by Susan Fodor
“You are invited,” I assured her kindly, “and so is your date.”
Miranda stared daggers at me, she didn’t want to hear my stupid voice and would happily beat me into submission. I wanted to retreat, but I held my head up and shrugged her off.
"We wanted to have a quiet one," Jaimie explained firmly, capturing Miranda’s attention before another fight broke out. "I'm sick of those loud parties, where we never get to hang out together."
"Or make out in a warm, comfortable space," Tim added. Jaimie gave him a playful hit for his comment.
"It's what we all decided," Tammy affirmed.
"So, what? This is a democracy now?" Miranda rolled her eyes. "You're going to lead this group into obscurity!"
"We talked about that," I replied, trying to exude a confidence I neither felt, nor deserved for being a usurper. I felt guilty for taking Miranda’s spot because a glance in the mirror was clear that I didn’t deserve my position, but I was the only thing between Miranda and Tamara having a mean girl war. So I strengthened myself and did what had to be done.
"Everyone would prefer to be invisible with me than be seen with you," I said levelly.
Miranda looked ready to jump across the table and attack me again, but she kept it together.
After the initial confrontation Miranda caught on quickly that she and I had swapped places. I was the most popular girl in school, and she was the invisible girl sitting at the popular table. The other students were generally unfazed by the power shift, as Daniel was the golden-boy everyone watched.
I felt sorry for the bitter way in which Miranda carried herself; it was terrible for her to be ignored. I tried to include her and be kind, but she just glared at me with hatred in her eyes. She would have faired better with the others if she'd tried to be nice, but all her conniving to try to regain power led to Tamara, Jaimie, and Tammy ignoring her entirely.
As the day of the apology approached, Miranda was getting more and more snarky. I dreaded how my mother would react to Miranda’s bad attitude.
apology
The following week my parents and Miranda's dad attended assembly for the apology.
The school gymnasium had orange plastic chairs from the late 70s lined up in rows for all the students. I sat with my parents with the year seven students in the front row so we could reach the front quicker.
The rest of my class sat at the back of the room. I looked at the tiny year sevens around me and wondered if I'd ever looked so small and desperate to fit in. Every year we would move back a couple of rows the younger kids taking the seats in front; at the time it was a nonevent, but being my last year and sitting up in the front made me feel nostalgic. I remembered when Jaimie and I had sat so close to the front that we could see Mr. Horton's belly quiver and growl, signifying that lunch drew near.
Miranda fidgeted with her hem, leading up to us being summoned to the front. She was the only one in our group who continued to wear white socks, a protest against my leadership.
Dr. Kock had choreographed the whole apology, telling us when the apology was in the program and where we had to stand. Miranda was to stand on his right and I was to stand on his left. My heart felt like it was over-beating as Dr. Kock called us onto the stage. I hated being up the front, and it felt so silly that I would just stand there like a wordless dummy. Miranda's body language screamed her lack of remorse, but her stage presence was undeniable.
She took the microphone. "In front of all my friends and my school I want to apologize for misusing the School Spirit Site to bully Mya Belan. At the time I thought it was a joke, but I realize how hurtful my actions were and I'm sorry." There was not an apologetic note in her speech, but I was glad it was over.
Sitting in the front row, Dad wrinkled his nose as the principal accepted the microphone. Mum crossed her arms across her chest unimpressed. Miranda’s Dad seemed oblivious to my parents disgust, he was just grateful that my parents were not going to sue him. Dad was never one to shrink back from a fight.
"What about attacking my daughter like you are a feral cat?" Dad asked, causing the students to laugh.
"I'm sorry I hurt you, Mya." She smirked, looking at me for the first time during the apology.
Before my dad wiped the smirk off Miranda's face, the principal did. "Your behavior has been unbecoming as school social chair, so you are stripped of the title. Jaimie Rodgers is our new social chair for Geelong High. Also, if you bother Mya again, you will be expelled, not to mention whatever legal action the Belan family chooses to use against you."
