Oh. My. God. So I'm super sorry for the late update, I've been swamped with essays, projects, tests and whatnot for the past week - or was it weeks? Not to mention, I've had a MAJOR writer's block. Sigh. Whatever. So...enjoy this chapter?
CHAPTER SEVEN
ATTENTION ALL ALPHAS. YOU ARE REQUIRED TO ATTENTED A MANDATORY ASSEMBLY DURING BREAKFAST THIS MORNING.
-SHIRA BRAZILLE
Reid swallowed hard as she glanced at the ominous message that had suddenly taken over the screen of her aPod. Mandatory assembly? Even the font looked threatening. Was it about the Vivian's party last night? She had a horrible feeling that it was. Shira couldn't expel all the girls at the party….could she? Or maybe just Vivian. Would she? Reid's brown eyes flicked up from the aPod and found Vivian's expressionless face. It was barely morning and the buzzing of their aPods had woken every alpha girl from their sleep. Summer's forehead was wrinkled like it was when she was deep in thought as she still huddled in the warmth of her blankets. Her long blonde hair had somehow managed to look the same in the early morning, something that Reid envied. Messy bed head looked horrible and unflattering on Reid. Alice's bottom lip stuck out slightly in a worried frown as she leaned back against the headboard of the standard bed. Her black hair had been pulled back into a loose ponytail as she slept, keeping her hair from being messed up. On Summer's other side, Ali sat up as her green eyes grew wider and wider as she absorbed the message. Fear flicked across Ali's face and she looked up and met Reid's gaze. Across the room from Reid's bed, Vivian's dark eyes skimmed the screen of her aPod with an expressionlessly. Her strap of her loose tank had inched off her shoulder and her hair had been pulled into a loose side ponytail.
"What do you think about it?" asked Reid softly. She looked around the room. Sunlight streamed through the curtains of the windows, brightening up the room while giving the worried atmosphere a bright and cheery background. With the sunlight reflecting off their PJs, the five Taylor Swifts shimmered and shone in the light.
"Do you think we'll get expelled?" Alice voiced her worries while Summer nodded slowly.
"What I want to know is that how Shira found out," Vivian's hard voice cut through the silence. "I know that none of the cameras were on during the entire party, Tammie and I made sure of that."
"Maybe there was a camera you missed," suggested Ali.
Vivian shook her head. "No, I broke into Shira's house and Tammie hacked the main security system. There's only fourteen cameras and all of them had been disabled."
Summer spoke up, "Well if it's not the cameras, then someone must have ratted you out."
Vivian's eyes narrowed in understanding. "Rebecca," she hissed furiously. She opened her mouth but Summer instantly cut her off.
"Are there any cameras in here?" her question immediately stunned the girls into silence. Reid's eyes widened in horror. If there were, Shira would already know everything she needed to know.
"No, there aren't," Vivian answered as the rest of the girls exhaled in relief. "I told Tammie to break the ones that are focused on the bedrooms. It'll take a while to get them fixed. We wired the ones around the island to turn off between the time period and turn on at 2am, but the ones in the Residences are all broken just in case girls accidently talked about it during the night."
"You think of everything," commented Summer. "I would never even had thought about it."
"Yeah, well I'd had some experience planning parties," Vivian's dark eyes glanced wistfully out the window and Reid found herself wondering what she was thinking about.
"Girls? You should all be dressed in a few minutes, Shira does not tolerate lateness," Ivory glided into bedroom, startling Reid from her thoughts.
"Sure," Alice replied to Ivory as she slid out of the bed and headed towards the bathroom. The sound of the faucet turning on and water splashing in the sink came from the bathroom as Reid pulled herself out of her warm bed and into the bathroom. Stepping into the rosy light of the bathroom, Reid turned the water one before splashing her face with the cold water and squeezing a dollop of her grapefruit scented face-wash on her palm and scrubbing her face. Rinsing off all the lather, Reid dried her face on a soft fluffy gold towel and examined her reflection.
"Hey, Vivian can I borrow your eyeliner? I think I forgot to bring some of mine from home," Alice asked.
