Disclaimer: I own all the characters in this story.


Chapter Five


Prescott Preparatory School for Girls

First-Floor Bathroom

7:43 A.M.

Thursday, September 5th

Staring directly at her flawless reflection in the rectangular-shaped bathroom mirror, Madeleine checked her makeup and discovered that there weren't any smudges. Sighing, she smoothed the creases in her cropped lilac Black Halo top, turning her head toward her friends. Seeing that the girls were currently inspecting their ensembles for flaws, Madeleine cleared her throat loudly to attract her friends' attention to her as she stretched her slender neck from side to side. Discovering that the girls were now paying attention to her, she collected her thoughts for a moment and said something to her friends.

Madeleine sat elegantly on the bathroom window sill and crossed her slender legs together. "Oh, besties, are you guys going to the Back-to-School dance next Friday night?" she asked her friends, remembering that the social club had posted the dance's date on the school website calendar.

"Maddie, I'm going to the dance," Scarlett answered honestly as she pulled the short, fitted Alice + Olivia denim romper she wore from between her butt cheeks.

Audrey shook her long, silky platinum-blonde curls out of her cerulean-blue eyes. "Yeah, I already decided to attend the dance," she said truthfully.

"In the beginning, I decided that I wasn't going to the dance," Mackenzie replied as she plucked several loose threads off her belted yellow-and-white Marni cami minidress. "But then, I realized that my social life would have tanked if I didn't take part in the dance itself."

Kayla perched carefully on one of the bathroom's sinks and crossed her ankles together. "Oh, yeah," she beamed happily. "I ultimately decided that I'm attending this dance."

"So, girlies, who are you guys waiting to ask you to the dance?" Madeleine asked after Kayla's statement. She played with her signature pearl necklace, uncrossing her legs.

Scarlett looked at the bathroom mirror and slathered another coat of cherry-flavored Pretty & Perfect lip gloss on her lips. "Scott," she said, grinning from ear to ear. "I'm waiting for him to ask me. If he doesn't get the hint, I would have to call him and ask him myself."

Mackenzie tied her white Arkis embellished cardigan around her waist. "Declan," she snickered. "After we hung out yesterday afternoon with Scar and Scott, I ended up waiting for three hours for him to text him, so I would send him a text later tonight."

"James," Kayla said excitedly. She reached deep inside her medium nude Dolce & Gabbana leather-and-suede satchel and snatched her black Red Bliss waterproof mascara out of her purse. Opening the tube of mascara, Kayla lifted the mascara wand to her long lashes and applied another coat of mascara on them. "I got this feeling after a long text conversation that he's trying to find a way to ask me to the dance."

"Aiden," Audrey giggled softly. She claimed a spot on the bathroom counter near Kayla. "I've got my eyes set on making him escort me to the dance."

Madeleine jumped from the window sill and rotated towards the bathroom mirror. She cocked her head to the side and fluffed her glossy honey-blonde waves. "I think Lachlan is gonna ask me to the dance," she chuckled. "So, besties, have you guys been hounded by our loser classmates?"

Kayla glanced down nervously and fiddled with her gold Mizuki pearl-and-diamond statement necklace. "Um, no, Mads," she replied. "I thought they would have invaded my personal space for a moment, but then they must have seen the facial expressions on my face that told them to stay away from me."

Audrey crossed her ankles together while making sure her black Hugo Boss lace thong underwear didn't flash her friends accidentally. "Of course," she responded to her friend's question. "When I was walking into the school, a bunch of students was gawking at my presence and stuttering some comments about my outfit."

"Yes, Maddy," Scarlett said, smiling brightly. She shrugged elegantly before bouncing from one red knotted-bow patent-leather Kate Spade thong sandal-clad foot to another. "I mean, I was walking down the hallway toward this bathroom. They were saying there were over nine hundred likes on the selfie I posted this morning."

"Uh, Maddie, some of our classmates moved to the side for me," Mackenzie expressed, playing with her diamond chandelier earrings. "And, let me go first to print out my class schedule from the kiosks."

"After you guys went inside the school, I sneaked a peek around the front lawn and caught students looking at me," Madeleine admitted, adjusting her custom-made white pearl-embellished headband. "I heard some of the false rumors that they were sharing about us. Instead of breaking down, I continued to keep a blank stare on my face and pretended that their rumors didn't affect me at all."

Mackenzie leaned against the bathroom counter and crossed her arms over her chest. "Girlies, I have something to tell you guys," she cooed, changing the subject.

"About what?" Audrey questioned her friend, her eyes open with surprise.

Scarlett twirled a curly lock of her icy-blonde hair between her delicate fingers. "Give us the tea," she said excitedly.

"Same," Kayla agreed with Scarlett as she continued to perch on the bathroom sink and brushed some lint off her nude La Silla knee-high suede boots.

Madeleine placed her right manicured hand on the bathroom counter, waiting for Mackenzie to share the gossip with everyone. "Kenzie, you need to spill the deets to me," she snickered, checking her lilac and white nails.

"I may or may not have heard that Lachlan is gonna call Maddie during her slumber party tomorrow night," Mackenzie smiled brightly. Looking down, she dug around her mini bright-yellow Givenchy satchel and yanked her compact out of her designer handbag. Mackenzie checked her eyeshadow for any smudges and was happy that her makeup remained flawless. She then dropped her compact back inside her purse and turned her attention to her friends.

"No way!" Scarlett gasped loudly, her jaw completely dropped in disbelief. She then took a seat on the bathroom counter near Kayla and Audrey.

Audrey arched a perfectly waxed platinum-blonde eyebrow in Mackenzie's direction, looking stunned at her friend's news. "Oh my god!" she gasped melodramatically. "Where did you hear this?"

Kayla opened her mouth and let out a loud shriek. "Get out of here," she uttered.

"Mack, who shared the news with you?" Madeleine inquired, narrowing her emerald-green eyes at her friend.

Mackenzie tucked her straightened strawberry-blonde hair behind her right ear. "Well, I was delivered this piece of gossip by one of my sources last night," she responded. "And, I'm convinced that he's gonna call her."

Madeleine fixed the hem of her high-waisted, lilac Black Halo skirt. "Last night?" she repeated, trying her best to not squeal loudly.

Scarlett raised her perfectly waxed icy-blonde eyebrows at Audrey's statement. "Oh, Drey, why are you telling us now?" she replied.

"Why didn't you tell us about this during our video call yesterday night?" Kayla questioned Mackenzie, jumping off the bathroom sink and rotating her body toward the bathroom mirror. Staring at the mirror, she inspected her multi-colored plaid Moschino split-hem bodycon dress for coffee stains, observing that her dress was clean. Kayla let out a sigh and shifted her attention back to her friends.

"So, we'll be ready for the call tomorrow," Audrey added after Kayla's statement. She placed her manicured hands on her hips and sighed deeply.

