Chapter 11
Lilly rested her chin on her desk and squinted at the sun peeking out through colorfully leafed branches from behind the classroom window. She stretched her arms out and spread her chipped manicured fingers like a lion basking in the midday sun.
For two weeks, she had been out of black nail polish. In her cosmetics bag, she had found a salmon-colored one instead of her usual Onyxx blaxx bitxx one. Lilly knew exactly who was to blame. Before she left for Tennessee, her mother had suggested pink or any other color that would make her look less like one of the boys.
She had gaped at her. Mom, boys do NOT wear nail polish.
You would look so pretty in pink though, her mother had persisted.
It'll look like Barbie pissed all over my nails.
Lilly, language!
Her mother could be a pain in the ass. With a rustle, a piece of paper landed between Lilly's arms. She swiveled her head in the direction it had come from.
Miley frowned at her, fiddling with her pen.
Her neatly rounded handwriting said, I'm sorry about the pie.
Lilly groaned inwardly. Miley had been apologizing for over two weeks that she was to blame for Lilly's anaphylaxis, and Lilly, tired of it, had decided to ignore any of her apologies. It did, however, reveal one thing: Miley did not give her the pie on purpose.
Forgiven and forgotten. Really! Lilly wrote and tossed the paper back to Miley.
A moment later, it landed back on her desk. I'm also sorry for yesterday.
For what? That she ran away? Cried? All of this was understandable. Jeez, could Miley just chill for a change?
Two rows in front of her, Mikayla stretched and then plopped back against the backrest. The print on the back of her black hoodie was wrinkled, but Lilly could still read it: Hannah Montana Rock Star Tour 2007. Hannah's massive signature in white letters stretched across it. A strange place for a printed signature. Lilly had noticed the hoodie during the first period but hadn't dared to ask Mikayla about it. Check out Mikayla's hoodie. That bitch has at least one redeeming quality.
The answer read: Mikayla is kind of okay. I knew she was a fan.
Lilly tssked. The fact that she was a Hannah fan didn't make her nastiness go away. Mikayla tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and rubbed her scarred cheek. Had Hannah also invited her backstage? She certainly didn't deserve it. What do you think? Is that signature on her hoodie legit?
Miley clicked-clacked her pen and stared into space. She slowly nodded to herself and scratched her pen across the paper. She tossed the paper over, and it bounced off Lilly's arm and landed on the floor. Lilly bowed down and glanced at the chalkboard, where Mrs. Yeller, a stocky woman, kept her back to the class. Mrs. Yeller bent down and scraped the chalk on the lower part of the board, and her light pink blazer tightened around the rolls of fat on her midsection, making her look like a well-fed pig.
Lilly unfolded the paper. It is. They spent an entire day together, going shopping and watching a movie. She said it was the best day of her life!
No way. That could have been Lilly. She had been so stupid. Lilly crumbled the paper into a ball. Of course, the bitches always got it all: funny friends, the cute boyfriend, and now even the popstar.
An ahem sounded next to her table. Lilly swung her head up and flinched.
Mrs. Yeller's tiny piercing eyes bore right into hers. "I saw Miley throw a piece of paper on your desk. Where is it?"
Lilly's fingers tightened around the crumpled paper. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Don't you think everyone has the right to hear what important issues you and Miley have that can't wait until class is over?" Mrs. Yeller held out her hand, palm up.
Lilly gave Miley a sidelong glance.
She shook her head, silently forming the word no.
Mikayla turned in her seat and locked her blank eyes on Lilly.
Okay, they had talked about Mikayla, which wasn't a crime in and of itself. But she had also called her a bitch. Although not a crime, it was far from ideal. What could go wrong, though? Mrs. Yeller would read their conversation aloud, and Mikayla's ego would skyrocket upon learning that they had discussed her. End of story. Lilly uncurled her fingers around the paper. Everything was preferable to being summoned to the principal's office or being given detention for defying a teacher.
Miley's head shaking grew more vigorous.
Was Miley afraid it would backfire on her? The writing clearly showed that Lilly had written the insult.
Mrs. Yeller's eyebrows arched up. "The. Paper."
"I'd rather not."
"Now!" Mrs. Yeller's stubby fingers grabbed for the paper and Lilly yanked her hand back.
A snicker burst out behind her.
Oh god, did she just defy a teacher's order?
"If you give me the paper right now, I will overlook your behavior." Mrs. Yeller's voice took on a warning edge.
Miley gnawed down on a nail, her eyes pleading with Lilly to not do it.
