The Beauty Queens

by FashionLeMode

What if the girls were unique in their own way? What if Madeleine was already chosen by the upper queens at school to be the Queen of the entire Sixth Grade? Will they ever grow into a court? Will Scarlett, Kayla, Mackenzie, and Audrey settle into their designated roles in the court? Will Madeleine be able to reign over an entire grade?

7. Chapter Six

Disclaimer: I own all the characters in this story.

---

Chapter Six

---

Prescott Preparatory School for Girls

Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf Kiosk

7:43 A.M.

Friday, September 6th

"Mmmmmm," Scarlett hummed softly, pausing to sip her iced white chocolate mocha. Feeling her classmate's eyes, she understood they had all seen the loser list on Madeleine's Instagram page. Hoping that her classmates didn't get the courage to sit with her, Scarlett took a calming breath before crossing her slender legs together. Waiting for her friends to show up, she blew some strands of her straightened icy-blonde hair out of her icy-blue eyes and stared at the table. Loving that she'd already ordered her friends' coffee drinks, Scarlett felt better about claiming a table near the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf kiosk, sighing deeply. She then looked up and realized that her friends were heading her way. Letting out a sigh, Scarlett straightened her posture, squaring her shoulders. "Hey, girlies!"

Madeleine slid into the head seat and hung her white leather Aphrodite hobo off the back of her chair. "Hey, Scar," she welcomed her friend's greetings.

"Hi, Lett," Kayla said warmly as she settled into the seat beside Scarlett before taking several sips of her iced vanilla chai latte.

A wide grin spread across Mackenzie's face. "Hello, Lottie," she said, plopping down on the empty chair beside Madeleine's other side.

"Hey, Lele, what's up?" Audrey asked, her signature Valentino perfume wafting through the air. She then grabbed the seat beside Mackenzie, taking a long sip of her iced hazelnut latte.

Scarlett smoothed the front of her cream Alice + Olivia crochet shift dress. "Nothing much," she responded with a chuckle. "Except, I've been feeling the eyes of our loser classmates. They must have seen the loser list on Maddie's Instagram page."

Kayla arched a perfectly waxed wheat-blonde eyebrow in Scarlett's direction. "After all, they should know where their place is on the sixth-grade social ladder," she added.

"Whatever," Scarlett muttered, rolling her eyes at Kayla's statement. A few moments later, she peeked from the corner of her eye, observing that Mackenzie and Audrey were completely absorbed in the conversation that was happening with everyone.

"When I was sauntering through the school's front entrance, I was approached by Olivia," Mackenzie finally said, keeping the same subject. She checked the backs of her flawless ten-karat diamond stud earrings. "She's hysterical about her ranking on the loser list. Especially when she believes that she should have been rated higher on the list."

Audrey shot a half-smile at her friends before taking another long sip of her latte. "Ahhh, that's so pitiful," she said mockingly, taking pleasure in Olivia's misfortune. "But, she has to understand that Maddy has the right to make the list the way she wants it."

Scarlett nodded and sneakily looked around the cafeteria. She witnessed that students were sitting at the tables around them while drinking iced coffee beverages and holding their notebooks in their other hands. "Oh, yeah," she agreed with Audrey, changing the topic to something else. "I caught a glimpse of Jacqueline Everstone wearing the same Miu Miu wedges that Mads had on yesterday."

"Ugh, she's such a loser," Madeleine snorted loudly, rolling her emerald-green eyes. She then smoothed the front of her purple Shoshanna frill-trimmed minidress before relaxing her arms on the table. "But now, I have to worry about Jacqueline copying my style."

"Don't worry, Maddie," Kayla assured her friend as she brushed some imaginary lint off her blue-wash Balmain monogrammed straight-leg jeans. "Everything is gonna be okay."

"We all know that Jacqueline is getting her desserts later today," Audrey said sweetly, flashing a wicked smile at her friends. She leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms over her chest.

Mackenzie nodded in agreement with Audrey, lifted her clear straw to her glossy lips, and drank several hearty sips of her iced caramel macchiato. "Her friends will be joining her soon," she added, her voice filled with malice.

"Um, besties, I have some blackmail to share with you guys," Scarlett said meanly, pulling her iPhone out of her bright-red Kate Spade leather satchel. She unlocked her cell phone and immediately tapped on the Instagram app. Scarlett looked through the people she'd followed and tapped on Ivy's Instagram account handle. Instantly zooming into the solo selfie that Ivy posted this morning, she noticed that she looked gorgeous in this picture. Tapping on the heart icon to like the selfie, Scarlett turned her iPhone off, dumped her cell phone on the table in front of her, and shifted her attention back to her friends. "It's about Molly Nolan."

Madeleine stared at her black-and-white leather Sam Edelman color-block ballet flats for a few seconds before saying something to Scarlett. "Scar, I thought you would have kept that information to yourself," she said, raising a perfectly waxed honey-blonde eyebrow in her friend's direction. "It'll be easier for her to do what you want."

Scarlett rolled her eyes, taking more dainty sips of her mocha. "Well, Maddy, you can use this information against Molly and her friends," she told her friend, seeing that Kayla, Mackenzie, and Audrey were interested in hearing this gossip.

"Alright then," Madeleine stated, understanding that Scarlett wanted her to listen to this information. Leaning back in her seat, she knitted her manicured hands together on the table, observing that Scarlett was ready to share the information with everyone. "Lett, just share the information with us."

"Um, besties, it seems one of my spies managed to inform me that Molly used to eat dog biscuits over the summer," Scarlett expressed, resting her chin on her laced fingers. "But, she stopped when one of her old friends posted a video of her eating the biscuits on her Tiktok account. It went viral and people bashed her for the next three weeks."

Madeleine smiled wickedly and rolled her shoulders back. "Now, Lottie, that's some good information l to use against them," she said proudly, seeing that Scarlett was beaming with praise from her.

Audrey's cerulean-blue eyes drifted toward Scarlett, who was now looking at her cell phone. "At least, Maddie, you can throw this information in her face," she said, laughing at this loser's misfortune.

Kayla reached inside her hunter-green Marc Jacobs suede backpack and plucked her medium baby-green Milly makeup bag from inside her purse. She opened her makeup bag, snatched a black Red Bliss waterproof tube, and applied several coats of mascara on her long lashes. "Yeah, Molly tried to butter me up when I was in the bathroom by myself," she admitted, discovering that her friends were now looking at her. "I think she's trying to get me to see things from her point of view."

"Kay, what did she say to you?" Mackenzie asked her friend, taking a sip of her macchiato. Seconds later, she leaned forward in her seat, wondering what Molly said to Kayla when they weren't there.

"She said I should cut my friendship with you guys," Kayla responded to Mackenzie's question as she straightened the collar of her hunter-green Balmain double-breasted blazer before drinking several measured sips of her latte. "And that, I should agree with the fact that the Prescott Queen system should include scholarship students too."

"Uh, Lala, that's never happening in this school," Madeleine expressed, trying her best to calm down. She rested her left elbow on her chair while pausing to sip more of her iced vanilla latte. "Even when pigs fall from the blue sky.

Scarlett snickered and crossed her arms over her chest. "Yeah, Mads," she nodded in understanding, touching her signature pearl charm bracelet. "Molly should understand that she doesn't have the right to tell Kaila what to do."

"I can't believe that she has the guts to talk to Kalia," Audrey said smoothly as she straightened the hem of her multicolored St. John tweed skirt.

Mackenzie giggled softly and flattened her light-yellow Splendid eyelet halter dress. "Or the fact that she tried to get her to cut her friendship with us," she added after Audrey's statement.

Kayla fiddled with her single-strand pearl bracelet, hearing that her friends were astounded by Molly's antics. "After she said those statements to me, I told her to move away from me and made her understand that the Prescott Queen system would never allow scholarship kids in it," she said, her voice filled with anger. "I also told Molly that Maddie is aware that she and her friends are trying to take her throne away from her. She just laughed in my face and told me that nothing's gonna happen to her."

Madeleine's eyes started to fill with rage when she heard that Molly wasn't even afraid of her. "Oh, really," she deadpanned, thinking that she needed to make an example of Molly and her friends. "That means that I have more reason to make sure that Molly, Tia Scott, Sofia Addison, and Jacqueline Everstone never climb the sixth-grade social hierarchy."

"Of course, Maddie," Scarlett smirked wickedly, liking how her friend is gonna deal with Molly and her friends.

"I seriously cannot wait for Maddy to humiliate them," Mackenzie and Kayla grinned brightly in unison as they sipped from their iced coffee drinks.

Audrey paused to sip more of her latte before brushing some lint off her matching St. John tweed top. "Everything's gonna remain the same," she assured Madeleine, changing the subject to something else before everyone continued to rant about Molly and her friends. "Lacey Montgomery gave me five invites to her garden party on September twenty-two. I already made the decision that we're attending this party because we need more pictures on our Instagram pages since the entire seventh and eighth-grade students are all following us now."

"Alright, Addie," Madeleine nodded, checking her long, silky honey-blonde waves. Noticing that her hair was starting to get oily, she knew that she needed to make an appointment with Maxwell's salon soon. Sighing, Madeleine drank half the contents of her latte, starting to feel the caffeine from her coffee drink. "I can't wait to attend this party."

Kayla drank several gulps of her latte before leaning back in her seat. "Me too," she replied happily, agreeing with Madeleine. Kayla sneaked a peek at Mackenzie and Kayla, observing that they also agreed to attend Lacey's party."Did you guys hear about Lachlan and his friends, anyway? Their first lacrosse game starts after school ends next Wednesday afternoon. So, are we attending this game to support them?"

Mackenzie smiled proudly and drank the contents of her macchiato in one gulp. "Yeah, Kay," she admitted, not feeling shame about wanting to see Declan. "I was gonna attend the game and figure out a way for Declan to ask me to the dance."

"I already entered the time into my iPhone's calendar feature," Audrey cooed, finishing her latte. "And, I'm still waiting for Aiden to ask me to the dance.

Scarlett drank eight long sips of her mocha before playing with her gold Tory Burch pearl drop earrings. "Yeah," she said quickly. "I also heard that Molly and her friends are gunning for the boys. They should understand that the boys are off-limits to her."

Madeleine sent a half-smirk at her friends and eyed her friends over her latte. "Scar, I understand what you're talking about," she mused.

Before Scarlett could respond to Madeleine's statement, she heard the bell ring, indicating that there were ten more minutes till first period began. She then turned her attention back to the girls again, seeing that Mackenzie wanted to say something to everyone.

