by T. L. Clarke
Gabrielle smirked spitefully as she thought, Who does she think she is, talking to me like that? Wouldn’t it be so funny if that glass of water spilled on that pretty white blouse of hers?
As if on cue, the glass slipped from Ms. Vineswell’s fingers, splashing water all over her pristine white blouse. She quickly jumped up and began to frantically wipe the front of her soaked blouse.
Gabrielle’s eyes widened with shock. “Ms. Vineswell, I didn’t mean it—really,” she sputtered.
Ms. Vineswell raised a suspicious eyebrow as she looked over at her. “And exactly what are you sorry for?” she demanded sharply as she paused from wiping her blouse.
Gabrielle looked over at her silently.
“Well? Speak up, young lady,” Ms. Vineswell demanded.
Silently, they stared at each other suspiciously; the staredown was broken by a light knock on the door.
Ms. Vineswell quickly straightened her blouse. “Come in!” she barked impatiently.
A short, plump girl with very pale skin and long golden blonde hair slowly entered the office. She fiddled self-consciously with her cardigan as Gabrielle looked over at her curiously.
Ms. Vineswell impatiently rapped her knuckles on her desk. “Quickly, Jessica, don’t dilly-dally. I don’t have all day.”
Jessica’s bright blue eyes bulged nervously as she gawked at her. “I-I’m sorry, Ms. Vineswell,” she stuttered as she timidly gestured towards Gabrielle. “But I’m here to pick up the new student.”
Ms. Vineswell looked over at the large clock on the wall. “Hmm, I didn’t realize that it was getting so late,” she mumbled.
Impatiently, she looked over at Gabrielle. “Gabrielle Martin, this is Jessica Owens. Jessica has been assigned the task of showing you around the academy and answering any questions that you may have.”
With relief, Gabrielle quickly scrambled to her feet, bolting for the door.
“And Gabrielle—” Ms. Vineswell said sharply.
Gabrielle stopped cold in her tracks, looking back at her defiantly.
“Our little conversation is far from over; we will definitely finish it at a later time. Now, you are dismissed.”
Gabrielle darted out of her office.
Jessica followed Gabrielle out of the office and into the hallway, nervously shutting the door behind her.
Staring strangely at Jessica, Gabrielle quickly plucked out a cherry lollipop from the top of her left ponytail. “Hey, you look very familiar. Have we met before?”
“No, no, I don’t think so,” Jessica stammered as her eyes shyly roamed to the lollipop stuck in the center of Gabrielle’s right ponytail.
Gabrielle frowned. “Are you sure?”
“I’m…pretty sure,” Jessica stammered nervously.
Gabrielle gave her a doubtful stare, “Hmmm…if you say so.” Then she gave her a friendly smile as she handed the lollipop over to Jessica.
Jessica’s blue eyes darted around the hallway as if expecting someone to jump out and grab her. “No, thank you,” she replied as she backed away from the lollipop as if it were a slithering, poisonous snake.
Gabrielle rolled her eyes with exasperation. “Hmmm, somehow I just knew that you were going to say that,” she replied teasingly. Smiling mischievously, she reached up and plucked the lollipop out of her right ponytail.
She waved the lollipop tauntingly in Jessica’s face. “I have another one right here…and don’t give me any of that baloney about being on some silly diet,” she said teasingly.
Jessica’s blue eyes popped open with surprise. “But how did you know that I’m on a diet?”
Gabrielle’s forehead crinkled with puzzlement. “Funny, I really don’t know…it just popped into my head.”
Jessica shuffled from side to side. “Well, umm, you see…my stepmother has put me on another dreadful diet—for the umpteenth time—and frankly she would absolutely kill me if she found out that I ruined it again by eating candy.”
Gabrielle smiled, leaning in close as if she were imparting some great secret. “Number one, your stepmother is not here right now,” she whispered. “And number two, a little candy won’t hurt you, will it?”
Jessica giggled softly, revealing her colorful braces. Self-consciously, she quickly slapped her pale hand over her mouth to hide them. “Thanks, Gabrielle, but I better not,” she mumbled.
Gabrielle shrugged her shoulders and shoved the lollipop snugly back into her right ponytail. “Okay, but you sure don’t know what you’re missing because this lollipop is awesome.”
