BLOCK ESTATE
MASSIE'S ROOM
3:03 PM
JANUARY 4, 2013

"Ehmagawd, Kuh-laire, relax!"

"What if he doesn't like me?"

"He asked you out," Massie explained slowly. "Of course he likes you. Now stawp moving."

Obediantly, she held still as Massie tried out a dark teal A-line dress. "That's the one," the Alpha announced, handing it over and turning away so Claire could change, knowing how shy the blonde was about her body. When she was finished, Massie stared at her critically, closing one eye, then the other. Eventually, she gave Claire matching Cole Haan pumps. A simple coordinating clutch would hold a tube of MAC gloss, her Samsung Flight, and a tiny container of Chanel #5. Then she picked up a silver bracelet with a small charm hanging off it. A heart.

RIVERA MANSION
ALICIA'S ROOM
3:07 PM
JANUARY 4, 2013

"What to wear, what to wear?" Alicia tapped her foot as she sifted through thousands of pieces of clothing, searching for just the right thing to wear on her first date with Josh Hotz.

She'd called the guy she'd technically been going out with and broken it off last night. During said call, she found out that he'd been cheating on her... with more than one girl. Asshole.

After another ten minutes, she was beginning to become desperate. The movie started at 3:40, and she wasn't even dressed. So she dialed Massie, who picked up on the second ring.

"Leesh?"

"Mass. Is Kuh-laire wearing a dress?"

"Yeah, Brian Atwood. What about you?"

Alicia glanced down at her outfit, the same one she'd worn to school that day: a dark-red-and-black hem-tie Tory Burch tube top with black jeans and maroon lace-up heels. A gold watch mixed in with bangles was almost too much for her thin wrist, but she pulled it off. "Me too. Is Kuh-laire ready to be picked up?"

"Pretty much. Just a little more makeup..."

All of a sudden, there was a crash and a scream, and the iPhone disconnected. Alicia went back to gazing hopelessly at her closet. It was while she was staring off into space that she noticed the perfect thing: a sleeveless marigold-colored Versace number with an assymetrcal bubble hem. An black satin ribbon tied into a bow at the waist kept the dress from looking frumpy. A black, white, and marigold Hermes clutch that she'd never thought would match anything was an absolutely perfect accesory. Towering black peep-toe Blahniks pulled it all together, especially when paired with obsidian stud earrings. Some pale blush, light lipstick, and mascara were always Alicia's go-to makeup choices. A black-and-gold flower ring was perched on her middle finger. She was officially impeccable.

Then she checked the time. 3:26. Not bad.

She jumped into her limo. "Camine en él, Alex!" she shouted.

"Si, señorita." In accordance with her orders, he put the pedal to the metal and high-tailed it toward the Block estate.

JEFFERSON VALLEY MOVIE THEATER
SIDEWALK
3:37 PM
JANUARY 4, 2013

"Thank Gawd," Claire murmured when she saw Alicia leap out of the car. "Heart the dress!" she called.

"You too," she replied, not looking as though she even noticed the Epsilon's outfit. "Are the boys here?"

"Inside. But I told them I was waiting for you."

Alicia returned the favor by power-walking past her and into the theater.

Claire sighed. Some things never changed.

BODY ALIVE DANCE STUDIO
LOCKER ROOM
3:46 PM
JANUARY 4, 2013

"Get out here!" Mrs. Farson, Dylan's dance teacher, shouted.

Dylan stripped off her jeans and pulled on soft black Sophie shorts, which she folded over twice so they barely cleared her crotch. She also had on a dark pink spaghetti-strap tank. She tied her hair into a quick bun, secured it with a Scrunchie, and took off her ankle socks. Then she rushed into the studio.

She breathed in the smell of fresh wood, mingling with ballet shoes from the previous group. Tik Tok by Ke$ha was blasting from the radio in the corner.

"Warm-ups!" Mrs. Farson's eyes lit up as they landed on Dylan. "Go."

She ran to the front of the room, counted in, and began arm circles. By the time they were done, the teacher was ready to start. "Okay, girls, we've picked out recital music." She gazed meaningfully into the eyes of each girl in her A6 (sixth-grade advanced) class. "Our song is..." She winked at Dylan, thanking her for using her mother's connections to get to the album before it actually came out. "Heart Attack by Demi Lovato!" She slid it into the machine and hit play.

I'm... putting my defenses up
Cuz I don't wanna fall in love
If I ever did that, I think I'd have a heart attack!
Never put my love out on the line
Never said yes to the right guy
Never had trouble getting what I want
But when it comes to you I'm never good enough.

By the last chorus, most of the dancers were singing along.

But you, make me want to act like a girl
Paint my nails and wear perfume
For you, make me so nervous that I just can't hold your hand!
You make me glow!
But I cover up; won't let it show!
So I'm... putting my defenses up,
Cuz I don't wanna fall in love
If I ever did that,
I think I'd have a heart attack!

"Great song," a slightly trashy blonde named Olivia Ryan gushed. Dylan vaguely remembered Alicia talking with her at the party.

"Thanks," she blurted before Mrs. Farson could say anything.

"Huh?" Olivia seemed confused.

"We wouldn't have this if it weren't for my mom. So you should be thanking me." She smirked smugly.

"Thanks," most of the class muttered.

"And since Dylan, who is one of our best dancers, brought this amazing song to our class, I think she should be the one to lead our troupe. Objections?"

Nobody had one.

JEFFERSON VALLEY MOVIE THEATER
LOBBY
2:41
JANUARY 4, 2013

"So what are we watching?" Claire wanted to know. She was clutching a blue raspberry Icee against her chest.

