Octavian Country Day

Parking Lot

Wednesday, January 14th

12:52 P.M.

Kristen Gregory sat in the passenger seat of Marsha's new Lexus NX 200t. She said nothing as Marsha barely missed a girl with a One Direction shirt and backpack. Even though her mom could barely drive the car, it was better than their old Toyota with the musty smell and broken air condition. Kristen guessed being rich did have it's perks. Marsha steered the car to the curbside of the school, hitting a neatly-trimmed bush. "Mom." Kristen said, she turned to her mother who was beaming, despite the fact she almost destroyed everything. "Please, learn how to drive this thing." Kristen grabbed her new hot pink Coach tote and opened the door. A gush of warm air flooded into the car.

Marsha grabbed Kristen's arm. "Oh honey, do you have your doctors excuse note?" She asked. Kristen rolled her eyes as she pulled the doctor's excuse note out of her tote. Marsha nodded. Kristen put the note into her bag and stepped out of the car. "Bye mom!" She said, turning to wave to her. "Pull up your top!" Marsha called. Kristen grumbled and pulled up the red t-shirt she was most likely going to take off in a few minutes. The downside of being rich was Marsha buying her a whole new wardrobe from Gap and Salvation Army, which consisted of ugly sweaters and faded mom jeans.

She turned and started walking towards the school. "Bye!" Marsha honked.

Kristen blushed, even though no one was around.

She opened the heavy, mahogany doors and stepped into the lobby. She signed in, gave her note to the receptionist, and started walking to the restroom. She got more anxious with every step she took. Nobody was in the hallway looking at her, but she still felt as if everyone was looking at her. The feeling all started Monday at lunch (after the Alicia fiasco!) , and since then she hasn't been able to shake it. Of course, it didn't help that Massie took two sick days. One yesterday and one today. What was she supposed to do? What was any of The Pretty Committee supposed to do? They felt vulnerable without the help of Massie to keep them in check.

Kristen entered the restroom. Thank God, no one was in here! She took off her tote which was super heavy from the replacement clothes she brought. She looked inside. A Massie hand-me-down white cardigan, an H&M yellow racerback, navy mid-length shorts, and Asos sandals. The outfit was easily a ten compared to her dingy jeans and red shirt.

She looked at the time. 12:54.

She had a couple of minutes to change.

Kristen ran to a stall and hurriedly threw on her new outfit as the bell rung. She could hear everyone crowding the hallways. The door swung open as three girls made their way into the restroom. "Sienna is so pretty!" One of them said. Kristen rolled her eyes. They must be in eight grade or something, she thought. "Ugh I wish I was like her when I was in 10th. We're in 11th and we're not even as perfect as her!" The same girl continued. "I wanna invite her to my party next week, she could totally, get me some connections. Don't you think?"

Kristen couldn't listen to this anymore. She busted out of the stall. "You actually worship a girl that is ultra-fake? And you're 11th graders?" Kristen said. They blinked at her, trying to asorb what she was saying. Kristen left the restroom and stormed into the hallway. She was trying to get to her Chemistry class, but it was hard with a heavy a tote.

Kristen's phone buzzed in her tote. It caught her off guard, as she dropped her tote, spilling everything on the floor. Kristen swore. She fought to pick up all her personal items before someone stepped on them. "Stay on the floor, like you should stay." Someone said. Kristen looked up and saw Sienna standing over her. She had a vicious smile on her face. Sienna stomped on Kristen's notebook with her black boots—leaving a square print—before walking off to wherever she was going. Kristen swore again. She scooped up all her things and stuffed it into her tote. Her phone was still on the floor though.

She picked up her phone. It was a message from Massie.

Massie: EMERGENCY PC MEETING MY HOUSE. 7 P.M. ALL OF YOU HAVE TO BE THERE. NO ALICIA.

Kristen sighed. What was going on? The Pretty Committee was falling from within. Usually Massie had this stuff under control, but sadly she didn't. Kristen didn't know Massie had kicked Alicia out until yesterday morning when she texted everyone about the news. Kristen and Claire who usually carpooled with Alicia when Massie was gone, had to carpool with Dylan. It was one awkward ride.

Maybe Kristen would have to take matters into her own hands. Like, maybe start her own clique. She was tired of being bossed around, she wanted to do the bossing. Besides, she was rich now. She had beauty, brains, and brawn. There was no excuse to why she shouldn't start a clique-besides the fact Massie would kill her.

Kristen smiled as she walked into Chemistry. She was going to scout possible candidates, starting….NOW!

She looked between the rows. Olivia Ryan, no. A girl who Kristen didn't know with long blonde hair and green eyes, no. Hayley Bradwell who was co-captain of the cheer squad, nope.

