Chapter 1 – The history report
“I pulled an all-nighter to perfect this history report!”
“Really? Well, mine is so much fancier than your plain sheets of paper!”
Ella rolled her eyes at the nerds in the front of the bus and inspected her perfectly manicured fingers. Please. There was no room for amateurs in this history report contest. Only the prettiest and the smartest prevail, and that was one hundred percent Ella Goldfeather. Her name was elegant. Her grades were near perfect. She was pretty. No one was as well-rounded as Ella in all categories. At least that was what Ella thought. She had specifically bought pink parchment that smelled like scented gardenias for her report. Ella had put pressed buttercups on the edges of the papers to make it look worthy of winning. Now all she had to do was wait until the bus ride was over and prance up to Mrs. Raine to turn it in. Ella sat on a three-seater with two of her faithful clique members.
Ella turned her Mickey Mouse nails to face her friends. “Hey guys! Do you totally love my nails?”
Sabrina flipped her layered brown hair over her shoulder and replied, “Of course!”
Jackie nodded her head in agreement. “Do you think you can win the history contest? I heard the prize is a pass to skip a test.”
Ella glossed her lips with Blueberry Potion lip gloss and put her hand on her hip. “Jackie! It’s official! Get with the program! And I’m totally going to win this contest. You guys will just have to stick with second or third place.”
Sabrina’s bow-shaped lips curved into a smile. “I’m betting on you to steal the race, Ella. You’re so good at, like, everything!” Ella shot her a glowing look.
Jackie picked at her purple cardigan. “I have a big confession to make guys. Pinky-swear you won’t tell.”
Everyone linked their pinkies together and chanted, “Pinky-swear!” But the alpha of the clique always knew that swears meant nothing.
“I cheated…”
Sabrina gasped. Ella clutched her rhinestone brooch in shock. “How, Jackie? Tell us, now!”
“I forgot about the report until Ella emailed us at eleven in the night, and I kind of just panicked and plagiarized someone else’s essay on the Internet.”
“What grade was the person who wrote it in?” Ella was boiling.
“I think a junior in high school,” Jackie bit her lip.
Ella almost broke the tube of lip gloss in her hand. Cheaters equaled stronger competition. And stronger competition meant a less chance of victory. Sabrina was all cheers and smiles, congratulating her on good plagiarism.
Jackie was lucky to find such a great report. Too lucky.
The bus slammed to a halt and everyone filed out, Ella leading the line with Wonderstruck by Taylor Swift perfume streaming after her. The three girls met up with Ali, Kate, Jasmine, and McKenzie in Mrs. Raine’s classroom.
“Hey, Jasmine. Did you get the cherry blossom folder for my report?” Ella casually asked.
“Yeah, it’s right there.” Jasmine pointed to the folder on Ella’s desk.
Ella counted off the things on her checklist in her head. Report. Check. Pressed Buttercups. Check. Folder. Check. Everything was perfect. Her victory was on the way!
“Class, put your reports in the bin. Then, take out the Benjamin Franklin packet,” Mrs. Raine said.
Ella waited for everyone to put their report in the bin first and then set hers down with extreme care on the top, as if it was a porcelain cup. She smoothed down her ruffled skirt and sauntered proudly back to her seat. She raised her hand in the air.
“Yes?”
“When is the winner announced?” Ella questioned innocently.
“By last period, Ella,” Mrs. Raine murmured, distracted by the flood of emails on her computer. Mrs. Raine was basically a grading machine. She sometimes returned papers in the same period they were turned in. Ella nodded her head like an angel and took out her iPad mini, hidden by the desk. She didn’t care about history class. She cared about winning. And that was that.
Her iPad did her well for the seven periods she had to bear through. History was popping pigs with birds, math was slicing flying fruit, science was attacking zombies with plants, and language arts was controlling a cartoon to jump on platforms. When it was time to return to her homeroom, Ella had to look the best. She gathered up her clique and hit the bathrooms.
“Um,” Ella said while curling her hair with an iron from Kate’s bag, “who do you think will win out of the seven of us?”
There was really only one answer, and that was Ella. But, she just wanted to test her friends.
Kate dusted her eyelashes. Freckles danced along Kate’s face from being out in the sun too often, and her red hair hung in a thick braid to one side. “Ella, it’s you. My report was done in like five minutes tops.” Kate’s family was actually richer than Ella’s, and Kate’s brother had graduated as valedictorian, but Kate herself was more interested in competing in basketball rather than her academics. She didn’t care about her grades.