"Because I wasn't sure about the call yet," Mackenzie answered her friends' questions as she whipped her straightened hair over her left shoulder.

Madeleine paced across the waxed bathroom's black-and-white-checkered floor and pressed her left manicured index finger to her chin. "Ugh, we have to find out if it's true," she murmured, thinking about how they were gonna find out the truth about Lachlan's call. A few moments later, it came to her. "So, pretties, you should listen to me right now. We're doing some major recon after school today, so that means that everybody has to meet up at the school parking lot by three-fifteen in the afternoon. Since that's when I'll have Nick pick us up, and direct him into dropping us at Crestview before the final bell rings there. Uh, does that work for everybody?"

"Love the plan," Scarlett said excitedly, twirling the diamond stud in her right ear.

Audrey swayed on the heels of her grey Christina Louboutin ankle boots. "What happens if we get caught by the boys?" she suddenly asked.

"Or, we get ambushed by the school's staff?" Kayla and Mackenzie asked in unison as they started smirking at each other, knowing that they were thinking the same thing.

Madeleine rolled her shoulder back, feeling confident about her plan to spy on Lachlan and his friends. "Nothing's gonna happen to us," she replied, adjusting her headband. "For heaven's sake, we're hiding behind the school's huge stone sign."

Mackenzie lifted her left leg up and brushed some dirt off her left white Prada espadrille. "Oh my god!" she squealed loudly. "I totally forgot that there's a perfect place to hide."

"Exactly," Audrey agreed with Scarlett as she fixed her long, gold Chanel moon-and-stars drop necklace around her slender neck.

Kayla rested her butt against the bathroom counter, crossing her arms over her chest. "Um, Mads, I was thinking that we should find out when the boys are having their conversation in front of the school sign," she suggested, tossing her glossy wheat-blonde curls over her shoulders.

Scarlett smiled brightly and fiddled with her signature pearl charm bracelet. "Oh, that sounds like a good idea, Lala!" she exclaimed, complimenting her friend. Scarlett noticed that Lala's amber eyes brilliantly lit up at her compliment.

"Um, Kay, wouldn't that make us look like complete stalkers?" Madeleine said nervously, jumping from one lilac Miu Miu wedge-clad foot to another.

"No, Mads," Kayla instantly replied, shaking her head from side to side. She moved away from the bathroom counter and rested her right manicured hand on Madeleine's left shoulder. "It'll allow us to figure out what time they'll be there."

Before Madeleine could say anything else to her friends, she heard the bell ring loudly, indicating that there were ten minutes until first-period began.

Madeleine looked over at her friends, arching a perfectly waxed honey-blonde eyebrow in their direction. "What do you guys have for first period?" she eagerly inquired.

Kayla tossed her designer handbag over her right shoulder, headed toward the bathroom door, and waved bye over her left shoulder. "Spanish," she answered honestly, walking out of the bathroom. "Gotta go."

"Drama," Scarlett told Madeleine as she hopped off the bathroom counter and grabbed her large liberty-red Tory Burch Gemini Link canvas tote. Dangling her designer purse from her right elbow, she strolled out of the bathroom, saying something over her right shoulder. "I've heard that the teacher is hard on everybody."

Audrey noticed that Scarlett had already left the bathroom and turned her attention back to her friends. "Art," she said, grabbing her medium navy Longchamp hobo. A few seconds later, Audrey strode out of the bathroom as she said something to the girls behind her. "Oh, Maddy and Mack, I'll see you guys later!"

"Later, Maddy," Mackenzie finally said. She tossed her designer handbag over her right shoulder, sauntered over to the bathroom door, and walked outside.

Noticing that her friends had all left for their first-period classes, Madeleine glimpsed back at the bathroom mirror and expertly applied another coat of chai latte-flavored Pretty & Perfect lip gloss on her lips. Fluffing her waves, she tossed her large white leather Kate Spade tote and set her face into a blank stare. Kayla strode towards the bathroom door and stepped outside.

Continuing to keep her face in a blank stare, she rolled her shoulder back and observed that there were a bunch of eighth-grade girls, who were desperately trying to seek her attention. Ignoring them, she still kept her face in a blank stare and headed straight for her first-period class. Madeleine knew that her Queendom was secure.


Prescott Preparatory School for Girls

English Class

8:28 A.M.

Thursday, September 5th

Claiming a spot in the back of the classroom, Mackenzie hung her purse off the back of her chair and faced forward. Grabbing one of her spiral notebooks and a fuzzy yellow pom-pom pen from inside her designer handbag, she dropped them on the desk and sat straighter in her seat. Rolling her shoulders back, Mackenzie plucked her compact out of her purse, tilting it so she could see the girl behind her.

Discovering that Olivia Crawford had several boogers inside her nose, she snickered at her misfortune before dropping her compact back inside her purse. Facing forward, Mackenzie crossed her arms over her chest and shifted into a comfortable position in her seat. She understood that her parents expected her to get good grades while balancing her hectic social life. The sharp sound of heels interrupted her thoughts. Looking up, Mackenzie noticed that her teacher was a beautiful Russian woman dressed in a fetching outfit.

"Good morning, students," Mrs. Alexander welcomed everyone warmly as she dropped her purse and a stack of syllabuses on her desk in front of the classroom.

"Hello, Mrs. Alexander," the class responded on cue.

Mrs. Alexander turned the projector and smartboard at the same time. "Today, we're going to discuss vocabulary," she said, looking directly at her students. "And then we're talking about MLA for formatting, citation, incorporating sources, and citation updates."

"Okay, Mrs. Alexander," everyone responded. It had been in the introduction of their textbook.

Tuning her teacher out, Mackenzie opened her notebook and grabbed her pen. Jotting the date on the first notebook-lined paper, she sighed and looked at the smartboard. Noticing that Mrs. Alexander was already talking about the first slide, Mackenzie held the pen tightly with her dominant hand and directly copied down the first slide in her notebook while highlighting what her teacher said was more important.

Dropping the pen on the same paper, she checked her nails and noticed that she hadn't painted her left-hand nails. Mackenzie then discovered that her other hand's nails were perfectly painted, realizing her loser classmates could use this mistake against her. She instantly decided to rectify this situation, but first, she looked up.

Witnessing that people were passing the syllabuses to everyone, Mackenzie took a deep breath and snatched a bottle of O.P.I Exotic Birds Do Not Tweet out of her designer handbag. Leaving the bottle on the table near her opened notebook, she glanced over, noticing that someone had already placed a syllabus on it. Exhaling, she examined the classroom's windows and observed that they were all open.