"The Dark Truth," Josh told her. "There's, like, nothing else."

"Didn't all that stuff just come out?" Alicia challenged.

"Yeah, but it all sucks."

Claire knew she wasn't allowed to see R-rated movies, and she had a feeling Judi wouldn't appreciate her daughter's first one being with a slut, her boyfriend, and Cam. But she kept her mouth shut. She didn't want to sound like an LBR. "Can't wait."

"Cool. Let's get in there before it starts." Josh handed their tickets to the attendant, who waved them inside.

"Why'd they let us in?" asked Claire. "We need an adult to see a movie that's rated R."

"We bought tickets for Allegiance," Josh explained. "Cuz it's PG13. We're just gonna sneak into The Dark Truth."

Claire nodded. She suddenly felt like crying, though. Was she scared?

They were settled in by the time the previews ended.

In the dim light, Claire could see that Josh was holding Alicia's hand. Timidly, she reached for Cam's. She trailed her fingers along his wrist, and very carefully slipped her small palm into her boyfriend's fist. He gave her a smile and squeezed her hand, which brought a smile to her face. She didn't watch any of the movie. She was too engrossed in the boy sitting next to her.

WESTCHESTER
FDR PARK
5:16 PM
JANUARY 4, 2013

"Come on, guys," Kristen urged, doing lunges.

Gingerly, her teammates followed her out onto the cold field and began prepping for the big game. They handed their water or Gatorade bottles off to Coach Kumrow, who put them inside so the liquid didn't turn to ice. Most soccer teams didn't play year-round, but the major-league private schools did, and OCD definitely qualified as a major-league private school.

"Huddle," Kristen ordered. "Now, listen, guys, this is States. Our last game, our final game, unless we can win and make it to Sectionals. So do your best. That's all we need. And there's no room for mistakes. We see you screwing up, and we're putting someone else in." She consulted the cliqpboard she was holding. "Jessie?"

"Here."

"Mariella?"

"Here."

When she finished, the ref was ready, and Coach Kumrow only had one last thing to say. "I'm so proud of you girls. Go get 'em."

JEFFERSON VALLEY MOVIE THEATER
LOBBY
5:56 PM
JANUARY 4, 2013

Rubbing her eyes, Alicia wobbled into the lobby, which was abnormally bright compared to the dim movie theater.

MASSIEKUR: Can u come over?
HOLAGURRL: Just me?
MASSIEKUR: Every1, stupid. Tell Kuh-laire.

"Kuh-laire, Mass wants us to go over there."

"I thought we were gonna go to Applebees with the boys," she pouted.

"Change of plans."

BLOCK ESTATE
MASSIE'S ROOM
6:12 PM
JANUARY 4, 2013

"What do you want?" Dylan demanded. "We were having so much fun at dance! Oh, did I tell you I'm leading the troupe at the recital this year?"

"Seriously," Kristen agreed. "The team was gonna go out to ice cream and then sleep over at the coach's house."

"We were gonna go to a real restaurant with the boys and everything," Claire whined.

"Point."

"Well, I just thought we needed a GLU meeting. We haven't had one for ages." Massie looked slightly put out.

"Couldn't you have waited for tomorrow night?" Kristen wondered.

"Can we at least go shopping instead of sitting around?" Alicia pleaded.

"Sure. We can go to BCBG, right, Dyl?"

"Uh-huh."

"Great."

WESTCHESTER MALL
FOOD COURT
6:38 PM
JANUARY 4, 2013

"Alright, where should we go?" Massie prompted, tearing a napkin into five pieces. Three BCBG bags sat next to her chair.

"Ralph Lauren," Alicia suggested. Massie wrote it down and dropped the slip face-down on the table.

"Alice&Olivia," contradicted Dylan.

"How 'bout Donna Karan?" proposed Kristen.

"I say Louis Vuitton." Claire had fallen in love with the new season's handbags.

"Oscar di La Renta," Massie finished. She shuffled the papers and selected one. She unfolded it dramatically and read off, "Donna Karan."

They were walking toward the designer wing when Dylan moaned, "Ugh, I don't feel like going to Donna We went last week."

"Too bad." Massie shrug-smirked. "I say we're going to Donna; we're going to Donna." She tossed her hair. Just as she was turning into the store, she was stopped by two girls: Vail Collins and Zara Warren.

They were beautiful, feisty, and they seemed like sharks just waiting to devour Massie's minnow. "How mean can you get?" Vail snapped to Zara.

"No kidding," the girl giggled, shooting daggers at Massie as they walked by.

Vail turned to look at Massie, shooting daggers with her eyes. "Talk about a bitch."

They moved on, not seeming to care how they'd affected the Alpha.

Massie was in tears. "Why-why would they say that?" she sobbed. "I... What did I do to them?"

"It's okay, Mass." Alicia rubbed her gently on the back. "They just have nothing better to do. It's okay."

"Yeah, I know you weren't being rude on purpose," Dylan commented.

Kristen took a step closer. "Chill, Mass, it'll be fine."

Claire, however, had the wisest words. "Hold your head high, gorgeous." She gently brushed away a tear that was sliding down Massie's cheek. "People will kill to see you fall."

This is the last one... :(
JK, there's a next book! Check on my profile; the first chapter will be up within a week. If you voted for the next book, that's great and helpful, if you haven't, do, and if you'd like to change ur vote PM me from what to what. READ: And if the next book ends up being seventh grade, which it looks like it will be, just keep in mind that this book ends in the middle of sixth grade, and seventh grade will pick up the summer before, so it will skip the rest of sixth, so we'll just assume nothing big happened. See you next book!

Heart ya,
Joy