"Miss Gregory, will you please take a seat?" The chemistry teacher, Mrs. Deborah asked. The old, pale teacher with thinning white hair stared at Kristen until she took a seat in the back. She sat next to Kori Gedman, who was on the soccer team with Kristen. She no longer had "parentheses" posture or unruly brown hair. She had long, black hair, better posture, and perfect skin. "Um, hey Kori." Kristen said. Kori turned around and gave Kristen a once-over. She didn't say anything. "Can't wait for soccer to start back this Friday night." Kristen tried again. Kori flipped her hair and angled her seat away. She started talking to Strawberry McAdams. They both exploded into a fit of laughter.

Kristen blushed. How was she ever going to do this?

Drrrring. The bell rung again.

Mrs. Deborah closed the door, "Everyone take your seats, please." She said. Everyone rushed to their seats—for fear Mrs. Deborah might make them sit by her, if they weren't fast enough. "So before we start, let's do a recap of the last chapter we just finished." She sat on the corner of her desk and flipped open her teacher's guide book. The class groaned. Whenever Mrs. Deborah did a recap of the chapter, she took up thirty minutes of class time. "Let's get started."

Kristen tapped her fingers on her notebook, willing time to go somehow faster. She looked at the clock on the wall. 1:05 P.M.

Only fifty more minutes.

She looked around, suddenly noticing small details about everything. Like how the brown paint was peeling from the walls. The chemistry poster that sat behind Kristen was fading and almost torn. The floor was scuffed with black marks. Half of the lights were dimmed and had bugs inside of them. The chairs and desk were covered in black writing. So, Octavian Country Day wasn't as picturesque as it claimed to be.

Kristen also noticed details about her classmates. For instance, Hayley Bradwell, and her super long, blonde extensions that were clearly visible

Kristen snickered, if Massie was still popular and saw this, she would reduce Hayley to tears by posting a picture of her on Twitter.

She turned to the right and saw Olivia Ryan's buttcrack showing as plain as day in her J Brand jeans. A girl, that everyone liked to call Elizabeth Hasselchin, was wearing a foundation two shades too light for her. Some girl wearing a super tight top and jeans, looked like she was about to explode. Serena Hoffman's eyelashes were covered in heavy mascara and looked like spider legs. Kristen suddenly realized, no one in this building was super perfect, not even Sienna. Everyone had their bad hair days and slip-ups, here and there.

"..You will need a partner." Mrs. Deborah said. They were probably going to do an experiment.

She looked at the clock again.

1:20

Kristen guessed, she could make it through this.

"I will assign partners!" Mrs. Deborah called, over the rising chatter of girls. Everyone groaned. She took out the roll call book and began to shout names at random. Kristen couldn't help but laugh at the jiggling fat under Mrs. Deborah's neck, it wiggled every time she talked.

"Kristen Gregory, your partner is Kylie Kennedy."

Kristen looked to her right, where Kylie was sitting. She had short, black hair with bangs, brown eyes, and dark, brown skin. She was slim, super gorgeous, and nearly beat Kristen for co-captain of soccer last year. "Hi!" Kristen exclaimed, throwing a fake-smile on her face. For a minute, Kylie didn't respond, and Kristen thought all hope was lost. "Oh hey! Sorry." Kylie finally responded. She gave Kristen a genuine smile. Kristen finally felt that someone actually wanted to talk to her.

Mrs. Deborah clapped her hands. "Alright, so today's experiment is the reaction between lead nitrate and potassium iodide. A relatively easy experiment, I'm still going to walk you through the steps. So, take out your notebook and start writing. I want a two-paragraph written about this tonight and turned in by no later than, Friday."

Everyone reached for their notebooks and textbooks.

"I did this experiment back when I was in sixth grade." Kylie whispered. Kristen covered her her mouth, she was trying not to laugh, especially when Deborah's eyes were staring straight at her. It was like she was daring Kristen to laugh.

"We'll get to this experiment in a few, but please write down the procedure, I will not explain it again."

Kristen clicked her pen. When Deborah said she wasn't repeating it again, she really meant it. Just asking her, could easily get you detention. She wanted to be shopping at BCBG, not hanging out with the burnouts in detention.

"Hey, I'll write." Kylie offered. She unzipped her pencil case and pulled out a fuzzy pen. It was the same pen as Kristen's but pink. Kylie tore a piece of paper and wrote 'Chemistry Lab 5.6' on the top. She even wrote the 'K' of her name in the same swirly, cursive font as Kristen did. They were practically long-lost twins.

She would be a perfect asset to my new clique, Kristen thought. She made a mental note to brainstorm clique names later.

Kristen quietly, unzipped her tote and pulled out her brand-new sketchpad she got for Christmas. She flipped as quietly as she could to a blank page. Besides spending time with TPC or engaging in soccer, she drew constantly. It was one of her hobbies.

She looked outside for inspiration.

The sky was cloudy, the trees were bare, and the grass was pretty much dead.

Okay, maybe she could try a different approach, like, drawing how she feels.

Kristen glanced at Deborah, she was walking back and forth, reading the teacher's manual. Kristen estimated she had at least three minutes before Deborah spotted her drawing.