Lilly took a steeling breath. "It's private."
"You—!" Mrs. Yeller snatched for the paper, but Lilly flinched back, and her chair tilted with her.
She grabbed the edge of the desk and balanced on a chair leg. Laughter erupted around her. She was already out of Mrs. Yeller's favor. It couldn't possibly get any worse. Screw it. Lilly stuffed the crumpled paper into her mouth, the slightly acidic but otherwise tasteless edges pocking into her tongue.
A torrent of laughter and shrieks swept over her.
Mrs. Yeller's nostrils flared. Her mouth opened and closed soundlessly, like a mackerel gulping for water, her cheeks taking on the color of her blazer. "Lill—!" The shrieking bell drowned out her voice. Books thudded shut, and chairs screeched as they were pushed back.
Lilly swept her school supplies from her table into her bag and leaped out of her seat. She dashed past Mrs. Yeller.
"You will come back right now!"
The girl in front of Lilly turned around, her nose wrinkled in a grin. Someone behind her patted her on the shoulder as if to say, Congrats. Way to go. Lilly didn't turn around. She pushed her way out the door and spit the chewed-up paper into the trash can two doors down.
Shuffling footsteps got closer. "Thank you so much. You truly are a lifesaver."
Lilly swiveled around at the raspy voice. "Not hard to believe. You looked like your soul was about to leave your body." She rubbed her burning cheeks.
"If Mrs. Yeller had read the letter aloud… " Miley exhaled a long breath, and shook her head.
"Then what?"
Four boys from Mr. Yeller's class passed by, their eyes gleaming at Lilly, before they hollored a laugh.
Lilly's gaze dropped to the floor.
"Well, it would've been embarrassin'."
"Are you for real? This stunt just now wasn't, or what? Tell me I wasn't acting like a complete douche just to make you feel less uncomfortable."
"Oh my gosh, no." Miley took a step toward Lilly. "No, no, of course not. It's… complicated."
"Yeah, right." Lilly bit her tongue. "And here I thought you were worried about being bullied again."
Miley pressed her books against her chest and frowned. "I was."
Two periods later, they went to lunch break. Deep-fried vegetables floated in a white sauce that smelled like yogurt and pepper on Lilly's plate. "This is the third time we've had something fried this week."
Miley clanked her tray down, slid into the seat across from Lilly, and giggled. "Welcome to the south. 'ere, we fry everythin'."
"Oh, I'm not complaining." Lilly used her fork to pick up a piece of fried cauliflower and nibbled on the oily coating.
A wad of paper rustled into the sauce on her plate.
Lilly whirled around.
Chelsea's nude lipstick-colored lips formed a sly grin. "Bon appetite."
"Hey!" Lilly leaped out of her seat, and Chelsea stumbled backward.
Lilly watched through thin-slitted eyes until Chelsea reached the table where the rest of the Fakettes were seated before flopping back down. She caught Miley's frown and shook her head, muttering under her breath stupid bimbos, and shoved a spoonful of corn into her mouth.
Another wad of paper sailed over Miley's head and landed on Lilly's plate. Behind Miley, a boy in a baseball jacket grinned, revealing a set of unnaturally white bleached teeth. "You forgot to get dessert." One table row over, the boy high-fived a group of jocks.
"It's all my fault." Miley poked at the corn.
As Lilly was picking up the paper from her lunch, another piece bounced off the edge of her plate and rolled off the table. Mikayla sneered at her. Jake hunched over his plate, his eyes downcast.
Lilly looked down the length of her table. When she met Oliver's eyes, his gaze jumped to the phone in his hand. Lilly let out a forceful breath and shook her head. Screw him. When they were alone, he always asked her what he could do for her, carried her favorite wine gum with him, and even held open doors for her, but that apparently meant nothing to him.
A shadow crept into Lilly's line of vision above her, and another crumbled piece of paper dropped among her deep-fried vegetables. Lilly whirled around and seized the arm of a skinny girl she recognized from Science class.
Shelby's eyes widened behind her thick glasses.
"What the hell are you doing?"
"Um." Shelby cast a glance at Mikayla, who glowered at her, and then back at Lilly. She straightened her back and raised her chin into the air. "I'm the one who should be asking." Her accent was almost as thick as Miley's.
"I'm not the one who throws papers into other people's lunches."
Shelby yanked her arm free from Lilly's grasp. "At least I didn't side with this-this famewhore."
Lilly followed the girl's gaze to Miley, who dipped her head again, allowing her hair to fall in her face.
