Thanks for all the reviews :)
This chapter is dialogue, for the most part, so sorry if parts of it seem kind of filler-y.
"Why'd I sign up for cooking again?" Dylan grumbled, staring down at the tray of warm, gooey chocolate chip cookies she had just pulled out of the oven.
"Because you like food?" Kristen offered, scraping excess cookie dough off the side of the metal bowl with her finger and licking it off.
"Yeah, but I hate what it does to my figure."
"One cookie is nawt going to kill you." Kristen picked a cookie up and waved it temptingly in front of her friend. A grin spreading across her face, Dylan grabbed it and took a big bite out of it.
"Yum," she burped, and Kristen flicked a glob of cookie dough at her.
"Food fight!" Derrick cheered from behind them, and Dylan and Kristen both turned around to face him.
"What are you doing here, Harrington?" Kristen narrowed her blue-green eyes at him. "You're nawt in this class."
"A mere technicality." Derrick shrugged.
"What did you do, tell your teacher you were going to the bathroom and come down here instead?" Dylan asked.
"Guilty as charged." Derrick grinned, holding up a hall pass. "But I just had to see you," he added. Dylan giggled and rolled her eyes.
"Actually," Derrick continued, "the real reason I came over here is that I heard you girls were baking chocolate chip cookies today."
"Take one if you want one so bad," Kristen offered. Derrick grinned and shoved one in his mouth.
"Thanks," he said with his mouth full.
"Ewww!" Kristen laughed as a crumb fell out of his mouth and landed on the floor.
"Get back to class," Dylan instructed, swatting him playfully on the butt.
"Yes ma'am!" Derrington saluted before heading back out the door.
As soon as he was gone, Kristen turned to Dylan. "He was so flirting with you."
"You think?" Dylan bit her well-glossed lip. Kristen nodded.
"You should go for him."
"And you should go for Josh," Dylan responded.
"We're just friends," Kristen insisted, but her cheeks flushed a tell-tale shade of pink.
"It didn't look that way last night," Dylan replied slyly.
"Okay, fine, maybe I like him as a little bit more than a friend. But what about Alicia?"
"Puh-lease, they've been broken up for two months now. She's toe-dally over him."
--
"But I'm nawt over him! She can't go out with Josh when I still like him!" Alicia whined.
"I'm just repeating what Dylan told me." Massie shrugged. They were sitting in the back of their American History class, participating in the only Social Studies-related activity they actually enjoyed: discussing Current Events. "And they're nawt going out. Yet. Kristen just admitted that she liked him."
"Well, did you tell Dylan that I still liked him?" Alicia demanded, lowering her voice and glancing around to make sure no one was listening in.
"Of course nawt! Plan B, remember?"
"Right. Are you sure me acting like I don't like Josh is actually going to work?"
Massie sighed. "We've been over this ten times. Remember in Gossip Girl how Blair acted all needy and Nate didn't want her?"
"…Yes."
"And then when Blair had Chuck and made it very clear to Nate she didn't want him anymore, Nate liked her again?"
"I know, Mass, but are you sure we need to be taking advice from a TV show? Especially one that is essentially a soap opera?" Alicia asked worriedly.
"When have I ever led you wrong?" Massie replied.
"That one time you made me miss the Teen People photo shoot, at Lake Placid when you lied and said you had already kissed Derrington, the boy fast in the eighth grade," Alicia listed.
"Okay, I get it, I have led you wrong a few times," Massie interrupted. "But trust me, when it comes to guys, I know what I'm talking about."
"If this doesn't make Josh like me again, it's your fault," Alicia grumbled.
The lunch bell rang, and the girls gathered up their books and headed for the cafeteria, making a quick pit stop at their lockers to dump off their stuff. In typical Massie fashion, the inside of Massie's locker had been wallpapered with reflective royal purple wrapping paper. A mirror had been hung on the inside of the door, and a metal container holding a hairbrush, a single container of Grapefruit Glossip Girl, and a MAC makeup palette had been super-glued on next to it. Massie had just finished touching up her makeup when she caught sight of Claire coming up behind her in her locker mirror. Her eyes, red-rimmed as if from crying, were staring at her shoes, and her white-blonde hair fell forward like a curtain, partially shielding her face from view. If anything, she looked more depressed than she had this morning. Massie caught Alicia's eye, signaling for her to go on to lunch without them. As Alicia strode away down the hall, her bright red Hayden Panettiere bag swinging on her arm and her Jimmy Choos click-clacking on the tiled linoleum, Massie swiveled to face Claire.
"Kuh-laire," she pronounced slowly. "Are you sure there's nothing wrong?"
"I'm fine," Claire insisted, but Massie noted that she was still avoiding direct eye contact. "So," Claire said, changing the subject, "I heard Derrington visited Dylan in cooking class today."
"Why should I care? I've been over him since the eighth grade." Massie shook her head indignantly, her glossy brunette locks catching the light as they sashayed from side to side.
"That's right," Claire agreed. "Who is it you like now? Plovert?"
"He's sweet," Massie replied simply, starting down the hall towards the cafeteria. Claire fell into step beside her.
"That's funny," Claire commented. "I never thought Chris was your type." Massie stopped in her tracks and turned to dead-eye Claire.
"Is he your type Claire? Are you jealous?" Massie asked, her tone even but her amber eyes fierce.
"No, of course nawt!" Claire replied quickly, knowing from experience not to provoke the wrath of Massie.
"Good." Massie stated, and that was the final word on the subject. "Now come awn, we're going to be late to lunch." As Massie turned and continued towards the cafeteria, Claire sighed. For the first time in a long time, she wasn't looking forward to seeing Cam.