Kristen thought for a minute, before deciding on a quick, abstract sketch of her feelings. She drew the crooks of an elbow and a slender, bony hand. Next, she drew a small, oval shape of a faceless person. Their hands were grasping at their head, which was overflowing with thoughts. She wrote the words 'worthless' 'flawed' 'lonely' and 'ugly' in big, fat speech bubbles. She finished the drawing with the faceless person saying "I'm fine".

"OH MY GOD! You are an amazing drawer!" Kylie practically yelled. She gaped, as she picked up the drawing.

She flipped through Kristen's sketches. "These drawings are amazing! You're so talented. These should be in the MOMA!"

Kristen couldn't help but smile.

"Woah, those are great!" Kori chimed in. She practically fell out her seat, leaning over to get a close-up of Kristen's drawing. She touched the sketch, getting charcoal-colored marks all over her hand, but she didn't seem to mind. "You should enter this in the spring art showcase." She stared really hard at the drawing.

Deborah slapped a ruler on her desk. The girls jumped. "Kristen, Kori, and Kylie! Do you have something you'd like to share with the class?" Deborah peered at them from her cat eye glasses. They shook their heads. "Then stop talking! If I catch you all doing that again, it's a detention from me!"

Kori slowly sat down and Kylie sunk into her seat.

"Now," Deborah continued still keeping a close eye on the girls, "You and your partner will see a beaker in front of you. One of you will pour the lead nitrate solution into an aqueous solution of potassium iodide. The other will observe and write down any important information…"

Kristen gripped the beakers by it's neck, and poured lead nitrate solution into the potassium iodide. Wondering what to do next, she looked at Kylie's notebook. She had to add a couple of drops of distilled water, heat the beaker, and then allow it to cool for five minutes. Easy enough. Kristen was totally getting an A.

"So, I just pour the solution into that stuff?" Olivia Ryan asked with mock interest. Her partner, Serena Hoffman, rolled her eyes. "Yes, Olivia!" When Olivia still didn't get it, Serena yanked the beaker out of her hand. Olivia stood there with a confused expression on her face. Maybe the dye from her hair was sinking into her brain.

Kristen looked at her own beaker. She added the distilled water and only had to heat the beaker up. "Be right back," she told Kylie and walked over to the heaters on the other side of the room. She placed her beaker on a heater, waited a few minutes, and took it off.

Olivia was right behind her, the beaker in her hand tipped precariously. "Two minutes or three minutes?" She asked herself. As Kristen walked away, she could hear the sound of a beaker hitting the floor. Kristen was super thankful Olivia wasn't her partner.

She put the beaker back on her table.

"….Olivia Ryan acts like this on purpose, trust me." Kori was telling Kylie. Kylie's eyebrows knitted in cofusion, "Why? Does she like the attention?" She asked looking at Olivia who was getting yelled at by a very, angry Serena. "Yeah.." Kori replied with an obvious 'duh' in her voice.

Kori's partner, a girl that wore thongs all the time, slammed the beaker on their table. "Here's the damn beaker, you can finish the rest." She took out a flip phone and turned her back, her bright, pink thong displaying to everyone. Clearly, she didn't want to be bothered.

Kori scooted her seat over. "Can I copy your notes?" She asked Kylie. "I think my partner wants me to fail."

"Sure!" Kylie slid her notebook across the table.

Kristen's phone buzzed. She felt her heart bang against her chest. Could Massie see her and what she was doing? She looked at her phone.

Phew! It was just the time.

Grabbing the beaker, Kristen vigorously shook it around. The lead nitrate was crystallizing, forming a yellow solution, which looked like glitter. "Wow." Kori remarked, she acted like Dylan whenever a boy she liked, did something that wasn't even remotely impressive. Kylie was less thrilled, she didn't even bat an eyelash. Kristen felt the same way. Deborah was always giving them experiments sixth graders could do.

"You were supposed to follow the instructions!" Hayley Bradwell was scolding Elizabeth Hasselchin. Somehow, their beaker had exploded everywhere, and they were both soaked. "I just got my hair done, I can't get it wet! Ugh!" She threw her waterlogged notebook at Elizabeth, who dodged it, sending the book into Deborah's face. Hayley ran out of the room before Deborah could sentence her to a week-long detention. An extension from Hayley's head came undone and flopped to the floor.

The girls turned their heads as they tried not to laugh.

Elizabeth Hasselchin chased after Hayley. She nearly slipped on the wet floor. "Why is it my fault? You were doing everything wrong!"

Kylie shook her head, "Elizabeth must be a serious friend if she can put up with Hayley's bs."

Kori nodded, "Agreed."

Kristen cleared her throat. "Would you guys want to come over to my house after soccer practice, Friday?" She asked hoping they would say yes. Even though she was still friends with TPC, that didn't mean she couldn't have other friends.

Kylie's whole face lit up, "Definitely!" She bobbed up and down in her seat.

