Paper Cuts (27 page)

This takes a few moments to sink in, but then Dunfield students leap to their feet to cheer, whistle and stomp. The mayor covers his ears and flees.

When the commotion dies down, the first band takes the stage and performs its single, a song I’ve heard often lately. It’s called ‘Fated.’ From what I can tell, it’s about two people destined to be together in spite of everything.

‘Remember how you showed up on my bus that day?’ I whisper to Joey. ‘Maybe it was fate.’

He laughs. ‘Actually, it was careful planning. I figured out your work schedule and guessed which bus you’d be on. It took me three tries till I got it right.’

I think about all the times I ‘saved’ the seat beside me for my FB at school assemblies. He found me on the bus.

‘I persisted even when you weren’t that friendly,’ he reminds me. ‘I think you make your own fate.’

A thump on the back of my chair prevents further discussion.

‘Some of us are trying to hear the band,’ Mrs Alvarez says. ‘Do I have to separate you two?’

During intermission, Mariah approaches, surrounded by Mac, the Understudies, and a handful of basketball players. She hasn’t made a move on her own since she got here and saw Grace circulating. Grace can’t do much because she’s on duty, but she makes idle lunges at Mariah now and then just to see her jump.

‘Great news about the vacation,’ Mac says, shaking Joey’s hand. ‘No hard feelings?’

Of course there are hard feelings, but before I can elaborate, Joey says, ‘It’s cool.’ It’s so not cool. Scoop and Newshound are never going to agree on that one.

‘I really liked Scoop’s column,’ Mac says. ‘Show me a guy who doesn’t boost his image when he has a chance.’

Mac and Joey laugh, causing me to roll my eyes at Rachel and Izzy. ‘Witness the bonding of the North American male. Here’s a subject for my next column.’

Mac turns to me. ‘Newshound was kind of weak, but you pulled it together with the
Tribune
article.’

Mariah steps forward, unable to contain herself another second. ‘Excuse me, but this waste of oxygen was only fixing what she screwed up in the first place.’

‘Excuse me,’ another voice echoes. ‘I don’t like your tone, Maria. Or your attire.’

It’s Principal Alvarez, and she’s giving Mariah’s micro-mini, fishnets, and skimpy tank top a disapproving once-over.

‘We’re not on school property,’ Mariah says.

‘Quite right,’ Mrs Alvarez concedes. ‘If you want to look like that on your own time, I suppose it’s your right.’

‘Exactly,’ Mariah says. ‘Since you’re here, Mrs A., I want to say that I feel my leadership in the fundraising hasn’t gotten the attention it deserves.’

Mrs Alvarez plays along. ‘No?’

‘Dunfield students would never have supported the idiot challenge without me.’

‘The idiot challenge?’

Mariah shrugs. ‘Idiot, illiterate … it’s the same thing.’

Mrs Alvarez purses her lips. ‘I see. Well, I didn’t actually see you doing much to promote the cause, Maria. As far as I could tell, you mainly promoted yourself. That’s not my idea of what leadership is all about.’ She turns to Mac. ‘Mr Landis,
on the other hand, did offer leadership to the male students, and that’s why I’ve decided to give the boys an extra three days off at spring break.’

Mariah puts her hand on her bare hip. ‘You can’t be serious.’

‘I generally am, Maria. I promised to reward the team that impressed me, and the gentlemen did. The same can’t be said for the ladies.’ Mrs Alvarez’s lip curls over the last word, and she eyes Mariah’s belly ring. ‘Now, if you’ll excuse me.’

Mariah gives the one-fingered salute to Mrs A.’s back as she leaves. ‘See if I thank Buzzkill when I win the YouTube award. My video was top-rated this week.’

‘I haven’t seen it,’ I say. ‘But I heard it was killing in the comedy category. Are you branching out, Mariah?’

‘Comedy?’ She gives me a sharp look. ‘You’re lying, Coconut.’

