To be Queen Bee or Not to be Queen Bee

Pacifica's POV

Mabel went off with her pig to show her brother.

My two posse members, Heather O'Leary and Heather McNally, showed up.

"Pacifica, what are you doing?" said Heather O'Leary.

"You can't sink to the level of a low-life commoner, even if she is your cousin," said Heather McNally.

"I saw you. You won a pig for her in a weight-guessing contest," said Heather O'Leary.

"Then you let her give you a cheesy friendship sweater with a funny animal on it," said Heather McNally, pointing to the sweater I was still wearing.

"I can do and wear what I like," I said.

"No, you can't," said Heather McNally. "You have an image to keep up."

"If you don't maintain high standards, we'll start following Heather Mulligan as our Queen Bee instead," said Heather O'Leary.

"You wouldn't dare," I said.

"We would," said Heather O'Leary.

"That girl, Mabel Pines, is a low-life goof," said Heather McNally. "Besides, she works for the sleaziest man in town, Mr. 'Slumford' Pines."

"He's my Cousin Mabel's great-uncle, which makes him my great-uncle by marriage," I said.

Just then, a group of actors in sci-fi convention costumes appeared out of nowhere. After some angry conversation I didn't catch, one of them shot a weapon on his wrist at the lever for the dunk tank where Mr. Pines had been baiting people all day. The lever broke and he fell in the water. Everyone laughed.

"You see?" I said. "Mr. Pines hired some actors to dunk him after everyone else failed. That shows he's a good sport. He's not as bad as people make him out to be."

"You're getting soft, Pacifica," said Heather O'Leary.

"We mean it about Heather Mulligan," said Heather McNally.

"Do what you like," I said. "I don't care."

They walked away, heads held high.

I did care, a bit. I was pushing away my partners in bullying, the life I was used to. All for the friendship of a goofy cousin and her brother who would be gone at the end of the summer, leaving me to face school at the bottom of the heap.

But when Mabel was so grateful I won her the pig, and she gave me a silly sweater, it was the first time in a long time that I was appreciated for doing something nice. My chest felt warm, and it wasn't just from wearing a fuzzy sweater on a hot day.

When school started I could claw my way back up to the top again if I had to. But for now, I was going to try the Mabel way.

I felt a prickle at the back of my neck, and when I turned I saw a girl whose hair from the back looked a lot like Mabel's, but it wasn't her; Mabel was on the other side of the yard with Dipper.

Oh well, nothing to worry about.