"I've got to get to my English class now," Mackenzie told her friends, downing the contents of her macchiato. Giving them a quick hug, she rose from her seat and pushed her chair in with a scrape. Mackenzie threw her large, classic white lambskin Chanel handbag over her right shoulder and headed toward the cafeteria doors. "So, I'll probably text you guys later."

Audrey stood up while seeing that Mackenzie had already left the cafeteria. She grabbed her mini leather white Rebecca Minkoff tote, idly swirled the ice cubes around her latte, and strutted towards the cafeteria doors."Gotta go," she said. "I have to use the bathroom before heading towards class."

"See you guys later," Kayla spoke to Scarlett and Madeleine as she carelessly rested her large brown monogrammed Fendi tote on her right elbow before heading straight for the cafeteria doors.

Madeleine immediately rose from her seat after Kayla walked out of her cafeteria. She grabbed her hobo off the back of her chair and gave her friend a quick hug. "Later, Lett!" she quickly added.

Accepting her friend's goodbye, Scarlett observed that Madeleine just sauntered out of the cafeteria's doors. Looking back down at the table, she lowered her iPhone into her designer handbag and stood up. Leaving her half-filled coffee drink on the table for the cafeteria staff to clean, Scarlett threw her purse over her left shoulder and headed toward the cafeteria doors.

Sashaying outside, she walked down the packed first-floor hallway, seeing that students were shuffling to their classes. Feeling everyone's eyes, Scarlett moved quickly to her first-period class while setting her face into a black stare. The only thing that mattered to her was that her teacher would take off points for being late to his class.

---

Prescott Preparatory School for Girls

Art Class

8:39 A.M.

Friday, September 6th

Walking into the classroom, Audrey didn't care that she was nine minutes late for her first-period class since she had to make a pit stop to use the bathroom. Downing the rest of her latte, she tossed the empty coffee cardboard up into the trash while sensing that the entire class was looking enviously at her. Audrey glanced directly at her teacher, Mr. Jerome, who was currently checking his no-brand watch. Seeing that her teacher wanted to talk to her, Audrey squared her shoulders back, ready to hear what her teacher would say to her.

Mr. Jerome crossed his skinny arms over his chest before plucking some lint off his paint-splattered smock. "Hello, Miss Webster," he said with a stoic expression on his face. "May I ask why you're late to class?"

"Sorry, Mr. Jerome, I had to use the bathroom," Audrey said truthfully as she moved her tote even further up her right arm.

"Miss Webster, if you have another tardy on your attendance column, I would call your parents and have a meeting with them," Mr. Jerome said with a stoic expression still on her face.

Audrey rolled her eyes, not caring if her teacher saw her. "Whatever," she mumbled.

Mr. Jerome pointed toward the back of the classroom. "Can you please grab your usual seat by the window?" he asked Audrey. "I would greatly appreciate it."

Without saying anything else to Mr. Jerome, Audrey weaved through the maze of easels and stools while observing that her fellow sixth-graders were moving out of her way. As soon as she reached her usual spot, she dropped her designer handbag on one of the classroom's window sills and turned towards the easel in front of her. Grabbing one of the paintbrushes, Audrey observed that her teacher was about to say something to the class and focused her gaze on Mr. Jerome. She then listened to what he was saying to the entire class.

Mr. Jerome moved towards a podium in the middle of the classroom, pulled a white sheet off it, and revealed a bowl of sliced avocados. "Okay, class, you have the materials in front of you," he explained, spraying some water on the avocados to keep them fresher. "You have basically thirty minutes to paint this as a still life. So, everyone begins now."

Letting out a sigh, Audrey watched as Mr. Jerome moved towards his desk in front of the class. Looking away, she dipped her brush into some green paint and perfectly painted the bowl and the avocados' shapes on the small painting. Audrey started filling in the bowl, knowing that she needed to paint this painting very well since her grades counted on it.

Dipping her brush into a cleaning dish near her, she mixed the colors of yellow and green paint before filling the avocados' pear shape. Admiring how she managed to immaculate the avocado's golden-green flesh, Audrey dipped her brush into the same mixture of green and yellow paint, coloring the avocado's shape even more. Just as she was about to paint the avocados' pits, Audrey's purse buzzed to life, causing her to drop her paintbrush on her easel's crossbar.

Audrey sneakily plucked her iPhone out of her tote while using her petite body to hide her cell phone from her teacher. Scrolling through her notifications, she discovered that Mackenzie had sent her a text and immediately unlocked her iPhone. Audrey inhaled and checked her friend's message.

Mackenzie: Addie, I need your help to solve a crisis now.

Feeling sudden shock by her friend's message, Audrey's delicate fingers hovered over her cell phone's keyboard, wondering what she should say to Mackenzie. She finally concluded and sent a swift reply to her friend.

Audrey: Mack, what happened?

Looking over her right shoulder, Audrey sneakily glanced at her teacher and noticed that he was helping one of the students with her half-filled work. Returning her attention to her iPhone, she discovered that Mackenzie had sent a quick reply to her text.

Mackenzie: One of my spies just DM'd me and told me that Nikki Leeds is using secrets to blackmail people into doing what she wants.

Audrey's eyes widened at Mackenzie's text message, feeling absolute disbelief. She thought about what she'll say to her friend, and then the words came to her. A couple of seconds later, Audrey sent a swift reply to Mackenzie's text message.

Audrey: Wait a minute, Kenzie, how is that happening? Aren't you the one that collects the gossip and secrets?

Biting on her lower lip, Audrey glanced over her right shoulder again, seeing that Mr. Jerome was gently polishing one of the model avocados with his smock's left sleeve. Letting out a breath, she looked back down at her iPhone's bright screen and read her friend's text message.

Mackenzie: Yeah, Addy. She's poaching in my territory. So, I already have a strategy to deal with her, but I want your input on my scheme. Plus, I need to finalize my plan before I include our friends.

Tapping her baby-pink nails against the back of her Versace phone case, Audrey looked at the classroom's ceiling for a few minutes before sending a text back to her friend.

Audrey: Manzie, share your scheme with me.

Grinning to herself, Audrey was thinking that Mackenzie had some kind of brilliant scheme to deal with Nikki Reeds. Trying her best to contain her excitement, she moved her iPhone's screen even closer to her eyes while continuing to use her petite body to hide her cell phone from Mr. Jerome.

Mackenzie: I was thinking that I should create a fake Instagram account, compliment her for a few weeks, and get her to confess to her deepest and darkest secrets. As soon as I get the video from her, I would post it on Youtube for everyone to see and watch as people from all over the world make her life a miserable hell. There's also the fact that this video could cause her to be kicked to the bottom of the sixth-grade social ladder.

Loving Mackenzie's scheme, Audrey started visualizing Nikki's misfortune and immediately knew her downfall would be spectacular. Laughing quietly to herself, she sent a quick reply to her friend's text.

Audrey: That's a very good scheme, Kenzie. You should clue in Maddie, Scar, and Kay about the scheme, so they don't feel left out. I have to get back to finishing my painting for class credit today, so I'll see you later at lunch.

Mackenzie: Yeah, Addie. I'll clue everybody else to my scheme, so I'll see you later at lunch.

Feeling delighted that Mackenzie was clueing their friends with her scheme, Audrey checked the time on her iPhone and noticed she'd been texting Mackenzie for the last eighteen minutes. Realizing that she had only eleven more minutes to finish her painting, she dumped her cell phone inside her designer handbag and grabbed her paintbrush. Dipping it into the same cleaning dish near her, Audrey swirled her paintbrush around the water and knocked it against the sides of the cleaning dish.

Dipping her brush into some brown paint, she painted the middle of the avocados' shapes and realistically created some avocados' pits. By the time Audrey was done filling in the bowl shape, she stepped back from the small painting and examined it with laser focus. Discovering that she had finished her still-life painting, Audrey finally dunked her paintbrush into the cleaning dish before leaning against the window sill near her.

Making sure that she didn't press her body against her purse, Audrey tapped her left white Reiss espadrille-clad foot against the waxed floor as she looked at the classroom's clock. Noticing that there were fifteen minutes left until first-period class was over, she let out a sigh and grabbed her iPhone from inside her designer handbag again. Unlocking her cell phone, Audrey tapped on the Messages app and read through the text conversation that had just happened between her and Mackenzie.

Observing that her friend was devious for coming up with this scheme to deal with Nikki Reeds, she smirked to herself and turned her cell phone off again. Dumping her iPhone into her purse, Audrey gathered her long, silky platinum-blonde waves over her shoulders and pulled the latest issue of French Elle from inside her tote. She was equally mesmerized by both the French models on the glossy pages, and the interesting interview with the newest fashion designer: Colette Dyer, who was the protege of John Oliver.

Continuing to skip through the magazine, Audrey stopped on page fifty-five, reading through Hope Logan's interview that was talking about her struggle to break into the model industry. A few minutes later, she folded the edge of page sixty-five, deciding that she'll finish reading the magazine later tonight. Closing the magazine, Audrey dropped it back inside her purse and turned her head towards the classroom's clock.

Perceiving that the bell is gonna ring in four minutes, she glanced at her teacher and noticed that he wanted to say something to the class. Audrey focused her gaze on Mr. Jerome and listened to what he was saying.

"Okay, students, leave your paintings on the easels," Mr. Jerome spoke from the front of the classroom. "I'll grade them after school ends today. I also require you guys to write a two-page essay about still life. And, email the essay to me."

Nodding, Audrey made a mental note to start writing the essay on Sunday before hearing the bell ring. Knowing that her first-period class was over, she grabbed her designer handbag and shuffled towards the classroom door. Stepping outside, Audrey kept her face blank as she witnessed the other classmates moving out of her way. Making sure that she didn't make eye contact with them, she headed straight for her second-period class while continuing to keep her face blank.

---

Prescott Preparatory School for Girls

Third-Floor Bathroom

10:35 A.M.

Friday, September 6th

Madeleine waltzed down the silent third-floor hallway, positively buzzing at the fact that Lindsey and Avery wanted to talk to her about something. Turning left, paused in front of the bathroom door, rolling her shoulders back. Sucking in a deep breath, Madeleine tried to calm herself down since she was approaching her fellow Prescott Queens soon.

She got her breathing under control and triple-checked her outfit. Understanding that her ensemble looked fabulous, Madeline plucked her compact out of her purse, making sure that her natural makeup remained flawless. Dropping the compact back inside her designer handbag, she strutted in as though she owned the school. A few moments later, then realized that Lindsey and Avery were chatting to each other about the solo selfies that they posted on Instagram.

"Hey, guys," Madeleine replied, grinning from ear to ear. She dropped her purse on the bathroom counter.