“Totally!” All of the girls chanted in unison. Well, almost all of the girls.
Ella whirled around and leered at Jackie, who was painting tuxedos on her nails.
“What did you say?” she spat, anger contorting her flawless face.
“I said ‘me’. After all, that essay’s written by a junior.”
McKenzie, Ali, and Sabrina nodded slowly, but out of Ella’s view range.
“Get. Out. Now!” Ella screamed. Cheaters were no longer welcome in Ella’s clique. Jackie, startled, grabbed her Coach tote and ran out of there as fast as her gladiator sandals could take her. The rest of the girls snapped their jaws shut. Ella sighed and curled the last lock of her hair.
“C’mon, girls. Eyes on the prize.”
Ella entered the room with a competitive glow. She was ready.
“Ah! Ella, Ali, Sabrina, McKenzie, Jasmine, Kate! Just in time for the announcement of the winner!” Mrs. Raine smiled, gesturing to their seats.
“And the winner is… Jacqueline Summers! Wonderful job! Absolutely fantastic vocabulary! A plus plus!”
Jackie skipped to the front of the room and plucked the prize right out of Mrs. Raine’s hands. Ella could have sworn Jackie smirked at her. Mrs. Raine started handing the reports back one by one, and to Ella’s dismay, a C plus stared back at her pouty face. The gardenia smell had faded and the buttercups had fallen off. Red marks covered what once were pearl pink sheets of paper. Ella had to act fast. Plan B had to be set into motion fast.
“Hey, Sabrina? Jackie’s going down to the ground. After all, all’s fair in history and war, right?”
Sabrina gave her a sweet smile. “ I think it was ‘all’s fair in love and war’, but go for it!”
Ali gave her a warm wink. Drama in the classroom was fun to watch.
“Mrs. Raine?”
“Yes, Ella,” Mrs. Raine said.
“Can I show you a really good report about this topic on the computer? It’s written by a junior.”
Ella glanced at Jackie. Her face was puckering, and she was crossing her fingers.
Mrs. Raine nodded. Ella walked over to Mrs. Raine’s computer and typed in a description of Jackie’s essay in the search box. She clicked on the first link and stepped back. Mrs. Raine’s eyes skimmed over the first paragraph and narrowed her eyes.
“Jacqueline!” Mrs. Raine screeched. “Such plagiarism is not allowed in this school! Foul play! Cheating! An F minus on that report! Hand that prize to me! By now, Jacqueline, I would think you would know not to plagiarize such a beautiful essay! I should have known, I should have known.”
Jackie dropped her head and slapped the prize into Mrs. Raine’s palm.
Mrs. Raine called everyone to pass their papers to her in order to determine the actual winner of the prize. She flipped through the stack of papers, and Ella spotted her pink report at the bottom of the pile.
“Let’s see, let’s see…” Mrs. Raine mumbled. “A-ha!” She pulled out a report wedged inside of Ella’s report. “And the winner is Penelope Riggers! Wonderfully done and not plagiarized.”
Jackie shrank in her seat. But Ella’s main goal was to egg the prize out of Penelope. Mrs. Raine tossed the test pass to Penelope’s desk, and she fumbled with it and eventually dropped it. Ella snickered. The nerd was getting her rightful prize dirty. The bell rang and Penelope made a bee-line for the door. The other girls, sensing Ella’s goal, stood up at the same time and rushed after the nerd.
They caught up with her and Ella spun her around. Ella put her baby-soft hand out to Penelope.
“Oy, it’s Penelope Piggers,” Ella said, cracking her neck.
“It’s Penelope Riggers, for your information,” Penelope whined.
“Whatever,” Ella scoffed. “Prize, nerd.”
“Or what?” Penelope pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose and held the wooden test pass away from Ella.
Penelope didn’t need a reason from Ella. Ella narrowed her eyes and gave Penelope the worst death stare she had done in a year. The nerd pushed the prize into Ella’s hand and scuttled off, crashing into Jackie along the way. Ella cackled. Perfect, she thought. Now it’s time for me to get back at Jackie. Punishment from Mrs. Raine wasn’t enough.