For the rest of their lunch break, Lilly and Miley ate in silence. Whenever a wad of paper landed on Lilly's plate, she simply flicked it away. Oliver had been right. Siding with Miley made her a bullying victim, but she didn't have a choice. Besides, wasn't supporting Miley the right thing to do, the thing she wanted to do?
After lunch, they stopped in front of Lilly's locker, and with a Can you hold that for a second please? Miley piled her books and folders on top of those Lilly already carried in her arms. Miley turned around and headed down the hallway. Before going to the restroom she always handed Lilly her books. She apparently thought it would be more convenient than going to her locker twice, once to unload her books and again to get the new ones for the next class. Lilly heaved the books into her open locker. It cracked, and a waterfall sloshed out that soaked the fabric of her Vans. Lilly recoiled. The neck of a crushed water bottle protruded from beneath the stack of books. She groaned.
On her way to school this morning, a black cat had crossed her path. She wasn't superstitious, but it would explain some of today's mishaps. She took her bag from the back of the locker and searched for tissues.
Blue-turned feet squeezed out between the shoe straps of pumps at least two sizes too small clipped-clomped to the locker next to Lilly's. The door was ripped open. "Okay, then how about this?" The girl giggled. "You're so sweet, you're giving me a toothache."
Legs in skintight jeans wedged between butt cheeks leaned against a locker behind Dead Feet Girl. "Are you serious?" The open locker door hid Wedgie Girl's face, but Lilly swore she heard her grimace. "He'll think you're dumb."
"I'm a blonde, so… "
"Despite what the magazines say, being blonde and dumb isn't always a guarantee of being a boy magnet."
Lilly bit back a snort. And she thought it couldn't get any dumber than the girls at Seaside High. She found the pack of tissues in the depths of her backpack, ripped them all out of their packaging, and wiped them over her shoes, then the inside of her locker.
"Look at him. He is such a dreamboat." A brief pause, followed by the sound of feet stomping. "Ugh, there has to be something I can do to get his attention."
Lilly wiped her wet hands on her pants and followed Dead Feet Girl's gaze. Jake bent over a water fountain, his vanilla blond bangs fluttering over his eyes. He cupped water in a hand and brought it to his perfectly curved lips. He leaned back and ran his wet hand through his hair, creating the perfect slicked-back look. Dreamboat. They got this right. Lilly rolled her eyes heavenward. Jeez, stupidity was contagious after all.
"He's on his own. I should try talking to him."
"On his own, but not single. Remember, he is Mikayla's. If she finds out you're after him, you'll be her next victim."
Miley could have been trying to get closer to Jake. That could explain the bullying. The more Lilly thought about it, the less likely it seemed. Miley had never so much as glimpsed at Jake. Besides, she was in love with Oliver.
A melodramatic sigh was followed by a locker door clicking shut. Lilly came face-to-face with Dead Feet Girl, who curled her lip. "Do you mind."
"Who's that?" Wedgie Girl's gaze darted up and down Lilly's body, a grimace etched on her features.
"Just some creep spying on us." Dead Feet Girl pushed past Lilly, and her friend trailed behind.
Their tacky fashion sense, bitchiness, and shrimp-sized brains would fit perfectly with the Fakettes. Lilly should set them up with each other.
Jake wiped the back of his hand across his mouth.
The girls were right. Jake was rarely by himself. He was either surrounded by his friends or Mikayla was stuck to his side like a blob of gooey chewing gum under a school desk. Lilly had wanted to ask him much earlier to explain exactly what made Miley a no-go zone, but hadn't had the opportunity until now. Jake turned around and strolled down the hallway. Lilly clicked her locker shut and slung the strap of her shoulder bag over her head as she dashed after him.
She tapped him on the shoulder and he turned around, a million-dollar smile litting up his face. "It's you."
"Yeah, listen—"
"—How come we never talk?"
How could someone have so little self-awareness? At least he was cute. "I guess it comes with being in different cliques and stuff."
"Right." Jake flashed Lilly another of his dazzling smiles, and Lilly shifted her weight from one foot to the other and raised the strap of her bag higher up her shoulder.
"During lunch break, you may have noticed—"
"—Yes, and I'm sorry. I don't think it's fair to drag you into this."
"No, it's okay. It's not your fault. I'm just curious as to why."
"Why what?"
"Why am I being dragged into this? Because I'm on Miley's side?"
"You are on her side? And I thought you had no choice but to put up with her because you were living with her." Jake took a wide stance with his arms folded in front of his chest.