Miranda paled as Jaimie stepped onto the stage to accept her new title; just the way Dr. Kock had schooled her. Miranda swallowed hard as Dr. Kock took her social chair badge and handed it to Jaimie. For a moment I thought I saw remorse in Miranda’s eyes, but then she glared her death daggers at me, erasing any softness that may have existed.
"The new vice social chair is Daniel Esso," Dr. Kock announced. I glanced around surprised, unaware that Dr. Kock had even approached Daniel about being vice social chair. It seemed like something that Daniel should have spoken to me about, it stoked the fire of doubt that continued to burn in my mind regarding Daniel’s past and our future.
Daniel rose triumphantly from the back row and sauntered to the stage to accept the vice social chair badge. My eyes were intoxicated with his beauty as he strode toward me. The students from every year clapped enthusiastically.
He carried himself like a god among mortals, I felt diminished in his shadow, till he winked at me. I felt my chest swell with affection, I didn’t understand why he’d chosen me, but he made me feel like a princess. Had he always been so charismatic, or had the gene mutation caused it? I pushed the question from my mind. Not thinking about the two years Daniel had been missing was becoming an established habit.
Daniel took the microphone. I didn't think he was supposed to say anything, just accept the badge, but everyone was so mesmerized by Daniel that they didn't even question him making a speech.
"My fellow students," he said, smiling playfully. "I'm honored by my election. Miranda has demonstrated today what it means to be a dirtbag."
I expected Dr. Kock to give Daniel a warning, but he was as enchanted as the rest of the student body. Only Miranda grimaced at the put-down.
"Let's make our school a better place and say no to bullying," Daniel finished, raising a fist in the air.
The student body erupted in applause, some girls rose to their feet to give Daniel a standing ovation. Daniel returned to his seat with everyone’s eyes following him; it took Dr. Kock a few minutes to regain everyone’s attention. I went back to my seat beside my parents, my thoughts focused on Daniel. Whatever happened during assembly was lost on me, because all I could think about was why Daniel hadn’t told me he was becoming vice social chair. I contented myself with the thought that maybe he hadn’t known till his name was announced.
I escorted my parents to the car; Dad was less than impressed by the apology but was appeased by the cheque. Mum was unhappy, but gracious.
School was weird during the day. I was used to people staring at Daniel and me, but the looks were filled with admiration, rather than gossip mongering. The students were being nicer to each other. There was a peaceful, positive vibe around school, rather than the feeling of being imprisoned.
Only Miranda seemed to remain angsty. I was worried that the impending school dance was just going to make things worse.
under the sea
The school dance crept up on all of us. The year sevens had chosen the theme "Under the Sea." In private I joked with Daniel that it was because we had a real live merman at school. He would kiss the smart aleck comments from my lips.
We never discussed his illness or where he’d been during his two years of absence. I pushed the issue from my mind, since all the internet surfing in the world wasn’t resolving the mystery. While I would never admit it, the theme for the school dance was making me anxious.
I met Tamara and Jaimie
at Tammy's house to get ready. Despite the kiddy theme we were excited to be going to the dance. Being our senior year, every dance held added meaning as it would be our last autumn dance, or Prom, or whatever.
Tamara saw it as a way to further develop our power as the new popular group, while Tammy was on the prowl for a man. Jaimie just wanted a reason to look stunning and canoodle with Tim. I wanted to survive the dance so we could lounge around Daniel’s home theatre in our pajamas, without having to be cool. Somehow Daniel convinced everyone to have a 90s movie marathon after the dance, instead of the Twilight saga that Tammy had her heart set on. I couldn’t wait to show everyone Interview With the Vampire, arguably the best vampire movie ever.
Tammy’s bathroom was hot from all the blow-drying and hair straighteners and curlers. The smell of foundation and hairspray permeated the room, giving it a foggy appearance.
Loud music belted out of Tammy’s pink Hello Kitty iPod speakers as we bustled for mirror space and filled any crack of silence with boisterous conversation and teasing. In the girly din I understood why Jaimie was so fond of the group preparations; the atmosphere of celebration and the feeling of belonging was unparalleled. For the first time I let myself revel in the estrogen festival. If I had to be popular, sucking in my stomach and looking indifferent, than I was going to enjoy the impromptu karaoke while we beautified ourselves for the dance.
