Free Homecoming Masquerade, The by Spencer Baum

work for her.
    She felt like she should be
doing more. Watching Nicky Bloom work, seeing the ease with which Nicky
manipulated Ryan, got him to smile and talk to her and be interested in her –
Jill wondered if she was good enough to hold up her end of the deal. If the
Network had two undercover agents in this ballroom who were as skilled at
manipulating people as Nicky was, the whole class would be theirs already.
    But they only had one Nicky
Bloom. One Nicky Bloom, and one Jill Wentworth.
    It angered her to think about
it. At one time not too long ago, the entire Network was enamored with Jill and
the work she was doing. She was the superstar operative at Thorndike Academy,
who not only could spy on the other students, but could hack into their computers.
The world was going to be saved, and Jill was the one who was going to do it.
    Then Nicky came along.
    “We’ve got this operative,
she’s going to blow your mind,” was what Gia had said to Jill about Nicky. “You
have laid the groundwork for something huge, Jill. With your work, we might be
able to put our new operative in the school with you, and hit the immortals
where it hurts them most.”
    It bugged Jill that her great
achievements were merely “groundwork” for Nicky Bloom, superspy extraordinaire.
It bugged her that she had become another supporting cast member whose only
purpose was to set things up for Nicky Bloom to come in and save the world.
    It bugged her because it was
true.
    Nicky was everything Gia had
promised, and more. Nicky’s assignment was to create such an incredible first
impression that the senior class was willing to accept her as a viable
candidate within two hours of seeing her in a black dress. It was an absurdly
difficult assignment, and she was nailing it.
    Jill’s job, in contrast, was
simply to riff off Nicky’s success, to get the word out about the after-party
in such a way that everyone wanted to ditch Kim’s and go to Nicky’s.
    She felt like she was doing a
lousy job. She felt like she belonged in front of a computer screen, and should
leave the real work, the work that landed you in the arms of Ryan Jenson, for
Nicky Bloom to do by herself.
    “She is,” said Jill.
    “She is what?” said Brian.
    “You were asking about an
after-party,” Jill said. “Nicky is having one. At least, that’s what I’ve
heard.”
    “Where did you hear about her
after-party?” said Brian. “I was just asking someone and they said they didn’t
know.”
    “Then you weren’t asking the
right person. Believe me, it’s everywhere. After that little confrontation
where Nicky told off Kim, everyone wants to know where her party is. I was
standing over next to Isabella and Chelsea earlier tonight, and they couldn’t
stop talking about it.”
    “Really? Isabella and Chelsea?”
    “That’s right,” Jill lied. She
hadn’t been anywhere near Isabella or Chelsea at any time since the masquerade
began.
    “Where is the party?” asked
Brian.
    “At the Hamilton. She’s rented
out the whole nightclub on the top floor.”
    “The whole club? She’s not going
to have enough people to fill up the whole club.”
    “But she is,” said Jill. “That’s
what I’m trying to tell you. We’re all ditching Kim’s party, but obviously
we’re not telling her.”
    “You’re being serious, aren’t
you? You’re really going to Nicky Bloom’s party rather than Kim’s.”
    Jill nodded. “The new girl is
where it’s at. No one else is going to tell you though, because they think
you’ll rat us all out. We know your family’s already committed whatever money
you have to Kim, including any prize money from the brawl.”
    “How does everyone know that?”
Brian said, anger in his voice.
    “Listen, I’m just telling you
this as a friend. I don’t want you to be stuck in Kim’s corner after everyone
else has left. There’s a big movement going on here tonight. We’re all ditching
Kim and we’re going with Nicky. Only you and Kim’s