Kori smiled, "Sure!"

Kristen felt a warmth in her heart.

She just found her clique.

Octavian Country Day

Study Hall

Wednesday, January 14th

1:30 P.M.

Claire was supposed to be doing the French homework she didn't do last night, or the night before. French was next period but there was no way she could get this all done. Instead, she sat at a chipped desk in a classroom, bent over her phone on Facebook. She was trying her best to not focus on the freshman girls who wouldn't stop laughing at her. They were loudly whispering "outsider" or "freak". It was like seventh grade all over again.

Chirp! Chirp!

Claire's phone chirped with a new message. She practically chipped her nails trying to see if the message was from Cam. It wasn't. It was from Layne.

Claire looked up to see Layne sitting five desks away, waving frantically to her. She looked like Judi the time their family went to France last summer when she was desperately trying to hail a cab. Claire quickly stared back down at her phone and tapped the message.

Layne: Has Cam messaged you yet? And please answer my other 45 messages about you forgiving me.

Claire's stomach did a flip.

No, Cam hasn't texted her. He didn't even say "sorry" or "please forgive me, let's go out", like normal boyfriends would do. All he did was post videos of himself attempting backflips and his dog, Bolt running through the yard on Instagram. This is why Claire's homework was unfinished. She was majorly stressing.

Claire couldn't even go to bed last night. Every time she tried to, she had recurring nightmares about losing Cam to another girl.

The result was her bitten-down-to-the-nub nails, messy hair, oily face, and sweats with a ketchup stain. Kristen and Dylan didn't even say anything when she stepped into the car. They accepted her outfit only because of the story she told them about Cam and the clique crisis. Technically, since Dylan was in charge she was supposed to dock her four points, but she didn't thankfully.

Claire swallowed back tears. Just thinking about the night made her want to crawl up and die. All she wanted was Cam.

Claire launched out of her seat and ran to the restroom. She couldn't handle this.

She pushed open the restroom door, not even caring that she had just hit Bella Pendergast in the stomach. She opened the nearest stall and sat on the toilet, sobbing her eyes out. Why was her life so horrible?

One week ago, she had dependable friends and a cute boyfriend. Now all of that was falling apart. Here she was in a tp'd stall crying her eyes out. It transported her to the memory of 7th grade when Massie had first insulted her and everyone laughed along.

God, no Claire, don't think about that. She cried even harder. Her throat felt hoarse and her chest was starting to get tight.

Suddenly, the restroom door swung open. Claire saw a peek of mint-green rainboots under the stall.

Layne!

She jumped off the toilet and kicked the door opened. "Layne!" She wailed, throwing her arms around her friend. She let everything out on Layne's dingy mustard yellow sweater. "Camhasntmessagedmeandimsoworriedidontknowwhattodo!" She said all at once.

"Woah!" Layne put her hands up. "Slow down, buttercup."

Claire pushed herself off of Layne. She had left a long line of snot dribbling down her sweater. "Sorry." Claire grabbed a wad of towels and tried scrubbing the stain off.

Layne shook her head. "It's fine. Just tell me how you're feeling. I saw you run out and I needed to check to see if you were alright." She awkwardly leaned against the towel dispenser.

Claire sat on the restroom counter. She sighed and spilled her heart out, telling Layne about her fears of losing Cam and how he didn't text her back. By the time Claire was finished, she was in tears again.

"Honey," Layne squeaked over in her rainboots. She looked Claire in the eyes and said, "Boys are stupid."

Claire cracked a smile and wiped away a tear, "I love you Layne." She hugged her friend.

"So, does this mean we're friends again?" Layne mumbled into Claire's ear.

"Sure, I'm sorry I flipped out."

Layne just hugged her tighter.

Claire pulled out of the hug. She took out her phone and immediately went to Twitter. Usually, Cam would've posted something by now. While Layne went on a rant about boys, Claire scrolled through her timeline looking for any cryptic sub-tweets about her. She didn't see anything. She went through her user's following and found Cam's name. She clicked on it.

He had posted a picture from last night. She waited for it to load. When it did…

"Oh. My. God." She froze.

Layne stopped too, she craned her neck to see what Claire was looking at. "What?" She squinted her eyes in confusion. Then, the realization finally hit her. "Oh"

The picture was Cam closing his eyes and snuggling his face into a girl's hair. The girl was barely recognizable with her head bending down and black hair hiding half of her face. She was WAYYYYY too close to Cam with her elbow on his shoulder and her lips almost on his face. Cam seemed to enjoy it—he had his arm wrapped around her thin waist.

Claire studied their surroundings. They seemed to be in a crowded restaurant. She caught a glimpse of a Panera Bread menu. She almost slid off the counter. They were at Panera! She asked Cam to take her their once but he objected. Now he was taking this Kylie Jenner wannabe here? UN-ACCEPT-ABLE!

It wasn't even about the picture, it was the caption that stung her the most. It read 'Had a fun night with this girl'.