"Yeah sure," Vivian handed over a black Urban Decay pencil liner as she simultaneously applied her foundation over her flawless skin.
Reid glanced down at her own makeup products. Unscrewing her bottle of Covergirl foundation, she spread it carefully over her face before uncapping her eyeliner pencil and lining her brown eyes. Ever since the beginning of Operation Makeover, Reid had made makeup part of her daily morning routine. First foundation, then comes the mascara, then comes the eyeliner. A hint of eyeshadow if she had time, then a dusting of either blush or bronzer on her cheeks. A final swipe of lip gloss finished her look.
"Do you think Shira's really going expel any of else?" Ali fastened her sparkling tie on and turned to glance at the rest of the girls.
"Yes," answered Vivian immediately. Reid glanced over at her. On the outside, she didn't seem too worried, but a tiny flicker of fear barely showed in her dark eyes. Being quiet most of her life, Reid had become a good observer, good with reading people's expressions. "I guess I'll be kicked all the way back to Colorado." She shook her head.
"Maybe Shira won't expel you," said Reid hopefully.
"Yeah, right," snorted Vivian, "I'm going to be on a plane headed straight right back at Chicago in a few short minutes."
There was a silence at Vivian's words.
"Um, we should be going down to the Pavilion," Summer broke the awkward silence.
"Yeah," nodded Ali in agreement.
"Let's go," Vivian screwed her mascara wand back into the tube and tossed it into gold makeup bag.
The sensation of bleak worry settled in her stomach as Reid made her way down the stairs of the Taylor Swift House and followed the rest of the girls into the bright cheery morning. The sunny weather seemed to be mocking Reid, as if showing how the world could be so happy yet the girls so worried.
X-X-X
It was relatively quiet in the morning. Alpha girls whispered quietly over the breakfast as muses drifted by serenely. Reid stared at her breakfast with a sinking stomach, how could she eat when her nerves were stretched so thin as if they would snap? She could be expelled! If Shira found out about her meeting with Darwin today, Reid was a dead girl. Should she call it off? She had promised to meet Darwin by the lake during lunch today, they would skip it. But the mandatory meeting today was freaking Reid out. What was Shira going to do? As if in an answer to Reid's silent question, the floor of the Pavilion slid open and Shira Brazille herself rose up on the stage. Her auburn hair blew in the breeze that seemed to come right out of nowhere and the skies outside darkened.
She's angry. Reid realized. With the ability to control everything on the island, Shira's mood reflected on the weather outside. Skies darkened, clouds grew and thunder rumbled ominously. Reid could feel the fear radiating out of every alpha girl.
"Good morning, girls," Shira greeted without a trace of a smile. "I called this meeting this morning for a single purpose. Already, girls have begun to defy my rules and just last night, I caught a girl wandering out of bed."
Her eyes were hidden behind the oversized sunglasses she wore but Reid could feel the glare Shira was sending out. She shivered.
"Now, you all know perfectly well that there is only one girl who will become alpha," Shira declared. "Rebecca Pomerleau, please come up."
Reid's eyes widened in horror. Was Shira going to expel everyone else and make Rebecca the alpha?
Rebecca walked up to the stage as whispers broke out among the alphas. Reid could tell that Rebecca was limping slightly no matter how hard she hid it. She froze as a realization came over her. She had never gone back to Rebecca with the punch. She had gotten distracted by Darwin then Ashley came up and then Vivian dragged her out on the ice. Was Rebecca mad at her? Would Rebecca get revenge on Reid for ditching her? She had no idea what Rebecca would do. She turned and glanced at Vivian, gauging her reaction to Rebecca. Vivian's face was smooth and unreadable but Reid could see the hint of anger and hatred burning from Vivian's dark eyes.
"Rebecca Pomerleau," Shira's voice boomed as Rebecca stood beside her on the stage.
"Last night, my sources have told me that there was a party," Shira's eyes seemed to be trained on Vivian as she spoke. "And I caught Rebecca stumbling around the dark around 2 am in the morning. She claimed that her ankle was sprained and that it was a certain Alpha girl's fault."