Loving how her nail polish smell wouldn't bother her loser classmates, Mackenzie shook the bottle, so there would be some bubbles in the nail polish. Positioning her left manicured hand firmly on the table, she opened the bottle and painted her nails well. Tightly shutting the same bottle with her dominant hand, Mackenzie waited fifteen minutes for her nails to dry before plucking a bottle of O.P.I RapiDry Top Coat out of her purse.

Opening the bottle, she finished her nails with a top coat, letting them dry completely. Closing the bottle with her dominant hand, Mackenzie dumped it inside her designer handbag and crossed her slender legs together. Feeling secure, she glanced up and observed that her teacher was still lecturing about the first slide. Mackenzie then tapped her right palm against her mouth, not caring if Mrs. Alexander caught her.

"As I was saying, Miss Frost," Mrs. Alexander interrupted Mackenzie's thoughts as she watched her student jump in her seat. "Vocabulary is used to express your writing, especially when I assigned essays for this class."

Detecting that her teacher had rested her eyes on someone else, Mackenzie snatched the latest issue of Marie Claire from inside her designer handbag and started flicking idly through the magazine. Several minutes later, she dropped her opened magazine near her notebook and moved her notebook even closer to her. Grabbing the pen with her dominant hand, Mackenzie instantly copied the second slide in her notebook.

Letting out a sigh, she rested her chin on her right palm, listening to her teacher's lecture about how the MLA format for citations, sources, and citation updates. Yawning, Mackenzie noticed that everyone in the class was doing something else instead of listening intensely to Mrs. Alexander's lesson plan. Knowing that she needed to keep her grades up, she snatched the same pen, scribbling what her teacher was talking about into her notebook.

Mackenzie laid her pen across her opened notebook while looking at the classroom's clock. Noticing it was almost five past nine in the morning, she stretched her neck from side to side and leaned back in her seat. Mackenzie observed that her teacher had already switched to the next slide before tuning her teacher out again.

She crossed her arms over her chest while uncrossing her legs. Mackenzie breathed easily and inspected the clock again. Realizing that the bell was gonna ring in three minutes, she gathered her stuff and leaned back in her seat while resting her elbows on the table.

Mrs. Alexander called for attention from the front of the class. "Okay, students," she said loudly. "Since the bell is ringing soon, I'm assigning the first two chapters of The Call of the Wind by tomorrow morning."

Mackenzie nodded and made a mental note to read those chapters. Moving away from her seat, she heard the bell ring, understanding that her first-period class was over.

Setting her face into a blank stare, Mackenzie sashayed towards the classroom door and walked outside. Keeping her face blank, Mackenzie caught a glimpse of her first-period classmates letting her leave first. She pretended they weren't waiting for her to acknowledge their presence and rolled her shoulders back. Without looking back, Mackenzie continued to keep her face blank as she headed straight for her second-period class.


Prescott Preparatory School for Girls

Study Hall

10:41 A.M.

Thursday, September 5th

Inspecting the cuticles on her left manicured hand, Kayla didn't believe that her first day of school was a major downer. She thought her teachers would have given her a lighter caseload, but instead, she was overwhelmed with homework from her first and second-period classes. Grabbing a spiral notebook from inside her purse, Kayla opened the notebook and skimmed through the first two pages.

Observing that she scribbled some math notes, she remembered that her teacher had assigned the first chapter of her math textbook. Closing the notebook, Kayla dropped it back inside her designer handbag before flattening her dress. Laying her blonde head on her arms, she realized that everyone was looking at her, grinning smugly.

Understanding that they were envious of her standing at the top of the sixth-grade social ladder, Kayla moved her curls to the side and stopped paying attention to them.

Just as she was about to close her eyes, her purse buzzed to life. Snatching her iPhone out of her designer handbag, Kayla stared at her cell phone's screen and discovered that her friends had sent her several group chat messages. Letting out a sigh, she unlocked her iPhone and checked their messages.

Madeleine: Dying of boredom. My teacher is a bore.

Audrey: My teacher is rambling off about the essential nouns of Spanish.

Scarlett: Alexis Sobel tried to talk to me in social studies.

Mackenzie: Same thing for me too. Except, she's trying to talk to me now.

Stretching her neck from side to side, Kayla placed her cell phone under the table and sent her friends a swift reply to their text messages.

Kayla: I'm currently being sent envious stares by people in the study hall. So, anyway, did anything interesting happen in your classes?

Crossing her slender legs together, Kayla glanced up and looked around the study hall. Stopping her gaze at the study hall teacher, she discovered that the teacher was looking at his lesson plans and glimpsed back down. Kayla let out a sigh, reading her friends' text messages.

Scarlett: You guys should know that Grace Manning was sent to the headmistress's office for talking back to the teacher. As soon as she left the classroom, I immediately took a bathroom break, followed behind her, and caught a glimpse of her waiting for the headmistress to punish her.

Madeleine: Kalia, I caught Rochelle being reprimanded by the teacher for eating food in the classroom when she's breaking one of the rules listed on her syllabus.

Audrey: Savannah Richards had her cell phone confiscated by my teacher and read her text messages to the class. She was so embarrassed by the text exchange with her mom. Especially since they were talking about picking the ointment for Savannah's butt rash.

Mackenzie: Cool. But, Lala, my teacher slipped and fell on her butt. The entire class tried their best to keep their laughter to themselves, but in the end, they ended up laughing at her.

Leaning back, Kayla grabbed a Nutz Over Chocolate Luna bar from inside her purse and unwrapped the bar. She ate the whole bar before responding to her friends' messages.

Kayla: Oh, girlies, that's so funny. The only thing happening in study hall right now is silence.

Letting out a sigh, Kayla squared her shoulders when her iPhone buzzed with some text messages from her friends. Paying attention to her cell phone, she read the text messages.

Audrey: Yikes! That means people are turning their attention to their books.

Mackenzie: Uh-oh, that sounds very riveting.

Scarlett: Jeez, I would have found a way for the people in study hall to pay attention to me.

Madeleine: Wow, Kalia.

Drumming her manicured hands on the table, Kayla looked up from her iPhone and discovered that the bell was gonna ring in three minutes. She ultimately made the decision to send a quick reply to her friends' texts.

Kayla: The bell is gonna ring soon. So, I'll see you guys at lunch.

Without waiting for her friends to reply to her text, Kayla dropped her iPhone back inside her designer handbag while the screen remained off. Hearing the bell ring, she stood up and sashayed out of the classroom without hearing the dismissal from the study hall teacher. Observing that people were moving out of her way, Kayla set her face into a black stare and sauntered toward her fourth-period class.


Prescott Preparatory School for Girls

Cafeteria

12:15 P.M.

Thursday, September 5th

A couple of seventh-grade girls said hello to Madeleine as she walked through the cafeteria doors and fixed her purse. She smiled back at them coldly while her eyes skimmed the cafeteria, searching for her friends. Once her eyes locked on her friends, Madeleine walked towards the girls, discovering that her friends had claimed table seventeen. She then settled into the head seat and hung her tote off the back of her chair.