“You’ll never get away with insulting me, Jackie,” Ella whispered into Jackie’s ear as she passed Jackie in the hallway. She spat Jackie’s name out like poison. But, ultimate revenge would come later. She needed another girl to take Jackie’s place in the clique. Ella couldn’t walk in the middle of the clique with only six people.
Chapter 2 – Operation new girl
Ella clutched the goose feather pillow tightly with her arms and kicked her feet anxiously on the gold and pink velvet cover on her bed. Her pretty face showed deep concentration as she gripped the pencil in her hand. Normally, Ella Goldfeather would be doing her homework perfectly by now, but instead of writing the advantages of the South and the North in the Civil War, Ella was furiously thinking of the advantages she had against the new girl: Ever Primrose.
Ella’s anxiety bloomed whenever Ever’s name entered her mind. Ever had chocolate-brown wavy hair and huge emerald eyes that Ella’s sky blue eyes would never beat. But, she had the blonde straight hair that everyone wanted in Hearst Middle School… right? From the gossip, Ever was extremely Gorgeous with a capital G (To Ella’s dismay, she even overheard that Ever was prettier than her from a nerd in the hallway, and that was offensive) and extremely friendly. She’d grown up at an orphanage and named herself. Michael Rogers – by far in Ella’s point of view – the hottest boy in school, had asked Ever to the Halloween dance even though Ella had been clearly hinting for him to ask her for like, ages! But, Ella would always stay the Alpha in the grade, and she had her ways to bring Ever down to the ground. With an evil grin, she threw her five-section notebook onto the floor and began brainstorming to put Ever back to Square One.
At her locker the next day, Ella applied a new coat of Cappuccino-flavored lip gloss and pinched her cheeks for color. A queen-bee needed to look fabulous at all times. Due to Jackie’s absence, she couldn’t walk in the middle of the clique without three people on each side, so she demanded that Ali, Jasmine, Kate, McKenzie, and Sabrina walk one foot behind her. Suddenly, she spotted Ever coming toward Ella’s clique with a mix of boys and girls surrounding her. Ella even could make out a few nerds: eww! Ever didn’t know that nerds brought your social status down. Ella wrinkled her nose at Ever’s mistake. The hallway was brightly lit by fluorescent lights, and the banging of lockers mixed with students’ chattering voices. The walls were a plain white, and the marble floor was puke-colored, a greenish-brown that made Ella herself want to hurl. The fact that her pearl-white high heels were touching such a fashion-deprived floor gave her the chills.
“Ah-bviously, Ms. Ever here doesn’t know what a proper clique is; why is that, girls?” Ella sniffed.
“Because you’re not the alpha, Ella!” piped McKenzie; her silvery voice filled with admiration.
“Precisely.”
Ever’s group stopped in front of Ella. Ever was wearing a dark blue dress and golden bangles on each wrist, an outfit that Ella never imagined an orphan would have. She couldn’t have bought that with her allowance money in the orphanage. She flashed Ella the most genuine and prettiest smile she had seen in her life, and wiggled five perfectly manicured fingers.
“Hi! My name’s Ever, Ever Primrose. What’s your name?” Ever sang.
Ella was more than insulted at the fact that the most popular girl in the school’s name was not at the top of this wretched orphan’s short list of vocabulary. Her blue eyes narrowed and her jaw set back into a snarl.
“Aca-‘scuse you, filthy orphan!” Ella screeched. “Do you have a brain? My name’s Ella Goldfeather, the girl who’s at the top of the food chain, and you’re my next meal, loser.”
Ella spun on her white high-heels and took the long way to class, leaving Ever shocked. She heard dirty names being called after her and stinging retorts over the clacking of her clique’s shoes, but Ever quickly silenced them. Ella knew Ever was just faking her kindness. Here at Hearst Middle School, no one was as nice as that.
Mr. Fort droned on about the speeches they were supposed to give today as Ella drew scenarios of Ever’s doom. One drawing showed the orphan with trash on her dress, crying. Another depicted Ever walking alone in the hallway, other students making a three-foot clearance. Her favorite sketch was of Ella sitting on a jeweled throne with her feet on Ever’s back, like a foot rest. Of course that was a fantasy, but it felt good to see Ever like that.
