Lexi jerked awake. Her body was covered with a layer of perspiration, and her chest hurt from heavy breathing. It was just a dream, she reassured herself. It did not feel like a dream. It felt so—so real. She laid in bed a moment longer, examining her intact bedroom brightly lit with cheerful sunshine. The sharp edges of the nightmare were fading and the memory of her victory returning. She smiled. Today is going to be awesome.
She finished getting ready for school just as her grandmother yelled, “Lexi, your breakfast is ready!”
“Coming, Grandma.”
Lexi ate her breakfast and nearly sprinted out of the house before her grandmother called to her. Lexi turned around, smiling coyly. Her grandmother always wanted to kiss her before she left for school.
“You are such a sweet girl. I am so proud of you, Lexi.” She stood on her tip-toes and kissed her granddaughter’s forehead. “Have a great day at school.”
“I will, Grandma,” Lexi answered as she sprinted to the door.
She grabbed the door handle and paused when she heard the strange cricket sounds. They weren’t as loud as normal, but they were audible. “Do you hear that?”
“What’s that, sweetheart?”
“Bugs. I hear bug sounds.”
“You know. Now that you mention it, I have been seeing more bugs around. I squashed two cockroaches in the kitchen this morning.”
Lexi shivered and stuck out her tongue. “I hate bugs.”
“Yes, I know. I’ll call the pest guy.”
She pulled the door open and screeched when she saw Petr standing on the other side.
“Hi, Lexi,” Petr said with a smile.
“Who is it?” Lexi’s grandmother asked.
Regaining her composure, Lexi pushed the door open. “Nobody.” As the door shut behind her, she asked, “What are you doing on my porch, creeper?”
“I wanted to talk to you.”
“I’m late for the bus. I don’t have time to talk, especially not with you.”
Petr shrugged. “Why not with me?”
“You made fun of me because I heard bug sounds, which by the way, I’m hearing constantly.”
“Maybe you have super hearing? Maybe you can hear what others cannot?”
She could not tell if he was being serious or not. “You think I’m crazy, don’t you?”
Petr shook his head. “No, I was just saying that maybe you have a heightened sense of hearing. Maybe you’re special?”
Now, she was certain he was making fun of her. “I’m late for the bus.”
He grabbed her by the wrist as she quickened her pace. She spun around, ready to rip her hand away and knock his block off, but when she saw his hypnotic emerald eyes, Lexi paused. She pulled her hand from his grasp.
“I’m not making fun of you. I promise. I’m new here and I don’t have any friends. I’m sorry we got off on the wrong foot. Maybe we could start over?”
She took a step away, not totally certain what to do. He seemed sincere and his eyes—they were, so peaceful and calming. Lexi turned and ran to the bus stop.
“If you ever want to talk, I’ll be around,” Petr yelled.
There were cheers and applause when Lexi got onto the school bus. She smiled and waved and pretended to bask in the glory of her greatness, but her mind was preoccupied with the new boy, Petr. She glanced out the bus window, but did not see him. A sigh of relief exited her as she relaxed and enjoyed the high-fives and pats on the back. The other schoolchildren relived her epic, game-winning shot over and over. Lexi did not have to say a word. She sat there grinning as everyone on the bus, even Mr. Manual, the bus driver, described how great and unforgettable the moment was. Only Caesar returning to Rome after victory could relate to Lexi at that moment. It was the sort of admiration that Lexi could definitely get used to.
When they reached the school, Mr. Manuel proclaimed, “Lexi, in honor of you making that awesome shot and sending the Lady Ravens into the championship game, you may exit first today.”
The other boys and girls high-fived her as she walked to the front of the bus. The only thing missing were the rose petals under her feet.
As she stepped off the bus, she was greeted by her best friend, Elle. “Where have you been?”
“On the bus,” Lexi replied.
“Well, have I’ve got news for you.”
Lexi thought, I wonder if they are going to name the school after me. Internally, she grinned at the notion. “Okay, what’s the big news?”
“There…is…a…new girl.” Elle was so excited she looked like she might explode.
One day, Elle would probably be an actress or a fashion reporter because she was overly dramatic, watched every trendy show, and spoke so fast that most listeners thought she was speaking another language. And if life as a Hollywood type did not work out, Elle could definitely be an auctioneer.