Fun night? This girl?

'Had a fun night' implied that they did something else. Who knows what they were doing?!

"Claire, I'm so sorry." Layne said sympathetically.

"Who's that girl? I wanna know who she is! When I find her, I will hurt that bitch."

Layne's eyes widened. She had never seen this version of Claire. "Calm down," She tried, taking Claire's phone away from her, "By the looks of it, this girl is definitely Sienna Miller." Layne announced.

Claire stopped breathing. There was no way. "No…." She was in a state of shock right now.

Layne gave her a sad smile, "She wore the same heels yesterday. Just look at her outfit." Claire told herself not to, but she had to. The Sienna look-a-like had on black long-sleeve turtleneck dress and red heels. Those were the ones Sienna wore yesterday, she even had Sienna's teal nail polish.

Claire got dizzy all of a sudden. This was not happening. "No. It's not Sienna, Layne! It could be his cousin for all we know!" Denying was all Claire could do to keep from having a breakdown.

"Posing like that, Claire?"

Claire felt a quick surge of anger through her veins. She slid off the polished counter and took her phone from Layne. She walked out of the restroom, Layne treading on her heels.

Claire was suddenly encouraged to finish her French homework.

"Hey, what did I say? I was just saying!" Layne squeaked in her rainboots as she followed Claire back into the classroom.

Claire didn't even care if everyone was staring at her.

She quietly took her seat. She was strangely calm. I mean, of course she was calm, none of this would hit her until she went to bed.

Layne pulled a chair up, "Hey, you okay?" She asked.

"Yeah I'm fine!" Claire snapped.

She furiously started to work on her French homework—maybe she could finish half of this in the remaining ten minutes. Angry tears pinched her eyes, but she moved on. She didn't care if all the people in here were looking at her crazy because of her breakdown.

"God, she is such a freak." A high-pitched voice said. Claire turned, it was one of those freshman girls from earlier. Stealing quick looks at her, they both looked down at their phones. Claire felt weird, like something was up.

She shook her head telling herself it was just paranoia. But it still felt weird. Everyone was looking at her including Layne.

She turned to Layne who appeared in shock looking at something on her phone. "Layne?" She questionedd. Layne gave her a weary look and shoved her phone in Claire's face.

It took a couple of seconds for her eyes to adjust. It was a video…of her…at Pinkberry. Someone had recorded the fight with Claire, Layne, and Cam. The title said, "Crazy Psycho Girl Goes Off On Her Boyfriend For Not Giving Her Enough Attention." It had amassed over 300k views. Claire's body felt heavy. She couldn't breathe again. But yet, she pressed play on the video. It began with her yelling at Cam and ended when she stormed out. The guy filming turned the camera on him and said, "Poor them. That crazy bitch probably got upset over something like him texting somebody while they were talking. Maybe it was a family emergency, she would never know." The video ended with a sad Cam putting his head into his hands and Layne glancing out the window.

"Oh God." Claire remarked. She felt like her stomach was turning upside down.

She knew she shouldn't, but she pressed the comments button. The top comment was from no other than, Sienna Miller. Her comment said, "What a freaking bitch I feel so bad for her boyfriend. She had no right to treat him like that It's wrong. She could've at least taken it up with him in private. She's so fucking pathetic, she probably doesn't get enough attention at home. Poor guy "

It was like Claire was underwater. She couldn't speak or hear anything. Layne was trying to get through to her, but all she heard was muffled noises. She looked around. The whole classroom was glaring at her. One girl whispered, "Ugly freak."

Claire sure was the freak.

The freakshow.

Octavian Country Day

Hallway

Wednesday, January 14th

2:55 P.M.

In the bare hallway, stood Alicia, her back to the lockers as she waited for everyone to file out of their last classes. Her identity obscured by big Prada glasses, a black headscarf, black jeans, a black turtleneck, and black boots. She was pretty much unrecognizable. Everyone would assume she was one of those LBRs that skipped class to smoke in the parking lot.

DRRRRING! The final day of the bell rung.

The hallway was suddenly crowded by girls in Sperrys holding their notebooks and binders in their hands. Alicia pushed herself off the lockers. She narrowed her eyes at one of the classrooms whom hadn't let out yet. She anticipated and waited. Then, the door abruptly open. Students filed out loudly talking about the quiz they had just taken. But Alicia wasn't worried about them. It was her target.

Alicia's target stepped out of the classroom. She said something to another student before making her way down the hall. Trying to find something, she fumbled with her purse. She didn't even notice Alicia prowling up to her.

"I know what you're doing…" Alicia mumbled into her ear, the target stiffened, but didn't say a word. "Dylan Sophia Marvil."

Dylan stopped short in the hallway. "Alicia," She let out a weary sigh. "What do you want?" She spun around on her Jimmy Choos, looking to see if anyone was watching them.

"I want your ass out of The Pretty Committee. In return, I won't tell anybody about your stunt you pulled Monday."

