A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews and suggestions. They really help me shape this story. Oh, and thanks to everyone who has added this to their favorites and alerts. :)

Before going over to Alex's house, Olivia decided to stop at Abbie's house for a pep talk. The Cabot family and the Carmichael family were in the same social circle, but they couldn't be any more different from each other. Mr. and Mrs. Cabot always kept tabs on Alex. They monitored her grades, went to every single game she cheered at, and insisted on meeting anyone who wanted to take her out on a date. Thomas was the only boyfriend Alex ever had so they didn't have to enforce that last rule more than once. Mr. and Mrs. Carmichael, on the other hand, let Abbie do whatever she wanted as long as she stayed out of their way.

When Olivia met with Abbie that day, she had a cigarette in one hand and a glass of Jack Daniels in the other. She couldn't pinpoint exactly when it happened, but her best friend had begun dressing like Nancy Sinatra complete with go go boots, a short dress, and more eyeliner than a seventeen-year-old should wear. Olivia looked down at the pants and striped shirt she was wearing and she suddenly felt out-of-place next to Abbie. If she felt this out-of-place with Abbie, would she feel the same way with Alex? Would Alex the Coquette be judging her? Would it even matter if she did? She kept trying to remind herself that she wasn't seeking Alex's approval. What she wanted was to dress appropriately so her time with Alex wouldn't be even more uncomfortable than she feared.

"Can I borrow one of your headbands?" Olivia asked as she sat on Abbie's bed.

"Take your pick," Abbie insisted. "My headbands are your headbands."

Olivia found a blue one to match the stripes on her shirt and she was amazed how a simple accessory could change her look and make her feel better about herself.

"Do I need eyeliner?"

"Eyeliner?" Abbie asked in disbelief. "You're just working on a project with Alex."

"You're wearing eyeliner," Olivia pointed out.

"Because I'm fucking Chet in about two hours," Abbie told her. "You don't think I walk around the house like this, do you?"

"If you like him so much, why do you have to drink beforehand?"

"Because it loosens me up," Abbie said and winked at her best friend. "He likes when I'm drunk because I become more adventurous."

"Abbie, he's forty and you're seventeen," Olivia reminded her. "Not to mention, he's married. What about that seems normal to you? He's a creep."

"Someday, you'll learn, Olivia."

"And someday you'll stop patronizing me, Abigail."

Abbie finished the rest of her drink in one gulp. "So, why are you here, Olivia? Please tell me this isn't about Alex?"

"It's about Alex," Olivia admitted. "I don't want to do this."

"I don't blame you. That girl bothers me. I have a list of over a thousand things I'd rather do than spend time alone with Alexandra Cabot. She's such a drag."

"What am I supposed to talk to her about?"

"The project," Abbie said matter-of-factly. "Just get in and get out. Don't try making friends with her or talking about your favorite bands and movie stars. She's a bitch, Olivia. She's not going to give a damn about anything you say."

With Abbie's advice still in mind, Olivia walked three houses down to the Cabot residence. Mr. and Mrs. Cabot weren't home, so the girls would have the entire house to themselves. Olivia began wondering where they'd work. If they were in the living room or the kitchen, that meant Alex wanted to get this over with as soon as possible, but if they went to her bedroom Olivia knew that meant she wanted to talk about more than just their project. Olivia expected Alex to look immaculate and she almost did if it weren't for her being barefoot. That was something Olivia had never expected from her—Alex Cabot could actually be comfortable. Instead of a dress, Alex was wearing olive green pants and a white blouse with a delicate floral print. She wore a headband not too different from the one Olivia was currently wearing, which made Olivia feel even better.

"We can work in my room," Alex insisted. "There's a record player in there."

She was going up to Alex's room to listen to records while working on their project. Abbie was wrong and Olivia couldn't be more grateful.

"How was cheer practice?" she asked as they were walking up the stairs.

"Oh, it was…cheer practice," Alex said and started laughing. "I'm still exhausted from last night."

"Roosevelt won," Olivia pointed out. "You must be thrilled."

"Thomas was," Alex told her. "I really had no part in it."

"You cheered your team on to victory," Olivia told her. She honestly had no idea why she suddenly had the urge to befriend Alex.

"Cheerleaders aren't important, or at least that's what Thomas told me," Alex said glumly. "He said it's the band that gets the football team in the spirit of the game, not cheerleaders. I guess I'm telling you this because you're the girlfriend of a jock, too."

"I am?" Olivia asked, confused.

"You're Elliot Stabler's girl," Alex reminded her. "Or did you two break up? Olivia, I'm so sorry for reminding you of a break-up. These guys are something else. One day you're their girl and the next they're sweet-talking someone else just because they think it's their right as football players. Elliot was always different from the other football players, though. He distanced himself from our crowd and we didn't always like that. There's still animosity between us because Joyce had a crush on him and he decided to go steady with you instead of her, but if I were him I wouldn't have gone steady with Joyce either. She has a bit of a reputation in case you haven't noticed."

"I know," Olivia said nervously. All she wanted was for Alex to stop talking about jocks and boyfriends long enough for her to get her story straight in case there were any more questions about her relationship with Elliot in the future. With Elliot out of high school now, she wondered if it was even necessary to continue living the lie they had created for her protection.