"Hey, girlies!" Madeleine said as she grabbed the Nobu bento box, paper-covered chopsticks, and her chilled bottle of Smartwater off Audrey's lunch tray.

Kayla, Mackenzie, Scarlett, and Audrey cocked their heads to the side and smiled brightly. "Hey, Maddie!" they all said in unison.

Madeleine lifted the lid off her bento box before pulling the paper off her chopsticks. "So, girlies, what's the latest gossip?" she asked her friends

"I saw Grace Kaci after math class," Kayla said with a smirk. She dipped a spicy tuna roll into a small bowl of soy sauce inside her bento box and wolfed down the roll. "She was ordering the same Kate Spade bag you're carrying today. A total clone."

"Seriously?" Madeleine said heatedly, reaching behind her and touching her designer bag. She hates that Grace was about to have the same bag as her. "I have no other option than to donate this bag to someone else since I don't want to have the same bag as Grace."

Scarlett drank some gulps of her large Jupioca caramel macchiato bubble tea. "Don't worry, Maddy," she said brightly, rubbing her friend's right arm. "Everyone knows that she seeks your approval."

"Agreed," Audrey agreed as she flattened her high-waisted, grey plaid Anna Sui flare miniskirt before fishing something from inside her backpack. Audrey then handed them before popping a soy sauce-covered shrimp tempura into her mouth. "Cora Lewis, Maisy Martin, and Yvonne Phillips handed me an invite to their birthday parties. Should I RSVP for us?"

Madeleine examined the invites, chewing thoughtfully on a spicy salmon roll. "Of course, Rey."

Audrey took a long gulp of her Fiji water, looking pleased. "We'll have to shop for new dresses, huh?"

"Oh, yeah," Mackenzie said excitedly as she dunked a few seasoned fries into ketchup and shoved them into her mouth. "Aphrodite got a new shipment of dresses, by the way. During fourth period, I called them when I went for a bathroom break and had the store booked for this Saturday. After all, we still need dresses for Audrey's birthday party."

"Definitely," Madeleine agreed as she noticed that Audrey's eyes lit up at the mention of her birthday party, taking a deep breath. She then realized that Mackenzie wanted to talk to their circle of friends about something, nodding in her friend's direction so she'll understand that she should share the news with everyone.

Mackenzie leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table. "Um, Maddie, I hate to be the bearer of bad news," she replied. "There's some people having issues with Lindsey and Avery's decision to make you their successor. And they're trying to steal your throne away from you."

Madeleine devoured a soy sauce-covered California roll. "How are they gonna do that?" she asked, trying to remain calm.

Mackenzie drank several gulps of her large Jamba Juice Aloha pineapple smoothie. "It seems these losers are trying to get Lindsey and Avery to reverse their decision of choosing you," she responded, observing that there were some girls buying something from the Jamba Juice Kiosk.

Audrey laid her left elbow on the table as she tapped the chopsticks on the far edge of her opened bento box. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard," she asserted.

"Who are the girls trying to steal my throne?" Madeleine sneered, her voice was starting to fill with rage. She took a long sip of her kiwi-strawberry Snapple.

Scarlett chewed angrily on a soy sauce-covered shrimp tempura roll. "Jacqueline Everstone, Tia Scott, Sofia Addison, and Molly Nolan," she listed to Madeleine. Without saying anything to her friend, Scarlett instantly knew that Madeleine was trying to calm her anger down, so their loser classmates didn't witness her meltdown.

Madeleine dipped a spicy California roll into soy sauce and popped it into her mouth. "I'm gonna have to use rule four of the Prescott Queen rules," she said with a sinister grin. "This means that I get to deliver some judgment on them while doing it in front of everyone in school."

A devious glint glimmered in Audrey's eyes. "Perf," she smirked, straightening her navy Ted Baker color-block blouse. "I'm imagining their shocked faces in my mind."

A smirk spread across Kayla's face. "It's gonna be awesome to witness their humiliation," she told her friends.

"Same," Scarlett and Mackenzie agreed in unison as they rested their elbows on the table, even though their moms repeatedly told them not to do that.

Without saying anything else to her friends, Madeleine looked back over her right shoulder, noticing that Lindsey and Avery were holding court with their friends. She was wondering if they had heard the news that a bunch of girls were requesting a meeting with them. Taking a deep breath, Madeleine instantly made a mental note that no one was taking her throne away from her. Looking away, she looked back at her friends and noticed that Scarlett desired to say something to everyone. Madeleine nodded in her friend's direction, which made her understand that she should share the news with everybody at the table.

Mackenzie straightened her yellow Lele Sadoughi beaded headband before leaning forward in her seat. "So, besties, I have some juicy information for us," she said under her breath. "It's about the time when the boys are having their conversation in front of the school sign."

"Spill the dirt," Madeleine whispered under her breath as she tried her best not to squeal loudly since she didn't want the entire cafeteria to pay attention to her.

Scarlett checked her bright-red nails. "How did you find this out?" she eagerly inquired.

"What happened?" Audrey asked Scarlett. She leaned back in her seat, checking the backs of her pearl stud earrings.

"Tell us about the tea," Kayla said smoothly, pointing towards her, Madeleine, Scarlett, and Audrey.

"From what I've heard, the boys usually stand in front of that sign as soon as the bell rings," Mackenzie informed her friends, taking a huge bite of her turkey burger.

Madeleine's mouth dropped in surprise, but she shut her mouth completely. "No way," she said, sounding very excited.

"At least, we won't be waiting that long for them," Scarlett uttered as she drowned half the contents of her bubble tea.

Audrey and Kayla titled their heads and crossed their arms over their chests. "Awesome," they said in unison, smiling brightly.

Before Madeleine could continue the discussion with her friends, she heard the bell ring, which indicates that lunch was over. Sighing, Madeleine looked back down at her lunch tray and realized that there was one last sushi roll inside her bento box. Dripping it into a small bowl of soy sauce, she gracefully crammed the roll into her mouth and whipped her mouth with some paper napkin she'd bought with her.

Shoving her tray from her, Madeleine glanced back up and noticed that her friends were gathering their stuff into their designer handbags. Seeing that the girls were now heading toward their fifth-period class, she stared at the table and realized that everybody had left their dirty lunch trays for the cafeteria staff to clean up. Looking away, she looked at the cafeteria doors and noticed that students were walking out of the cafeteria.

Pushing her chair away from the table, Madeleine stood up and tossed her purse over her right shoulder. Setting her face into a blank stare, she immediately realized that everyone had already left the cafeteria and headed straight for the doors. Stepping outside, Madeleine continued to keep her face in a blank stare as she headed towards her fifth-period class.


Prescott Preparatory School for Girls

Social Studies Class

2:39 P.M.