Lindsey looked over her left shoulder while adjusting her grey leather Aphrodite headband into place. "Hi, M," she replied immediately.

Avery remained perched on the counter, keeping her slender legs crossed together. "Hey, Madeleine," she chirped. Avery then ran her manicured fingers through her perfectly blow-dried dirty-blonde hair.

Madeleine admired her dress in the bathroom mirror. "Um, why are we meeting in the bathroom?" she asked a bit snarkily without looking away from her reflection.

"We need to have a queen council meeting now," Lindsey replied, her tone suddenly becoming serious. "So, A, it's time for the losers of our school to understand that this bathroom is off-limits to them."

"Okay then, Lindsey," Avery nodded as she jumped off the counter, pulled a blank piece of lined notebook paper from one of her spiral notebooks inside her quilted burgundy Chanel leather shoulder bag, and scribbled 'Out of Order' on it. She then stuck the paper on the outside of the bathroom door before turning her attention back to the other girls. "I'm pretty sure the losers got the message."

Lindsey nodded at Avery's statement before crossing her slender legs together. "This meeting is now in session," she commanded, banging an imaginary gavel. "So, A, you should start us off."

Avery pulled her hair to the side before resting her manicured hands on her hips. "It seems Devan Burke was caught flirting with Maddox," she spat angrily, hating the fact they were talking about this loser. "I need a strategy to deal with her."

"Aves, I might have an idea to deal with her," Madeleine suggested, her tone sounding very malicious. She noticed that Lindsey and Avery were now looking at her. "So, you should post a humiliating post on your Instagram page about Devan and make her understand that your boyfriend is off-limits to her. At the same time, this would cause her to fall to the bottom of the seventh-grade social ladder."

"Now, I can see why Lindsey and I choose you," Avery said sweetly, sending an approving look at Madeleine.

Madeleine bowed at Avery's praise for a few moments before inspecting her deep purple nails, which she'd changed from the colors of lilac and white. "Thank you so much," she grinned.

"Well, A, isn't there anything else you wish to report to the council?" Lindsey stated, clearing her throat loudly. She banged an imaginary gavel again.

Avery's sea-green eyes drifted from Madeleine to Lindsey. "I was wondering if you guys would like to throw a party together," she proposed, pulling on her fitted white Ralph Lauren polo shirt so her cleavage would show a bit.

"Awesome idea, Avery!" Madeleine exclaimed, squaring her shoulders. "We can hire Vanessa to plan the party for us."

Lindsey grabbed her wide, monarch-orange Ralph Lauren leather satchel from the bathroom's black-and-white-checkered floor, plucked her iPhone out of her purse, and dropped her designer bag on the counter. "Oh, we should throw a house party next Friday," she responded with a laugh.

"The Back to School dance is scheduled that day," Avery told Lindsey as she leaned against the bathroom wall behind her. "We still have some details to go over with our friends. After all, they're the only members of the social club."

Madeleine settled her eyes on the bathroom mirror and combed her manicured fingers through her curls. "Wait a minute," she said, interrupting again. "Isn't Lindsey the president of the social club?"

Avery chewed on her lower lip. "Yeah, Maddie," she replied. "Lindsey was the one that came up with this idea since she wanted to exclude the losers of our school from joining."

"Alright then," Madeleine nodded in understanding as she continued to sit on the counter and crossed her slender legs together. "Can I join the club?"

"Um, M, you're already included in the club, especially since you're our successor," Lindsey said, grinning at Madeleine. "And, your friends are apart of the club too."

Madeleine crossed her arms over her chest. "So can we get back to choosing a date for our party?"

"We could throw a killer party on September fourteen," Avery recommended, tapping her burgundy nails on the counter.

Lindsey quickly entered the details into the calendar feature on her iPhone. "Oh, that would be a perfect date for our party," she agreed.

"Ummm, that's a little bit too close for me," Madeleine said softly, leaning against the mirror. "I have a prior commitment this coming weekend. On September fifteen, Scar and I are attending our ex-best friend's pool party with our friends. And, we know that the school's dance is on September thirteenth. So, I'd like to have a little break between those days."

"So, we change the date to September twenty-first," Lindsey declared, knowing that Madeleine had to honor her verbal commitment. She then edited the details of the party on her cell phone's calendar feature again. "And, throw the party at my house."

Avery moved away from the wall and smiled brightly. "Perf," she uttered.

Lindsey checked her grey nails. "Is there anything else you guys wish to report to the council?" she asked the girls, her tone suddenly becoming serious again.

Madeleine raised her left arm in the air, suddenly remembering the group chat that happened between her, Mackenzie, Kayla, and Scarlett. "Oh, I have something to report to the council," she volunteered. "There's a major problem with Nikki Leeds. I think she's trying to poach Mackenzie's title as the Queen of Gossip and Secrets. And, it's getting on my friend's nerves."

Lindsey whipped her glossy cocoa-brown waves over her right shoulder. "How's your friend gonna deal with her?" she inquired, dropping her iPhone on her lap.

"Ugh, Kenzie's been collecting gossip and secrets from her spies at school," Madeleine informed them, keeping her tone light and breezy. "For some reason, this little bitch has been using them to blackmail people into doing what she wants. But, at the same time, Mack has a scheme to deal with her, but she's worried about getting into trouble with the headmistress."

"Don't worry about anything," Avery said reassuringly, glancing at Madeleine. "The headmistress wouldn't try anything since our parents were the ones that made a recommendation to hire her. There's also the fact that our parents are major contributors to the volunteer boards and committees. So, she'll do anything to keep her job, especially when they could make life miserable for her in Westchester."

Lindsey ran her nails over the front of her cropped, light-wash AG straight jeans and added triumphantly. "So, M, you just need to manage the balance of being loved while being feared at the same time. Our classmates would come up with cruel nicknames for us, but they know that they were at the bottom of the social ladder. And, I've been called the Queen of Mean behind my back, but it doesn't bother me one bit."

Avery sat carefully on the counter before resting her left manicured hand on Madeleine's right shoulder. "Yeah, I've been saddled with the name of She-devil by everyone in school," she added after Lindsey's statement. "But, it allows people to understand that I'm not someone to mess with."

Madeleine nodded and understood that someone would eventually come up with a nickname for her. "All right," she said flatly. Madeleine then stared at her flats for a few seconds before shifting into a comfortable position on the counter.

"So, is there anything else you wish to broadcast to the council?" Lindsey suddenly inquired as she touched the collar of her grey leather IRO biker jacket.

Madeleine raised an amused honey-blonde eyebrow at Avery and Lindsey. "I was waiting to report something else to the council," she said breezily. "I wanted to invite you guys over to my house next Thursday. Um, Linds and Aves, you should tell your friends, your boyfriends, and your boyfriend's friends to come over as well since I'm inviting Lachlan and his friends to my house too."

Lindsey fidgeted with the dainty pearl rings on her left manicured hand. "Wow, that's awesome," she added. "I'll come over to your house with the other A-listers."

"Same," Avery agreed with a snicker, sipping some Fiji water she'd bought with her.

"Cool," Madeleine grinned widely, clapping her manicured hands together. "So, you guys should just bring a bathing suit and a change of clothes."

"Can do," Lindsey stated, fingering the left strap of her white A.L.C. ruched camisole top.

Avery gave Lindsey and Madeleine a half-smile. "Got it," she stated. A few moments later, Avery heard the sound of the bathroom door opening and looked away from the girls. Observing that a nerdy sixth-grade girl had stepped into her vision, she mumbled under her breath to her fellow Queens. "Loser alert!"

Madeleine glared at the girl, realizing that she hadn't read the sign on the door. She stomped toward the girl, who just realized that the Queens of the school were still having their meeting. "Ummm, excuse," she said coldly. "The bathroom is still being used by us."

"I'm so sorry," the girl quickly apologized, shaking under the eyes of Madeleine. "I needed to use the bathroom, and I couldn't wait for you guys to finish."

Madeleine flickered her waves over her shoulders, looking intimidating in the girl's eyes. "What's your name?" she asked angrily.

"I'm Maisy Martin," the girl quickly answered, wondering why the sixth-grade Queen needed to know her name.

"Well, Maisy, you need to go somewhere else to use the bathroom," Madeleine said meanly, shooting daggers with her eyes. She remembered that this girl had invited her and her friends to her birthday party. "In better terms, get out!"

Lindsey studied Maisy with laser focus as she noticed that the girl's outfit was terrible and her face didn't have a single bit of makeup on it. "Maisy, this incident would spread across school," she piped up, sending hate rays with piercing grey eyes. "People would start to wonder why they should be afraid of us. And then, the losers in school would attempt a coup."

"So, Maisy, do us a favor," Avery said. She walked over to the area where Madeleine was standing and placed her left manicured hand on her fellow Queen's left shoulder. "And, leave the bathroom right now!"

Maisy's eyes widened for a few seconds before saying something else to the Queens. "Fine," she replied, recalling that she'd invited Madeleine and her court to her birthday party. Maisy wondered if there was a way to uninvite them to her party, but then she realized that if she did that, she'll probably never be invited to their parties at all. "But, you guys don't have to be bitches to everybody at school."

Madeleine rolled her eyes at Maisy's statement. "Whatever," she muttered, perceiving that Avery and Lindsey were still sending daggers at the girl. "They should understand that the hierarchy is there for a reason."

"I understand," Maisy said quietly before heading straight for the bathroom door.

Avery heard the bathroom door close behind that loser. "Oh, did you guys smell her disgusting body order?" she questioned. "It's disgusting."

"Well, yeah, obviously," Lindsey smiled wickedly, looking at Madeleine. "I've heard that you're going to deliver judgment on some losers in your grade, anyway."

"Sure," Madeleine answered icily, crossing her arms over her chest. "They want you guys to strip me of my title as the sixth-grade Queen. And, include scholarship kids in the Prescott Queen system."

Lindsey shot a sympathetic smile at Madeleine, pointing towards her and Avery. "M, you shouldn't worry about us," she said, oozing the control of a Queen. "We're never stripping you of your title as the sixth-grade Queen. But, you should also make them understand that they should feel the social stigma of going after your throne."

"Madeleine, it's going to be so perfect," Avery said evilly, loving her fellow Queen's plan. She observed that Madeleine was beaming with praise from Lindsey.

Madeleine cocked her perfectly waxed honey-blonde eyebrows at Avery and Lindsey. "I thin–" she stopped mid-sentence.

The piercing bell rang, which caused the girls to understand that third period was now over. Hearing the sound of classroom doors opening, they knew that their fellow students were pouring into the empty third-floor hallway.

