Free Social Order by Melissa de La Cruz Page A

stands.
    â€œWhat?” Lili followed her gaze. Maybe everything wasn’t so perfect after all. Right in the back, hanging on to Tri’s arm, was Ashley. And she looked p-i-s-s-e-d.
    â€œI hope she’s not angry with me for taking her place,” said Lauren anxiously, though Lili thought a tad disingenuously. She seemed to still be reveling in the success of their performance.
    â€œDon’t worry.” Lili squeezed Lauren’s arm. “She’s not mad at you .”
    â€œWhy don’t you guys go up there and say hi?” Jasper suggested, standing just outside of the shot.
    Lili nodded. She’d known this was coming.
    Ashley could be as mean as she liked, but she wouldn’t care, Lili told herself. Ashley might think she had the Preteen Queen title in the bag, but it was too late for her to take over the halftime show. Lili had outsmarted her.
    But Lili didn’t feel quite as brave as she would have liked as she climbed up the stadium steps to face the music.

10
ASHLEY PUTS ON HER GAME FACE
    ASHLEY SLUMPED BACK IN HER seat and tried to get interested in the lacrosse game. Or at least pretend to be interested. She was glad that Tri hadn’t seen her face burn while the girls put on that shameless performance. He’d gotten up to get them drinks and popcorn at halftime, and when he returned, her so-called friends had already cleared the field.
    Tri had played earlier, and Ashley had yelled her head off, not that it had done much good, since his team had been trounced badly. Like the rest of the guys, he was still wearing his uniform and had stayed to watch the high school team. Tri had been cool about losing, though, chalking it up to Reed Prep’s better defense.
    Ashley didn’t think she could be as sporting. Especially since her dance team had practically been hijacked! What kind of team gave a performance without its captain? She was boiling .
    Thank God she had a boyfriend. She didn’t think she could face this humiliation alone. She gave Tri an affectionate arm squeeze, and he patted her knee absent-mindedly. He was already in another world, on the edge of his seat, cheering on the Gregory Hall team, going crazy every time the boys in blue and gold got anywhere near the other team’s net. At least this time their team was winning. The score was 5–4, apparently. Or was it? Ashley really wasn’t paying attention.
    She had a smile on her face, but inside was another story. Her best friends had planned and performed a dance routine for the television show without telling her. Without. Telling. Her. She would scream or kick something, but there was a camera planted in front of her face.
    She wasn’t sure what to do. This wasn’t very Ashley at all. Usually the right plan of action came to her in a flash. This is what she did best. Hello.
    And the best thing about the three Ashleys was exactly that—there were three of them. When A. A.wasn’t around, she could assassinate her character with Lili. When Lili wasn’t around, she and A. A. could buddy up and be the A-team. Three’s a crowd, as the saying went, but to Ashley it was the perfect-size crowd. She could control it.
    But now, with Lauren on the scene, a subtle power shift was taking place. Lili had found an ally, someone who lent weight to her cause. There she was today, dancing in Lili’s usual place. And where was Lili? Right in the center, in Ashley’s preordained spot. So. Not. Cool. If Lili wanted to send a message to Ashley—that she was dispensable, and that someone else could take her place—then the message had been received, loud and clear.
    Ashley did not need this. She had a lot on her mind right now. Tri still hadn’t kissed her. He hadn’t even tried to kiss her. After the cold reception she gave his good-bye hug, he’d started shaking her hand instead. What kind of a boyfriend just shook your hand? Maybe her beauty was intimidating.