Thursday, September 5th

Crossing her slender legs together, Scarlett leaned over the quiz her teacher, Mr. Jackson, had passed out at the beginning of class, seeing that she was halfway done with her quiz. Her pen remained hovered over question eight, biting on her lower lip.

"Nine more minutes!" Mr. Jackson called from the front of the class.

Rolling her icy-blue eyes, Scarlett returned her concentration to the quiz, even though she didn't know the answer to question eight. She then realized that her parents were expecting her to have good grades and instantly answered the question that was asking her about the eight features of a civilization. Looking at question nine, Scarlett observed that the teacher had asked to describe what goes into running ancient civilizations, answering the question. As soon as she answered the last question about the five themes of geography, Scarlett dropped her pen on her finished quiz.

"The bell's going to ring in two minutes!" Mr. Jackson cried. "Hand in your quizzes, please!"

Looking at the clock, Scarlett realized that school was ending soon. Gathering her stuff, she stood up and headed over to her teacher's desk. Smacking her quiz on the pile, she noticed that her teacher was making sure she had written something on the quiz as Scarlett heard the bell ring. Walking outside, Scarlett realized that a crowd of sixth-grade girls were desperately seeking her attention as she set her face into a blank stare. Ignoring them, she suddenly remembered that Madeleine's driver was dropping everyone at Crestview. Keeping her face blank, Scarlett realized people were moving out of her way as she headed toward the school parking lot.


Crestview School for Boys

Behind the School's Sign

3:37 P.M.

Thursday, September 5th

Taking cover behind Crestview's school sign with her friends, Madeleine squatted down, shifting her weight from one knee to the other because she didn't want her skirt to make contact with the moist grass. Knowing that a single green skid mark would ruin her outfit, she quickly sneaked a peek and noticed that the boys hadn't been released from school yet. Squatting back down, Madeleine observed that a row of shrubs covered the school sign so it'll be easier for her and her friends to spy on Lachlan and his friends. Glancing at her friends, she perceived that Scarlett wanted to say something to everyone, nodding in her friend's direction which made her understand that it was alright to share what she was thinking.

"How long do we have to wait for the bell to ring, by the way?" Scarlett asked her friends. She adjusted the hem of her romper while keeping her tote on her lap.

Kayla looked over at Scarlett, making sure she shifted her weight from one bare knee to the other since she didn't want her dress to have a single mud stain on it. "There's only four minutes left till the bell rings indefinitely," she answered her friend's question without bumping into Audrey and Mackenzie.

"Don't worry, girlies," Madeleine reassured her friends, trying her best to lift her friends' excitement. She then sneaked another peek at the school's front entrance and saw that there was no one walking out of the solid oak doors. A few moments later, she squatted back down and said something else to the girls. "The boys will be standing in front of the school sign soon."

Audrey nodded and transferred her weight to her tiptoes since she didn't want her boots to get stuck in the grass. "By the way, miniskirt?" she told her friends, adjusting her skirt while keeping her thighs close. "So not good for spying."

"Be quiet, Addie," Mackenzie said. She placed her left manicured index finger to her lips, so her friend would understand that they needed to be silent while monitoring Lachlan and his friends' conversation. "We wouldn't want people to know that we're hiding behind their school's sign. Especially when it could cause us to be labeled with the status of being stalkers."

A couple of minutes later, Madeleine heard the bell ring, which indicated that school was over for the boys. "Oh, pretties," she said quietly, playfully hitting her friends' thighs in excitement. "The boys are coming out, so let's sneak peeks at the school's front entrance."

Without saying anything else to her friends, Madeleine quickly sneaked a peek at the school's front entrance while making sure that she remained in between the position of a squat and standing up, so no one would see the top of her blonde head. Seeing that the doors flew open, she instantly realized that a rush of boys was pouring out of the building and stepping all over the well-manicured front lawn. Madeleine then stared at her friends, noticing an expression of excitement on their faces.

Looking back at the crowd of boys, she wondered when Lachlan and his friends would stand in front of the sign so it'll be easier for her and his friends to listen to their conversation without them finding out. Searching through the crowd of boys, Madeleine immediately noticed that Lachlan and his friends were heading toward the sign before glancing at her friends and saying something to them.

"Girls, we need to hide behind the sign again," Madeleine said, having a panicked expression on her face. She carefully nudged Scarlett so her friend would understand that she should follow what she's saying while making sure that her other friends shadowed what Scarlett was doing. "The boys are heading towards our direction now."

Scarlett squatted down, flipping her curls over her left shoulder. "Fine," she huffed in Madeleine's direction. "I wanted to see if Scott was still cute."

"Same thing for me too," Kayla commented, agreeing with Scarlett. She looked down on her boots and noticed that there weren't any mud stains around her shoes.

"Yeah, whatever," Audrey and Mackenzie muttered in unison as they barely conceal an eye roll at Scarlett's and Kayla's opinions.

Madeleine playfully hit her friends on their right arms, hearing that Lachlan and his friends had stopped in front of the sign. "Girlies, stop talking!" she whispered to her friends, noticing that her friends had stopped chatting with each other and were now concentrating on the boys' conversation. Without saying anything to the girls, she immediately started eavesdropping on Lachlan and the boys' conversation.

"I'm freaking out, man," Aiden and Declan said in unison as the girls listened to their conversation. "I got at least three hours of homework tonight."

"Really?" Lachlan, Scott, and James asked together, not knowing that the girls were snooping on them. "You do?"

"Yeah, it's not funny," Aiden and Declan said angrily in unison as Madeleine, Kayla, Scarlett, Audrey, and Mackenzie continued to concentrate on the boys' chat. "I was planning to play the new Call of Duty game. That's because some teachers wouldn't let their students relax on the first day of school."

"I thought we're all hanging out at Scott's house tomorrow," James told his friends as the girls carried on listening to the boys. "And, playing multiplayer on the new Call of Duty game together."

Scott sipped some tropical citrus-flavored Vitamin Water he'd bought with him. "We're not canceling those plans," he said with a smile on his face. "After all, Fridays are the only days that we don't have lacrosse practice."

"Of course," Lachlan nodded in understanding before changing the subject to something else. "So, boys, I'm gonna call Madeleine tomorrow night."

"What for?" Scott, James, Aiden, and Declan questioned in unison as the girls were now trying their best to listen to their discussion.

Lachlan stretched his neck from side to side, trying to get rid of the kink in his neck. "I just want to ask her and her friends if they'll like to hang out with us next Monday," he replied as the girls were attempting not to squeal loudly since they didn't want the boys to know that they were listening to their conversation. "I would like to get to know her a bit more, and there isn't any school that day."

James nodded and moved the straps of his black Jansport backpack even further on his toned shoulders. "I'm sure they'll accept Lachlan's invitation to hang out with us," he said loyally, not knowing that the girls were invested in their conversation.

