Those Girls Read Free Page A

“Hey, V, did Alex tell you that she’s trying out for
American Idol
?”
    “What?” Veronica squawked.
    “It’s just a band,” Alex said. “It’s not a big deal.”
    She rolled her eyes. Was she annoyed that I wasn’t taking this seriously? Was
she
actually taking this seriously? Since when was Alex serious about anything?
    “Wait, are you actually trying out for
Idol
?! Or an actual band? Is it a new ‘Band Idol’ format? I’m confused.”
    Veronica was confused. Shocking.
    “It’s just a band,” Alex barked. “A silly, practice-in-a-garage, just-for-fun high school band.”
    “With non-Crawford boys? Oh my god, are you going to be in the Battle of the Bands on Halloween?! You’ll be like a celebrity! Remember those smokin’ hot guys from that reggae band last year? Do you think you’ll meet them? Invite them to the party on Friday!”
    “Oh my god.” Alex rolled her eyes so hard I thought she might actually tip over. “I’m not even
in
the band yet, calm the fuck down.”
    “Why didn’t you ask if we wanted to do it with you?” V asked. “We could all be in a band; it could have been, like, our new thing? I love singing!” I actually wanted to hear Alex’s answer, but V interrupted herself. “Oh, can you ask Sam if he can get us a keg?”
    The question was directed at me.
    “I guess,” I said.
    Asking Sam for favors always required a trade.
I picked you up from school, you buy me dinner. I let you watch
Real Housewives,
you blow me.
I puked one more time behind a red Jeep Wrangler before we all made our way into homeroom.

VERONICA COLLINS
    I n homeroom, I watched an even balder, though just as fat and sweaty as I remembered, Mr. Boardman shuffle through some papers on his desk and survey the talent in his homeroom. He caught my eye, gave me a wink and a wave, and said, “Welcome back, Ms. Collins. How was your summer?”
    I sat up on my foot and leaned over my elbows on the cold linoleum desk.
    “Great!” I said with a smile. “Did a lot of traveling… and tanning.” I undid a button and pulled my white oxford shirt down over my shoulder to show him my tan line.
    “Very nice,” he said. “I’m sure everyone would love to hear about your adventures.”
    I leaned farther over the desk and pushed my elbows together. “Well, you know, I’m always happy to share them.”
    Alex scoffed under her breath.
    I laughed it off. “What?” I asked her as I plopped back down on my foot, the hard new leather cold under my skirt.
    She rolled her eyes, but I could tell she was smiling.
    “What?!” I said. “Just giving him a little spank-bank material.”
    “I really don’t think you want to be a part of the twisted depths of a man’s spank bank. Especially balding, sweaty old men with lisps who take jobs at all-girls schools.”
    “Please, I just made his morning! And he’s not
that
old.…”
    I felt him still watching, so I turned and twisted on top of my foot again, but this time, I turned out my hip to give him a nice little up-the-skirt shot.
    I’VE ALWAYS DISCONNECTED FROM Mollie and Alex after I’ve been away for a while. I always break back into their little bond after a few weeks, or faster if Mollie happens to be annoyed that Alex is too clingy that week or if Alex happens to decide that Mollie is too bossy that day. But, without fail, as soon as I go on vacation or miss a party or go home sick, they re-fuse and I’m back at zero: alone on the swing set, pining for an invitation to take a turn on the two-person seesaw, like it’s fifth grade all over again. It’s really annoying. You’d think they’d just have accepted that we were a threesome by now, that they’d have gotten over the idea that I had to reinitiate myself and prove my worth every few months. But I knew the party would bring us back together—one drunken night of fun was all they needed to remember why they decided they liked me in the first place.
    While I was in Europe over the summer, I’d