BOH-POOL

Monday, September 1st

9:02 A.M.

"Arrange yourself in teams of four. Aaaaaand...go!" Mrs. Mair, the swim team coach, ordered promptly.

Massie frantically searched for her friends. They had all signed up for this class together. She grabbed Claire's wrist, and then pulled on a strand of Alicia's hair as she almost passed by. Then, Dylan ran over, dressed in a swimsuit she looked ah-mazing in.

Kristen stood frozen, on the pool deck, staring at Massie. Their eyes locked. Massie sent go-away-forever vibes and Kristen sent like-I'd-ever-want-to-be-your-friend-again vibes. Kristen turned away and joined a group with Olivia, Strawberry, and Kori.

Massie snorted. "Let her be friends with those B-listers." Massie smirked.

"Yeah!" Alicia chimed in, sticking her tongue out at Kristen when she was looking.

Claire and Dylan exchanged what-are-they-talking-about glances, but they knew they would be clued in soon.

"You four, team A!" Mrs. Mair pointed to Massie's group.

"A for Alphas!" Massie whispered to her group. The four air clapped and their feet splashed in the puddles on the concrete deck.

"You guys, team B!" She pointed to a team with Josh, Kemp, Derrick and Cam.

"B for Boys!" Massie giggled. Her true friends giggled too.

"You four, team C!" Mrs. Mair pointed to a group of Chris Plovert, Griffin, Meena and Heather.

"C for Co-ed!" Massie whispered.

"D!" The coach pointed to Kristen's group.

"D as in Dog. Female, that is!" Massie snapped. Her friends burst out laughing until Mrs. Mair made them quiet down.

"Aaaand, you three. Team E!" Mrs. Mair pointed to a group of A-LAYNE-a, Dempsey (who Massie was so over) and a cute guy Massie had never seen before.

"E for Ehmagawd!" Massie's mouth dropped open. A-LAYNE-a with two cute guys?! Massie shook it off and remembered she was with her best friends on a team. And Kristen would be gone forever. Massie wondered if that was what she really wanted.

Before it was their turn to swim, Team A all poured bottled water over their heads, soaking their hair. Massie had read in a magazine that it's better to rinse your hair before you swim so your hair absorbs the clean water, not the chlorine water. And then, the coach yelled, "SWITCH!"

"Well that wasn't hard." Claire said sarcastically, panting for air more than Massie's dog, Bean, when they raced in the blazing heat.

"Opposite of 'I don't agree.'" Alicia said as the four walked into the locker room. "I didn't even think I could run! But swim fast? It never even crossed my mind!"

Massie wiped her face with a fluffy white towel she had brought form home and then wrapped it around her hair. She shook open her pop-up changing tent and stepped inside. The other three did the same with the changing tents Massie had bought them. There was an extra one. But Massie just left it folded up in an empty locker for some lucky LBR to find. They would thank her. Once Massie had peeled off her wet swimsuit and slipped into her robe, she followed the Pretty Committee minus one to the showers. they all took the five in the back, hung their robes on the bar to serve as curtains, and turned on the water before everyone else came and used up all the hot water.