"Plus, I want to talk to Scarlett even more," Scott added as the girls continued to listen to the boys.

Declan pointed towards him and Scott. "I still need to talk some more to Mackenzie," he agreed with Scott, not knowing that the girls were listening to their conversation.

"I was going to call Audrey later tonight," Aiden said, pushing the strap of his light-grey JW Anderson monogrammed duffel bag even further up his left shoulder while placing his left-toned arm on Declan's right shoulder. "And, invite her to watch a movie at my house on Sunday afternoon, but I ultimately think that I like Lachlan's idea even more."

"While we are talking to the girls, I'm also asking Madeleine to the back-to-school dance," Lachlan informed his friends as the girls continued to listen to their conversation.

Aiden crossed his toned arms over his chest, looking directly at Lachlan. "I've already decided that I'm asking Audrey to the dance as well," he added, not knowing that the girls were listening to their conversation.

Scott played with the sleeves of his white Twenty Montreal marble-print sweatshirt. "I'm definitely asking Scarlett to the dance too," he said smoothly, not knowing that the girls were snooping on them.

"I'm requesting Mackenzie and Kayla to come to the dance with me," Declan and James nodded in unison as the girls continued to listen to the boys' discussion.

Lachlan produced his newly-upgraded blue iPhone 14 from the left pocket of his ruby-red Serapian leather backpack and checked the time on his cell phone. Seeing that it was almost four o'clock in the afternoon, he shoved his iPhone inside the left front pocket of his black Les Tien cashmere sweatpants. 'Boys, lacrosse practice starts at four, and I'm sure that we don't want to be screamed at by our coach. So let's go now."

"Oh my god!" Madeleine squealed loudly as she clapped her manicured hands together. "I can't believe that Lachlan is gonna call me."

Kayla nodded proudly and crossed her arms over her chest. "Yup, I can't wait for this upcoming video call," she answered melodramatically, pointing towards her, Mackenzie, Scarlett, and Audrey. "Especially when we're all gonna be there."

"There's also the fact that the boys are gonna ask us to the dance," Scarlett added after Kayla's statement as she managed to keep her designer handbag on her lap while making sure that her tote didn't fall on the wet grass.

Audrey cocked her head to the side, touching Scarlett's right shoulder. "Um, Scar, I'm wondering when the boys would gather the courage to ask us to dance during the video call."

Mackenzie raised her perfectly waxed strawberry-blonde eyebrows in Audrey's direction. "There's also the fact that we have to keep a straight face in their presence," she added after Audrey's statement. "And, pretend that we don't know about their conversation today."

Madeleine smiled broadly and touched her signature pearl necklace. "We're just gonna have to make sure that the boys don't figure out that we spied on them today," she stated, sending a quick look at her friends. "So, besties, let's hang out at Lala's house today."

"My house?" Kayla asked Madeleine, looking very surprised at her friend's statement.

"Yeah, Kay," Madeleine nodded, crossing her arms over her chest. She managed to still balance her weight from one knee to another. "We still have to rank everybody in our grade and post the loser list on my account."

Scarlett, Audrey, and Mackenzie shot a dazzling smile at Madeleine. "Oh, Maddie, I completely forgot that you have to post that list before today ends," they beamed happily.

Madeleine grinned brightly and stood up from her squatting position. "C'mon, girlies," she said with a smirk. "Nick has been waiting for the last twenty minutes in the parking lot. So, let's go already."

"Okay, Mads," Audrey, Scarlett, Kayla, and Mackenzie said in unison.

As soon as Madeleine reached the parking lot with her friends following behind her, she opened the right-side black rear door when reached the car, and climbed gracefully into the vehicle. Sliding across the buttery soft leather backseat, she settled into the seat that was between the space of the driver's seat and the passenger's seat. Madeleine instantly dumped her designer bag on her lap and looked to the right side.

Buckling her seatbelt, she noticed that one of her friends had shut the door behind them. Madeleine then glanced at the girls and noticed that they were all looking at their Instagram pages. Sighing, she closed her eyes and turned to her friends. Madeleine felt that Nick had pulled away from the Crestview's parking lot and was taking the usual route to Kayla's house. Keeping her eyes closed, she sank further into her seat and remained in that position for the rest of the car ride.


The Adams Estate

Kayla's Bedroom

5:56 P.M.

Thursday, September 5th

"How would you guys rank Jacqueline Everstone?" Madeleine asked her friends, staring at her iPhone's screen, and noticed that they'd already ranked most of their classmates. She then looked around Kayla's room and noticed that sunlight was still pouring through her friend's bedroom windows.

"Um, Maddie, I think that she's a four," Audrey said, remembering that she's one of the girls trying to steal away Madeleine's throne from her.

Scarlett looked up from her spot in the middle of Kayla's bed where she had been scrolling through her Instagram page on her iPhone. "I think she's a three on the loser list," she deadpanned, dropping her cell phone on her lap.

"Two," Mackenzie cooed as she reached for the bowl of Barbecue-flavored Lay chips and grabbed a handful of chips. Mackenzie then popped them into her mouth.

Kayla rested herself in an upright position against her deep-green-and-and-white neck pillows on her bed and looked directly at Madeleine. "It's one for me," she immediately answered, knowing that Anna deserved this rating for going after Madeleine's throne and thinking that she could get away with it.

Madeleine scrolled onto the next name on her list and took a long sip of her Diet Coke. "Olivia Crawford," she told her friends.

Audrey smirked sinisterly, cocking her head to the side. "I already made a decision that she's a neutral five in my books," she mused. "The reason why I made this decision was that she was wearing a cute top today, but it didn't match her pants at all."

Mackenzie rested her head against Kayla's left thigh. "Definitely a five," she agreed with Audrey.

"Five all the way," Kayla mumbled as she continued to relax against the pillows and motioned for Audrey to pop a chip into her mouth. As soon as her friend put the chip into her mouth, she chewed on it.

"Four," Scarlett said with a small grin, wondering if her friends would keep agreeing with each other. She ate several Lays chips.

"What about Tia Scott?" Madeleine asked her friends, remembering that she's one of the girls trying to steal her throne away from her. She then rolled over onto the other side of Kayla's bed and gazed at her friends.

Kayla sighed and settled her eyes on Madeleine. "She deserves two on the loser list," she said mockingly. Kayla then moved her curls to the side, so her hair wouldn't spread across the pillows. "She was wearing this very ugly top today. And, it looks like you can see this top from space."

Scarlett stared at Kayla's bedroom windows and noticed that sunlight was still pouring through them. "One," she added after Kayla's statement. "I thought her makeup made her look like a clown."

"Two," Mackenzie said sarcastically, her aquamarine eyes filled with arrogance. She believed that she was better than Tia because of her family's wealthy status.