Whispers broke out in the Pavilion. The Michelle Obamas, including Sabrina, turned and stared at Vivian with accusing glares.
"Rebecca told me who was responsible for that party and which girls had orchestrated the entire party," Shira continued.
Ohmygod was she going to expel all the Taylor Swifts? Horror washed over Reid. Or just Vivian, Tammie and Dannie?
"As you all know, true alphas do not let distractions come between them and their alpha goal. Parties are a waste of time and a distraction – unless you're looking for publicity. It has barely been the very first day and already, someone has broken one of the biggest rules."
Reid swallowed hard. Which rule was she talking about? The no distractions rule? Or the no Brazille boys rule? If it was the second, she had a good chance of getting shipped home.
Shira turned her gaze towards the Taylor Swift table.
The tension was so thick that Reid could have cut it with a butter knife. Like a prisoners waiting for the fall of an ax, the girls trembled in their seats while the storm gathered and rumbled outside. Reid resisted the urge to push her hair out of her eyes, as if single move on her part would get everyone else at the table condemned.
"Vivian Dresden, please come up," Shira commanded. Instant relief flooded over Reid but was immediately replaced with concern and fear for Vivian.
"No!" Reid heard Ali whisper. Horror washed over the Taylor Swifts. No no no no no no! Reid's inner mantra screamed in denial and she long to jump up and scream Shira can't expel Vivian. All eyes turned towards the Taylor Swift table as Vivian slid out of her seat and made her way up to the stage, head held up high and teeth clenched. Reid couldn't detect a single flicker of fear or sadness in Vivian's eyes. All there was a pure defiance and suppressed anger.
"Were you, or were you not responsible for Rebecca's fall last night and did you throw the illegal skating party?" Shira accused Vivian.
Vivian was silent for a beat. Deny it! Reid longed to scream. Shira had no proof that it was Vivian, just Rebecca's word. After, the cameras had all been broken and disabled – except the one that caught Rebecca out of her house. Deny! Deny! Deny!
"Yes," Vivian finally answered, her voiced didn't waver. No! shrieked Reid's inner voice.
"I did throw the party but I was not responsible for Rebecca. She chose to skate and failed. That was not my problem. A true alpha does not blame others for her mistakes. Page eighty-four. As for distractions, I was skating. Ask anyone." Her dark eyes met Shira's unflinchingly.
No reply.
Shira merely stared at Vivian. Behind the dark sunglasses, Reid had no idea whether Vivian had taken Shira by surprise or the opposite. Or many Shira was furious at Vivian's audacity. After all, no one had ever stood up to Shira Brazille. Vivian was either very brave or very stupid. Maybe a mix of both.
"Correct," Shira finally answered.
She turned back into the audience and spoke, "Vivian is right, no matter what happens, a true alpha never blames other for their own mistakes – and nor do they betray their friends. When Rebecca was caught, she was crying. She named every girl at the party and would do anything, as long as I would keep her at Alpha Academy. A true alpha does not beg. A true alpha does not cry. Rebecca Pomerleau, you have shown that you are not alpha material. Heather?"
Wait, what?
A muse with long blond hair walked up to the stage with Rebecca's suitcases.
"Heather will escort you to the planes. Rebecca, you are dismissed from Alpha Academy," Shira stated with finality.
"What?" gasped Rebecca, looking at Shira in shock and disbelief. "But it's Vivian's fault! She threw the party! I fell because of her! I – "
"Enough!" boomed Shira. "Goodbye, Rebecca." Heather, the muse, took Rebecca firmly by the arm and dragged a hysterical and sobbing Rebecca out the door.
"Girls without alpha material are not welcomed here at Alpha Academy. Alpha Academy was built for alphas, not sobbing betas. Weakness is a fault. Betas have faults and alphas do not. Girls will be expelled if showing any sign of losing their alpha potentials. Rebecca Pomerleau was the first to go, the girl who will be next is up for your own behavior to decide." Shira's threatening words echoed around the building.