"Well, M, I can't wait for the major humiliation at lunch today," Lindsey said excitedly, dropping her iPhone into her purse. She gave her fellow Queens goodbye hugs and walked out of the bathroom. "Bye, guys."

Audrey blew a kiss at Madeleine, grabbed her designer handbag, and sauntered out of the bathroom. "Later, Madeleine!" she uttered.

As soon as the bathroom door closed, Madeleine moved towards the mirror and gave herself a once-over. Loving how beautiful her outfit looked on her, she fluffed her curls, wondering if she'll be able to display a stoic expression as she delivered judgment on these girls, who were trying to take away her throne from her, but then decided that they deserve everything coming to them. Letting out a sigh of relief, Madeleine applied another coat of raspberry-flavored Pretty & Perfect lip gloss on her lips. Rolling her shoulders back, she stepped outside and sashayed toward her fourth-period class.

---

Prescott Preparatory School for Girls

Cafeteria

12:31 P.M.

Friday, September 6th

"Excuse me," Madeleine shouted, sounding serious. She stomped her flats on the table, noticing that the entire cafeteria was looking at her. "I'll like Tia Scott, Sofia Addison, Molly Nolan, and Jacqueline Everstone to come over here and stand in front of me for their judgment."

Looking through the sea of losers, Madeleine observed that everyone was wondering why these girls had provoked her ire before glancing over her shoulder and noticing that her friends had the same expression of fury on their faces. Smiling wickedly, she faced forward, noticing that these girls were now standing in front of her and her friends.

Madeleine jumped off the table and placed her manicured hands on her hips. "I'm going to ask you guys a few questions," she said regally. "And, you better answer them quickly."

"What questions?" Tia asked nervously, feeling everyone's stares. Knowing that Madeleine had found out about their plans to take away her throne, she exchanged side glances with Jacqueline, Molly, and Sofia.

"The first question: Did you idiots think that I wouldn't find out that you guys were planning to take my throne away from me," Madeleine sneered, her voice suddenly turning bitchy. "And, second question: Do you think that I'm daft to leave my throne open for a bunch of losers?"

"N-No," Molly stuttered, realizing that Kayla must have told her friends about their confrontation in the bathroom. She immediately knew that her laughing in Kayla's face would eventually come to bite her in the ass, but then she gained some more confidence when she noticed that the other girls were holding their heads high. "But, it's time for scholarship students to overthrow the current Queen system. So, someone could have the chance to be at the top of the sixth-grade social hierarchy."

Madeleine rolled her eyes at Molly's stupid statement, thinking that this girl was stupid to think that scholarship kids would have the right to the title of Queen. "That's the dumbest idea I've ever heard," she cackled loudly. A few moments later, Madeleine looked over her left shoulder, realizing that Lindsey and Avery were smirking devilishly at these idiots' agenda. She then turned her attention back to the judgment of the girls in front of her.

"Why were you chosen as Queen in the first place?" Sofia snarled, pushing her imitation pearl bracelets even further up her arms. "I should have been the first scholarship Queen for our grade. But no, Lindsey and Avery had to select someone from their social status."

"Maybe because I'm a legacy," Madeleine answered coldly, glaring hatefully at Sofia.

Scarlett instantly got up from her seat and stood beside Madeleine's right side. "I got this video from one of my spies earlier today," she interrupted sharply, crossing her arms over her chest. "It's about Molly. It shows her eating dog biscuits, and then being bashed by the people of the internet worldwide. So, I'm sending this video to everyone in Westchester."

Molly gulped loudly, trying her best to remain calm and collected. "That's just great," she said half-heartedly, knowing that she would be embarrassed about this video again. "We just want someone who wouldn't use our secrets as information."

"Uh, what a bunch of losers," Kayla shouted, not caring if the girls standing before Madeleine heard her ridicule. She got up and stood beside Scarlett on Madeleine's right. "You're going after Maddie because her family has more wealth and connections than you guys. There's also the fact that you guys are seething with jealousy since you guys would like to have the same advantage as her."

"Yes," Tia and Jacqueline answered honestly in unison as they felt the heated glares from Sofia and Molly, who were pissed that they were losing their strong facades in front of the self-proclaimed royalty of their grade. "We're angry about getting the short end of the stick."

Mackenzie rolled her aquamarine eyes at Tia and Jacqueline's pathetic expressions on their faces, shifting into a comfortable position in her seat. "Well, this should be a lesson for you morons," she said lethally without getting up from her seat. "Things would always come easier to popular girls."

Molly and Sofia realized that they were losing a battle with Madeleine and her court. "Whatever," they muttered. "But, then again, why isn't Lindsey allowing scholarship kids to join the exclusive social club?"

Audrey looked down at her white Reiss espadrilles while thinking that she needed to cross Tia, Jacqueline, Sofia, and Molly off her birthday party's guest list. "Maybe because Lindsey doesn't want her club populated by losers," she said breathlessly, observing that Madeleine's eyes were still filled with fury.

Madeleine peeked from the corner of her eye, observing that Lindsey and Avery were entertained by the dressing down of Sofia, Tia, Molly, and Jacqueline. Letting out a sigh, she looked back at the girls standing in front of her and crossed her arms over her chest. "No matter how much you guys try to take my throne away from me, I will rise from the ashes like a phoenix and make your lives a living hell," she said icily, arching a perfectly waxed honey-blonde eyebrow in the direction of Tia, Molly, Jacqueline, and Sofia.

Tia gulped loudly and know that Madeleine would make her life miserable. "But, why can't you guys just invite everyone to your parties?" she asked Madeleine and her court, switching the topic.

Kayla snickered meanly at Tia's stupid question and wondered if this girl was dumb. She leaned against the table and crossed her ankles together. "The real reason why we want to make everything exclusive," she responded to this loser's question. "It allows us to see how far people would go to get an invitation to our parties."

Jacqueline winced and immediately understood that she had made the wrong decision to go against the self-proclaimed royalty of her grade. "Fine then," she stated, trying to disappear into the peter-pan collar of her Marc Jacobs top.

"Only losers suddenly get the idea that they can go against the Queen of their grade," Scarlett responded evilly, laughing at their misfortune. She sneakily exchanged a side glance with Madeleine, silently discovering that her friend's eyes were filled with a malicious glint.

"But, I still want to be the first scholarship Queen," Sofia quickly said, not wanting to give up on her dream. She hated the fact that Lindsey and Avery wouldn't even respond to her DM on their Instagram pages.

"Um, Sofia, that's never happening here," Audrey said maliciously as she burst Sofia's bubble and flattened her ruffled, bright-white Ganni cotton poplin blouse. "Even when the sky falls."

"We understand that we're dreaming about things that would never happen," Molly deadpanned, staring at her Puma sneakers.

"It's good that you guys finally understand that you guys weren't even close to taking Maddie's throne away from her," Mackenzie added coldly as she fixed the hem of her dress.

"It's time to deliver judgment on these girls, anyway," Madeleine said icily, getting tired of listening to Tia, Molly, Jacqueline, and Sofia. A couple of seconds later, she straightened her posture and stared directly into their eyes. "You're hereby banished to the bottom of the sixth-grade social ladder forever. None of you guys will ever receive an invitation to our parties. And, will have to remain out of our sight till we graduate from school. Do you guys understand your punishment?"

"Um, yes, M-Madeleine," Tia, Sofia, Molly, and Jacqueline stuttered in unison.

With a wave of her right manicured hand, Madeleine dismissed these losers from her sight and leaped off the table. Before she could say something to her friends, Madeleine heard the bell ring, which indicated that lunch was over. Madeleine glanced at the girls and started saying something to her friends.

Madeleine smiled brightly and crossed her arms over her chest. "Um, girlies, I'll see you guys later," she told her friends calmly.

Audrey nodded and tossed her purse over her right shoulder. "Yeah, Maddie," she said, waving bye to her friends. "I need to go fix my makeup before heading toward my fifth-period class."

Mackenzie sneaked a peek from the corner of her eye and discovered that Audrey had already left the cafeteria. "Me too," she agreed, snatching her designer handbag off the back of her chair. "My teacher takes points off for being late for her class. So, I'll text you later."

Scarlett perceived that Mackenzie had already walked out of the cafeteria doors before turning her attention to Madeleine and Kayla. She cocked her head to the side, smiling at the both of them. "Um, Mads and Kay, I'll text you later," she said emotionlessly.

"Got it, Scar!" Kayla nodded in understanding before she shifted her attention back to Madeleine and witnessed that her friend was waiting for her to say something to her. "Um, Maddie, I need to head over to my fifth-period class. So, see you later."

As soon as Kayla left the cafeteria, Madeleine stared directly at the table and realized that her friends had left their empty lunch trays for the cafeteria staff to clean up. Shaking her head from side to side, she set her face into a blank stare and grabbed her purse from her chair. Heading straight for the cafeteria doors, Madeleine sauntered outside and observed that there were some girls, who were staying out of her way. Continuing to keep her face blank, she pretended that she didn't notice them and headed straight for her fifth-period class.

---

Prescott Preparatory School for Girls

Math Class

2:42 P.M.

Friday, September 6th

Dropping her head on her desk, Kayla fanned her glossy wheat-blonde curls attractively around her head and tried to calm herself down. She was still fuming about the confrontation with Molly, Tia, Jacqueline, and Sofia. Taking a deep breath, Kayla raised her head and looked directly at the smartboard.

Seeing that her teacher, Mrs. Perez had switched to the next slide, she listened to her teacher's lecture on how decimals are used in numbers, leaning back in her seat. A couple of moments later, Kayla sighed deeply and grabbed her iPhone out of her designer handbag. She scrolled through her notifications, realizing that James had texted her during the lunchroom confrontation. Silently freaking out about the fact that the boy she'd liked texted her, she positioned her cell phone under the table and read James's text.

James: Hey, Kayla. What are you doing?

Kayla: I'm in math class right now. What about you?

James: I'm currently in my social studies class. And, I wanted to ask you something.

Dropping her iPhone on her lap, Kayla's brain went blank, knowing that James was gonna ask her to the dance. Taking a deep breath, she knew that she needed to keep it cool since she didn't want James to know that she had taken cover behind the Crestview's school sign and listened to the conversation that he was having with the boys. Rolling her shoulders back, Kayla instantly sent a quick reply to James' text message.

Kayla: What do you want to ask me about?

Hoping that James would detect her coy tone in the text message, Kayla pulled a half-filled bottle of Perrier from inside her purse and drank several measured sips of carbonated mineral water. Dropping her Perrier on the table near her opened notebook and her fuzzy green pom-pom pen, she returned her attention to the text conversation with James.