Someone coughed next to Ella, and she looked up, annoyed. Ali stared at her, and then gestured to her feet. Under Ali’s Keds, there was a piece of purple paper, neatly folded up into a square. Ella looked at Ali, and Ali mouthed the word, “Ever” to Ella. Ali slowly inched her foot toward her. Ella dropped her pencil, and scooped the pencil and the paper up together. She looked at Ever; she looked as if her encounter with Ella had never happened. Why was this girl so perfect? Usually, people who got onto Ella’s bad side would have been crying their eyes out. Ella drove her heel into the carpeted floor. She unfolded the paper and read the elegant handwriting.
Hey, Ella! Did we get off on the wrong foot in the hallway? I’m sorry for not knowing your name; I have short-term memory. I knew your last name, I just wasn’t sure if your first name was Ella or Bella. Here’s something to make it up:
A pair of hoop earrings were taped onto the note, along with a piece of Strawberry Trident gum. Ella smirked and ripped out the piece of paper she’d been drawing on. She took out a nasty green pen she hated and wrote:
Thanks but no thanks. You’re still a loser. Enjoy my drawings!
Ella folded up her sketches, spat the gum into another piece of paper and then shoved the paper at Ali, and started painting her nails a shade of dark green. Green for the envy Ever would feel after she knew Ella would always stay Queen Bee.
“Okay! Speech time, my cheerios!” Mr. Fort boomed. “Ever, go first my dear!”
Before the note could reach Ever, she got up to make her speech. Ali substituted by putting the note and chewed gum in her backpack. Ever ran her fingers through her hair, cleared her throat, and began.
“My birth name was Primrose Centen.” She paused, as if waiting for something to happen.
“I was born on December 31st, and shortly after, my parents died in a plane crash.”
Now Ever had everyone’s attention, even Ella’s. Her right fingers were left unpainted.
“I was sent to an orphanage at three and got kicked out when I was nine because there was no space for me, and I really wasn’t the favorite of any of the people there. My dream was to have a loving family, to leave behind a wicked history, but this wasn’t exactly my game plan. I was educated of course, but really scared. I lived without a home for a month. I had enough clothes and money to make me look like I wasn’t homeless. On my 10th birthday, I ran out of money and though I wasn’t a legal age, the person in charge of the boutique, Minty Pretty Fresh, let me work there, and I had shelter and food twice a day.”
Ella sat up. Minty Pretty Fresh was the most popular fashion company. All girls had at least one section of their wardrobes devoted to Minty Pretty Fresh. Ella was proud to have two. Ella looked at the kids sitting around her; they were all absorbed in Ever’s words, in a trance. Ella rolled her eyes. She was not joining a pity party. She was thoroughly convinced that Ever was making this up.
“I worked my way up from a little girl running around folding clothes and fixing displays to a model for Minty Pretty Fresh.”
Ella’s eyes widened. She remembered now that she had seen Ever modeling silver flats on the boutique website. Why wasn’t Ella the one modeling for flawless fashion?
“As one of the main models for MPF, I received a fairly good apartment and a chance to go back to school. Before I did join though, I changed my name to Ever, using my real name as a last name. I chose Ever not because it sounded pretty, but because I think, although I still haven’t got my fantasy of a great family, hopes and dreams are everlasting, and thus the name, Ever. I hope that being here will give me the family I desperately need. Thank you!”
Ever left the front of the classroom to a loud racket of clapping hands, including Ella’s. Jasmine and Kate gaped at Ella. Ella…clapping for Ever? But, something else was brewing inside of Ella’s mind: 1- Befriend Ever —- 2- Get a modeling job —- 3- Ditch Ever.
Chapter 3 – Party planning
Ella had just finished taping a picture of her current celebrity crush on her locker when she heard Jasmine’s voice.
“Hey, Ella!” Jasmine sang. “Look what I found next to Jackie’s locker.”
Jasmine didn’t look happy, and even her sparkly-pink eye shadow couldn’t cover her anxious eyes. She was holding up a strip of photos, the kind you find in malls in little photo booths. Ella slammed her decorated locker shut and strode to Jasmine, taking this opportunity to practice a professional model’s walk. Jasmine held the strip with her French-manicured gold nails for Ella to see. In the stream of photos, there Jackie was, smiling with Ever in every single photo. Anger twisted Ella’s smile into a bitter one, and she clenched her teeth together and gave a fake smile.
“Okay!” Ella snatched the photos out of Jasmine’s hand, crushed and crumpled them with her own hand, and made a perfect shot into the garbage can. “Thank you for that lovely piece of info, Jasmine darling.” Jasmine raised an eyebrow and gave her a funny look, and flounced to Ali’s locker.