"Alphas, you are dismissed. Vivian, I will see you in my office. Good day, m'dears." Shira grabbed Vivian's arm and the platform descended back down and the Pavilion was left in shock. It was quiet and still among the remaining ninety-eight girls. It was as if the entire school had frozen. Butterflies stopped fluttering in their path and ninety-eight pairs of eyes were glued to the spot where Shira's stage had vanished. Then the silence was broken. Chattering and whispers broke out among the alphas like a erupting volcano.
"Oh. My. God." Alice stared. "Did that all just happen or was it just me?"
Reid was stunned. Shira expelled Rebecca!
"I guess Vivian had a good argument," Summer said thoughtfully, " but I think we should be heading to class, though."
"At least Vivian isn't expelled!" exclaimed Ali, "That's the whole point!"
"Yeah," nodded Reid.
"Class, girls," Ivory reminded. "Summer's right, you girls should be going to class right away."
Reid nodded with the other girls but a part of her wondered what Rebecca had told Shira. Did Shira know about the meeting with Darwin today? Would Shira expel her? Should she even meet up with Darwin. It was too risky. Summer would have said no. Vivian would have said yes. Alice would be uncertain and Ali would agree with Vivian. But this was Reid. She knew what her friends would say, question was, what would she do?
"Is Shira really going to expel Vivian?" asked Summer.
"Only the true ones will see what the future will hold," Ivory said dreamily. "
"Coming, Reid?"
"Huh?" Reid glanced up to see Alice waiting for her.
"You've got painting, right? I'll walk with you. I'm heading towards my acting class," Reid saw a flicker of disgust flash over Alice's face as she said the words "acting class".
"Oh yeah, sure," Reid stood up from the table, "Let's go."
As Reid walked out of the Pavilion with Alice, she couldn't help but sneak a look up at the balcony, scanning for Darwin's face. Her brown eyes met his and she quickly looked away but didn't miss the warm smile he gave her. A feeling of guilt and dismay washed over her as she thought about his reaction if she never showed up at the lake during lunch. Right. So what was it? Go meet Darwin and risk expulsion? Or play safe?
X-X-X
"Fifty bucks says she's expelled."
Alice whirled around.
"Sabrina," Alice clenched her teeth as she met the blue eyes of the blond perfection that was Sabrina Benson.
Sabrina smirked back at Alice. "So how's your friend? Too bad she won't be around for long, Shira hates attitude."
Alice scowled at Sabrina as she finished tossing the her costume back into the closet. Class had ended a few minutes ago and Sabrina hadn't hesitated to throw a few insults her way the entire class.
"At least Vivian wasn't expelled in front of the entire academy like the beta Rebecca is," Alice fired back, "As if anyone would even expel Vivian, she's ten-times the alpha you are."
"The ice-skater?" scoffed Sabrina, "Puh-lease."
"Gawd, are we on this topic again?" another voice came from behind a rack of clothes. Marin Perez's unmistakable dark hair stood out from the pastel dresses. She walked over to Sabrina and Alice before sitting down next to Sabrina and shaking her dark hair out of the braid that she had twisted her hair in. "Sabrina, you're just mad that the skater girl beat you to the first party. Get over it, chica." She shrugged.
Alice smiled. So Marin wasn't a total Sabrina Benson minion.
"Shut up, Marin. She's going to be kicked home anyways, hopefully along with this wannabe-loser over here," Sabrina jerked a thumb at Alice.
"Don't you dare call me a wannabe-loser!" Alice leapt up from her seat and glared at Sabrina.
"I'm not calling you any names," Sabrina smirked, "I'm just stating a fact."
Alice's marine blue eyes narrowed in anger. Sabrina Benson had to go. But her anger and revenge would have to wait until later. Maybe Vivian could throw another party and kick Sabrina to wherever the hell she came from? Swallowing back the retorts and anger that bubbled up to the surface, Alice merely gave Sabrina cold look before turning her back on her. Breathe in. Breathe out. Don't let her get to you. She's not worth it.
"Oh please," Alice said, "I'm the farthest thing from a loser or a wannabe."