She quickly unwrapped the other lollipop, popping it into her mouth. “Yum! Cherry…my absolute favorite,” she said as she rolled her eyes skyward with pure delight.
Jessica bit her bottom lip nervously. “I hope you don’t think that I’m awfully impolite…but why do you have lollipops stuck in your ponytails? I mean, I’ve never seen anyone do that before.”
Gabrielle smiled widely. “Well, of course you haven’t seen anyone do that before. I’m an original…never duplicated, you see!” she crowed boastfully. “It’s just my thing. I love candy, especially lollipops. I would eat a ton of them, but my Grandma Celeste only allows me to eat two a day, so I started sticking them in my ponytail—you know, easy access so when I need them, I could easily get to them,” she continued. “So, after a while, sticking them in my ponytails just became my thing. Some days it’s apple lollipops, some days it’s grape, but my absolute favorite flavor by far is cherry.”
Smiling matter-of-factly, she quickly walked away and down the hallway, all the while humming happily.
Jessica’s forehead crinkled with surprise as she watched Gabrielle abruptly walk away. She hurried to catch up with her. “Gabrielle, wait up for me. Remember, I have to give you the tour of the academy,” she said breathlessly.
Gabrielle looked over her shoulders, smiling widely. “Whoa, relax, okay? You sound just like Ms. Vineswell. Girl, you gotta loosen up a bit if you’re going to hang with me,” she said jokingly.
Jessica looked around the hallway nervously. “Shush! Ms. Vineswell might hear you.”
“Shush? No one shushes me!” Gabrielle shouted with mock anger.
“I’m sorry…I didn’t mean—”
Gabrielle giggled loudly. “Goodness, Jess, I’m just playing with you. You’re r-e-a-l uptight. Thank goodness Gabi-Gab is here to help you have a little fun,” she smiled. “By the way, I hope you don’t mind me calling you Jess?”
Jessica smiled with obvious relief and shook her head no.
Gabrielle grinned widely. “Okay, good. And you can call me Gabi; all my friends do.”
Jessica bit her lip. “Really, I’m sorry for being so uptight. It’s just that the other girls have already warned me that you better not make Ms. Vineswell angry,” she whispered, gulping nervously as her eyes darted around the hallway. “They said she could make your life around here pretty hard if you cross her.”
Gabrielle rolled her eyes with exasperation. “And you really believe all that hogwash?” Her hazel eyes narrowed with conviction. “Look, Jess, no one has that much power—especially over my life. I’m not worried about Ms. Vineswell or anyone else at Vineswell Academy, for that matter.”
Jessica looked at her with pure admiration. “Wow, I wish I could be as brave as you are,” she gushed in awe.
Gabrielle smiled hugely. “You can and you will. Just stick with me, Jess.” She looked at her playfully. “Okay, so where to next?”
Jessica cleared her throat. “Well, let me show you to your room. By the way, I’m actually one of your roommates but the other two girls have not arrived yet.”
Gabrielle smacked her lips around the lollipop loudly, which echoed throughout the hallway. “Okay, so lead on, Miss Tour Director.”
They giggled softly as they walked down the hallway. A glass cabinet filled with trophies and photos caught Gabrielle’s attention, causing her to slow down to take a look. Her eyes widened with fascination as she pressed her face agai
nst the glass, straining to see all that was inside.
Jessica shifted from side to side as she waited for Gabrielle to finish. Nervously, her head snapped around, her gaze shifting down the hallway to where the soft sounds of giggling and whispering could be heard from around the corner.
Her blue eyes darted uneasily towards Gabrielle then back to the hallway. Jessica tugged nervously on Gabrielle’s cardigan sleeve.
Gabrielle looked up, puzzled.
Jessica’s eyes darted towards the three giggling girls who were rapidly approaching.
Curious, Gabrielle also looked at the approaching girls. Okay, this should be good, she thought to herself.
A girl with long dark hair looked at Jessica with disgust, her eyes quickly dismissing her. She then looked over at Gabrielle curiously, rudely pointing a long, pale finger at her. “So, who’s the new Vineswell girl?”