After Ella completed all three stages of her plan, Jackie’s reputation would be shattered. But for now, Jackie would have to be spared. Jackie was Ever’s friend, and Ever was her key to becoming a model for Minty Pretty Fresh. Ella couldn’t screw that up.
“Kate!” Ella yelled, already walking to math class. “Let’s go!”
Kate scuttled after her, hastily putting on a bit of blush and then joining Ella.
“So,” Kate began, “tomorrow’s McKenzie’s birthday, and I really wanted to do something special for her. Can you help?”
Ella blew air out of her nostrils. Throwing parties was what she lived for, but she’d always thrown them for herself. McKenzie was a different story. McKenzie had skipped a grade and was the youngest person in the grade, yet she was not too smart… not a nerd. Ella thought she was annoying sometimes, but she had a sweet side too.
“I’ll think about it.”
Ever, or as Ella liked to call her, Primrose, was the first thing she saw when she entered the heated math classroom. Her brown curls were tied up into a slick ponytail, and she was wearing a purple ruffled top from Minty Pretty Fresh that Ella had wanted for ages. The classroom was covered with math posters explaining math formulas that Ella had forgotten a long time ago. The desks were cluttered and disorganized, and a loopy female teacher with her half-moon spectacles tilted to the right of her nose was rapidly talking about something Ella simply didn’t care about. The teacher, Mrs. Eccentrica, beckoned them in with a pointy finger.
“GoodmorningEllaandKatehowniceofyoutojoinustoday!” Mrs. Eccentrica exploded, her square earrings swinging.
“What, Mrs. Eccentrica?” asked Kate tentatively. The crazy teacher waved them off and continued listing the differences between regular and irregular polygons.
Math was an hour and thirty minutes long, and thankfully, long enough for Ella to watch the newest episode of America’s Next Top Model on her brand new iPhone, a show run by her modeling inspiration, Tyra Banks. After all, she needed some tips to become a star model for MPF.
The bell rang just as Ella put the finishing touches on the card she made for Ever. She had started working on the card late last night and had put massive globs of glitter on it. Flattering Ever made Ella one step closer to a modeling career. Ella approached Ever as she put her math textbook away.
“You know what Ever? We did get off the wrong foot yesterday. You’re totally right. And your story was just so heartwarming and inspirational. Here, I made you this card.”
Ella was using her sweetest fake tone, and she handed the rainbow-colored card to Ever, and made sure to press a mint chocolate into her hand. Ever looked completely fooled.
“Awww,” Ever cooed. “You didn’t have to do this for me!”
“I try,” Ella said again in her false tone. She tapped her ballet flats impatiently. “I was wondering if you could introduce me to the managers of Minty Pretty Fresh? Maybe we could model together!”
Ever nodded slowly, and then smiled. “Of course! But you’ve got to do me a teensy favor,” she said, batting her silver-dusted eyelashes.
Ella listened closely to what Ever was going to say.
“I want you to throw a great party for your friend, McKenzie.”
Later, on the bus in a two-seater with her friend, Sabrina, Ella was furiously looking at nail pictures on Instagram.
“I like these nails.”
Sabrina pointed to a picture where an Ace in a suit of cards had been painted on the thumbnail. Ella wasn’t listening. How did Ever know about McKenzie’s birthday? The party was to have a Midnight in Paris theme, and everyone, yes everyone, even the nerds, was invited. It was going to be at the Prize Galore, a five-star hotel that her dad’s friend owned. Ever had told her each and every specific detail to make the party as perfect as possible.
The bus halted at her stop and Ella got up.
“C’mon, Sabrina, we’ve got work to do.”
As she walked down the aisle, she could hardly resist the urge to kick Jackie in the foot.
For two hours, Sabrina and Ella made the invitations as pretty and professional as possible. They decided to use deep midnight blue paper with a drawing of the Eiffel Tower in the background, along with twinkling stars and wisps of pearl pink. They folded them neatly into squares and put them into glittering silver envelopes with a pink bow on them. “Hand most of the invitations out yourself”: Ever’s voice rang in her head. Ella shuddered at the thought of giving a nerd an invitation to a professional party.