Stalking outside and relishing the cool air and freedom from the confining studio, Alice finger-swept the bangs out of her eyes as her feet crunched on the pebbly path on her way from the Eris Studio. She liked Alpha Academy. It was pretty, beautiful and sunny here. Yet, behind its paradisaic exterior, a world of backstabbing, competition and rivalries ran rampage on the sunny beaches of Alpha Island. It was like a movie, thought Alice, reflectively. In a movie, a girl might play the part of a sweet innocent girl while in real life, she was a pure b*tch. Sabrina Benson was the perfect example. Lost in thought, Alice didn't notice where she was going until she ran smack right into a body standing in front of her.
"Sorry!" she cried and spun around to see who she had almost knocked over. Her marine blue eyes widened when they met the steady gaze of Sydney Brazille. "Oh. Um. Hi." she said awkwardly.
"Sydney, right?" Alice asked. She didn't know much about Sydney Brazille. All she knew was that he was the youngest Brazille and wasn't in the tabloids as much as his brothers. Oh, and he was poetic and artsy. Like a shyer, nerdier, geekier, more sensitive version of Darwin. She gaze roamed over his plain grey sweater, dark jeans and worn sneakers and nerd-esque glasses.
"You're Alice?" he asked. Alice felt a bit uncomfortable under his intense gaze.
"Yeah," she said simply. She didn't really have much of an interest in Sydney. She was more interested in Mel, who had almost everything in common with her. He liked acting. She liked acting. He had modeled before. She wished she was a model. Sydney, however, was just a quiet guy. She'd most likely never look at him as something more than friends.
His lips broke into a smile, "I've heard about you. You're really talented, you know." he added.
"Um, thanks?" Alice said it like a question. She was slighty unsure about his flattery. Yeah, it was nice but it still felt a bit weird.
"So did you go to the party last night?" she didn't really remember seeing him but figured that if the whole academy was there, he was probably lurking around in some corner.
"No. I'm not much of party person," Sydney smiled, revealing a row of perfect white teeth.
Alice tilted her head to the side. "Darwin was there, and he didn't really seem like a party person. So why didn't you go? The punch was pretty good," she flashed him a smile. Easy conversation, that was something that she was good at. Striking up conversations in awkward situations was one of Alice's specialties. It was like acting, coming up with a quick improv scene. Alice always liked acting. Ever since she had first snagged the lead role, Dorothy, in her school musical, The Wiz, she had fallen in love with the stage. She loved the directing, the acting, the cuts and the entire production feeling of it all. Acting was like stepping into someone else's shoes and seeing the world in their point of view. It was pretty cool.
She smiled back at Sydney. "Parties aren't always everything," she shrugged. "You just missed out on some really good punch and a crazy game of freeze-tag with Taz and Vivian."
"Vivian's the girl who almost got expelled, right? The ice-skater," he asked.
"Yeah, that's her. But she's not going to get expelled." Alice's voice turned hard with conviction.
"She won't," Sydney reassured her. "Taz and Dingo like her too much for Mom to expel her. Apparently "someone has to throw the parties around here" and provide fun for us all," Sydney quoted his brothers. "They like her 'cause she's fun and throws parties."
Alice smiled. Fun and throws parties. Those words described Vivian perfectly. No matter how Vivian made her skating seem like the world, Alice knew that under Vivian's determination, Vivian was just another teenage girl who loved to party and have fun.
"Really?" she asked.
"Why don't you text her and ask her where she is?" Sydney suggested. "Mom won't confiscate her aPod."
Oh! Alice smacked herself in the forehead. "Why didn't I think of that? You're a genius, Syd." She whipped her aPod out of her pocket and shot a quick message off to Vivian. Turning back to Sydney, she gave him a genuine smile. "Thanks."
"No problem," he smiled sweetly at her. "I've got to go now, Mom wants to talk to me, but see you later!" he waved as he walked off.
He was a nice kid, thought Alice. Nice, friendly, just a generally nice guy.
She turned away from the retreating figure of Sydney and continued on her path on the way to the Pavilion for lunch. Strolling along the path besides the beach seemed like a thoughtful thinking moment to Alice. She reflected on her arrival and last few days at Alpha Academy as her bare feet made size seven foot prints in the soft sand of the Rainbow Coral Beach. She had unstrapped her sandals a while ago and now they swung by their straps in her left hand. Skipping nutrition for the day, she slid down and leaned her back against a palm tree as her marine blue eyes gazed out at the sparkling sea - a color that matched her eyes perfectly.
