Free What If... All the Rumors Were True by Liz Ruckdeschel

carelessly dumped a pile of buttons onto someone’s table, having tired of her chore. Now that they were in gossip mode, Mrs. Eton’s tax-reform plan was quickly forgotten. “Did you know Mia shot all sorts of ads and commercials in Miami this summer? They’re a lot more liberal about nudity down there. I’m just saying.”
    Haley felt slightly sick to her stomach. There was a time when she’d thought she and Sebastian might have some potential as a couple. But Mia’s arrival last year had put an end to those plans, and now here she was again, complicating everything, and posing a threat to every student at Hillsdale High who possessed two X chromosomes.
    â€œI just can’t stand the way guys look at her, you know?” Whitney said. “I mean, does she have to take, like, all of them? Couldn’t she just flirt with the dweebs and leave the football team for me?”
    Haley, in need of a palate cleanser, reached for a glass of water on a passing tray. “Can we change the subject?” She had a feeling Mia Delgado would be dominating conversation around Hillsdale for many months to come, and she wanted to put off the inevitable for as long as possible.
    â€œSure,” Whitney said. “I’d rather gossip about Zoe Jones anyway. What happened to her, do you think? I could sculpt a pot out of all the plaster makeup she’s got caked on these days. If you ask me, she was prettier before she started running around with Motormouth. Oh, you want to hear something really gross? Do you know what Sasha and Johnny did while camping in Virginia this summer?”
    â€œUh, since you prefaced it like that, no thanks,” Haley replied. Whitney wasn’t known as the most reliable source in town.
    â€œHow can Sasha like that greaseball?” Whitney continued, undeterred. “All I know is, they went down there with nothing but a tiny little pup tent. What do you think happens in a tiny little pup tent? Everything, obviously!”
    â€œObviously,” Haley teased.
    â€œAnd don’t tell Cecily, but I heard from someone who heard from someone who said they saw Drew making out with a freshman at the cineplex over the summer. And I’m talking about a girl who’s just a freshman now, not from Zoe’s class. Why would he be such a dog to Cecily?”
    â€œAre you sure that’s true?” Haley said. “Drew and Cecily seem so…serious.”
    â€œThat’s why it’s shocking,” Whitney said.
    â€œOf course,” Haley added sarcastically.
    â€œSo what’s the dirt on Reese?” Whitney asked. “He’s been in such a grind ever since school started. Have you seen much of him?”
    â€œI, uh,” Haley began, not knowing exactly what to say. “We sort of fell out of touch over the summer. I don’t really know what he’s up to lately. I think he’s really concerned about the whole college thing.” Haley nodded her head as if to convince herself this was the only reason for Reese’s disappearance.
    â€œYawn,” Whitney said. “I can’t wait until all this college crap is over and we can get on with our real lives. I mean, the SATs? Come on! Could they be a bigger bore? How am I supposed to know a synonym for
prattle
? What does that word even mean anyway?”
    Haley certainly knew.

    Whitney has a lot of dish for Haley, but what of it is true? Unlike the SATs, taking an educated guess in this case probably won’t get you to the bottom of the Hillsdale rumor mill. After all, Whit hasn’t always been innocent herself. Is she just manufacturing all this gossip to draw attention away from her own past transgressions?
    If you think Haley is itching to catch up with Sebastian Bodega, even if it means encountering the wily Mia, go to "SPANISH FLY" . If you think Haley is bored with the political scene and ought to be seeking her own stage, have her go out for the school