Without taking a breath, she rambled, “And she’s like pretty, like super pretty, and super fashionable, not as fashionable as me, but pretty close, closer than anyone else at this school. She could be a model or sideline reporter or something like that, but she could definitely work at E! or somewhere like that. I mean, that’s how pretty she is. Like, all the boys want to marry her and have like a million babies with her—that pretty.”
“I get it,” Lexi answered. She was bummed. This was supposed to be her day. She wanted the attention. The bus ride was nice, but she wanted a little more than Mr. Manual letting her off the bus first.
As Lexi and Elle walked to class, Elle continued describing just how gorgeous the new girl was. The new girl’s hair was the color of gold and it smelled like fresh raspberries. The new girl was wearing a dress that looked like “that one Blake Lively wore in Us Weekly.”
“I don’t know what dress you are talking about.”
“How do you not know what dress I’m talking about?” Elle rolled her eyes and added, “I’m totally getting you on What and Why Not To Wear.” Elle held up her iPhone. There was a picture of Blake Lively wearing a red dress that nearly matched the red carpet she was standing on.
“You have an Us Weekly app?” Lexi asked.
“No, I have the Is-there-anyone-more-beautiful-than-Blake-Lively-I-think-not-app.”
Lexi looked at her friend with disbelief.
Rolling her eyes again, Elle finished, “There is no Is-there-anyone-more-beautiful-than-Blake-Lively-I-think-not app, but there should be. Of course I have the Us Weekly app. How do you not?”
Lexi shrugged. “My phone broke.”
“Your phone broke? As in, your phone is broken? As in, you don’t have a phone that works? As in, you don’t have a functioning phone? As in, your phone is my Uncle Kenny? The guy who doesn’t have a job and still lives at my grandma’s house. As in, broken like Peeta Mellark in Mockingjay when his mind has been hijacked and he doesn’t know what’s real and what isn’t and keeps trying to kill Katniss? As in—”
Lexi placed her hand over Elle’s mouth. “As in, broken. As in, I’m iPhone-less.”
This registered slowly with Elle, but did not stop the auctioneer speed with which she spoke. “How are you even alive? Is that possible? Maybe this is all a bad dream for you? Are you awake?”
“Ouch!” Lexi pulled her arm away after being pinched.
“Yep, you’re awake. You need to get a new phone fast, jack rabbit. I would be dead without my phone.” Elle texted as the two girls walked. “I’m starting a fundraiser online to get you a new phone.” She was a master at social media multi-tasking. “Sasha says the new girl lives with her older brother because her parents were killed in a car wreck and that her old address was ‘N’ Mexico. What is that, like North Mexico?”
With a smile, Lexi replied, “I think she means New Mexico.”
“Ohh. So does ‘S’ Mexico mean Old Mexico?”
Lexi stopped walking and looked at her friend. Sometimes she could not believe some of the silliness that came out of Elle’s mouth. “Yes, yes it does.”
&nbs
p; “Thought so. Anyway,” Elle continued, “we should be friends with her. Make sure she doesn’t fall in with the wrong crowd.”
Chapter Four
The New Arrival
“Distrust all those who love you extremely upon
a very slight acquaintance and without any visible reason.”
-Lord Chesterfield
The two girls entered Mrs. Maxwell’s math class. In a matter of seconds, Lexi decided she was not going to be friends with the new girl. In fact, Lexi hoped the new girl did fall in with the wrong crowd. Sitting on Lexi’s desk, with every boy in the class creating an impenetrable wall around her, was the new girl. The boys all smiled and fawned the way brainless boys do, hanging on her every word.
The new girl was indeed pretty, just as Elle had described. She had long, flowing, platinum blond hair. It was as yellow as the sun and was pulled back with a red bow that matched her red dress. Elle was correct; the dress was identical to the one Blake Lively wore.
She heard the sound of bugs again and when she looked around, Elle asked, “What is it?”
“Nothing.” She approached the new girl, her jaw muscles flexing. “You’re sitting on my desk,” Lexi said as she pushed her way through the thick crowd of boys.