Tammy’s doorbell rang, and Jaimie ran down to answer the door. It was too early for the boys to be picking us up and unlikely that Miranda had taken up the invitation to join us, but the bustle quieted to hear whom the visitor was.
“The prodigal daughter returns!” Jaimie announced, setting us all on edge.
We all turned in various degrees of concern that Miranda had returned; Tamara’s body stiffened. My stomach constricted as Jaimie led someone up the stairs.
“Jules!” Tamara announced, with as much relief as joy.
“Julia Goulia,” Tammy teased, “welcome back to the pop peeps.”
The others rushed forward and hugged Julia while I gave her an awkward pat on the back; we’d never really been that close.
“Good to have you with us. Miranda isn’t coming?” I asked, trying to be friendly, but also wanting to prepare everyone for what to expect.
“No,” Julia said flat, “but this is our tradition; we’ve always gotten ready here, so here I am.”
Julia stood in the door twirling her lone thumb ring, making no attempt to get ready, while the rest of us were all preening in front of the mirror. Away from Miranda, Julia looked like her own person; she scrunched her hair into messy waves and wore skinny jeans and a grey knitted jumper over a white singlet. I couldn’t imagine Miranda being a knit-top kind of girl, she was always in tiny dresses or logo emblazoned designer tops. I wondered if Julia had gone casual because she knew Miranda wouldn’t be here to judge.
In the past I never would have noticed what my friends wore, but Tamara had been working on me; I didn’t know if I should be scared or pleased by the observation. I really never wanted to be one of those girls who spent hours staring at myself in the mirror, but Tamara had me trained to at least make an effort, even if it was only half hearted. It was the least I could do, so that the others wouldn’t have to be constantly fixing me up. A small part of me took pride in the light makeup that I’d learnt to apply, for maximum effect.
“So, are you going to get ready?” Tamara asked Julia, who still hadn’t moved from the door.
“Yeah... I just...” Julia stammered, guilty.
“It’s fine; we don’t hate you,” Tammy assured her. “You’ve been friends with Miranda for a long time; we don’t expect you to defect from her completely.”
“It’s not that,” Julia replied nervously. There was anxiety radiating off Julia.
“Spit it out,” Tamara ordered, stopping mid-mascara application and folding her arms across her chest.
“I brought a date,” Julia admitted, unable to tear her eyes from the floor.
“Is it Tim?” Jaimie asked, picking up on Julia’s guilt.
“Ewww no, only you like him,” Julia replied, looking up at Jaimie, as we all laughed at her reflexive denouncing of Tim.
“Hey, you all thought he was great before we started dating,” Jaimie defended, pouting.
“That was before we got to know him,” I teased.
Truthfully, we all liked Tim, in a way that you like the big dumb dog down the street that continues to hump your leg, even after the owner turns the hose on him. We also liked to tease Jaimie about Tim, because it always got a rise out of her but rarely hurt her feelings. Jaimie didn’t try to think of Tim as human the way we did; she was happy to have a big happy dog for a boyfriend.
“Then who?” I asked, my curiosity peaking.
“Dylan Sands,” she admitted quietly.
"Dylan Sands, as in Miranda's ex-boyfriend Dylan Sands?" Tammy asked, impressed, putting up her fist for a bump. "He’s hot—fist bump that."
Julia awkwardly complied with the fist bump.
"What about hoes before bros?" Tamara asked, offended.
"That's not a thing." Tammy disagreed.
"It should be." Tamara shook her head. "The hoe code dictates that you don't steal your hoe’s bro."
“Technically Dylan dumped Miranda weeks ago, so Julia’s just picking up a pre-loved bargain,” Tammy argued.
“So then the rule is you don’t date a hoe’s sloppy seconds,” Tamara rephrased.
"Owning a cap doesn't make us ghetto girls," Jaimie challenged. "Anyway, I'm pretty sure in the ghetto, it's every hoe for herself."