Jessica shifted consciously as she tried to yank her snug cardigan away from her chubby body.
Gabrielle boldly stepped forward, rudely waving her hand in front of the girl’s face. “Uh, hello, I’m standing right here,” she said with obvious annoyance. “So, if you want to know my name, why don’t you just ask me?”
Jessica’s voice squeaked with false enthusiasm. “Hi, Ashley!”
Ashley continued to ignore Jessica, smiling smugly at Gabrielle. “So, what’s your name?”
Gabrielle gave her a bored stare as she licked her lollipop loudly. “My name is Gabrielle,” she said matter-of-factly then pointed over to Jessica. “And this is my friend Jessica.”
Tossing her hair over her shoulders, Ashley smiled stiffly. “I’m Ashley and this is Rebecca and Tricia,” she replied conceitedly as she pointed over at the two girls hovering self-importantly by her side. “Well, welcome to Vineswell Academy, Gabrielle.”
Gabrielle looked at her with disinterest. “Hmm, I didn’t know that Vineswell Academy had a welcome committee. Go figure,” she replied rudely.
Ashley leaned in close to Gabrielle, whispering loudly, “Since, on first impression, you seem like a real cool girl,” she started smugly, “let me give you a couple of tips on how to survive at Vineswell.”
Ashley looked spitefully over at Jessica. “The number-one rule is be very careful of who you hang with.”
Jessica’s bright smile quickly vanished and her face turned beet red with embarrassment.
“And since I have a knack for recognizing potential, I’m going to do something that I normally wouldn’t do,” Ashley continued. “I’m inviting you to sit at our table for the student tea party today.”
Blinking rapidly, Gabrielle’s hazel eyes popped open with fake happiness. “Really? Wow—I’m confused. Am I supposed to be grateful for your rude invitation?”
Ashley flipped her long dark hair over her shoulders. “Well, of course you are!”
She smiled smugly as she looked over at Rebecca and Tricia, who were hovering around her like adoring groupies, both smiling and bobbing their heads in agreement. “After all, we’re going to be the most popular Vineswell girls in the entire school and we definitely won’t extend invitations to everyone,” she said as she looked over at Jessica nastily. “Besides, in case you haven’t figured it out, one wrong social move—say, like hanging with the wrong person—can make your life around here a living nightmare…and I definitely don’t think you want that.”
Gabrielle’s eyes glistened with pure anger. “Excuse me? Is that a threat?”
Ashley’s green eyes flashed angrily in return. “Well, of course not. It’s just some friendly advice from one Vineswell girl to another.”
“Well, thank you for the ‘friendly’ advice but I’m not interested in your invitation,” Gabrielle responded with a voice so cold it was as if icicles hung from every word. She quickly pulled the bright red lollipop from her mouth, waving it around angrily in Ashley’s face to accent each word that she spewed. “So, now here’s my ‘friendly’ advice—you know, from one Vineswell girl to another. Get a grip, girl! You’re not all that.”
Ashley’s pale face flushed red. “How dare you talk to me like that? Do you know who I am?” she sputtered angrily.
Gabrielle laughed. “Nope—and, frankly, I don’t give a hoot.”
“Well, I see—if that’s how you want it,” Ashley said angrily. “From now on, you better watch your back, Gabrielle.”
Gabrielle placed her hands on her narrow hips. “Just so we’re clear this time, was that some more of your ‘friendly’ advice or was that a threat?”
Ashley smiled coldly. “That was definitely a threat. Can you handle that?”
Gabrielle’s eyes flashed furiously at the challenge. “Let’s get one thing straight…I can handle anything you can dish out, Ashley. So, I only have two words for you: bring it.”
She promptly popped the lollipop back into her mouth and licked it loudly. “Well, let’s K.I.M, Jess,” she said as she turned slowly on her heels and walked down the hall, humming happily.
Jessica’s mouth dropped open with shock as she watched Gabrielle disappear down the hallway. She nervously hurried to catch up with her.
Rebecca looked over at Ashley. “Who does she think she is, talking to you like that?”
Tricia nodded anxiously in agreement.
Ashley’s face flushed angrily as she watched Gabrielle and Jessica walk down the hallway and out of sight. “Oh, I wouldn’t worry about Gabrielle. She’ll quickly learn what happens to any Vineswell girl who dares to cross me.”