"What?"

Alicia stepped closer to Dylan. She whispered, "If I get kicked out, then you get kicked out too…..Bitch."

Dylan held her stance but Alicia could see fear written all over her eyes. She wasn't as strong as her last season faded Lucky jeans—that looked like they were about to split at the hem.

"Impossible. I have no idea what you're talking about!" Dylan raised her voice loudly. LBRs stared at Alicia like she was robbing Dylan's (also!) last season LV.

"You do."

Dylan hitched her purse higher on her shoulder. "Fuck you." She gave Alicia a final warning glare and strutted past her.

Dylan may think karma wasn't coming for her. But, oh it was.

Karma's a bitch. And it's about to get bitchier.

Block Estate

(New!) GLU Headquarters

Wednesday, January 14th

6:58 P.M.

Massie ran around the spa-turned GLU headquarters, making sure everything was in its perfect place.

Tocca candles. Check. Snacks. Check. Voss water. Check. Cashmere blankets. Check. Soft jazz music. Check.

Phew. Everything was all set.

"Okay, Tina you can leave now. Everything looks good. Thanks!" She said to the pale-skinned, red-headed maid who was just finishing up. Tina bobbed her head, "Yes Miss Block!" The dutiful maid saw herself out.

It was just Massie and Bean now.

She looked at the clock. 7:03. The Pretty Committee would be here any minute.

She rushed to the mirrors on the other side of the spa. Bean followed her, yipping at her heels. "Yes Bean, I think this outfit is a solid ten too." She twirled around admiring her outfit. A beige open-front fringed cardigan, basic white tank top, Lucky black jeans, and Miu Miu (faux!) fur-lined clogs. The outfit casually said, "I-May-Nawt-Be-Alpha-Of-The-School-Anymore-But-I-Run-This-Still-And-Also-I-Wasn't-In-My-Room-Having-A-Breakdown"

Massie did a quick swipe of clear lipgloss and patted tightened her super-sleek ponytail. She was ready.

The sound of crunched gravel announced the arrival of Kristen, Dylan, and Claire. Massie ran to the door so she could greet them. She was actually excited to see her friends.

She threw the door open, "Hey girls!" she yelled, her voice echoing around the vast property.

Dylan hopped out of a never-before-seen SUV. She waved her hands, "Hey, Mass!" Balancing an array of Nordstrom bags in her arms, she waited for the rest to get out.

Claire stepped out next. She didn't seem excited as she walked towards Massie. "Hey." Claire mumbled. She pushed past Massie into the spa.

Massie raised her tweezed eyebrows. She would have a little chat with Claire later.

"Okay, mom! I know. 9:30. God!" Kristen shouted. She jumped out of the car and angrily slammed the door. Kristen and Dylan made their way to Massie. "Hi Mass." Kristen gave Massie a hug. So did Dylan.

Kristen's mom Marsha rolled down the windows. "Hi Massie! It's nice to see you," she smiled, "Kristen remember 9:30! Okay? Bye!" Before Kristen could even open her mouth, Marsha roared down the driveway.

Kristen took off the hideous mom jeans she was wearing and stuffed them into her tote. She had navy Puma sweats on underneath, "Sorry, my mom and this whole rich thing…" She sighed, looking at the spot Marsha's car was.

Dylan took in the new surroundings, "Nice place Mass!"

"Thanks!" Massie walked inside. "Sorry, I didn't invite you guys earlier," she closed the sliding door, "You know with the whole moving in thing, Alicia, and also not being alpha of the school anymore…" Her amber eyes darkened.

Kristen and Dylan avoided Massie's eyes as they sat on the fresh-polished, beige couch. Claire was seated on a matching ottoman staring blankly out the window.

"Um, we bought you something from the mall Massie." Kristen jumped up, eagerly trying to change the subject. She took one of Dylan's Nordstrom bags and gave it to Massie.

Massie opened the bag, pulled out the wrapping paper, and threw it on the rug. Bean ran over and sniffed the heavily perfumed paper.

Massie pulled out a Marc Jacobs silver sequin dress. It was the one she had on her waiting list for months.

"Hope you like it!" Dylan burped.

"Eh-ma-thanks!" Massie smiled to herself. So far, this meeting was going better than she expected! She placed the bag aside. It was time to get to the real deal.

Massie grabbed a remote, she pressed a button and pointed it at the fireplace. The fireplace crackled to life sending a sudden warmth over the girls.

"So…" Massie walked over to the other couch and plopped down. "How was today?" She asked already knowing the answer.

Claire and Kristen stared at Dylan until she answered.

"The same. It was horrible. We have to do something about Sienna." Dylan responded. She took a handful of almonds from the snack bowl and shoved it in her mouth. Something she frequently did when she was stressed.

"Of course we do!" Massie snapped. Everytime someone mentioned Sienna Miller she got pissed. "We're going to fade into nothingness! Is that what you want?" She looked around the room. Everyone seemed defeated. Like, they didn't want try anymore. But Massie refused that option.

