Free The Secret Life of a Teenage Siren by Wendy Toliver Page B

can’t believe I actually kissed Zach Parker. Definitely not the toe-curling kind of kiss you see in the movies, but it was a kiss. And any kiss is better than no kiss, right?
    Besides, it was probably my fault that it wasn’t all that. I mean, Zach has tons of experience. He was with Eva, after all. Andshe’s not exactly the president of the Prudence Club. I, on the other hand, have zero experience. Maybe it’ll just take a little more practice to get it right.
    I’ve got to call Natalie to dish. After dropping my flute off in my room, I dial her number into my cordless, and wait for her to answer. Pumpkin yawns, showing me a mouthful of teensy white teeth and a teensy pink tongue. I stoop down and scratch his ears.
    â€œIt’s one thing to be a bitch to
me,
but to Alex?” she says, skipping the “hello” altogether.
    â€œWhat are you talking about?” I wander into the kitchen and pour myself a glass of milk.
    â€œYou totally dissed us.”
    â€œExcuse me?
You’re
the one who dissed
me.
I had to find a ride home.” I sit down with a slice of leftover birthday cake.
    â€œI guess you think you’re all of a sudden too
pretty
to be seen with the likes of me.” She says “pretty” all nasally, like it’s a bad thing.
    â€œWhatever, Natalie,” I say with my mouth full of cream-cheese frosting. But part of me knows she’s right. I had a feelingthose guys wouldn’t kick me out, like they did Natalie and Alex. I knew, deep down, that my Siren beauty was enough to earn me at least a temporary Proud Crowd membership card. I admit it. And I can’t deny that I took advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hang out with them, even for a jiffy. I’m not necessarily proud of this, and if life had a rewind button, I probably would’ve left with Natalie and Alex.
    Then again, if I’d left, I wouldn’t have kissed Zach.
    Still, I don’t want Natalie to be mad at me. I know what will bring her around. Just the mere mention of The Kiss … “Hey, guess what?”
    â€œI’ve gotta go.”
    â€œDon’t you want to know what happened?”
    â€œI
saw
what happened, Roxy. I may not have perfect eyesight like you in your new colored contacts, but I saw what happened.” She pauses for a second before continuing. “You sold me out, Roxy. You sold Alex and me out. You made fun of us for being band geeks, and you pretended not to even know us. It may as well have been
you
who kicked us out of the party.”

    The bite of cake lodges itself in my throat. I take a swig of milk to wash it down. “That’s so untrue! Why would I make fun of band geeks when I’m one myself?”
    â€œYou tell me.”
    â€œI’m serious, Natalie. You’re being ridiculous.”
    â€œAm I? Then why’d you stay? Why’d you stay when they were being such jerks? I thought you were my best friend, Roxy. Friends stick together. They stick up for you! They don’t humiliate you in front of the whole damn world. They don’t pretend not to even
know
you.”
    Her words make my stomach plummet, like I’m on the Tower of Terror ride at MGM Studios. “Natalie, I …” Man, I figured she wouldn’t be happy with me, but I had no clue she’d be
this
upset. I need to give her time to let off some steam, so I change the subject back to the whole reason we even went to the party. “You don’t care who drove me home in his white Toyota pickup?” Come on. Be a good little gossip hound and take this bone. This big meaty, delicious bone.
    She says, “Not really,” and the line goes dead.

    I brush my teeth and climb into bed, my breaths coming in quick, shallow waves. Snuggled under my daisy comforter with Pumpkin snoring softly at my feet, I stew over Natalie.
    I didn’t expect her to be this mad about the whole staying-at-the-party thing. But