she humiliate her when she wouldn't be able to recognize Massie because of the mask? All around her, as the people began to mingle, Massie could hear the smallest of whispers from her peers.
"Did you get the text?" she heard Olivia Ryan ask.
"What text?" Strawberry inquired.
"Oh. You weren't invited then," Olivia replied.
"Invited to what?" Strawberry asked.
"Nothing," Olivia turned away from her with a smirk.
If Strawberry, one of the richest girls that lived in the state of New York, wasn't invited to the after-party, then why was Massie? She guessed that this was Alicia's equivalent of a holiday party as it was Christmas in three days.
;-;
Claire Lyons and Alicia Rivera sat next to each other, deciding who to invite to their after-party at the Angel Orensanz. Every year, a new Junior Member of The Charity Committee would host an after-party. It was a tradition, and of course, not everyone would be invited. Only the best of the best young socialites on the Upper East Side were. Every young teenage girl who was inducted into The Charity Committee dreamed of hosting the after-party. Your social standings would skyrocket and you only had one chance to do it. Alicia Rivera, the lucky Junior Member to host this years' after-party, decided upon the Angel Orensanz Center this year. It's Gothic-like walls added character, and it was large and beautiful.
It was perfect.
"Who should we invite?" Alicia asked, disappointed in herself that she didn't pre-write the guest list. That was one of the most important parts, and she knew she would be skewered if she forgot someone important.
"Well, the soccer stars, of course," Claire rolled her eyes.
"Done," Alicia replied as she fired off a quick text on her Blackberry. "Who else?"
"How about Olivia Ryan and Layne Abeley? She'll definitely liven up the party," Claire said.
"Layne is a freak," Alicia told her. Claire shrugged. "I know who we will be inviting," Alicia said with a smirk staring at someone behind Claire.
"Who?" she asked.
"Massie Block, of course," Alicia replied with a devilish smirk.
Claire grimaced.
"Ew. Why?" she asked.
"Don't you think me and Derrick would great together?" Alicia said.
Alicia laughed, and Claire smiled right back.
;-;
It was nearly ten o' clock when the ball ended, and Massie didn't have a mask yet. She knew that the party would be starting soon, and she didn't want to be horribly late. She picked up her phone and called someone she knew she could trust to get her something so not usually needed.
"Hello?" the person on the other end of the line answered.
"Todd? I need a mask. Preferably a pretty one," Massie replied.
"I'm on it. Where should I meet you?" Todd asked.
"Norfolk and Stanton, please," Massie requested.
"I'll be there," Todd replied.
;-;
Danny Robins glanced around the Angel Orensanz, his face sticking to the mask he had on. The darkness and the walls sent a small chill up his spine. This place is definitely creepy, Danny thought to himself.
"This is completely ridiculous, you know that?" he asked his friend, Derrick Harrington.
Derrick shook his head and laughed.
"We have to be here, man!" Derrick told him.
"But why?" Danny asked.
"Because all the hot girls are here!" Kemp Hurley, one of Danny's other friends, told him.
Danny rolled his eyes. The only girl in Westchester that he thought was good-looking was probably not even invited.
"Is that all you care about?" Danny asked him.
Kemp was about to answer when he was pushed out of the way by the blue-and-green-eyed freak, Cameron Fisher.
"He means that we have to be here or Alicia will murder us all with her ranting and boob-shaking and fist-smashing!" Cam informed him, forcing all of the other boys into a fit of hysterics imagining Alicia and her boob-shaking.
"This party had better be worth it," he said.
"Oh," Christopher Plovert suddenly spoke, staring at a blond girl with a pixie-cut who just entered the Angel Orensanz wearing an obnoxious neon green headband with a giant flower on it, "it definitely will be."
;-;
"Well, I'm off!" Plovert smirked as he broke off from his friends to go molest the pretty girl.
Cam chuckled.
"Hey there," a feminine voice sounded from behind the small cluster of boys. They turned to see a group of girls that had masks that seemed to look like giant birds were attached to their faces.
"I at least expected them to look decent," Kemp whispered to Josh, causing him to stifle a chuckle, "but they look like wild animals!"
"Ready to get this party started, baby?" Kristen Gregory whispered seductively into the ear of Danny Robins.
The party was just beginning.
;-;
Massie Block didn't know what to do or where to go as she entered the Angel Orensanz Center. The whole room seemed to still and turn to stare at her in her flowing Cinderella-like dress. She ignored the admiring crowd, though she looked around and admired how beautiful the place was in all of its' decadence. She couldn't recognize anyone with their masks on and she definitely had not walked into the place with a group of friends, so she had no idea what she should do.