Tilting her head back, she ran over the past events of Alpha Academy. It was barely the third day and a girl had been expelled. Time seemed to just rush past here at Alpha Island, like everything was on fast-forward and a day without drama was like peanut butter without jelly. Pointless. She wished that there would be some semblance of peace.
Back home, Alice had always been the best. The best teen actress in all of Britain. The most talented girl, the prettiest, the most successful and envied girl in the entire country. But now she wasn't the same girl as before. Pre-alphas Alice wasn't up to par with Shira Brazille and Rosaline's demands. If she wanted to win, she would need to start stepping it up and kicking some actresses' butts, particularly one named Sabrina Benson. It wasn't that easy though. Alice had gotten so used to being the top and best that she barely had any memory of having to compete for anything. She was born into a family with money and influence, she starred in commercials and movies since she was baby and grew along with the movies, starring in every movie that she could and as many as would fit her time schedule. She played the roles of a baby, a toddler, a little kid and become the best teenage actress at the age of thirteen. But now, she had Sabrina, Delphi, Marin and other girls to compete with. Especially the blonde bitch from hell named Sabrina. With that golden-blond hair that Rapunzel could only dream of and big sky-blue eyes that had more sparkle than aquamarines, Sabrina was a walking Barbie doll with diva attitude. The poster-girl and stereotype of actresses.
But Alice wasn't going to stand for that. She didn't earn her spot at Alpha Academy by mere talent, she had determination and ambition and Sabrina Benson wasn't going to steal her spot just like that. She straightened up from her seat at the base of the palm tree and walked over to the water's edge, her feet sinking in the soft sand and making footprints in the wet sand where the water lapped at her bare-feet. Her baby pink painted toes feet shimmered slightly in the light – she had borrowed Vivian's nail polish the night before – and she admired the color.
Picking up and flat smooth rock from the beach, she remembered the times that she had skipped rocks on the cold, wet, rainy shores of London. No matter what the weather, Alice would always find time to go skip rocks at the beach. It might have been unproductive but it took her mind off the drama on the set. Her mother had taught her how to skip rocks before she became caught up in a new dance company and moved off from Alice. It was one of the few memories Alice had of her mother, before she grew distant and she clung to that memory.
If you get the rock to skip ten times, you're granted a wish.
Her mother's voice echoed in her head and she remembered standing on a rock at her tiny stance when she was seven and staring out at the sea. Weighing the rock in her palm, she hesitated for a brief second before tossing it out to the sea.
One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten. Eleven. It plopped one last time and sank underneath the surface.
A tiny victorious smile tilted up the corners of Alice's lips. A feeling of accomplishment and success washed over her and it brought her a small wave of happiness to lighten her mood. Fixing her gaze on the spot where her rock sank, she made her wish.
I wish….that I would become the best actress of Alpha Academy and somehow get to know my family more.
And one more tiny thing? I wish that Vivian wouldn't get expelled.
X-X-X
Ali: Where are you?
Reid: Are you ok? Shira can't be that mean…..
Ali: Text me once your sprung!
Summer: Is Shira expelling you? Text us back!
Alice: Where are you? Text us once your away from Shira!
Ali: Vivian? Answer your aPod please!
Summer: The Michelle Obamas hate you, btw. Screw them. Are you done with Shira?
Ali: Is it scary there? Come on, Viv. Questioning doesn't take that long!
Tammie: Why did you confess? She had NO proof! No cameras! Ugh! Want me to break you out? Jk (:
Reid: We're at Nutrition, are you coming?
Dannie: Where are you? Class is over and she's still talking?
Alice: Text us back!
Ali: My gawd, did your aPod break?
Reid: You sure you're ok? Hope she doesn't expel you!
Dannie: Skating sucked without you. ): Suzanne's been showing off since you weren't there to show her up.