Joey looks at his new buddy. ‘Landis, could you ask your girl not to call my girl “Coconut” anymore?’

Mac shakes his head and pulls Joey away to join the basketball team. ‘We were over a long time ago, Carella.’

Mariah screeches after Mac, ‘Excuse me? I decide when we’re over.’ He doesn’t respond, so she adds, ‘We’re over. Do you hear me?’ Still no response. She turns to the Understudies and says, ‘Let’s go. I saw some reporters earlier.’

Understudy One shakes her head. ‘We’ll catch up with you later.’

Mariah snaps her fingers and gestures to them to heel. ‘Now.’

‘Sorry, we’re hanging with Lu,’ Understudy Two says.

Mariah’s eyes jump from one Understudy to the other. Beneath the sparkly bronzer, her face is blotching. ‘You’re choosing the Coconut over
me
?’

Understudy One shrugs. ‘She knows Solana G.’

Glancing at Mariah’s leg warmers, Understudy Two titters. ‘Besides, the dancing thing is getting old.’

Mariah draws back her arm to swing, but the Dispatcher materializes and restrains her. He looks at me and says, ‘Is she bothering you?’

‘Only for the past ten years,’ I say.

He yanks her backward. ‘It sounds like someone needs etiquette lessons.’

Mariah puts up a fight, so the Dispatcher picks her up and carries her to the door. ‘Do you know who I am?’ she screams. ‘I was on
The Right Moves.
’

‘And thus Persephone returned to rule the underworld,’ Izzy says gleefully.

I smile, remembering the class in which I imagined staging a revolt against Mariah and Mac. What seemed so farfetched in September has nearly come to pass.

Rachel snaps her fingers in front of my face. ‘Wake up. Solana’s on in five minutes.’

I head back to my seat, only to find Mac Landis loitering beside it.

‘Do you mind if I sit down?’ he asks, motioning to Joey’s empty seat.

‘Yeah, I do,’ I say. ‘That seat’s taken.’

‘Don’t be like that, Lu. I’m willing to let bygones be bygones if you are. We should go back to the planetarium sometime.’

I stare up at him in disbelief. ‘You
can’t
be asking me out. You just shook my boyfriend’s hand.’

‘Carella’s a good guy,’ Mac says. ‘But all’s fair in love and war, right?’

Joey slides around Mac and into his seat. ‘Nice try, Landis. But the seat beside Lu Perez is going to be taken for a long time.’

They grin at each other, and I watch them, baffled.
Something tells me Joey and I will also have plenty to write about for a long time.

As Solana takes the stage, Mac disappears and Joey’s arm settles around me. Resting my head on his shoulder, I smile. I may not understand guys, but I intend to enjoy trying.

Zahra, Kali, and Syd would never have met if their parents’ marriages hadn’t fallen apart. But when the three girls collide in group counselling, they discover they have something else in common: they’ve each been triple-timed by the same nefarious charmer, Eric, aka Rico, aka Rick. Talk about eye-opening therapy. Now all three girls have one mission: to show that cheater the folly of his ways.

Project Payback is such a success, the girls soon have clients lining up for their consulting services. Is your boyfriend acting shady? Dying to know if your crush is into you? Need match-making expertise? Look no further than Love, Inc.

To discover more great fiction and to
place an order visit our website at
www.allisonandbusby.com
or call us on
020 7580 1080

Y
VONNE
C
OLLINS
and S
ANDY
R
IDEOUT
met as teens while working in a public library, where instead of shelving books, they talked about boys, clothes and beauty products. Sandy now works in corporate communications and Yvonne on film and TV camera crews. They still talk about boys, clothes and beauty products, but have decided to share what they’ve learnt by collaborating on a number of books for teens, including
Love, Inc
. and
Paper Cuts
. Both authors live in Toronto, Canada.

www.collinsrideout.com

Love, Inc.
Paper Cuts