“So, find another, Lexi,” Randy retorted.
Lexi leaned forward and placed her fist in front of Randy’s nose. “My fist is gonna find your face if you don’t shut it, Randy.”
Ignoring her, Randy looked at the new girl and said, “Jill, you have no idea how great it is to have someone of sophistication join our class.”
All the other boys chuckled in agreement.
The new girl, Jill, slid off of Lexi’s desk and said, “Sorry, didn’t know this one was taken.”
“Well, it is,” Lexi snapped.
“Lexi? What an interesting name. Is it short for anything?”
“Yes, it’s short for ‘get off of my desk.’“
The two girls exchanged long stares. Lexi’s eyes were narrowed and icy while Jill’s were doe-eyed and innocent. Lexi was momentarily locked into Jill, and she wasn’t buying that innocent, I’m-just-the-helpless-new-girl façade. If Jill were a basketball player dribbling down the lane and Lexi was a defender, Jill definitely would have been fouled hard—and thrown into the second row of the stands. Too bad that pretty little face would never get near the court, Lexi thought.
Lexi took her seat as her eyes remained locked onto her new nemesis, Jill.
Mrs. Maxwell motioned for the new girl to come to the front of the classroom. “Boys and girls, if you don’t already know, this is Jill Abernathy. She recently moved here from New Mexico. She is new to this area, but I can tell that she will fit right in. Jill, why don’t you tell us a little about yourself?”
“Um, okay,” Jill said with a blushing smile. “Let’s see, where do I begin?” She giggled and several of the kids in the class laughed.
Lexi did not catch any of what Jill was saying. Instead, a microscopic pebble of jealousy started rolling down a hill in Lexi’s mind, and it was picking up steam. All anybody wanted to talk about now was the new girl, and Lexi’s game-winning shot had become a thing of the past, almost as if it never happened.
Chapter Five
Jill
“I’d rather be a hammer than a nail.”
-Simon and Garfunkel, “El Condor Pasa”
Lexi was excited to finish the school day. She wanted to get back in the gym and shoot. She did not want to think about Jill anymore. She didn’t want to hear how pretty Jill was or how smart she was or how stylish she was or how nice her clothes were or how great her hair smelled. Lexi wanted to rid herself of all thoughts pertaining to Jill. As soon as she could get back on the basketball court, she could concentrate on the championship game.
As Lexi and Elle walked toward the gymnasium, three girls in the class below them were talking about how cool Jill was.
“I’m tired of hearing about Jill,” Lexi said as she and Elle walked past the three girls.
“Exactly. The way all the boys huddled around her at lunch was disgusting. Did you see how James and Bradley nearly got into a fight just for the chance to open her milk?” Elle was walking briskly to keep pace with Lexi’s long strides.
As she opened the door to the locker room, Lexi paused. “Do you hear that?”
“Hear what, jack rabbit?”
“Like, the sound of angry crickets. Do you not hear that?”
“Whoa,” Elle responded, her palm flashing up like a crossing guard’s motioning for Lexi to stop. “I’m gonna need my bestie to get to the ear doctor and get that checked out ‘cause I don’t hear anything.” And then slowly it hit her. “What if it’s me? What if I’m going deaf like Anne Frank?”
“Helen Keller.”
“Who’s she?” Elle pleaded, just moments away from tears. “What if it’s a tumor, jack rabbit?”
Lexi shook her head. “Wow, tell you what, I’ll go to the ear doctor if you’ll go to the crazy person doctor.”
When the two girls entered the locker room, they were both surprised to see all their teammates gathered in a circle. The other girls were talking and laughing as they huddled around the speaker. Positioned in the center was Jill.
“Both of them have hearts of gold, absolute gold,” Jill said in dramatic fashion, her hands waving in front of her.
“Is Posh as pretty in person as she is in the magazines?” Sasha asked.
“Well, she goes by Victoria now and she is gorgeous,” Jill corrected. “She is sooooo pretty that I hate her—I’m only kidding. I love her.”
The circle of girls giggled in response.
“I can’t believe you got to meet Tom Cruise and Victoria Beckham. I’m so jealous,” Tatiana commented. The other girls nodded.
“What’s Tom like?” Anastasia inquired.