James: Kayla, do you want to go to the Back-to-School dance with me?

Kayla: Of course, James. Are your friends gonna ask my friends to the dance?

James: Let's keep this between us! Lachlan, Scott, Aiden, and Declan are all gonna ask Madeleine, Mackenzie, Scarlett, and Audrey to the dance. But, they're trying to figure out a way to do it first.

Kayla's amber eyes lit up in excitement, loving how James was confiding in her about his friends' actions. Looking up from her iPhone, she dropped her cell phone in her lap again and grabbed her pen. Copying the example decimal problems in her notebook, Kayla abandoned her pen in her notebook, moved her iPhone under the table again, and resumed the text conversation with James.

Kayla: I might have an idea for your friends. But, don't tell them that the idea came from me.

James: Why not? It'll encourage them to move their asses quicker.

Kayla: Wouldn't they think it's a little strange that I'm suggesting something to them?

Leaving her iPhone on her lap, Kayla sat up straighter and tossed her curls over her shoulders. Snatching her cell phone, she drank several more sips of her Perrier before turning her attention back to the text conversation with James.

James: Um, no. They would think that the idea is brilliant.

Kayla: All right, James. I was thinking that the boys should be blunt with my friends.

James: Kayla, you should explain this idea further to me.

Staring at the classroom's clock, Kayla perceived that the bell is gonna ring in ten minutes. She then peeked from the corner of her eye and noticed some of the students staring discreetly at her. Pretending that she didn't see them, Kayla glanced over at Mrs. Perez, discovering that her teacher had switched to the next slide.

Looking away, she grabbed a Lemon Zest Luna bar from inside her designer handbag and unwrapped the bar. Taking small, delicate bites until she finished the snack, Kayla tossed the wrapper on the floor, not caring if someone slipped on the wrapper. Inhaling, she sent a reply to James' text message.

Kayla: Yeah, James, the boys should grow some balls and privately ask my friends to the school dance.

Making a mental note to tell her friends about James asking her to the Back-to-School dance at Madeleine's slumber party, Kayla knew that he would consider her suggestion since she knew that James would have thought about her idea. Squaring her shoulders, she whipped her curls over her right shoulder before reading James' text message.

James: Fine, Kayla. I'll pass the idea on to my friends.

Kayla: Okay, James. What are you doing after school today?

James: I'm heading over to Scott's house after school ends today. We're playing the new Call of Duty game together.

Kayla already knew that James was hanging out with his friends at Scott's house since she'd spied on the boys yesterday with her friends. Before she could respond to his text, Kayla heard the bell ring, which made her understand that the school was now. She looked around the classroom, discovering that her classmates were now looking at Mrs. Perez.

Mrs. Perez called for attention from the front of the class. "Okay, class," she said loudly over the students, who were now packing their stuff into their backpacks. "I'm assigning pages 1-6 by Monday afternoon. As soon as you guys enter my classroom, I want you guys to hand it in. And, I'm also handing out the first pop quiz that day. So, everyone can leave now."

As soon as her teacher dismissed her, Kayla glanced back down at her iPhone, sending James a text that said she'll text him later. Dropping her cell phone into her purse, she gathered her stuff and moved away from her seat. Schooling her face into a blank stare, Kayla headed straight for the classroom door and sashayed outside. Continuing to keep her face blank, she hurried toward the school's parking lot, knowing that her friends were probably waiting for her. The only thing that mattered to Kayla was that she rested a bit before Madeleine's slumber party tonight.

---

The Frost Estate

Home Theater

4:58 P.M.

Friday, September 6th

Staring at the projector screen, Mackenzie concentrated fully on the last scenes of the newest Erica Newman movie and shoved the last handful of buttered popcorn. She hated that the movie was almost over while slouching back in her plush leather recliner. As soon as the movie's credits rolled past the projector screen, Mackenzie rose from her seat and dropped the empty glass bowl on the recliner.

She grabbed her egg-shaped remote from her recliner's cup holder and pressed her left manicured thumbnail into a button that caused the projector to turn off. A couple of moments later, Madeleine pressed the same manicured thumbnail into another button, which caused the projector screen to roll back into the ceiling. Turning around, Mackenzie dumped the remote on her recliner and raised the empty glass bowl to her eyes.

Realizing that there were only kennels left, Mackenzie placed the bowl on the recliner near the remote for Svetlana to clean up and headed toward the home theater's doorway. Sauntering outside, she decided to know where her dad was. Padding across the hallway that connects with the rest of the house, Mackenzie slowly made her way to her dad's study while staring at her mom's landscape paintings. As soon as she reached her dad's study, Mackenzie knocked loudly on the study door and waited for her dad to welcome her in.

Understanding that her dad wasn't in his study, Mackenzie instantly decided to check if her mom was home, sighing lightly. Hurrying over to the winding staircase, she raced upstairs and almost knocked Svetlana, who was carrying her parent's dry cleaning in her arms. When she reached the second-floor hallway, Mackenzie headed over to her parents' enormous bedroom and paused in front of the door.

Sticking her blonde head into the master bedroom, she looked around the room, discovering that her mom wasn't home either. Hating that she was alone with the household staff, Mackenzie then closed the bedroom door and made a beeline for her room. When she walked inside her bedroom, Mackenzie closed the door with her petite body and faced forward. Smoothing the front of her ivory Aqua linen smock dress, she looked around and loved that her parents had allowed her to redecorate her room this summer.

Her entire room was covered in a yellow, navy blue, and white combo– three walls were painted deep navy blue, and the wall behind her white upholstered diamond-tufted headband was covered in white damask wallpaper. The microfiber sheets on her bed were white, and her fluffy oversized yellow-and-navy-blue-striped king-size duvet lay across her king-size bed. Five yellow-and-navy blue floral throw pillows were resting against her white satin pillows, which were laying against her headboard, and a long white satin bolster pillow was placed in front of the other pillows.

In between her walk-in closet and her private bathroom was her massive modern vanity. The white table had her makeup stored neatly inside her yellow Kate Spade makeup bags and her bottles of Aphrodite perfume were on top of the table. Beyond her French closet doors stood her massive two-story yellow-and-white walk-in closet stuffed with the latest designer clothes, shoes, handbags, and accessories, which had a large navy-blue diamond-tufted velvet ottoman in the center of her wardrobe. Backed against the corner near her walk-in closet was her long, white-framed, full-length mirror.

On both of her modern white two-drawer nightstands were white modern table lamps on either side with a single intercom speaker, a modern alarm clock, her silver iPad Pro, and her Apple wireless charging case that was holding her fully charged AirPods inside. Above her white trophy case filled with ballet and academic trophies was her black 75-inch flat-screen smart TV. Eight white bookcases were placed around her room, which was crammed with glossy fashion magazines, reading books, and textbooks for the school year.

Over her white modern bed hung a yellow-and-navy abstract painting from Abigail Overstone. In the center of her white oak coffee table stood a glass flower vase that was filled with marigold tagetes. Behind her coffee table was her navy-blue velvet chaise lounge covered in solid yellow satin throw pillows and a white cashmere throw, which had matching oak side tables. Hanging all over her walls were the small abstract paintings from Abigail Overstone.

Right next to her desk was a modern white wastebasket filled with trash. Automated thermal curtains hung from curtain rods to block out the windows. Casting a soft glow over her room was a small Swarovski crystal-trimmed chandelier. The white marble floor gleamed beneath three large navy-and-yellow-striped rugs. '

Behind some more French doors was her en-suite bathroom. Skincare products were perfectly lined across the marble countertop of her modern white bathroom vanity. On the other side of the bathroom was an oversized walk-in shower with multiple nozzles, so her body would constantly be sprayed with water without her having to keep turning. Outside of the shower and hanging from several chrome wall robe hooks were a couple of light and fluffy bathrobes. Next to her shower was her white double-ended freestanding tub, facing another flat-screen TV. Next to her tub was a solid white oak side table with open storage that was filled with fluffy monogrammed hand towels. The heated Turkish marble bathroom floor gleamed with perfection. Next to her bathroom was her modern white oak desk.

On the tabletop was a MacBook Pro laptop, a modern white pen holder filled with yellow faux-fur pom-pom pens was right beside her computer, a neatly stacked pile of spiral notebooks sat near the far edge of her desk, and several white picture frames were filled with pictures of her and parents sat in the other corner of her desk. Finally, hanging behind her desk was the navy-blue pinboard that was filled with pictures of her former elementary school friends and outdated party invitations.

Walking over to her right-side nightstand, Mackenzie unplugged her iPhone from her computer and dropped her cell phone on the same nightstand. She then unplugged her charger from the outlet behind her right-side nightstand and abandoned it on the floor next to her bed. Just as Mackenzie was about to plop down on her chaise lounge, a ding came from her computer.

Settling into her desk chair, she took a deep breath and pressed her wireless mouse, which woke her computer from sleep. Mackenzie noticed that her cousin, Madelyn had sent her a text message. Choosing to acknowledge her cousin's text, she clicked on Messages and read Madelyn's text.

Madelyn: Hey, Mackenzie. How have you been doing?

Mackenzie: Well, I'm fine, Madelyn. School ended a couple of hours ago. And, I'm resting at home before I have to head over to my friend's slumber party.

Madelyn: Oh, Kenzie, that sounds awesome. But, school's been a nightmare.

Leaning back in her seat, Mackenzie clicked on Chrome and instantly went on the Instagram website. Entering her account details, she scrolled through her feed and noticed that the selfie she'd posted this morning had over a thousand likes. Smiling to herself, Mackenzie switched over to Messages and sent a swift reply to her cousin's text message.

Mackenzie: Why? What happened?

Switching from Chrome to Messages, Mackenzie noticed that her cousin had sent her a text while she was looking through her Instagram account feed. She read Madelyn's text message for a few minutes and sent a swift reply to her cousin's message.

Madelyn: Somehow, my AP classes were switched to regular classes. And, it took them about two days to figure out a way to get me into my true classes. There's also the fact that it seemed weird to me.

Mackenzie: When did that happen?

Madelyn: Well, it seems like the dim-witted main office secretary didn't enter the right class code for my schedule. And, the school system decided to put me with the less smart kids. Plus, there was also the fact that my friends were all in the AP classes while I was stuck in the bottom classes.

Feeling sorry for her cousin, Mackenzie switched over to the Instagram website and moved over to her Instagram page. Seeing that students from her school liked every picture that she had posted, she snickered softly, knowing that these girls were living vicariously through her. Logging out, Mackenzie moved over to Messages again and sent a text to her cousin.

