CHAPTER 2
I got up and looked at my clock. The screen read 7:30am. Or did it? It was kind of blurred. I rubbed my eyes a couple of times and checked the screen again. 1:30 am. It was early. But it was one of those days where I'd shut my eyes and try to sleep while failing horribly at the act of trying to fall asleep again. I decided to go to the computer to see if anyone was online. To my surprise, one of my friends, Becca, was on.
Ding! She messaged me the minute I signed on.
SINGERCUTIE93: CAN'T SLEEP?
PIANOGURL: NO, U?
SINGERCUTIE93: SAME.
PIANOGURL: ?
SINGERCUTIE93: THINKIN BOUT STUFF. U?
PIANOGURL: JEREMY.
SINGERCUTIE93: ? ABT HIM?
PIANOGURL: LIKES ALICIA.
SINGERCUTIE93: OUCH.
PIANOGURL: YEAH.
SINGERCUTIE93: SRY, I G2G. MUM'S COMIN UP SHE CAN'T KNO I'M ON. BYE, LUVYA LOTZ. MUAH, XOXO.
SINGERCUTIE93 HAS SIGNED OFF 1:56 AM.
Now what was there to do? No one was online. I took my Teen People November issue and flipped through it. There, on one of the covers, was the beautiful Alicia Rivera. I quickly shut the magazine, not wanting to see her face. It was the first time in my entire life that I told myself that Alicia was ugly. I returned to my bed and attempted to fall asleep again. Surprisingly enough, I managed, and didn't wake up until the alarm went off, indicating that it was 7:30 am.
I got up at 7:30, took a shower, got dressed, ate breakfast, brushed my teeth, and rushed out the door in the half hour limit I had to do everything. I had to be out the door by 8 am, waiting for my driver, Eleanor, to pick me up. Then, we'd pick up Jessica, then Anna. OCD that morning was the same. Girls rushing everywhere, hoping one day that they'd be just like her. That morning, the bell rang five minutes late. I had English first, like Jessica and Anna. Unfortunately, Dylan was also in that class. And unfortunately, that morning I just had an urge to do something about the "Pretty Committee". So, I sent Dylan a text message.
914-882-2742: FATTY.
914-555-8055: I'M NOT FAT.
914-882-2742: SRY, WRONG NUMBER.
But how could I have been so stupid? I dialed Claire's number instead of Dylan's. And just like that, I felt useless. I felt stupid for dialing the wrong number. In my entire life, I had never tried dialing the wrong number before. So, just like that, I lost my inspiration to text Dylan. I decided to be my usual self and be the school's "Hermione Granger" and answered the best I could to all of the teacher's questions. It was only way I could put myself back in my place, even if it meant to become a teacher's pet.
Ding! My phone vibrated.
DYLAN: NERD.
I quickly found the setting on my phone and changed my display name.
NATALIE: FATTY.
DYLAN: IS THAT SUPPOSED 2 B AN INSULT?
NATALIE: YEP.
DYLAN: WELL, IT SUCKED.
NATALIE: WELL, JUST SO U KNO, UR SKIRT LOOKS LIKE A TENT. IT MAKES U LOOK FATTER THAN U ALREADY R.
From the other corner of the room, I saw Dylan scowl. She raised her hand and asked to go to the bathroom. When she came back, she was wearing black tights and a jean skirt overtop. Replacing the white and black striped halter she was wearing was a black tube top with silver designs. She did look a little slimmer, but she was still fat compared to the rest of the Pretty Committee.
NATALIE: U STILL LOOK FAT. THE TIGHTS TOTALLY SHOW HOW FAT U R.
DYLAN: 2 BAD SUM1 DIDN'T INVENT A TYPE OF CLOTHING THAT HIDES HOW NERDY U R.
NATALIE: WELL, U LOOK FAT IN WUTEVS U WEAR. MAYBE U SHUD GET SUMTHING THAT MAKES U LOOK SLIMMER. OH WAIT, THERE'S NUTHIN OTHA THAN BLACK THAT MAKES U LOOK SLIMMER. I GUESS U'LL HAFTA LOOK FAT NEWAYZ.
Dylan cringed as she looked at her legs. Then, the bell rang, and Dylan zoomed straight out the door to meet up with Massie, Kristen, Claire, and Alicia.
"Natalie thinks I'm fat." Dylan said, sobbing.