So this is what it's like talking to a Coquette, Olivia thought as she partially listened to what Alex was talking about; it was something about boys, Olivia knew that much was true. I don't even know this girl and she's already gossiping about her supposed best friends and who they're dating. Just imagine what she says about her enemies. Keep to yourself, Olivia, and remember Abbie's advice. You don't know what this girl will say about you on Monday and you know damn well she isn't even going to acknowledge you at school.

Alex's room was just as Olivia had imagined it would be. On top of her bed was a red and pink quilt that she told Olivia she had made with Carol in a home economics class when they were freshmen. It was hideous, but Alex told her it had so much sentimental value. There was a state-of-the-art record player in the corner of her room next to a vanity mirror complete with her make-up and perfume neatly arranged on top. There were pictures of celebrities randomly placed on Alex's walls that were clipped from magazines, but what caught Olivia off guard was that most of these pictures were of women. There was Nancy Sinatra, Brigitte Bardot, and Raquel Welch. Olivia looked at the framed photograph on her nightstand and was surprised to see Alex with her cheerleading squad instead of a photo of her and Thomas at junior prom.

"What do you want to listen to?" Alex asked.

"Do you have Bob Dylan?"

"No," Alex responded.

"Jefferson Airplane?"

"No," Alex said and shook her head.

"How about the Doors?"

"No, but I have the Supremes," Alex said happily.

"Let's just listen to the radio," Olivia suggested.

"Good idea," Alex agreed. The first song that played was an annoying pop song and Olivia wished she just would have agreed to listen to the Supremes. Listening to music with Alex was nothing like listening to music with her friends. When she was with her friends they would listen to rock music or psychedelic rock while Elliot laid down and tossed a football up in the air, Casey and Tony made out, and she and Abbie would drink while discussing the meaning of life. There was never any dancing around to peppy music or singing into a hairbrush like she assumed Alex and her friends did.

As the girls were about to open up their notepads and start their interviews, Alex's phone started to ring.

"I have to answer this. It might be my parents," Alex told Olivia.

Olivia knew it was rude, but she decided to listen to Alex's half of the conversation anyway.

"Carol! Hi!...Yes, I'm busy…I'm working on the project, remember?...When?...Now?...Yeah, I guess….Okay, see ya."

"Everything okay?" Olivia asked once Alex had hung up.

"Olivia, I'm so sorry, but I have a Coquettes emergency," Alex said with a worried expression on her face. "We'll work on this tomorrow if that's okay with you."

"No sweat," Olivia told her.

"You're a peach," Alex said and gave her a hug. "I hope this isn't too rude of me. We'll meet tomorrow at three. How about if we go to Lizzie's?"

"The diner?" Olivia asked, confused. "Isn't that where you Coquettes all congregate?"

"Are you embarrassed to be seen with me?" Alex asked. "I'm not a social pariah."

"No, you're a future Homecoming queen," Olivia pointed out. "Aren't you worried about your friends seeing you with someone who isn't up to their standards?"

"Oh, I get it," Alex said matter-of-factly. "You're the one who is embarrassed. You're afraid you'll lose credibility with your friends if they know you're spending time with a cheerleader. I'm not cool enough for you guys. I'm not with it. You think I'm a prude."

"Not at all," Olivia reassured her.

"Then go with me to Lizzie's tomorrow," Alex insisted. "…unless you're chicken."

Alex was practically daring her and Olivia was never one to back down from a dare.

"Okay, I'll go. How about noon?"

"Noon is perfect, just perfect," Alex said with a huge smile on her face. "See you then."

Alex arrived at her best friend Carol's house to find none of the other girls there and she had a feeling that none of them would be showing up any time soon.

"Okay, so there's no Coquette emergency," Carol told her. "But spending time with Olivia must have been a nightmare and I wanted to rescue you."

"I could slap you right now, Carol," Alex said angrily. "You know I have a project to work on and now we aren't going to get started until tomorrow."

"But she's so weird," Carol said with a disgusted look on her face. "I don't know what it is about her, but she just doesn't fit in anywhere. She's a football player's girlfriend! Why isn't she taking advantage of that? Why isn't she going to parties? Joyce says she is a slut and she cheats on Elliot."

"Joyce is a slut," Alex blurted out. "I know Olivia is different, but maybe that's a good thing. She's nice, Carol, and you rarely find nice girls at our school and she's smart. We may not agree on anything, but she's the only one other than me who speaks up in class and I respect that. I'm going to take her to Lizzie's tomorrow."

"You better not," Carol warned. "Alex, if you do that, you might as well quit the Coquettes and the cheerleading squad. You might as well drop out of school. We don't go to the diner with anyone who isn't in our group. What would Thomas say? You're supposed to see him tomorrow, too. He's your boyfriend. He's supposed to be your priority, Alex—not school or making friends with some strange girl. If you don't change your act, you'll never get a ring and you'll never be Mrs. Alexandra Harrington."

"You're unbelievable," Alex said and rolled her eyes.

Without saying another word to her friend, Alex stormed out of there. She was supposed to see Thomas in a couple of hours, but all she wanted to do was be alone. She was tired of feeling like he owned her and like her friends owned her. She wanted to be Alex, not a Coquette or a cheerleader or somebody's girlfriend—for once she just wanted to be Alex.