"We need to take a stand! We're The Pretty Committee!"

"So, what do you suggest Mass?" Kristen asked.

Massie took a deep breath, "We have to start being nice." She calmly answered.

Dylan's almonds fell out of her mouth. Kristen slid off the couch. Claire started at Massie in shock.

"Nice!" Dylan repeated. "We have to be nice!" She yelled in disbelief and shoved more almonds into her mouth. "That'll destroy us! No one will respect us."

Kristen wrapped herself in a blanket, "W-we can't be nice. That's nawt us. How will that bring our status back up?"

Claire grabbed a handful of almonds. She suddenly felt overwhelmed and stressed. Even though she was the nicest one, it would totally be impractical for The PC to do a 360 and start being nice. "I'm not sure if this will work Massie."

Massie smacked the armrest. "Quiet!" She barked. Bean whimpered and hid under the couch.

"This can work." She reassured them. "I know it's weird. Believe me, this was hard for me too. But to get back on top, we have to start being nice. That'll make people respect us."

"But, Sienna is already doing that." Dylan interjected. Massie gave Dylan the same stare from the other day when Dylan accidentally spilled some details about Sienna. But the look was gone in two seconds.

"I know, that's why we have to try harder or else we'll end up like…." Massie paused. "Alicia."

The whole room fell silent.

"What happened between you two?" Kristen asked.

Massie looked into the fireplace. "She came over Monday night, acting like everything was fine. That was bullshit…" Her eyes narrowed, as she continued. "She told me the whole story about Sienna. I was pissed. I told her she was never born to be an alpha and that I could never forgive her. She was practically on the floor begging for forgiveness at that point. But, in the end I kicked her out…..Permanently"

Everyone gasped.

Massie turned to Dylan. "Before I kicked her out she was saying that she had a picture of you getting into Sienna's limo. I'm not sure if she was trying to pin the blame on you or what. "

Dylan suddenly felt dizzy and hot. So, that really was Alicia. It wasn't her imagination. Alicia was trying to blackmail her. She wanted Dylan to be an social outcast like her. Dylan swallowed. From this day on, she would have to be careful whenever she was hanging out with The Plastics. She never knew where Alicia could pop up. "I don't know. I guess she was trying to target me." Dylan forced the words out of her mouth. She looked Massie confidently in the eye. Any wrong moves and her secret would spill.

"It's weird I almost feel like there's a connection between you and Sienna," Massie suspiciously said and tilted her head. "If I ever find out that you're friends with enemy, you're done Dylan. D-O-N-E. DONE!"

"I'm not. I told you, we used to be friends." It took all of Dylan's power to keep her voice from cracking.

"Good. So, what's up with you Claire? You've barely said anything."

Relief washed all over Dylan's body as Massie changed the subject.

Claire choked out a weak "Cam" before exploding into tears.

Massie tried to feel sympathetic, but she couldn't. Claire was always having problems with Cam nowadays. Sometimes, she was so desperate that she would skype Massie at two in the morning for advice. Did Claire even know that time differences existed? Massie rolled her eyes. "What happened this time?"

Claire tapped at something on her phone and handed it over to Kristen, who gave it to Dylan, who gave it to Massie.

Massie's eyes scanned Claire's phone. She noticed Cam's twitter handle and the new picture he had posted. A girl was practically falling all over him. The caption read 'Had a fun night with this girl'. Massie's eyebrows flew up. She would've never thought Cam would cheat on Claire. She handed the phone back to Claire.

"Layne thinks it's Sienna.." Claire bawled. She picked up a pillow from the couch and let everything out. She sounded like a cat stuck in a gutter.

Kristen, still on the floor, reached over and patted Claire's back. "It's okay Claire. He's not even cute anyway."

Bean trotted over to Claire and placed a paw on her back.

"It's definitely Sienna." Dylan confirmed.

Claire sobbed even harder.

"Kuh-laire, you can't let this get to you…." Massie hissed.

"Did you see video?" Claire questioned. She looked up, her face puffy and red.

"Video?"

Dylan tapped on her phone, she quickly typed in something, and a video popped up. She brought the phone over to Massie. While Massie was waiting for the video to load, she read the title, 'Crazy Psycho Girl Goes Off On Her Boyfriend For Not Giving Her Enough Attention.' The video loaded and Massie saw a blurry Claire arguing with someone that looked like Cam. Massie felt embarrassed as she watched the video. She couldn't believe Claire would just go out like this!

She sat there in shock until the video finally ended after what seem an infinity.

Massie didn't say anything. She stood up from the couch and walked over to the mini-fridge in the corner. She opened the fridge and took out a bottle of Voss water. She cracked the top open, taking a longgggggggg…sip. Then, she screwed the top back on.

She took a deep breath.

Claire prepared herself.

"KUH-LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Massie yelled at the top of her lungs. She crossed the room in five long strides.