"Well, she's overly retarded. You can tell her that." Alicia replied.
I leaned over to Jessica. "That's MY expression!" I whispered-yelled.
"It's not anymore." Alicia said, walking over, snickering.
"Well, you guys also stole three of my other expressions." I answered. In my head, the same word played over and over: confidence.
"Oh yeah? What would that be?" Claire asked?
"Wrong grammar: you should've said what would those be, not what would that be. Anyways, moving along now, you stole my three expressions ehmagawd, ah-dorable, and ah-mazing."
"They're not yours anymore. Eh-veryone think they're ours." Massie chimed in. I scowled.
"Well, eh-veryone may worship you, but you will never earn MY respect." I answered in a sing-song voice.
"Yeah, like we really need your respect." Kristen joined in.
I turned around and stomped off, linking arms with Jessica and Anna.
"You know," Massie said to her friends when we were out of earshot, "They could actually join our Pretty Committee. They're pretty enough, they've got great attitude-"
"No, not they." Interrupted Alicia.
"What do you mean?" Massie asked, puzzled.
"Anna and Jessica barely do anything. Natalie's the one with the attitude. And besides, they won't do in the Pretty Committee."
"Why?" All of them asked at once.
"Because Anna and Jessica will do whatever Natalie says. And I personally think Natalie hates us."
"Really?" Claire asked. "Including me?"
"Are you still living in Massie's guesthouse?" Dylan teased.
"Yes, I am, and that's getting old."
"Well, yeah I know it's getting old, but yes, even you."
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"I don't see why it matters so much to you."
"It does because we'll be so much more popular if we do."
"Well, who cares about popularity?"
"We do."
Anna and I were arguing over a stupid thing. Again.
"Well, they seem to like you sort of." Anna pointed out.
"Point." Jessica drew an invisible number one in the air with her index finger, like what Alicia does. Well, Alicia copied Jessica, technically, but still claims that it's her word.
"Well, I don't like them too much." I answered coldly.
"Why don't you give it a try?" Jessica suggested.
"Fine, fine, but that's only because you guys talked me into it." I replied flatly.
"And besides, if we do join them, then maybe the more ah-dorable guys, not like Jeremy, but like Cam Fisher and those hawt guys will notice us some more!" Anna squealed.
"Ahl-right."
"Here they come now!" Anna said excitedly, trying to suppress her excitement.
"Hey gals." Massie said as she approached the three of them.
"Hey…" Anna replied.
"Natalie, I need to talk to you. Ah-lone." Massie said in a low whisper. She didn't want to be caught talking to a girl who wasn't part of the Clique.
"Sure." I said back to her. Massie and I headed towards a deserted corner of a deserted hallway. Anna and Jessica naturally followed.
"I said ah-lone." Massie snapped at them. They stopped following me and waited anxiously for my return. Once we were alone, Massie broke the silence.
"Natalie. You really don't like my friends and I, do you."
"Yeah, I really like you guys, I hope to be just like you one day." I answered sarcastically.
"Natalie, I have a proposal for you."
"Ew, I'm not les, I'm not going to marry you."
"I didn't mean it in that way, Natalie." Massie said, trying to keep her cool, letting me get away with my cynical behavior.
"I know you didn't." I snapped at her. Massie wanted to snap back at me, but let me slide. You can ahl-ways tell when she wants to snap something mean at you.
"Listen, Nat. I want you to join our Pretty Committee."
"What about Anna and Jessica?" I asked, nodding towards my two best friends.
"They're not Clique material. We, as in the Pretty Committee, think you're Clique material and that you'd do really well with us. You're a GLU."
"Am I, now? Or do you just want to earn my respect?"
"No, we aw-nestly think you're Clique material. Now are you going to accept this proposal or nawt?"
"Hmm." I tapped my chin and acted like I was thinking. "Let me think about it. I'll get back to you sometime later today."
"Make sure you remember to get back to me. Because if you don't, you're getting sent straight to the reject pile."
"Given." I said. I sauntered off towards my friends to tell them exactly what happened, not leaving out a single detail.
"Join them!" Anna told them excitedly.
I glared at her. "You do realize that I probably won't be spending much time with you."
"Yeah." Jessica answered automatically.
"And you do realize that you guys aren't part of them, right?"
"Yeah." The two of them answered in synchronization.
"Okay, well in that case, I guess I'm going to have to tell them that I accept their proposal…"
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