Jill thought for a second and looked toward the ceiling. “Umm, Tom is handsome and funny.”
“Is he as short as they say?” Pelham asked excitedly.
“Yes,” Jill answered, “but he has a big heart so that makes him seven-foot tall in my book.”
The crowd of girls collectively said, “Awww”.
“You have a big heart too,” Pelham said.
Jill smiled widely and said, “Well thank you.” She leaned forward and hugged Pelham. This was quickly followed by all the other girls in the circle giving Jill a big group hug.
Lexi and Elle turned and looked at each other from the top of the stairs. Their expressions soon turned to contempt. After Jill’s “big heart” comment, Elle shoved her index finger down her throat as if attempting to gag herself. Lexi smiled and nodded.
“When I get her on the court, she’s getting an elbow to the face,” Lexi told her.
“Why wait until then? I want to give her one now,” Elle responded.
In Elle’s mind, everyone at the school had a purpose. Lexi’s was athletics. Elle’s was all things fashion and entertainment. She read People and Us Weekly every week even if the stories in the magazines were the same thing all the time. She also read Seventeen and Teen Vogue, two fashion staples. Although she never told anyone, Elle found The National Inquisitor and TMZzzzzz to be quite accurate when it came to gossip. And who doesn’t need gossip? Elle could not have someone else stealing her gossip/entertainment/fashion limelight.
Jill looked at the two girls who just entered the locker. “Hi, I’m Jill,” she said with a big smile.
Lexi didn’t say anything. Elle, however, could not hold her tongue. “So, you’ve met Tom Cruise and Victoria Beckham, huh? I suppose you’ve met her husband, David, too?”
“Yes, after my parents passed away, I decided I had to do something to take my mind off the tragedy. So, I started volunteering in the Your Wish Foundation. It has been very rewarding. I told Tom’s people that a little girl in Maine had a terrible form of leukemia and her wish was to meet Tom Cruise. Less than twenty minutes later, his assistant called me back and asked for all the details.
He flew to Portland immediately and that was how I got to meet him. We just sort of hit it off. We’ve been friends ever since.”
Elle’s lips were pursed. “So, do you follow them on Twitter?”
“Yes,” Jill answered. “And they follow me. I’m also friends with Brad, Angie, Tom, Rita, George, Denzel. Just so many great people willing to help out. It’s really amazing.”
“Ahhh,” the girls composing the circle said in unison, as if Jill had invented electricity and had just turned on the first light.
“Do you think we could meet them sometime?” Anastasia asked. The other girls all nodded and cheered excitedly.
“Well, they don’t come here to see me or my friends. They come to see the unfortunate individual who may not have much time on this earth.” She paused and looked at the other girls. “But, I suppose that maybe, one or two of my closest friends might be able to go with me to pick them up at the airport.”
That was all it took. Each one of the girls that surrounded her was in awe. They each wanted to meet the famous celebrities, and they now saw the other girls as opponents in this game of Meet Tom/Posh/Angelina. Even Elle secretly wanted to meet all of Jill’s supposed celebrity friends, but she clearly could not say that.
Lexi was the only person in the locker room who did not care about meeting any of the people Jill mentioned. Instead of listening to Jill carry on, Lexi pushed through the crowd so she could get to her locker. Without saying a word, she changed into her basketball shorts and laced up her ragged old sneakers.
Jill looked at Lexi’s tattered high-tops and said, “I think we should try to find a sponsor to buy the team new shoes and uniforms.”
The other girls cheered at this idea, but Lexi finished dressing, and without saying a word, she firmly pushed Jill out of her way. As always, Lexi was the first girl onto the court.
Two dozen was the number of free throws she shot before every practice. Today, she only made fifteen, her lowest total of the season. She was cursing herself when Coach showed up and blew his whistle. “Everybody give me two laps and twenty jumping jacks.”
For Lexi, practice started poorly and only got worse. Jill almost never missed a shot, and when she did, she was in perfect position for the rebound. Although Jill was shorter, lighter, and weaker than Lexi, she was undeniably better on this day. She was just so fast. Even when Lexi intentionally tried to foul her, Jill was able to spin, switch hands, and still make a layup.