The next day at school, Ella and Ali handed out invitations non-stop. But after lunch, she saw Penelope Riggers headed her way. Shoot, Ella thought as the nerd got closer – maybe Ali could give her the invitation? She looked over at her blonde friend, but Ali threw up her hands – she was all out of invitations. Ever suddenly stepped in front of Penelope and began asking her a question. Ella thought this was her chance to kill two birds with one stone. She strode over to Penelope with a slight swagger in her walk.
“Hey, nerd,” Ella said, gritting her teeth. Ever glared at her.
“I mean, hey, Penelope Figgers.”
“Riggers,” Ever corrected sternly.
“Yes, Ella Goldfeather?” Penelope beamed, clearly honored being close to the two most popular girls in the grade.
“Here. Hope you’ll b-be there,” Ella choked, forcing out the last two words.
Both Penelope and Ever smiled at her, and Penelope took the invitation gratefully. Her chewed-on, stubby fingernail touched Ella’s perfect skin. Ella gagged and immediately went to her locker. This was a code red situation. She opened her locker with lightning speed, grabbed her Sweet Pea hand-sanitizer and used almost half the bottle on the one spot, filling the hallway with the lovely odor.
Kate and Ella went to Party City with Ella’s father’s swiped credit card an hour after school, their shopping bag filled with sixty deep purple and blue feathered hats and bowties. Back at Ella’s mini-mansion, Ali and Jasmine were pumping out the song list for the dance and at the Prize Galore, Ever and Sabrina were putting up decorations Ella had drowned them with at school. Ella had brought ten different duffel bags full, of possible decorations. The two waited at the counter for the delivery of 120 dark blue and magenta T-shirts for McKenzie’s birthday party.
The sales lady came out from the back room and plopped two giant boxes on the counter.
Ella unpacked one of the boxes rapidly and held up a blue one. The Eiffel Tower was in the background, and on the front, it said, “McKenzie’s 13th Midnight Paris Birthday!” Underneath that was printed Ella’s favorite picture of McKenzie, the one where she was smiling at the camera while simultaneously kicking the winning goal to a soccer game. On the back, there was the last name of the guest written in white bubble letters. Ella smiled at the perfection of her creation. Kate returned from the other counter in the store with blue Midnight in Paris knapsacks that were stuffed with loads of trinkets and goodies. Kate had to take four trips to the waiting taxi to carry them all in.
As Ella piled the boxes in the trunk she realized that she was enjoying doing something for someone – a definite first.
Chapter 4 – Accidental friendship and icing
The sky was a nice rosy color when Ever and Ella were dropped off at the bakery three days later. Ella had to miss her dance class just to buy the cake. Ella huffed unhappily, and hooked her thumbs on the pocket of her Ocean Blue jeans. Pink swirly letters formed the words “Dreamy Sweets” on the bakery’s window. Everyone was occupied with party business, so Ella had to go with her secret nemesis, Ever Primrose, to buy the cake. Ella adjusted the collar of her yellow and pink blouse, twirled her blond curls with her finger, and sulked into the bakery, trailing behind Ever’s fishtail braid. Ella couldn’t argue with choice of sweet shop; it was the best bakery in Pennsylvania. The door jingled as Ever pulled it open, and she walked over to the front, where a dozen beautifully decorated and delicious cakes were displayed. Everything in the bakery was either white or pearl pink and the tables look like they’d been imported from Paris.
Ever placed the check she had gotten from her bank account that day and cleared her throat.
“Hello?” Ever chimed, tapping her silver nails on the counter.
A lady with tousled red hair in a messy bun came out of the busy kitchen. “Can I help you?” she said, nonchalantly wiping the counter with a wet cloth.
“We’re here on an appointment,” Ever stated, “to make a cake for our friend, McKenzie.”
Ella froze. Who died and made Ever McKenzie’s friend? Ella was practically blowing steam out of her nose. Be nice, Ella. Stay cool, Ella thought to herself.
“So,” the lady said, adjusting her green glasses. She looked at a piece of paper below the counter. “Are you Ella Goldfeather?”
“Yeah.” Ella sprang to life, and lightly shoved Ever to make room for her. “We’re here to make a Midnight in Paris cake, and the check’s on the counter.”
“I see,” the lady said, taking the three-hundred dollar check. “Come into the kitchen. You’re two minutes late.”
Ella rolled her eyes at the redhead, placing her in the same category as the teachers that had an annoying pet peeve for tardiness. She pushed open the little door to the kitchen, and was immediately absorbed into the commotion. Chefs were icing cakes, shoving cupcakes into the ovens, tossing frosting onto huge pastries, washing pots and pans, and modeling fondant. No one noticed them. Ever looked just as awestruck as Ella. A sweet-looking female chef with crazy pink pigtails looked up from piping curls onto a cake and walked over to them.
