Briiiing! Briiiiing!

"Hello?" Max answered the phone wearily.

"Max!" a voice said from the other end.

"Logan?" Max asked, sitting up in bed. "How's school? How's life? How's everything? What's going on? Why are you calling at," she checked the alarm clock (Deck got her a new one), "half-past 'ass-crack in the morning'?"

"Early bird gets the worm, doesn't it?" Logan asked. He was always full of those weird, all-American sayings.

"Yeah, well this worm is dead tired." Max sighed, "I got a job."

"A job?" It sounded like Logan was about to say something, but all that came out was a small, "Oh."

"Yeah. Boss, I've discovered, is a slavedriver."

The door to her room opened and Alec poked his head through. His hair was wet.

"Shower's all yours if you want it," he informed her.

"Knock!" Max yelled, grabbing her alarm clock and launching it at him. Alec shut the door quickly and the alarm clock smashed against the door.

"Who was that?" Logan asked.

"Um... house guest," Max said quickly. Logan didn't need to know about recent happenings. "Sorry, Logan. But I'll have to call you back. I've got school today."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Logan stopped her.

"What?"

"Brin called me yesterday night."

"Oh," Max bit her lip. 'Recent events' included everything regarding the West Gillette Chameleons. "What did she say?"

"She told me everything."

"Everything?"

"Everything," Logan confirmed. "And I think I know just the guy you should call."

"He says the guy's name is Jonas Cale," Max explained to Cindy. "His uncle or something- super rich, really a bastard, but won ten trophies."

"How do you win ten trophies?" Original Cindy asked. "There are only four years of high school."

"If you're not Joshua," Max added.

"And there's only one Joshua," Original Cindy said. "So is ya going to call him?" Max shrugged.

"Logan says it'll cost five grand."

Original Cindy hissed, waving her hand as if it were burned. "That's a lotta cheddar for a cheer." Max looked at OC significantly. Cindy made a face, understanding Max's expression. "Do I look like Mrs. Money-Bags to you?" she asked.

"You look like someone who has the words 'my brother has six cars' pasted across her forehead," Max said truthfully. "Sorry. 'Five cars and one motorcycle'."

Original Cindy rolled her eyes. "Maybe I can get a grand. My parents don't really favor the lesbian child."

"Great," Max said. "Now we've got four grand, and only a few weeks until Regionals."

"And a school full of yuppies," Original Cindy added. "Who else on the squad is getting the cake on a daily basis?"

"I'm not really on my parents' 'good child' list right now," Tinga said sadly.

"They gave you an apartment and pay your bills, Tinga," Max said in disbelief.

Tinga held up a finger. "But that's as far as they'll go." She slammed her locker shut. "I've got to go. I've got chem lab, and Mr. Sandoval has a cow if we're late." As Tinga walked away, Max felt someone behind her. The sort of "sixth sense" felt, more than they jabbed her in the back as they were approaching.

She turned around.

"Hi, Max!" Mia Luccino, Sophomore Extraordinaire and Dougie Colantonio's on-again-off-again-sometimes-but-not-really-when-the-mood-hit-him-ex-old-current-girlfriend, smiled cheerfully at her.

Mia Luccino was one of the most economically endowed students in the school. In fact, if it weren't for the fact that Joshua's father owned the school, she probably would.

"Hi, Mia," Max said, moving to her locker to pack her backpack up.

"You don't have a seventh period either, right?" Mia asked, with a quizzical tilt of her head.

Well, Max did, but it was just study hall. Easily ditchable.

"I couldn't help but overhear what you were talking about with Tinga," Mia said.

"You eavesdropped?" Max assumed.

"Yes," Mia nodded. "And I think I might have a proposition for you. Come with me to the library."

"Could we make it the library down the street and three blocks over?" Max asked. "I'm kinda ditching."

A/N: More Alec coming in the next chapter, don't worry.

Four votes for Sin City and one (sort of) vote for Kill Bill - well, I guess I'd better get crackin'.

Thanks to all the rest of you who reviewed out there! Remember, more reviewing means generally more writing on my part (you see, when you review, I generally get more feedback from the rest of the world than from my teachers and I tend to blow off more homework so that I can write for the wonderful people who review!) And as usual, if I get three reviews in the next two hours before my time runs out on the computer then I'll post the next chapter today!