Mackenzie: Um, Madelyn, that sounds so crazy. But, how did your friends take the news of the screwup?

Madelyn: Kenzie, they were ready to make this lady pay for nearly ruining my high school transcript. And, we're trying to get their parents to make her life a living hell, since they were all on the school board.

Mackenzie: Now, I believe that they have the right to make any adult's life a living hell. But, what did my aunt and uncle do about it?

Loving this juicy text conversation with her cousin, Mackenzie opened one of her desk's drawers and sifted through the drawer's stuff. She pulled a strawberry-flavored Nutri-Grain bar from the same drawer and closed it. Unwrapping the bar, Mackenzie ate the snack in three huge bites and tossed the empty wrapper into the wastebasket. Returning her attention to the text conversation with Madelyn, she discovered that her cousin had replied to her text and sent a quick reply to Madelyn's text message.

Madelyn: My parents were angry and had a meeting with the principal. Their exact words were that they would sue the school district for the secretary's negligence while making the principal fire the lady in front of them.

Mackenzie: Harsh, much?

Madelyn: No, not really, Kenzie. She shouldn't have messed up in the first place.

Laughing at this text conversation, Mackenzie glanced at her alarm clock and noticed that it was almost six o'clock in the afternoon. She looked at her brightly-lit computer's screen and sent a swift reply to her cousin's text.

Mackenzie: I believe the secretary is gonna wish that she didn't enter the wrong class code. But, Madelyn, we need to finish this text conversation later because I still need to pack for my friend's slumber party.

Pulling her long, silky strawberry-blonde curls into a messy bun atop her head, Mackenzie looked over at her custom-made mannequin and noticed that she hadn't found an outfit for Audrey's birthday party yet. But then, she remembered that she privately booked Aphrodite's boutique store for this Saturday afternoon. Sighing, Mackenzie looked at the computer and discovered that her cousin had sent a reply to her text.

Madelyn: Okay, Kenzie. I have to leave this conversation as well since my friends are coming over to hang out with me.

Mackenzie: Oh, Madelyn, say hi to your friends for me.

As soon as Mackenzie noticed that her cousin had stopped texting her, she decided that she needed to pack for Madeleine's slumber party. She padded across the rugs and walked through the opened French doors of her massive walk-in closet and clapped her manicured hands together so the lights in her wardrobe would turn in. Looking at her closet's shelves, Mackenzie grabbed the medium brown-and-acorn logo-striped weekender bag from her Michael Kors luggage set and opened it up.

Dropping the bag on one of her wide, navy-blue velvet button-tufted wing chairs, she yanked a black Free People floral bubble dress from its hanger and folded the dress carefully. Dumping it inside her weekender bag, Mackenzie turned her attention to her closet's racks and slowly made her way over to the racks that held her light cardigans. She pulled a cropped, light-pink Ralph Lauren cashmere cardigan and dropped it atop her dress.

Walking over to the shoe racks, Mackenzie picked a pair of light-pink Aphrodite pointed suede flats and pressed them together. She carefully placed the flats right next to the folded dress and cardigan. Mackenzie then pawed through her closet's drawers and snatched a light pair of short, black Aphrodite leggings.

Shutting her closet drawer with her left manicured hand, she gracefully folded the leggings while abandoning them on top of her folded dress and cardigan. As soon as Mackenzie packed her ensemble for tomorrow morning, she pulled her micro yellow Rains toiletry bag from one of her closet's drawers and unzipped it. Checking inside, Mackenzie discovered that her travel-size Colgate toothpaste, Oribe mixed-bristle flat hairbrush, yellow exfoliating loofah sponge, and bathing products were in it.

Needing to get her toothbrush, she walked out of her closet with her toiletry bag in her manicured hands. Walking inside her all-white bathroom, Mackenzie grabbed her toothbrush from her bathroom's marble vanity top and positioned it into the bag. Zipping it up, she left her bathroom while holding her toiletry bag in her right manicured hand.

Snatching her iPad and fully-charged iPhone from her right-side nightstand, Mackenzie walked across her bed, dumping her iPad and toiletry bag on her bed. Grabbing her Kate Spade makeup bag from the Chanel handbag she'd carried to school today, she piled everything in her arms and strutted inside her closet. Letting the stuff fall on the other wing chairs, Mackenzie tossed her toiletry bag into her bag.

She then tucked her iPad and her cell phone into the side compartment, zipping them up. Feeling that she was ready, Mackenzie already knew that she was going to Madeleine's house with her pajamas on. Grabbing her Michael Kors bag, she walked out of her closet and shut the doors behind her without turning the lights off in her wardrobe. Scurrying across her rugs, Mackenzie dropped her bag near her closed bedroom door, keeping her breath under control. A few moments later, she collapsed face-first on her duvet, thinking that she should take a nap before heading over to Madeleine's sleepover. Without moving sideways, Mackenzie fell asleep a few moments later.

---

The Stein Estate

Madeleine's Bedroom

8:54 P.M.

Friday, September 6th

Smiling triumphantly, Madeleine flattened her silky, purple Versace orchid-print chemise and looked around her room. She observed that everything was in place for her weekly slumber party. Five trundle beds were laid out in a flower-petal formation with Coco's velour doggie bed near Madeleine's trundle bed. Giant glass bowls of buttered popcorn, cheese curls, and low-fat brownies were in the center of the beds. Her Sub-Zero mini-fridge was stocked with Perrier, Diet Coke, and Diet Mountain Dew.

Mountains of Bliss face masks and O.P.I nail essentials were scattered across her desk. Ten glowing lavender and chamomile-scented candles had been positioned around her room, giving off a sweet, warm smell. The trundle beds were dressed in silky ivory sheets. Five fluffed goose-down pillows were covered in satin pillowcases. Lastly, she added more songs to her slumber-party playlist on Spotify so the girls could dance along to the music. Everything looked perfect. The only thing missing were her guests.

Sitting at the edge of her bed, Madeleine wrapped her arms around Coco, who was curling up in a tiny white ball beside her. Pressing her dog against her chest, she smothered Coco with kisses before running her right manicured hand over her dog's clean fur. Madeleine then lifted Coco in the air so their eyes could meet.

"Coco, what's taking them so long?" Madeleine asked her dog with a heavy sigh. "They should have been here twenty-five minutes ago."

Coco barked twice.

"I hate being alone," Madeleine muttered, dropping her dog on her lap. "It's one of my worst fears."

"Who are you talking to?" Scarlett said as she walked through Madeleine's bedroom door, looking slumber party-ready in a scarlet-red La Perla silk scoop-necked camisole and matching shorts, and her pin-straight hair had been braided into French pigtails.

Madeleine avoided her friend's question, dropped Coco on her duvet, and got up from her bed. "Hey, Scar!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around Scarlett and squeezing her friend into a bear hug.

"Hey, Maddie," Scarlett cooed, breaking away from the hug. She then dumped her extra-large burnt-red-and-brown Michael Kors monogrammed overnight bag on the floor and snatched her iPhone out of the snap pocket in the back. "Where's everyone else?"

Madeleine flopped down on her usual trundle bed, feeling the goose-down comforter with her thighs. "They're probably on their way here," she answered, munching on a handful of popcorn.

Scarlett sat cross-legged on her usual trundle bed beside Madeleine on her right, eating some buttered popcorn. "Anyway, my parents are complaining that I'm spending too much time with you guys. And they want to spend a day together as a family."

"Aren't they glad that you're having fun?" Madeleine questioned, popping the same handful of buttered popcorn into her mouth.

Scarlett stood up from her bed and grabbed a chilled bottle of Perrier from Madeleine's mini-fridge. "Yeah, but they want me to enjoy my independence even more," she said smoothly, opening the bottle of Perrier and taking a long sip of carbonated mineral water. She then closed her Perrier and dropped the bottle of water on Madeleine's desk before walking through the opened closet doors of Madeleine's closet.

A few moments later, Madeleine instantly heard the sound of someone clearing their throat and looked in the direction of that person. Noticing that Mackenzie was standing in her bedroom's doorway, she was delighted that her friend had broken the momentary silence, seeing that Mackenzie was entering her room.

Mackenzie headed straight for the spot beside Madeleine on her left, dropped her Michael Kors bag on the floor next to Madeleine's coffee table, and plopped down on her trundle bed. "Hi, Mads!" she gushed with a smile on her face, her curly hair had been braided into double-knot pigtails. She wore a cream La Perla hydrangea print camisole and matching shorts. "Are we the only ones here?"

Madeleine smoothed the front of her pajama top before nodding her head in the direction of Scarlett's bag. "Um, no," she answered. "You might want to check my closet since Scar's in there right now."

"Okay," Mackenzie nodded in understanding before shouting into the opened French doors of Madeleine's closet. "Scar!"

"Yes, Mack!" Scarlett called from inside Madeleine's closet.

Mackenzie ate several fudge cookies. "What are you doing in Maddy's closet?" she questioned.

"I'm looking through her clothes," Scarlett replied from inside Madeleine's closet. "Um, Maddie, when did you buy this Ella Moss top? I just saw it on the Shopbop website this afternoon."

"It arrived today," Madeleine said, laughing at Scarlett's antics. "Didn't I show this top last Saturday?"

"Oops, Maddie," Scarlett giggled from inside Madeleine's closet. "I must have forgotten that I helped you pick it out."

Mackenzie exchanged a side glance with Madeleine, shooting a quick smirk at her friend. "Scar, you should just come out of the closet," she shouted. "I've got some juicy gossip to share with everybody."

"What gossip?" Scarlett inquired from inside Madeleine's closet.

"Not sharing till you come out of the closet," Mackenzie uttered. She got up, grabbed a chilled can of Diet Mountain Dew out of Madeleine's mini-fridge, and popped the top of her cold soda drink. A few moments later, Mackenzie took a long sip of her Diet Mountain Dew.

"Fine," Scarlett muttered as she strolled out of Madeleine's closet, grabbed her Perrier from her friend's desk, and sat cross-legged on her trundle bed again. "Um, Mack, aren't you gonna share the tea with us?"

Mackenzie's eyes drifted from Scarlett to Madeleine, knowing that she wanted Audrey and Kayla to listen to the same gossip as well. "Um, Scar and Maddy, I want our other friends to be here as well," she expressed, sitting back down on her trundle bed and setting her cold drink on the floor next to her bed. "Since I only want to dish it once to everybody."

Scarlett left her Perrier on the floor beside her bed and crossed her arms over her chest. "Fine, Manzie!" she huffed loudly.