“Hi! You must be Ella and…” Pink Pigtails hesitated.
Ella smirked at the fact that she didn’t knoq Ever’s name.
“Ever.”
“Ever! What a pretty name! I’m Nymphie, and I’m going to help you make your cake.” She led them over to a clean white table with five sheets of paper. “You’re going to brainstorm your cake here, so that we can bake it and make it. Got it?” Nymphie gave the two of them a thumbs-up and bounced over to the cake she was working on.
Ella reached into her Vera Bradley backpack and pulled out a folded piece of paper. “Already got the design down. You want to add to it?” She waved the paper in front of Ever. Ever nodded and Ella placed it on the table while Ever took out her pencil case. Ever pulled out her iPhone and began texting McKenzie.
EllaJenchanted11: whats up
Mckenzieeiznekcm: hey ella thanks sooo much 4 the b-day party
EllaJenchanted11: it’s cool. We’re designing your cake right now. You ok with the midnight in paris theme?
Mckenzieeiznekcm: totally! I love it like soo much. Can’t thank you enough ellaaaa
EllaJenchanted11: ever’s helping. She’s modifying the cake design. And the party’s @ nine 2morrow k?
Mckenzieeiznekcm: got it. How could I 4get? It’s my own bday J
EllaJenchanted11: got to goooo, ever’s done with the design… bye
McKenzieeiznekcm: bye! Have fun!!!
Ella turned down her iPhone. “Yes?” she said, exaggerating the word.
Ever shoved the paper in front of Ella. Ever had changed the white square three tiered cake into a wonderful midnight blue cake, still square and three-tiered, with glittering, twinkling stars, accompanied by a black ribbon running on the middle tier and a bunch of pink and white roses scattered around the cake. Best of all, a miniature model of the Eiffel Tower stood on the top, supporting a sign that said in script, “Happy 13th Birthday, McKenzie!” 13 black candles shot sparks into the air.
“G-“
Ella gagged. She had almost complimented Ever for being a genius!
She cleared her throat and swapped it for: “That’s fine.” She took the drawing and whistled loudly, waving the drawing in her hands.
“Hey, Nymphie! We’re done!” Ella cried. The pink-haired pastry chef skipped over to them. She surveyed the paper and then put it down.
“Great, girls!” she exclaimed. “We can totally make this!” She bounded over to a room in the corner of the kitchen and returned juggling three square pieces of butter pound cake.
“Here.” Nymphie set them on the table. “What kind of icing do you want in the cake?”
Ella thought for a moment. “Vanilla.”
“Vanilla,” Ever said at the same time. Ella whirled around to look at Ever. What was this madness? First she almost complimented Ever and now they say the same thing together? Only friends did that and Ever was no friend of Ella, right? She furiously bit down on her cherry blossom nails.
“Excellent!” Nymphie purred. She darted to one of the cabinets and pulled out a huge can of vanilla cream icing and a few icing spatulas and plopped them on the table. “Ice the bottom of the first tier,” Nymphie pointed to the smallest square. “And the bottom of the second tier. Once you’re done, call me!”
Ella took the apron from the back of her chair and put it on, simultaneously taking an icing spatula. Ever had already pried open the cap on the icing can. Ella dug out a huge chunk of vanilla icing and threw it onto the first tier. At least half of it hit the cake. The other half, to Ella’s amusement, hit Ever’s apron, smack-dab in the middle. Ever looked utterly shocked. Ella stifled a laugh.
“Oops.”
Ella looked down from the scene, chuckling and spreading the icing all over the first tier. Then something hit her in the head. She slowly raised a hand to her hair and pulled out a glob of icing. Ever stuck out her tongue playfully.
“Oops.”
Ella grinned devilishly. “So you want to play that way?”
Ella dug her spatula into the can and threw an enormous blob of icing at Ever, who ducked.
“Ha, you missed me, Ella!” she jeered. “You can’t cat-“
She was cut short by a second ball of icing that landed all over her face and in her mouth. She wiped most of the icing away.
“You’re so on, Ella,” she said, flipping her hair over her shoulder.
