Sorry for not updating! I hope you guys like this chapter :)

"Lis, what's up, my girl?" I ask, answering immediately as my phone rings.

"Max, the Winter Masquerade is coming in a week!" She cries, sounding nervous. I laugh silently. Lissa may act like the queen of the world, but sometimes she allows her confidence seep out of her. "I'm so worried!" She wails into the phone. I smile. "Don't worry, Lissa, I'm going over," I say. She grunts and hangs up, proving just how nervous she is about the dance.

I walk into my car, a sleek and red BMW convertible I got on my sixteenth birthday. Driving quickly with my hair streaming through the wind, I feel like I'm flying. I arrive at her house, a huge Grecian-style mansion placed among a throng of other million dollar mansions. Quickly putting in the safety code, I enter. Lissa's mother, Layla Dawson, looks up, packing her yoga supplies into a bag. She has her yoga classes today. She has delicate, elf-ish features, a small body, soft hazel eyes unlike Lissa's, and flaming red hair. In many way, Lissa looks exactly like her mom. Layla Dawson may look like Lissa's slightly older sister, but she's actually in her fifties.

"Afternoon, Maxine. I believe you just finished school, yes?" Layla asks in her polite manner. She tends to call me Maxine, even if it isn't my real name. "Yes, Mrs. Dawson. Nice to see you," I reply, smiling. She nods, her red hair spilling out of her head band. "Lissa's upstairs, dear. She's quite upset about something...I do not know what it is, though," she tells me. I nod. "Yes. She explained. It's just about...you know, the dance and stuff," I answer truthfully.

Lissa's mom pauses, eyebrows furrowed. "Yes, that is just like Lissa," she mutters, sighing. She straightens, strapping the work-out bag on her back. She starts to leave, but then she turns to me, eyes soft. "Maximum...I always thought you would be able to change my daughter back to her care-free, innocent self," she begins, sighing. I smile. She called me Maximum. Her eyes focus on me. "But now I realize you are too far in the abyss...good luck getting out."

I'm jolted from my daze when she slams the door closed. I sink to the floor. What had she meant?

Clearing my head, I head upstairs into Lissa's orange and sunset pink room with its large, flat-screen TV and king-sized bed. Lissa is staring at herself in a mirror, sighing and studying each angle of herself in the dress. Her dress was black and dark blue. It was slightly slutty in my opinion, ending at mid-thigh, but this was Lissa I was talking about.

"You look beautiful, darling!" I say, laughing. Lissa turns, smiling gratefully. "Thanks. Do you think Ethan will like it?" She asked, twirling in her dress. I roll my eyes, arms crossed. "Lis...you are Lissa Dawson, queen bitch of the school. If he doesn't like it, he doesn't deserve you. Who the hell cares about what he thinks? After all, he's just some guys you hooked up with just for the dance." I tilt my head, watching her. "But I still don't understand why you're going to the dance with him. He's like the biggest nerd at school. Sure, he may be cute, but you know how anti-social he is," I say.

Lissa sits on her bed, tracing the silver patterns on her pink covers. "Yeah...that's what I thought. But when I started to get to know him, I really saw how sweet he is," she explained. She looks up at me solemnly.

"After our argument, I bumped into him, and he asked me what was wrong. I basically broke down. At the time, I thought I had just lost my best friend...you. He really made me feel a lot better. Like he actually cared and he didn't just like me for being one of the most popular girls at school. So...I said yes to him about going to the dance."

A tear falls down her cheek.

"He reminds me of Fang."

I take a step back. She still loves Fang, I think.

She loves him more than anything.

"Lissa..." I murmur, gently placing a hand on her forearm. She looks up at me, a fiery look in her emerald eyes. "You were right that day. I'm bringing the popularity system down. We have to. It's so stupid and shallow and mean and, and...I hate it. I see what you were talking about," she says, passion in her voice.

"What are you planning to do?" I ask, pride swelling in my chest. Layla was right. I can't change Lissa.

She can change herself, even better than I could ever help her change.

Lissa stands up, grinning. "First...let's get rid of these slutty clothes."

We get rid of all of the tube tops and mini skirts and mini dresses and short shorts in her closet. She packs them up in a box, deciding to send them to Goodwill. She keeps all of her designer clothes and such, but that's called fashionable.

Her other dress, another that she chose, is beautiful and sweet on her, and I think Ethan will like this so much better than the minidress.

I'm happy for her.

As I leave her house, I feel like I have to watch my back. I feel like someone's eyes are watching. Chills run up and down my back. The wind picks up, blowing my hair into my eyes, momentarily disorienting my vision. A sticky note lands at my feet, and I reach down to pick it up. It's written in the bold writing of none other than a girl who used to be my friend.

YOU MAY HAVE WON THIS TIME, BUT THE COMPETITION'S ON, BITCH. WATCH YOURSELF. QUEENS BLEED JUST LIKE REGULAR PEOPLE.

YOUR FRIEND,

M

I clench the note in my fist, glaring at the sky. Who else could it be?

Maya.

Yay! On that happy note, this chapter is over. Hope you liked it! Sorry about it being so short. what will happen!