Tuning her friends out, Madeleine got up and slowly made her way over to her desk. Snatching one of the rose gold face mask packets from her desk, she ripped it open with her pearly white teeth and applied the mask on her clean face. Fixing the eye, nose, and mouth openings to fit, Madeleine dropped her manicured hands from her face and sat back down on her trundle bed. Looking over, Madeleine discovered that her friends were having a conversation with each other, joining the conversation with Scarlett and Mackenzie.

A few minutes later, Kayle entered Madeleine's bedroom, looking radiant in emerald-green Ralph Lauren silk pajamas. "Hey, besties," she said excitedly, tightening her messy bun. "I have some personal news to share with you guys tonight."

"All right," Madeleine nodded in understanding as she looked directly at Mackenzie. "Where's Addie?"

"I just got off the phone with Addy," Kayla said nonchalantly. She lowered her light-green Tory Burch duffle bag on the floor and sat down elegantly on the trundle bed beside Scarlett. "She's gonna be here in twenty minutes,"

The corners of Madeleine's mouth pulled into a smirk. "Good," she said quickly, moving her attention from Kayla to the bowl of snacks in the middle of the trundle beds.

"Hey, Lala," Scarlett greeted her friend warmly, interrupting the conversation between Kayla and Madeleine.

Kayla crossed her arms over her chest and glanced at Scarlett. "Hello, Lett," she responded to her friend's greetings.

"What's up, Kalia?" Mackenzie asked her friend as she sat straighter in her seat while moving into a comfortable position.

"I'm good," Kayla cooed. She noticed that Madeleine was checking her face mask while making sure not to touch the mask with her fingertips.

Without saying else to her friends, Madeleine cracked her neck from side to side before laying across her trundle bed. Feeling the silk sheets, she popped some cheese curls into her mouth before licking the cheese dust off her delicate fingers. Madeleine moved away from her bed and grabbed her iPhone from her right-side nightstand.

Sitting back down on her trundle bed, she tapped on her iPhone's screen and scrolled through her notifications while being preoccupied with the thought that she'll sound like a loser in front of Lachlan and his friends. Shaking her head, Madeleine realized that she shouldn't fill her mind with bad thoughts, making sure that the bad thoughts were replaced with positivity. Letting out a sigh, she turned her cell phone off and dropped her iPhone on the floor next to her bed. Laying her head on her pillow, Madeleine closed her eyes, tuning her friends out again.

Twenty minutes later, Audrey walked through Madeleine's opened bedroom door and closed it with her right foot. She smoothed the front of her short, baby-pink Aphrodite heart-print pajamas. "Hey, pretties," she cooed, dropping her pink Aphrodite overnight bag on the floor near Madeleine's king-size bed.

"Hi, Addie," Madeleine said happily as she sat cross-legged in the center of her trundle bed, chomping on some brownies. A few minutes later, Madeleine grabbed her iPhone again and unlocked her cell phone. Tapping on the Spotify app, she immediately pressed play on her slumber-party playlist and noticed that a Mikayla Benson song was playing across her room.

Mackenzie looked over at Audrey while nibbling on a cheese curl. "Hello, Drey," she replied, loving the song that was playing from Madeleine's wireless speakers.

Scarlett lay across the silk sheets on her trundle bed and rested her folded hands on her pillow. "Hey, Rae," she said, smirking at her friends.

"Hi, Addy," Kayla said in a singsongy voice as she discovered that Audrey was now taking a seat on the trundle bed beside her, popping a cheese curl into her mouth.

Madeleine felt someone jump in between her crossed legs and glanced down. She noticed that Coco was laying across her legs, scratching behind her Pomeranian's ears. "If I remember correctly, Kenzie has some gossip to share with us," she added without looking up from her dog. "So, Mack, go ahead and share the tea with us."

"Uh-huh, Mads," Mackenzie said after a moment of silence. She looked at the ceiling for a couple of moments before gathering her thoughts and saying something to her friends. "Anyway, one of my spies at school heard Tia Scott crying in the bathroom after Madeleine passed judgment on her and her friends. They said she's regretting going after Maddie and wants to figure out a way to get back in her good graces."

Kayla fixed her messy bun while kicking her bare pedicured feet up. "Um, Mack, that's never happening," she snickered at Tia's misfortune, tilting her head in Madeleine's direction. "Maddie's never gonna forget her transgression."

"I think she should stay at the bottom of the sixth-grade hierarchy," Audrey added after Kayla's statement, her tone filled with wickedness. "And, it's a good thing that I left her and her friends off the guest list for my birthday party."

"Um, Addy, I think you made a good decision about uninviting her and her friends to your birthday party," Scarlett nodded, agreeing with Addie. She chewed thoughtfully on three brownies, pointing toward everyone in the room. "At least, we don't have to see their traitorous faces now."

"Oh, Tia thinks I would accept some half-assed apology from her and try to make her social life easier," Madeleine replied icily, dropping Coco on her doggie bed. She then tightened her low ponytail even more. "This loser should understand that there's a reason why she scored so low on the loser list. She was caught trying to continue a scheme that involves stealing my throne and title away from me. So, she remains banished from the sixth-grade social scene."

"Um, Kaila, you said you have some news to share with us," Audrey added after Madeleine's statement. She glanced at Kayla, who was pushing her top's sleeves even further up her arms.

"Okay, girlies," Kayla said, suddenly remembering what she would share with her friends. "After the lunch room confirmation with Tia and her friends, James texted me and asked me to the Back-to-School dance. So, that means that I'm not running around like a chicken, since I have a date for the dance now."

Scarlett flashed a half-smile at Kayla. "Oh my god, Lala!" she exclaimed loudly, not caring if Madeleine's parents heard her shriek. "I can't believe that you're not stressing anymore about not having a date to the dance.

Mackenzie fixed the neckline of her camisole before drinking refreshing sips of her Diet Mountain Dew. "Kay, you're so lucky," she told her friend. "I'm still waiting for Declan to ask me to the dance."

Audrey giggled and ate several cheese curls. "At least, Kalia has a date," she said flatly. "I'm freaking out when Aiden is gonna ask me to the dance."

Madeleine looked directly at Mackenzie, fixing her chemise's neckline. "Um, Manzie, how's the operation taking down Nikki Leeds going?" she asked with a grin, changing the subject to something more positive.

"When Nick dropped me at home today, I went inside my house and immediately rushed towards my room," Mackenzie squealed, loving how her scheme is developing well. "I found some boy pictures on Google and created a fake Instagram account. As soon as I was logged in, I instantly found Nikki's Instagram page and DM'd her under the burner account. She responded to the direct message that I sent her and started having a long text conversation with me."

"I can't understand that she believed that account is real," Scarlett added with a smirk on her face, laying across her trundle bed.

Kayla lay across her trundle bed while eating some brownies. "Nikki Leeds is so stupid," she replied with a grin. "Hasn't she heard the concept of stranger danger?"

Scarlett reached towards her Perrier without looking away from her friends. She lifted her cold drink to her lips and drank several refreshing sips of carbonated mineral water. "Well, yeah, obviously," she answered Audrey's question.

"Who's going first?" Kayla asked the girls, staring directly at her friends. A couple of moments later, she rose from her bed and padded towards Madeleine's desk. Kayla snatched a bottle of O.P.I Yoga-ta Get This Blue and immediately headed back to her bed with the bottle of nail polish in her right manicured hand. She then sat back down on her seat, left the nail polish bottle on her pillow, and returned her attention to her friends.

Audrey stood up and grabbed one of the green tea Bliss face mask packets from Madeleine's desk. Returning to her trundle bed, she sat cross-legged in the middle of her trundle bed, ripped the packet open with her pearly white teeth, and positioned the face mask on her clean face. "I wanna go first," she volunteered before fixing the eye, mouth, and nose openings to fit.

Madeleine pulled the dry face mask off her face and crumpled it into a ball. She tossed the mask into her wastebasket and stared at her friends. "Um, Drey," she said, making sure that the girls understood that she was going first. "My house. Me first."

"Okay, Mads," Audrey said, keeping the same topic of conversation. She then ate three mouth-watering brownies while making sure that her face mask didn't stretch. "Would you rather? Have the ability to see ten minutes into the future or one hundred fifty years into the future?"

"I want to have the ability to see ten minutes into the future," Madeleine replied to Audrey's question. She reached for the bowl of buttered popcorn and gently crammed a handful of popcorn into her mouth. "It'll probably allow me to see when people would be scheming against me"

"Well, Addie, I crave to have the ability to see one hundred years into the future," Scarlett stated, sounding very mysterious. She rested her chin on her pillow, taking several long sips of her Perrier. "I want to see if my future family descendants continue to grow our family fortune."

Kayla pulled her hair out of the messy bun and put it back up again. She then inspected her delicate fingers and discovered that her nails were bare. "Oh, Addy, I desire to have the ability to see ten minutes into the future," she said excitedly. Opening the bottle of nail polish, Kayla started painting her nails while making sure that nail polish droplets didn't splatter on her satin pillowcase. "This ability would allow me to see the torment that I put losers through."

"Uh, Addy, I'm literally choosing the first option!" Mackenzie added after Kayla's statement as she reached for the bowl of buttered popcorn and wolfed down several handfuls of popcorn. "I already understand that this ability would permit me to see if I'm still popular."

Audrey took a deep breath before crawling over to her overnight bag. She unzipped her overnight bag and grabbed her iPhone from inside her bag. "I'll select the option to see one hundred fifty years into the future," she murmured, sitting back down on her trundle with her cell phone in her lap.

Madeleine glanced over her left shoulder and discovered that Coco was curled up against her doggie bed. "Would you rather be chronically under-dressed or overdressed?" she questioned the girls without looking away from her Pomeranian.

"Definitely picking the option to be overdressed," Kayla told her friends, continuing to paint her nails the color of deep dark blue. "My mom always tells me that you should be dressed the best. Since she says that first impressions always count."

A wide grin spread across Scarlett's face. "Yeah, Maddie, I'd rather choose to be overdressed as well," she agreed, eating more low-fat brownies. "People always judge you for your appearance."

Mackenzie ate several handfuls of cheese curls and washed it down with three long gulps of her Diet Mountain Dew. "Same," she added. "Being overdressed would allow me to be ready for any occasion."

"Uh, I'm choosing the action of being overdressed," Audrey replied to Mackenzie's question, chewing thoughtfully on five brownies. Dropping her iPhone on her pillow, she moved away from her trundle bed and headed straight for Madeleine's mini-fridge. Opening the fridge, Audrey snatched a chilled can of Diet Coke and popped the top of her cold soda drink. She drank ten long gulps of her Diet Coke while sauntering toward her friends. Laying across her bed, Audrey positioned her cold drink on the floor beside her trundle bed. "You could always meet people that would help you in the future."