CHAPTER THREE
Let’s K.I.M.
Jessica’s blue eyes bulged anxiously as she watched Gabrielle humming off-key and sauntering casually down the hallway.
“I can’t believe you talked to Ashley like that,” Jessica blurted out as she huffed and puffed, practically out-of-breath as she caught up to her.
Gabrielle stopped mid-hum, looking over at her nonchalantly. “Well, believe it.”
Speechless, Jessica stared at her.
“Jess, girls like Ashley just don’t impress me,” Gabrielle said coolly.
Jessica wrung her chubby pale hands fretfully. “B…but I don’t think you understand. That was Ashley Simmons, the Ashley Simmons!”
Gabrielle breathed out with exasperation.
“I mean her sister is only the most popular girl at Vineswell Academy, which automatically makes Ashley the most popular freshman by default,” Jessica said.
“Jeez! Jess, you’re driving me crazy with all this gobbledygook,” Gabrielle screamed as she snatched the lollipop out of her mouth. “Okay, let’s get one thing straight; I don’t care how popular she is. Ashley is conceited and obnoxious, and who in the world would ever want to be friends with her anyway?”
Jessica stared wistfully into space. “Well, practically everyone at Vineswell Academy, that’s who.”
Gabrielle looked over at her with surprise. “And please don’t tell me that ‘everyone’ includes you.”
Jessica shifted from side to side guiltily. “Well…”
“You’ve got to be kidding me! You mean you actually want to be friends with her? Even after she just made such a big point of being so rude to you?”
Jessica looked down at her shiny black shoes awkwardly. “Well, that’s just the way she is. I mean, she wasn’t always like that.”
Gabrielle looked at her curiously. “And exactly how would you know that?”
Jessica’s eyes clouded over with tears. “I know…because she was once my best friend, or at least I thought she was.”
Gabrielle’s eyebrows rose with surprise. “So, give me the low-down. Why can’t she stand you now?”
Jessica fought hard to blink back the tears that welled up in her eyes. “I really wish I knew. It all started when she didn’t invite me to her birthday party last year. Then, all of a sudden, she just stopped talking to me altogether with no explanation. So, one day I worked up the nerve to ask her why and she just laughed at me and said that a girl like her could never be friends with a girl
like me. I mean, what in the world was that supposed to mean? After all, we were best friends, for goodness sake.”
Gabrielle looked over at her. “But, Jess, that could have never been real friendship. I mean, come on…no real friend would have ever treated you like that. Besides, being in the popular crowd is not as fun as you think it is—believe me, I know. That’s why I turned down her invitation. Being an individual is so much cooler because you can make up your own rules with no pressure at all.”
“But you can say that because you’re probably always in the popular crowd and I never have or ever will be,” Jessica said with sadness.
“Take my word for it, Jess. Being in the popular crowd ain’t all that…besides, my mother always taught me to be an individual, not a follower.”
Jessica gave her an unconvinced look.
“Well, I can see by the crazy look you’re giving me that you don’t believe me—but, trust me, this year is going to rock. By the time we’re finished with Vineswell Academy, we’ll rock this old stuffy school by making our own rules,” Gabrielle boasted. “Now, Miss Tour Director, are you finished with your fabulous tour of Vineswell Academy?”
Jessica giggled, quickly covering her mouth to hide her braces. “Thanks, Gabi.”
“That’s what friends are for,” Gabrielle exclaimed as she popped her lollipop back into her mouth, smacking her lips with pure delight. “Now, let’s K.I.M., shall we?”
“What does K.I.M. mean?” she asked.
Gabrielle propped her hands on her hips. “Where have you been? Under a rock? K.I.M.: keep it moving!”
Jessica giggled. “I’ve never heard that before.”
“Well, don’t worry. I’m here now to school you on what’s really real. So, from now on, when I say ‘let’s K.I.M.,’ you say, ‘K.I.Ming.’ Got it?”
“Got it,” Jessica exclaimed happily.
“So, let’s start from the top and bring it on back. Let’s K.I.M.,” Gabrielle stated jokingly.
“K.I.Ming,” Jessica replied.