"One," Audrey stated snidely, feeling that Tia deserved what was happening to her tomorrow. A few moments later, she observed that Madeleine was typing their suggestions into the document on her cell phone.

Madeleine sat up cross-legged on Kayla's bed and scrolled onto the next name on her loser list. "How do you guys feel about Sofia Addison?" she inquired.

Audrey grabbed a handful of chips from the bowl of Lays chips on Kayla's green duvet. "I already made a decision that Sofia is an even five," she replied.

"Um, Mads, I think four is okay for her," Kayla said snarkily as she lifted herself from the pillows while managing to keep Mackenzie's blonde head on her thigh.

Mackenzie crossed her ankles together, so her dress didn't ride up her slender legs. She grabbed some chips from the bowl and gracefully popped them into her mouth. "Three," she said melodramatically, hating the fact that Madeleine was worried that this girl would steal her throne away from her.

"In my books, I think Sofia's a four," Scarlett noted. She drank several refreshing sips of her Diet Coke, seeing that Madeleine was looking directly at her iPhone and entering their suggestions onto the document.

"So, pretties, what are your thoughts on Hannah Copeland?" Madeleine asked her friends as she scrolled onto the next name on her loser list.

Scarlett shifted into a comfortable position in her seat, eating several handfuls of chips. "Um, I believe that she's two," she responded.

"Okay then, Maddie," Mackenzie nodded in understanding as she turned her head in her friend's direction, giving a puzzled look at Madeleine. "She's still one in my eyes."

Kayla grabbed her lukewarm can of Diet Coke from her right-side nightstand and popped the top. She took a long sip of her soda and dropped the can back on the nightstand. "Two," she chuckled evilly.

"One," Audrey grinned wickedly. She drank half of her Diet Coke, feeling the caffeine of her soda drink.

Madeleine shook her waves out of her eyes before scrolling onto the next name on her loser list. "Molly Nolon?" she questioned, thinking about how she was going to embarrass her and her friends tomorrow at lunch.

Mackenzie looked over at Scarlett, who was busy looking at her iPhone again. "Zero," she said dramatically, moving away from Kayla's left thigh.

"She's ultimately one," Scarlett said coyly as she smoothed the front of her romper. "She has zits the size of pennies on her face."

"Same," Kayla agreed with Scarlett. She hated the fact that they were talking about this loser. "While I was walking down the second-floor hallway, I noticed that she was walking like a toad today."

Audrey snickered at Kayla's statement before stretching her arms from side to side. "Um, one for me," she replied.

"Oh, thank god," Madeleine nodded, looking over her loser list on her iPhone and noticing that they had literally ranked everyone in their grade. Feeling confident about their ratings, she switched apps and opened the Instagram app. A few moments later, she posted the list on her Instagram page and wondered how everyone would take their ratings. Madeleine then turned her cell phone off and looked back at her friends. "We're finally done ranking everybody. And, I've already posted the list to my Instagram page."

"Kayla," Catherine interrupted through the intercom, causing the girls to jump. "Your friends' drivers are ready to pick them up. Tell them to come downstairs now."

Kayla looked at her friends and noticed that they were slowly getting ready to leave her house. "Alright, Mom," she said quickly. "So, I'll see you guys later."

Mackenzie got up and padded across Kayla's room. She held her dress in the air since she didn't want to chip crumbs to fall on her friend's floor. "Yeah, Kay," she said, brushing the crumbs into Kayla's wastebasket. A couple of seconds later, Mackenzie slipped her bare pedicured feet into her Prada espadrilles and grabbed her designer handbag from Kayla's couch. She then looked over her shoulder and waved bye to her friends. "Bye, guys!"

"Um, well, obviously," Audrey told Kayla as she jumped off her friend's bed and moved towards her boots, and pulled them on. Audrey then grabbed her hobo from Kayla's desk chair and headed straight for her friend's bedroom door. "Later, pretties!"

Scarlett noticed that Audrey had already left the room and stood from Kayla's bed. She immediately tossed her iPhone into her purse, slipped her sandals on, and walked out of Kayla's bedroom. "Um, see you later, besties!"

Madeleine leaped off Kayla's bed with her iPhone in her right manicured hand, shooting a dazzling smile at her friend. "Kay, I'll text you later," she told her friend. A few moments later, Madeleine shoved her bare pedicured feet into her wedges, snatched her tote from Kayla's left-side nightstand, and sauntered out of her friend's room.

As soon as her friends left her room, Kayla looked around and noticed that the girls had left a mess for her to clean up. Jumping off her bed, she picked her boots off the floor and tossed them into the closet. Sighing, Kayla grabbed the half-filled bowl of Lays chips off her bed and left it outside her bedroom door for Juanita to clean up.

Closing her bedroom door, she looked over her duvet, noticing that there weren't any crumbs on her bed. Kayla then smoothed her manicured hands over her duvet and pulled each corner so it was wrinkle-free. Smiling to herself, she grabbed the opened Diet Coke cans from her left-side nightstand. Kayla headed to her all-white bathroom with the drinks away from her designer dress, since she didn't want to stain her dress with soda.

Walking inside, she dropped the lukewarm drinks on her bathroom's marble vanity top and poured the drinks down the drain of her bathroom sink. Leaving the cans on her vanity, Kayla turned the water on and rinsed around her sink. Knowing that the soda would become sticky and would attract ants to her bedroom, she turned the water off and instantly walked out of her bathroom with the empty soda cans in her arms.

Moving quickly across her bedroom, Kayla opened her bedroom door and tossed the Diet Coke cans into the bowl for Juanita to clean as well. Closing her bedroom door again, she decided to take a nap till dinner was served tonight. Hating that she had already straightened her duvet and now had to mess it up again, Kayla climbed into bed again and rested her blonde head on one of her neck roll pillows. She then fell asleep a few minutes later.


The Wilson Estate

Scarlett's Bedroom

9:19 P.M.

Thursday, September 5th

Watching TV, Scarlett lay across her chaise lounge, slowly chewing on the last handful of buttered popcorn. Fixing the straps of silky, her emerald-green In Bloom by Jonquil lace-trimmed V-necked camisole, she dropped the small glass bowl on the table, leaving it there for Elsa to clean up. Turning the TV off, Scarlett heard a knock on her bedroom door when she sat up straighter in her seat.

"Princess, can I come inside?" Scarlett's dad, Harold asked his daughter.

Scarlett turned the TV off. "Of course, Dad," she instantly replied.

Harold walked inside his daughter's bedroom and sat on Scarlett's bed. "Angel, I've been looking everywhere for you," he said tenderly, crossing his toned arms over his chest. "Then, I remembered that you're in your room."

"Why are you looking for me?" Scarlett asked, arching her perfectly waxed icy-blonde eyebrows in her dad's direction.