Vivian breathed a sigh of relief as she walked out of Shira's office. With a threat to expel her, a warning for future parties and a pat on the head, Shira had released Vivian without another word. Stating her disappointment in the fact that Vivian had broken the rules on her first day, Shira had expressed her displeasure while Vivian maintained her slightly regretful expression. But following up with a comment on how she was surprise that Vivian had pulled it off, Shira conceded to let Vivian stay. Only because she had shown her alpha potential first as a skater and second as a ringleader and a party-thrower. However, for punishment for breaking the rules, Vivian had to miss out on her next two spa sessions and had the task of driving the Zamboni to smooth the ice. Thank god she had learned to drive it back when she had a brief fling with the Zamboni driver back at the Colorado Springs Skating Center.
She had been expecting a lot worse. From Shira's unyielding expressions and cold triumph when expelling Rebecca, Vivian had expected to be dealt with a lot more harshly. But she wasn't one to compain. She took the punishment and promised to stop her party-girl attitude - while crossing her toes - and was released from the prison of Shira's office. Shira Brazille might be the ultimate alpha female and owner of Brazille Enterprises but she was still an authority figure, and Vivian Dresden rarely ever listened to authority figures.
She slid her aPod out of her pocket and glanced at the screen. 15 new messages. She quickly opened up a new message and quickly sent out a vague reply to everyone.
Vivian: I'm not expelled (:
Shoving aPod back into the pocket of her blazer, she turned away from the path towards the Pavilion and instead moved off towards the Tree House which was besides the Fuselage - the Alpha Writers' classroom. Shuttling off another message to Ali, she yanked her hair out of her high ponytail and shook it out. The sea breeze from the ocean blew past her face, ruffling her hair as she walked along the path.
When she arrived at the Tree House, she climbed up the rope ladder nimbly and tossed herself down on one of the couches that were scattered around the small wooden block-shaped tree house. A hammock swung gently in the breeze on the deck of the tree house and a glossy black telescope was set up in a perfect position to view the stars at night. Inside, eight comfy couches decorated the interior along with a rounded coffee table and a bookshelf. Vivian had decided to skip the Nutrition to find some peace and quiet away from the drama of Alpha Academy.
"Oh. My. Gawd! Spill! Did Shira scream at you? Yell at you? Threaten you? Did you mention any other names? Are you in trouble? At least your not expelled! Ohmygod the Michelle Obamas totally hate you now, especially that one blonde, Sabrina."
Vivian straightened up from her lazy recline on the couch and met Ali's bright green eyes that were sparking with interest.
"Hey, Ali!"
"Spill," ordered Ali, throwing herself into another couch across from Vivian.
"Well, what do you want to know?" Vivian evaded the general question and looked at Ali expectantly.
"Everything!" Ali pouted impatiently and stuck her hands on her hips as she mock-glared at Vivian.
"Like what?" Vivian smirked, "My god, you act like I went out on a date instead of almost being expelled!"
"Fine, was Shira mad?" Ali said.
"Nope," Vivian popped the P. "Well, if she was, she didn't make it obvious."
Ali paused as she considered this, and then she followed up with another question. "Did she give you detention or something?"
"I get to smooth the ice every morning, and I can't go to the Taylor Swift spa sessions. Aren't we booked for tomorrow or something?"
"Smooth the ice?" Ali's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
"With the Zamboni," Vivian explained simply.
Ali nodded slowly, pretending she knew what Vivian was talking about. She figured that it had something to do with ice-skating.
"So...what's with you and Taz at the party yesterday?"
"What's with you and Dingo at the party yesterday?" Vivian smiled slyly.
X-X-X
Darwin: Where are you? Are you coming?
Darwin: Waiting by the lake :)
Reid stared the screen of her aPod trying to choose. Meet Darwin? Stick with Summer and Alice? Go with her heart? Or her brain? Take a risk? Or play safe?
Watching the colorful aluminum butterflies flutter by, she made her decision. She just hoped it was the right one.
Reviews make me happy! PM with plot ideas if you want :) or if you just have a few suggestions. I have the general plot planned out to the end...but some in-between drama and sub-plots would help, a lot!
I don't have a beta so all the mistakes are mine.
-The Lovely Psyche