Sealed with a Diss Read Free Page A

dangled her tongue from the corner of her mouth, like a thirsty cat.
    Massie could hardly sit still. She was being handed a gift that, until now, she’d assumed only gawd had. The ability to know what boys were thinking would guarantee that she’d always say the right thing—no more awkward silent periods when flirting! The fear of getting dumped would be gone, because the Pretty Committee would know all pre-dump signs, so they could do it first. They would never be heartbroken or embarrassed or insecure again. But most of all, Massie Block would finally become the all-knowing boy expert she had always wanted to be, running clinics and seminars on topics like “Understanding Boys,” “Outfits Guys Will Love,” and “Why Asking ‘What’s Wrong?’
Is
What’s Wrong.” Everyone would turn to her for the answers, and for the first time ever, she would have them.
    “Where’s the camera hidden?” asked Kristen.
    “In the Share Bear.” Skye rolled her blue eyes, as if it should have been obvious.
    Claire giggled. “My screen name is ClaireBear.”
    “ClaireBear,” Dylan burped.
    Kristen and Alicia burst out laughing.
    “Enough,” Massie snapped, mostly to show Skye she had a tight rein on the Pretty Committee.
    They stopped laughing and Skye shot Massie a thank-you nod before continuing. Massie nodded back, relishing the invisible alpha respect waves that flowed between them.
    “The Share Bear is a blue-and-white stuffed animal. The guys can only speak if Dr. Loni gives it to them. It’s his
thing
.”
    The girls leaned forward in their fuzzy pink chairs, anxious to hear more.
    “Who put the camera in it?” Claire asking, sounding mesmerized.
    Skye shrugged. “All I know is that it’s there, and that you’ll never have to wonder who likes who, why, and for how long again. It’s the best when you’re trying to pick a suitable date for a dance or something. Not that you’re ready for those things yet.”
    The DSL Daters snickered.
    Massie’s heart quickened. “What’s that supposed to mean?” “It’s just that the only time we see you with boys is at the soccer games. And even then, you’re more into talking to each other than to them.”
    Massie’s cheeks burned with rage and humiliation. Was Skye right? Did everyone at OCD think they were guy-shy? Her mother’s
Cosmopolitan
magazines always told women to act aloof and play hard-to-get. So that’s how she advised the Pretty Committee. But what if their advice was
wrong
? Was aloof
out
? Had she been reading old issues by accident? Or was the whole
Cosmo
thing just an excuse to avoid embarrassing herself in public? The questions came faster than the answers. All Massie knew for sure was that the Pretty Committee would have to put on a show worthy of the Pussycat Dolls at the next dance.
    Skye placed her palm on the black-glitter-infused walls, turned to the side, and pliéd. “Maybe when you get to the eighth grade that will change and you’ll start to
really
discover guys and—”
    “Wait!” Claire interrupted.
    “I
have
a boyfriend.”
    “Same!” Massie insisted.
    “I’m close,” Alicia lied.
    “Anyone else?” Skye scanned the row of fuzzy pink director’s chairs.
    Kristen lowered her head, focusing on an imaginary piece of dirt under her perfectly filed pinky nail, and Dylan tugged at her eyelashes as if trying to remove an annoying mascara clump.
    “I thought so,” Skye boasted, pointing her left leg front, side, then back. “Anyway, I’m hosting an end-of-year costume party, and the theme is famous couples. Since you’re next in line for the room, you get an automatic invite.”
    The Pretty Committee silent-clapped, knowing what an honor this was, while Massie tried to think of the fastest way to spread the news around school. An informative e-mail “accidentally” sent to the wrong person? A casual mention in a crowded bathroom? A detailed note dropped in the middle of an assembly?
    “But you all need dates,” Skye