"I'm definitely choosing the second option," Madeleine answered her own question as she sat up straighter in her trundle bed and stared directly at her friends. "My cousins, Esmée and Aimee say that you could meet a boy that you like a lot. So, you should be dressed impeccably for them."

"What would you rather have telekinesis or telepathy?" Mackenzie questioned her friends, combing her manicured fingers through the ends of her pigtails.

Kayla closed the bottle of nail polish with her dominant hand while waiting for her other hand's nails to dry. "I want to have the power to telekinesis," she exclaimed. "It'll be cool to move things with my mind."

Audrey glanced down at her iPhone's brightly lit screen and unlocked her cell phone. She tapped on the Instagram app, started scrolling through her page's account feed, and discovered that people had liked the solo selfie she'd posted this morning. "Telepathy," she noted without looking up from her iPhone. "I want to have the power to read people's minds."

Scarlett ran her manicured fingers along the edge of her bed, feeling the silk sheets. "Telepathy all the way," she declared. "Having the ability to listen to people's thoughts actually sounds cool."

Madeleine stretched her slender neck from side to side. "I want to have the ability of telekinesis," she chipped, her voice filled with excitement. "This power would cause me to be able to remove people from my sight."

Mackenzie checked her cuticles and noticed that her nail beds were clean. "Yeah, Maddie," she agreed. "The power of telekinesis would let me invade someone's thoughts."

"Would you rather have universal respect or unlimited power?" Kayla asked her friends, using her dominant hand to eat some cheese curls. Loving how the snack tasted on her tongue, she looked at her left manicured hand and noticed that her nails were still wet.

Madeleine stared at Kayla for a few moments before popping some popcorn into her mouth. "Unlimited power," she answered her friend's question. "Being feared is easier to achieve than being loved."

Audrey was still scrolling through her Instagram account feed. "Unlimited power," she answered without looking up from her cell phone's bright screen.

"Unlimited power," Scarlett replied, rubbing her left manicured hand around her thin right wrist. Standing up, she quickly made her way to Audrey and pulled the dry face mask off her friend's face. Seeing that Audrey was shooting daggers with her eyes, Scarlett sent a glare back at her friend before crumpling the face mask sheet into a ball and tossing it into Madeleine's wastebasket. She returned to her bed, sat cross-legged in the middle of the bed, and listened to Mackenzie's answer to Kayla's question.

"Unlimited power," Mackenzie agreed, sitting up straighter in her trundle bed and pulling the hem of her shorts even further down her moisturized legs. "The concept of power permits me to make people afraid of me."

Kayla nodded at Mackenzie's statement and chomped down on some popcorn. She then got up, walked across Madeleine's rugs, and snatched a chilled can of Diet Coke from her friend's mini-fridge. "I'm choosing the second option as well," she replied to her own question, plopping down on her trundle bed and setting her cold drink on the floor beside her bed.

Scarlett finished the rest of her Perrier before eating more low-fat brownies. "Would you rather lounge by the pool or on the beach?" she questioned her friends.

"I'll rather lounge by the pool," Madeleine said brightly as she rested her folded arms on her pillow. "I like the beach too, but I don't go into the ocean because of shark attacks."

"Lounging by the pool for me," Audrey expressed, kicking her bare pedicured feet up in the air. She then shoved some popcorn into her mouth and washed them down with several long gulps of her Diet Coke.

Mackenzie sent a dazzling smile at Scarlett before laying across her trundle bed and nibbling on a brownie. "I'd choose the option to lounge by the pool," she marveled.

"Pool lounging for me," Kayla agreed as she popped the top of her soda drink and drank some measured sips of her Diet Coke. Dropping her cold drink on the floor in front of her bed near the giant bowls of snacks, Kayla touched her painted nail beds and discovered that her nails were completely dry. Grabbing the same nail polish bottle, Kayla opened it and started painting her dominant hand's nails with her non-dominant hand while paying attention to the conversation that was happening with her friends.

"I'd rather lounge by the pool," Scarlett mused, pushing her pigtails off her shoulders. She hugged her moisturized knees against her chest while chewing three low-fat brownies.

Before Madeleine could ask her friends a question, her iPhone buzzed on the floor, chiming throughout her bedroom. She made eye contact with her friends, realizing that her friends had excited expressions on their faces. Grabbing her cell phone, Madeleine checked her iPhone's bright screen and discovered that Lachlan was calling her. Taking a deep breath, Madeleine accepted the call and turned the speakerphone on so the girls' could listen to the conversation as well.

"Hey, Madeleine," Lachlan spoke through Madeleine's iPhone microphone.

Madeleine exchanged side glances with her friends. "Hey, Lachlan," she greeted him back warmly, trying to keep her tone breezy. "What are you doing right now?"

"I just got home now," Lachlan answered Madeleine's question. "And, I'm about to go look for my older brothers."

"Okay then," Madeleine nodded in understanding while silently telling her friends to keep quiet with her eyes. She instantly knew that she didn't need Lachlan to realize that she and her friends were spying on him and his friends.

"So, Madeleine, I was calling to ask if you and your friends want to hang out at Scott's house," Lachlan said sweetly, his tone filled with coolness.

"Yeah, Lachlan," Madeleine deadpanned as she lay across her trundle bed while noticing that the girls were continuing to keep quiet so they could listen to her conversation with the boy she likes. "I could say for the girls that we accept the invitation to Scott's house."

"All right then," Lachlan quickly said, his tone starting to fill with nervousness. "So, Madeleine, I wanted to ask you to be my date for the Back-to-School dance."

Madeleine inhaled and looked over at her friends. She realized that they were all about to start squealing loudly and looked away from the girls, and wondered how she was gonna respond to Lachlan's question. "Um, Lachlan, I'll go to the dance with you," she beamed happily, feeling glad that she and Kayla were the only ones with dates to the dance. "But, you need to dress nicely for this dance."

"Fine, Maddie," Lachlan replied, his tone was filled with warmth. "Are you doing anything right now?"

"Um, I'm talking to you on my cell phone," Madeleine answered Lachlan's question as she glanced at her friends and noticed that they were still listening to her conversation with Lachlan. "Plus, Scarlett, Mackenzie, Audrey, and Kayla are over for my weekly Friday night slumber party."

"Oh, shit!" Lachlan said with a gasp, sounding very surprised. "I didn't know that your friends were over."

Madeleine sent a side glance at her friends, seeing that her friends had shocked expressions on their faces. "You should say hi to them," she told Lachlan without looking away from the girls.

"Hey, girls," Lachlan greeted Madeleine cheerfully.

"Hey, Lachlan," Kayla, Mackenzie, Audrey, and Scarlett welcomed his greetings.

"So, Lachlan, I'm gonna need to return to my slumber party," Madeleine interrupted sharply, not waiting for her friends to get in a word with Lachlan as she got up and started pacing back and forth on the floor. "So, I'll see you next Monday afternoon."

"Okay, Madeleine," Lachlan said before ending the call on the other line.

Observing that the call was over, Madeleine turned her iPhone off and dropped her cell phone on the floor beside her bed. Returning her attention to her friends, she discovered that the girls were ready to say something to her while swallowing three chewed cheese curls.

Scarlett raised her amused icy-blonde eyebrows in Madeleine's direction, switching the subject to something else. "Now, Maddy, I can't believe that Lachlan just asked you to the dance," she exclaimed loudly. not caring if her friend's parents heard her. "It's not fair."

Kayla nodded at Scarlett's statement before pointing toward her and Madeleine. "Yeah, it seems like we're the only ones with dates to the Back-to-School dance," she uttered, seeing that her other hand's nails were completely dry.

"Oh my god, Mads!" Mackenzie gasped, slapping her left manicured hand to her chest and trying to get her beating heart under control. "It absolutely sucks that you have a date to the school dance. While I'm still waiting for Declan to get the hint that I want to go to the dance with him."

Audrey stretched her body towards Mackenzie and Scarlett, rubbing their shoulder reassuringly. Sbe seriously hated the fact that Kayla and Mackenzie already had dates for the dance while the three of them were waiting for their crushes to ask them. "Don't worry, Kay and Mack," she stated. "Declan, Scott, and Aiden would ask us to the dance soon."

Madeleine glanced at the alarm clock on her right-side nightstand and noticed that it was almost eleven o'clock in the evening. "Um, girlies, it's getting late,' she informed her friends. "I have a tennis lesson with my instructor, Marco tomorrow morning at ten in the morning. So, we need to go to bed now.'

"Um, Maddy, I'm sleepy as well," Kayla replied, feeling a bit tired. She rubbed her eyes for a few moments before looking at the glass snack bowls and discovering that they were almost done eating everything. A few moments later, Kayla downed the entire contents of her Diet Coke, feeling the buzz of caffeine.

Mackenzie laid her head on her pillow while feeling that her pigtails fell to the sides of her face. "Uh, besties, I'm tired," she said, yawing.

"Me too," Audrey agreed with Mackenzie and Kayla as she pushed her opened soda can from her bed so it didn't spill on her silky sheets. A few moments later, Audrey fixed the collar of her pajama top.

"All right," Scarlett nodded in understanding. She got up, sauntered over to her Micheal Kors bag, and pulled her sleep mask from inside her bag. Scarlett slipped her sleep mask over her blonde head while keeping it on her forehead. She then laid back across her trundle bed and rested her head on her pillow

Without saying anything to her friends, Madeleine glanced at Mackenzie, Kayla, and Audrey had grabbed their sleep masks from their bags, witnessing her friends slip the masks over her eyes. Tossing her straightened ponytail over her left shoulder, she pulled her silky purple Blissy sleep mask from under her goose-down pillow while wearing it over her head. Looking over at her friends, Madeleine discovered that their heads had gone limp and were starting to close their eyes.

Sucking in a deep breath, she stacked the giant glass snack bowls on top of each other while trying her best not to make noise since she didn't want to wake her friends up. Madeleine quietly opened her bedroom door and left the stacked bowls outside for Ingrid to clean up. Leaving the door open, she slowly made her way over to the trundle beds and collected her friends' drinks.

Keeping the drinks away from her chemise, Madeleine dropped them inside the bowls and quietly closed her bedroom door with her right foot. Letting out a quiet sigh, she laid across her trundle bed and clapped her manicured hands together so the lights in her room would turn off. Slipping her sleep mask over her eyes, Madeleine burrowed into her bed and fell asleep a couple of moments 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 seven and eight are on the same page.

And, here's chapter six for you guys.

Enjoy,

FashionLeMode