"This demolishes our reputation! Every time I try to think of something that could potentially help us, someone screws it up!" Massie's voice cracked. She was tired and exhausted. Maybe, she couldn't put The Pretty Committee back together.

"Sienna wrote a comment on the video and it already has over 500 likes…" Dylan showed Massie the comment. Massie didn't want to look, but she had to. Once she finished reading the comment, Massie broke into tears. She didn't know why.

Kristen groaned. "Great, now Massie is crying too." She pushed herself off the floor.

Claire sobbed even harder. Great, all this was her fault! "Massie, I…." She hiccupped. "I didn't know and I was so upset. Don't kick me out please."

Massie said nothing. She wiped her arm over her eyes, black masacra and eyeliner smudged all over her cardigan. "I'm tired of trying to make this work!" She ran a hand through her hair. "Also, Kuh-laire why did you have to make everything worse? People are going to laugh at us tomorrow. What is wrong with you? You only think of your damn self." She turned to Claire.

Kristen bit her nails and Dylan shoved more almonds into her mouth as they both watched the drama unfold.

Claire couldn't believe what she was hearing. She stood up, not going to allow herself to be a rag doll that Massie targeted whenever she was angry. "Excuse me, for being a little upset!"

"A little? You went overboard!" Massie retorted.

"God, sometimes you can be so rude Massie! Let me finish! Yes, I went overboard, it's only because I love Cam. You act like your reputation is tarnished for life! Mines is! Now I'll be known as the Crazy Psycho Girl who yelled at her boyfriend. You're so selfish! Not everything has to be all about you. So, I'm pretty much done, but you know what I don't care!" Claire's voice went hoarse as she yelled the last sentence. All the things she wanted to say tumbled right out. Claire was glad because now she felt lighter than a feather. But she knew this feeling wouldn't last long.

Massie's mouth hung open. Did Claire Lyons just say all of that to her? A couple of years ago Claire would've never dreamed of saying that to her. But now, it was like she didn't even care. Claire didn't respect Massie anymore. "I think you should leave." Massie softly said.

Claire was already heading toward the door. "Don't worry I was planning on it anyway." She slid the door open. Judi was just pulling up towards the curb. Massie watched as Claire climbed inside and shut the door. Judi peeled away leaving a whole bunch of leaves in her wake. It felt like Massie had just lost a piece of her heart.

"Massie." Kristen started.

Massie raised a hand. "Don't touch me." She threw her head into her hands.

Kristen shrunk away.

Dylan hovered near Massie with an uncertain look on her face. "I think Claire was right.." She looked down at the wooden floor expecting Massie to go off.

"What?" Massie's head snapped up. One of her recurring nightmares was coming true. She looked to Kristen but she was staring into space, completely avoiding Massie's stares. "Guys!"

"Massie, sometimes you're selfish…" Dylan's eyes darted around. It was like she was making an important decision.

Kristen added, "Yeah, Massie."

Massie jumped up. The whole room tilted before her as she tried to take all of this in. "I'm doing this for you guys! I'm trying to get The PC back on top and this how you repay me. Fine then, there doesn't need to be a Pretty Committee. Maybe we should just disband, I don't need you guys." Massie lied. She did need them, without her friends she was nothing.

Dylan stepped forward. "No, Massie. We're just saying sometimes you can be way overboard."

Kristen nodded. Even Bean moved her head up and down.

"It's almost like you're back on the path from eighth grade. You know, when you were trying to manage our lives." Kristen pointed out.

This started an argument between Kristen and Massie.

"Guys stop!" Dylan yelled. She was trying to stop the argument but it was no use.

The Pretty Committee were officially out and someone had it all captured.

A figure in a black latex morphsuit stood in the bushes outside. They clicked picture after picture capturing the downfall of The Pretty Committee. The figure snickered as the argument started to get more heated. Massie pushed Kristen causing her to fall back and slam her head on a glass table. Dylan's mouth fell open. She helped Kristen up to her feet. Massie started yelling again.

"Just what I like to see…." The figure whispered. .

They snapped more pictures. What kind of person didn't close the blinds? Oh well, at least she was getting all of this. Once these pictures were out, they were all done.

The figure laughed to themselves.

Farewell, Pretty Committee.


A/N: Kristen thinks she's finally found her clique. Sigh, I wonder how that will go once Massie finds out. Claire is officially the laughing stock of the school. She's no longer known as the quiet, bubbly girl but instead the crazy psycho girl. Will Claire let this get to her? Sneaky sneaky Alicia. She's so determined to bring Dylan down. Who knows? Maybe she'll succeed and Dylan will be out like Britney Spears. Oh, and Massie Block. Where do I start? She should stop trying to bring the PC together. With Alicia gone, I wonder if anyone else will follow suit. The PC better be prepared though because someone is determined to bring them down once and for all.

Dylan, Alicia, Massie, and Kristen POV's next week.