What was I thinking, coming here all alone? Massie thought to herself. She spotted Alicia Rivera with a short, powder-yellow dress covered in peacock feathers surrounded by boys and her clique-who wouldn't notice Alicia?-and Massie suddenly remembered why she was here. She was going to show everyone that she was not at all bothered by the rumors that Alicia and her faux friends spread. She wanted to show the world that she was Massie Block, and no one, no one, could take knock her down.
She wove her way around the dance floor and more towards the tables closest to the walls where the bar was and ordered herself a drink. Massie was sure that she looked like an outsider sitting alone at the bar. She stared out at the crowd when she spotted him. He, too, was staring at her. In her heart she felt the dull ache of losing her long time crush and having to see him with Alicia. It hurt her more that she had ever hurt before. She loved him and she knew it.
Alicia gawked jealousy at Massie for less than a second before she recognized Massie and pulled her lips into a cruel smile and crushed her lips to those of Derrick Harrington.
Massie couldn't help but notice that he didn't pull away.
Looking in my mirror, my reflection isn't clear 'cause it's just not me without you
She had never felt so useless and lonely in her entire life. The song playing on the dance floor seemed to reflect her feelings as she tried to keep them inside of herself. She still loved him, and that's what hurt. Massie could feel the tears that threatened to let loose and fall down her cheeks but she resisted the urge to let them go and instead stood and made her way to the balconies the floor above.
Massie didn't want anyone to watch as she mourned a lost love and nurtured a broken heart.
She never saw the boy in white Phantom of the Opera mask followed her and watched as she cried her heart out.
;-;
Danny Robins, who finally escaped his girlfriends' grip, felt the whole room fall silent and still as a masked girl wearing a sparkling dress showed up at the top of the main staircase.
"Now she's hot!" Kemp Hurley said to him before Danny swatted Kemp away.
"She more than that," Danny whispered, "she's beautiful."
His eyes followed her body's fluid and graceful movements as she made her way to a bar stool and sat herself down. He couldn't remove her eyes from her when everyone else seemed to recover from the impact of her beauty and move on. He stared at her intently as he saw Alicia and Derrick kiss and pain filled her eyes and broke her on the inside. He seemed to be the only one to notice her step away from the bar and make her way to the balconies above.
"I need some fresh air," Danny told everyone quickly before making his way through the crowd and followed the girl of his dreams.
;-;
"Hey." Massie heard a voice say. She snapped her head up and found her amber eyes staring into a pleasant green color that reminded her of mint. She quickly dried her tears and sniffed quietly.
"Who are you?" She asked, staring at the crowd below, careful to keep her eyes from wandering to Derrick.
"Someone who knows who you are," the boy replied, recognizing those unmistakable amber eyes.
"That could be anyone," Massie said.
Danny smiled.
"Don't you recognize me?" he asked with a small smile.
"No." Massie looked straight at him. He could feel himself almost drooling over her as he saw the twinkle of her eyes and the entrancing melodic beauty that was her voice. Danny found himself at a loss for words as the two teens stared at each other. The silence between them was deafening as Massie's mind screamed with the need to know.
"Danny," he said, finally.
Massie's eyebrows scrunched together.
"Huh?"
"My name. It's Danny," he replied. "Danny Robins."
Massie struggled to pull up a face in her memory. She faintly remembered a boy who Derrick hung out with on occasions involving soccer and teamwork. She didn't expect him to be a friend of his.
"Oh." Massie said. She looked around, hoping that no one else was nearby and said, "Nice to meet you, Danny, but I've got to run."
"Wait!" Danny shouted as Massie turned her back to him.
"Yeah?" she asked, turning around to stare at him and his mint-colored eyes.
"Here," he replied, tearing a rose from nearby decor and placing it into Massie's open hand. Massie felt the ghost of a smile creep its' way onto her plump little lips.
"Thanks," she said quickly before turning around again. Massie started walking away when she heard him speaking to her again.
"He doesn't deserve you, you know." Massie heard him say. "He never did."
"What do you mean?" she asked, not turning around.
"You're beautiful and perfect. You're strong and you're powerful. You're amazing and he didn't notice. You were right in front of him the whole time and he never gave you the time of day. He didn't deserve you because you were out of his league and way too good for him; he just didn't know it," he informed her.
As he spoke, Massie felt a real smile place itself on her face as she turned to face him. She waltzed up to him and placed a small kiss on his rosy cheeks and stared at him with her large amber eyes.
"Thanks a lot, Danny," Massie said with a bright smile. "You're the best thing that happened to me tonight."
Danny Robins couldn't help but smile.
;-;
D; That wasn't as great as I planned it. Hope you like it, Maddie.