"I wanted to ask my beautiful daughter about her day today," Harold responded with a small smile on his face. "And, princess, I need your help with something."

Scarlett pulled on the waistband of her silky, emerald-green In Bloom by Jonquil shorts. "Well, you know how long school is during the day. And then, I hung out with my friends after school."

Harold smiled broadly and cocked his head to the side. "Okay, sweetie," he said, his deep voice filled with warmth. "Anyhow, I need to keep your mom distracted while I plan our tenth wedding anniversary that's coming up next Saturday. She's always able to sense when I'm keeping something from her."

"Awesome," Scarlett squealed, bouncing in her seat. "By the way, Daddy, you should order Mom a custom necklace and earring set from her family's jeweler. This anniversary should be romantic like the other ones."

"I know that already," Harold nodded, closing his legs.

Scarlett picked at a hole in her right black-and-emerald green Ralph Lauren knit sock. "Daddy, where's mom right now?" she questioned, changing the subject entirely.

Harold smoothed out the front of his favorite black Versace silk bathrobe, which he was wearing over a pair of cream Ralph Lauren silk monogrammed pajamas. "She went out with her friends like two hours ago," he smiled brightly. "Before your mom left, she told me that wouldn't be back till one in the morning. And said that you should be in bed by ten tonight."

"All right," Scarlett said as she glanced at her red Apple watch, noticing that it was almost nine-thirty in the evening. "Um, I'm going to scroll through social media for a bit before I have to go to bed. So, good night, Daddy!"

"Okay, princess," Harold told his daughter excitedly as he stood up, waved bye to Scarlett, and walked out of his daughter's bedroom. "I'll see you tomorrow when we eat breakfast together."

Noticing that her dad had closed the door behind him, Scarlett swung her legs off the chaise lounge and lunged to her feet. Making sure that her shins didn't bang against her coffee table, she looked over and scrutinized her mannequin heavily. It was dressed in a bright-red-and-cream-striped Rag & Bone double-breasted blazer, cream Alice + Olivia crochet shift dress, cream Valentino espadrilles, bright-red Kate Spade leather satchel, her signature pearl charm bracelet, and a pair of gold Tory Burch pearl drop earrings.

Loving her outfit for school tomorrow, Scarlett had moved her spiral notebooks, her stack of fashion magazines, her travel-size rollerball of Gucci Pour Femme perfume, and her Chanel makeup bag from her Tory Burch tote to the Kate Spade designer handbag. Feeling calm, she took off her Apple watch and dumped it on her left-side nightstand. Scarlett then grabbed a small white remote from the same nightstand and pressed her manicured thumbnail into a button marked 'Curtains."

Watching as her curtains closed automatically, she chucked the remote on the same nightstand and walked towards her three-way mirror. Scarlett stared at her flawless reflection in the mirror, noticing that her skin looked so poreless. She pulled her curls out of the messy bun and put it back up again.

Moving away from the mirror, Scarlett collapsed first face onto her bed, burying her head under one of her fluffy, white goose-down pillows. Letting out a deep sigh, she removed the pillow from her head and stretched her left arm towards her right-side nightstand. Grabbing her cell phone, Scarlett instantly unlocked her iPhone and clicked on the Instagram app.

She browsed her account feed and discovered that her cousin, Sophia had posted several group selfies on her page. It was pictures of her and her friends standing outside of their private school on the first day of school. Seeing that her cousin had also posted a solo selfie she'd taken before leaving for school this morning, Scarlett tapped the heart icon to love the pictures and ultimately decided that she needed to call her cousin now.

She needed some advice about Madeleine's situation before stretching her right arm toward her right-side nightstand. Grabbing her Apple wireless charging case and iPhone, Scarlett grabbed her AirPods from her charging case and shoved them inside her ears. Asking Siri to call Sophia, she noticed that her cousin had immediately picked up on the other line.

"Hey, Scar!" Sophia greeted her cousin warmly, sounding very excited. "I just got the notification that you liked the pictures I posted today."

Scarlett faced forward on her bed while making sure that her AirPods remained in her ears, "Yeah, I noticed that you and your friends looked very beautiful in your first-day-of-school outfits," she commented. "How was school today?"

"My teachers swarmed me with homework today," Sophia answered truthfully, her tone of voice filled with anxiety. "I understand that junior year is different from sophomore year since my schedule is filled with AP classes. So, Scar, what about you?"

"It was okay," Scarlett shrugged as she sat up in her bed and hugged her knees to her chest. "But, I need some advice about a situation that my friend is going through."

"What happened?" Sophia asked, sounding very concerned for her cousin and her friend.

Scarlett gathered her thoughts for a bit before saying something to her cousin. "Well, these girls are coming after Maddie because she was chosen as the successor for our school's sixth-grade throne. They're jealous that Avery and Lindsey didn't choose them instead. But, there's also the fact that they choose my friend from the list of legacies."

"Those girls should feel happy that they're in the presence of your friend," Sophia replied, her voice filled with contempt. "People should fear Maddie instead of loving her."

"I know," Scarlett nodded as she rolled over while her left AirPod pressed against her left ear. "So, Soph, Maddie is delivering judgment on them tomorrow."

"Very nice," Sophia declared, her tone suddenly becoming excited. "So, Scar, can you hold on for a second?"

Scarlett pressed her face against her duvet while absentmindedly moving her charging case away from her. "Yeah, I can hold for a second," she said gently, hearing the background that Sophia was talking to her mom. Moments later, Scarlett discovered that her cousin was now talking to her again.

"Um, Scar, I'm gonna have to take a rain check on this conversation," Sophia informed her cousin. "My mom needs me for something when the housekeeper can take care of the problem for her."

"Alright," Scarlett pouted as she laid back down on her bed. "So, I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Bye, Scar!" Sophia grinned before ending the call on her side.

Pulling her AirPods out of her ears, Scarlett shoved them into the case and dropped them back on her right-side nightstand. Looking at her iPhone, she discovered that her cell phone's battery was half-full, so her iPhone's alarm clock would wake her up tomorrow morning. Pressing the Do Not Disturb icon on her cell phone so she wouldn't get any notifications from anyone till she woke up in the morning, Scarlett checked the time on her iPhone and realized that it was almost nine forty-five in the evening.

Taking a deep breath, she exhaled and dropped her cell phone on her right-side nightstand without getting up from her bed. Scarlett crawled under her duvet and clapped her manicured hands together so the lights in her room would turn off. She slipped her sleep mask over her eyes and snuggled under her duvet. A few moments later, Scarlett closed her eyes and fell asleep a couple of minutes later.


A/N:

Self Promotion: In my bio, I have a link to a page, where you can support me in exchange for exclusive benefits. Chapter six, seven, and eight are on the same page.

And, here's chapter five for you guys.

Enjoy,

FashionLeMode