Brenda had been tossed out of the Peach Pit when she refused to snuff out her cigarette. God, what a bunch of intolerant, uptight bigots they were…she thought they were her friends. They'd shown her true colors when they'd refused to protest her expulsion. Chain themselves to the juke box machine or something like that. She realized that these high school teeny boppers were never really her friends. They were just posers like most of the pretentious crowd at West Beverly High.

She'd not been able to drive today so she hopped a couple of buses to go to a coffee shop tucked next to the art gallery owned by Cyrano. Sugar Lily Poppy was there sitting with a latte and Blue Oyster Pearl just waved her on over to a table. Folk music played in the background and it wasn't too crowded.

"So you are going to the concert?"

Brenda looked at her two friends, absolutely clueless.

"What concert?"

"The happening one tonight in the nearby park," Sugar Lily Poppy said, "It's going to be totally happening, you just got to come."

Brenda didn't think Jim and Cindy would mind as long as she wasn't hanging with Dylan.

"Okay…sure I'll be here…," she said, "I think I'll just get a chai tea here and some briquettes."

Blue Oyster Pearl just nodded her head while Brenda went up to order her drink. She looked around the swanky shop which somehow was also cozy, a perfect fit for someone just like her. Someone so fabulously awesome, too much so to be appreciated by most of those around her…it'd taken doing some soul searching to find the right crowd of people to embrace her as their own.

She got her tea and food and sat down with the others. Blue Oyster Pearl was upset about some restrictions that her mom had put on her when she found out she'd dented the car.

"I have to get a job and pay to fix it," she said, "Since I couldn't sell my art at the farmer's market."

Sugar Lily Poppy sighed.

"You think that's bad…I want to go to this cartoonist conference in Las Vegas and my dad forbade me from going…"

Brenda frowned.

"I thought you were over 18."

"I am…but I still live at home," Sugar Lily Poppy said, "and that means I have to live by his rules."

Brenda nodded.

"I totally understand Jim wouldn't let me drive the family car to the Peach Pit, this burger joint for high school kids and then the owner, Nat kicked me out for lighting a cigarette."

Blue Oyster Pearl shook her head.

"Damn rules…I'd like to live some place an artists' colony where we'd be free to do what we want…be who we want to be."

Sugar Lily Poppy smiled sipping her latte.

"That'd be awesome," she said, "I just want to be free to do what I want, to express myself through my art and be appreciated…be famous but it hasn't yet."

Brenda sipped her tea.

"I'm sure it will happen," she said, "I'm still trying to find my form of expression and Cyrano has been helping me."

Blue Oyster Pearl looked at her.

"I'm sure he has…he mentored me when I was new too."

Sugar Lily Poppy nodded.

"Me too…he's the best and he'll put your work in the gallery if he likes it."

Brenda fervently hoped that she'd be good enough, talented enough to be displayed in his gallery so that everyone would want to buy her art. That would show Kelly and the rest of them that she too could be great at something. Kelly had beauty, Donna had fashion sense but where did that leave Brenda? Should she just crawl back to Minnesota?

No, she didn't think so. She had found her new crowd, had begun forging her new identity and soon enough she'd make her mark in the world.

Donna sighed as she looked across the room and saw David hitting it up with a young girl with a bob of red hair. The woman wore a form fitting dress that plunged down and rode up her thighs and damn, she just looked like she was coming on to Donna's man.

She wanted to rip the girl's eyes out but she stopped herself. After all, she'd brought this on herself with telling David that she couldn't do more than kiss or make out until she got married. She knew she came off like a tease but he really just had to understand that she was serious about what she said and that she wouldn't give in to his seduction.

So what did David do next? Did he remain true to her and play by her rules? No, he had run off across the street and was flirting with this young thing who no doubt lived by looser morals than Donna. Now she really wanted to rip the tramp apart before she sunk her talons into her boyfriend.

Time to charge across the street and show her who was boss.

Kelly stopped her.

"No Donna you can't do it," she said, "You can't let that evil part of you be unleashed again or everyone's going to know the secret."

Donna felt confused.

"What secret…Kelly do we have some secret and you forgot to tell me?"

Kelly just rolled her eyes. Donna could be such a dimwit sometimes and it had to be from not getting any…though she had to know she could do much better than David. But seriously she was a senior in high school and she wasn't getting any younger. God, Kelly had woken up, looked in the mirror and she found a wrinkle on her forehead. At least her mom had the plastic surgeon to the B list stars still on Rolodex. There might be some hope yet.

"I can't tell you Donna if you don't know because you won't keep it anyway."

Donna pouted.

"Kelly why are you so mean to me…I can keep a secret, you know I can…so just tell me…give me a hint?"

"No Donna…I'm not going to be your enabler now…not until you stop torturing David."

They both looked at where David was playing tonsil hockey with the redhead.

"Does that look like I'm torturing him Kelly?"

Kelly shrugged.

"I guess not…man he's really getting it on with her," she said, "You might need to pick another sucker Donna."

Her friend scowled.

"That's not what I need. Besides Father Michael said I'm doing the right thing…the difficult thing and I won't go to Hell now."

Kelly chuckled.

"I'll pass on being a good girl," she said, "I'd rather have some fun and now that Dylan's taken off again…I think I'll go find some action."

Donna's jaw fell.

"Kelly, he loves you and you treat him like such dirt."

"He treats me like a fool Donna," she said, "He has these moods of his and he doesn't tell me what's going on. He just takes off. I hope he's not with Brenda now."

Donna shook her head.

"She's hanging with that crowd at that art gallery," she said, "I don't know what's gotten into her lately. Did she hit her head or something?"

"Did you Donna because you're not acting the least normal…I mean David's a nerd but he's a horny nerd and you should be taking advantage."

Donna put her hands up.

"I can't Kelly…I'm a good girl," she said, "and I've got some Hail Mary's to say if you'll excuse me."

Kelly shook her head as Donna marched back into the house.

Brandon didn't know who was following him right now while he drove down the dimly lit street but the guy needed to just stop right now.

Oh great, he was flashing his high beams practically daring him to race him or something but Brandon had more important things to do. He had to get home and catch Steve for the Lakers game after he promised himself he wouldn't bet on the spread and wind up nearly getting his face redone by a lone shark's hired thug. Things like that didn't happen to normal teens but Brandon didn't consider himself in that group.

Yes, he got drunk and crashed Mondale. A bad enough boy to spend the night in jail and yeah, he did Ecstasy too. So what if Emily had spiked his drink. If she hadn't then he was a bad enough boy to do it himself. He'd also nearly gone into South Central by himself at sunset to go impart his extensive repertoire of knowledge to the people there and he'd kissed an ice skater.

Damn he was so bad and tough and yet so righteous at the same time. But then he looked in his rear view mirror and saw the high beams flash again. What the hell was this guy doing and who was he?

Brandon felt like the first time that day that he was in mortal danger and he didn't know why.