"To-to be honest, I'm not sure. I have no idea what it means to be on Mikayla's or Miley's side."
"It means you're either siding with the would-be murderer or with the victim. It's really not that difficult."
"What?"
"You—" Jake let his arms fall to his sides and leaned forward, the leather of his royal blue jacket squeaking.
Lilly's breath hitched.
"You don't know?"
Lilly shook her head.
His voice lowered. "Miley tried to kill Mikayla."
Lilly took a step back and collided with someone behind her, but she kept her gaze set on Jake's intense eyes. "You're lying."
"You're hard to convince. Don't be fooled by Miley's innocent little-girl act. I swear to you, I was there. I saw what she did. If I'd been even a second later, Mikayla would've been… " Jake squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"That's just too mental."
"But it's true."
"That-that doesn't make sense. If that were true, if Miley had really tried to… she'd be in prison for life." Lilly made a sweeping motion down the hallway. "But she's here. Explain that to me."
"She was acquitted."
"So she's innocent."
"Well, sure." Jake dipped his chin down in a tiny nod, huffing. "Because, after all, innocent people are never imprisoned while murderers are acquitted."
Jake was nicer than the Fakettes, but he would probably put his girlfriend ahead of everyone else, even if it meant lying for her. "How do I know you're telling the truth?"
Jake shrugged. "It's telling that no one wants to talk to Miley. Everyone is afraid of her."
Two black hoodie-sleeved arms wrapped around Jake's stomach from behind. One hand pressed a chestnut dragonfly figurine against his chest. Three long shashlik skewers were rammed into two chestnuts to form the dragonfly's tail end. Four dried birch leaf wings hung limply from the chestnut body, while six snapped-off skewer legs dangled in the air.
"Did you sneak that crazy dragonfly into my locker?" Mikayla's head poked out from behind his back. She wrinkled her nose. "What the fuck are you doing flirting with my boyfriend?"
"I didn't."
"We were just talking." Jake took Mikayla's free hand in his and squeezed it. "And no, it's not from me. Maybe from Chelsea or Nancy? I'm pretty sure they know your locker combo and dragonfly obsession."
"Yes, but the last thing they'd do is crafting."
"It could be store-bought."
"Could be… " Mikayla's gaze returned to Lilly, and her eyes narrowed. "What are you still doing here?"
"We weren't done talking yet."
Mikalya turned away and dragged Jake down the hallway. Jake shrugged at Lilly as if to say, sorry. Lilly's hand curled around her bag strap, her nails digging into her palms. Bitch.
That evening, Lilly searched the Internet for newspaper articles about the incident Jake had mentioned, but couldn't find anything under Miley Stewart or Miley S. Lilly typed in Mikayla Michigan, and the search engine directed her to The Daily Herald—Crowley Corners local newspaper. The four-year-old article was about the middle school cheerleading squad. In a small town like this, if one student attempted to murder another, the newspaper would cover nothing else for weeks. Had Jake lied to her?
That evening, as Lilly had just turned off the bedroom light and closed her eyes, Miley's voice pierced the veil of darkness. "I'm sorry about the paper." Lilly remained silent. She would go insane if that was added to Miley's never-ending apologies.
Mrs. Yeller caught Lilly in the hallway the next day and sent her to the principal's office. The scent of air freshener failed to mask the stench of pungent tobacco. Wafts of white-blue cigarette smoke curled in front of half-closed blinds from an ashtray on a clunky mahogany desk. A golden name plate beside it read Principal Keith. The giant black man adjusted the olive green tie of his tweed suit and leaned forward. He maintained his perfect poker face while he stared her down.
Lilly lowered her gaze, and Principal Keith reclined in his swivel chair.
"You may be an exchange student, but you must follow our rules just like everyone else." Principal Keith reached for the pack of cigarettes on his desk, tapped it against the tabletop, and withdrew his hand. "For that reason, perhaps even more than anyone else. You became violent with a student in the cafeteria and disobeyed a teacher's order."
Shelby and Mrs. Yeller. Students and teachers at this school became butthurt way too quickly. Lilly pressed her lips together and crossed her arms. She had never been summoned to the principal's office before. "Some people can get away with anything it seems," she muttered.
"At Pinewood High, every student is treated and evaluated equally."
What a load of crap. Lilly sank further into the chair.
"Think of yourself as a guest at our school. From now on, I only want to see you on your best behavior."
She seemed to have no choice but to ignore the Fakettes from now on. Her parents would be furious if they found out she had received a warning.