"I don't like being referred to as a hoe," Julia said, furrowing her brow.
"I'm not fond of it either," I agreed.
"The point is, Julia shouldn't be dating Miranda's ex." Tamara sighed, like she was observing an idiot convention.
"Tammy dated Tim," Jaimie reminded.
"It was between lunch and the end of school!" Tammy objected forlornly. "When will I ever live that down?"
"My point is, it's not like Miranda was ever in love with Dylan. If you can borrow a friend's handbag or bracelet, it's not much different," Tammy reasoned.
"She's got a point," I agreed. I wasn't super keen on Dylan since he tried to feel me up the night Daniel and I got together, but I wasn't going to rain on Julia's happiness either.
"I love love, so I'm cool with it." Tammy shrugged.
"Do you like him enough to have Miranda hate you forever?" Tamara asked Julia seriously.
"We really like each other," Julia affirmed, her eyes imploring us to believe her.
We all looked to Tamara for a unanimous consensus.
Tamara exhaled sharply. "Fine, but I don't love it."
"Yay!" Tammy smiled, jumping up and down, causing her mountainous breasts to bounce dangerously.
"So, where is he meeting us?" I asked, wondering if I should call Daniel to pick him up with the rest of the boys.
"Waiting in the car," Julia admitted shyly.
"Well, bring him in," Tammy ordered. "He can sit and have a Coke while we get ready."
Julia looked ready to burst with happiness. "Thank you all so much."
"It's fine." I laughed as she hugged everyone in turn.
"Get your butt in here and get ready after you get him," Tamara ordered, softening after seeing Julia so happy.
"None of you can date Tim if we break up," Jaimie ordered, as Julia retreated down the stairs.
"Not going to be a problem," I assured, saluting her.
"He's all yours," Tamara echoed.
"I know you all like him," Jaimie said defensively.
We all laughed, as we got back to our hair and makeup.
An hour later Daniel and Tim came bounding up the stairs to retrieve us.
“Ladies,” Tim greeted, sounding like he was walking into his own personal harem.
He received a lackluster response.
“Hi, all,” Daniel greeted. Everyone responded enthusiasti
cally, even Tamara, further proof that there was something special about Daniel.
Daniel kissed my cheek. “You all look stunning, so it’s time to get to this dance.”
His words lit a fire under the girls. We cascaded down the stairs like a rabble of lemmings. Tammy’s mum was waiting at the foot of the stairs with her camera, she insisted on taking a photo of us as couples and as a group. Tammy promised us all copies, hugging her Mum affectionately before leaving the house. Tammy’s unabashed love for her family was one of the many things I really liked about her.
Recognition flashed in Daniel’s eyes when he saw Dylan.
“You remember Dylan,” I introduced, trying to be casual. “He’s Julia’s date.”
Dylan offered his hand to Daniel a regretful look in his eyes. Daniel gave Dylan a hard look, unwilling to shake his hand.
“Nice to see you both,” Dylan said, awkwardly before returning to Julia’s side.
He was a different person around Julia; she lit him up. By the time the photos had finished Daniel was appeased that Dylan was not a threat. Seeing how dizzy, crazy Julia and Dylan were for each other changed everything.
We piled onto the front steps expecting to see the Silver Streak; instead there was a white stretch limo.
“Surprise!” Daniel announced grandly.
“Squeeeeeeee!” Tammy squealed.
“You got a limo for a crappy school dance?” Tamara asked, bemused.
“It’s my first crappy school dance with Mya,” Daniel replied, gushy, as he squeezed my hand. “I want to make it special.”
“Awwwwww,” Tammy sighed.
“I think I just threw up in my mouth,” Tamara said sarcastically.
I playfully slapped her in the back of the head. “Be nice.”
“Watch the hair,” she complained.
Within seconds we were settled in the huge limousine; Daniel distributed soft drinks to everyone. There was a good vibe in the group; Dylan and Julia seemed to blend into our ribbing and joking seamlessly.
"What will you do for our next dance to make it special?" Tamara teased Daniel.