During the next few minutes, flying icing produced uncontrollable laughter and a very, very disappointed Nymphie. Ella’s neon green apron was no longer visible due to the chunks of icing, and Ever’s dark hair had turned white from the many headshots Ella had scored.
“Girls,” Nymphie said sternly, trying not to explode, “I think I’ll take it from here. Go sit in the bakery and wait or do your homework.”
“’Kay,” Ever said.
They shuffled out of the kitchen looking like nightmares in every girl’s dreams.
“That was interesting!” Ella proclaimed throwing her apron over a random chair.
“Yeah, but now we have to do some stupid homework,” Ever sighed.
“A math worksheet, reading comprehension, an essay about global warming, and a reading from history,” grumbled Ella, licking the icing off her lips.
“I have the math worksheet done,” Ever said.
“I have the reading comprehension done,” Ella piped excitedly.
“Swap!” the girls screamed excitedly, happy to be doing less homework.
The lady with the red hair stopped serving a customer and shouted, “Will you girls be quiet!?”
Ever and Ella smiled sheepishly. They sat down on one of the tables. A tiny vase of roses sat in the middle, as well as a stand of business cards for Dreamy Sweets.
“So, Ella, do you have anyone you like in this school?” Ever cooed, scooting closer to Ella’s chair.
“Actually, I do,” Ella said. She was surprised that she was telling Ever this, but everyone knew who she liked, right?
“Who?” Ever questioned eagerly, her green eyes widening.
“I like Michael Rogers,” Ella concluded, taking out a pencil from her backpack.
“No,” Ever gasped in disbelief. “I’m dating him!”
Ella shrugged that fact off. Ever was a newbie at school, but she’d snatched Michael right out of Ella’s hands. Ella had had a crush on Michael mildly in second grade. She would always choose him as her partner in whatever they were doing, whether it was adding numbers or writing stories. Ella had dated other guys, but she would always have a crush on Michael.
“It’s okay, Ella,” Ever comforted. “He’s not my type anyway.”
Two hours later, both girls were in their chairs sleeping, heads slumping on the table, with unread papers in their limp hands.
“Girls!” Nymphie’s voice echoed through their dreams. “Girls!”
“What?” Ever slurred sleepily.
“The cake’s done! Now your friend is waiting outside, so go get washed up at home.”
A huge box sat on the table. Ella stirred and looked at it.
“Is this the cake?” Ella said, yawning.
“Yeah. C’mon, Ella. Jasmine’s outside,” Ever chided.
They carried the cake out, still loopy from sleep, and saw Jasmine’s Honda. They loaded it into the open trunk and slid into the back seats.
Jasmine turned around and gave them a quizzical look from the front seat.
“What happened to you guys?”
Ever rubbed her eyes. “It’s a long story.”
Chapter 5 – Midnight in Paris
Ella shuffled into the Prize Galore, her black, vintage dress swishing around her. She swung open the door to the ballroom and made sure everything was in order. The decorations were perfect, the refreshments were ready to go, the Midnight in Paris knapsacks for the guests were lined up in alphabetical order, and the cake stood in all its shining glory in the middle of the refreshments table. Ella checked her straightened blond hair in one of the mirrors.
Perfect, Ella thought. She turned on her gladiator sandals and strutted confidently outside. The first guests were already arriving. She was putting lotion on her hands when she heard an irritating, high-pitched voice.
“Is this McKenzie’s party?” Penelope Riggers squeaked. She was dressed in an ugly dark blue skirt and an orange T-shirt from a store Ella had stopped going to when she was six.
“Yeah. Go to the ballroom on your left. There’s a knapsack for you as a party treat,” Ella spit out, controlling the urge to add And then get lost! to the end of her sentence.
“Okie dokie! Food here I come!” Penelope trilled.
Fortunately, McKenzie was the next one to arrive, and she looked gorgeous with a capital G. Her strawberry blonde hair fell down to her back, and black eye shadow and mascara made her eyes look glittering and mysterious. She had chosen a light pink lipstick and added a little color to her cheeks. Her dress, which Ever, Jasmine, and Ella had picked with her, looked like it was a gift from the all-mighty fashion goddesses. The light blue dress had a belt of silver crystals going around the waistline that separated stunning waves of fabric studded with darker blue gemstones. McKenzie was wearing white six-inch high-heels, which made her about an inch taller than Ella, who was only wearing sandals. Ella didn’t like the fact that she was taller than her, or prettier than her, but McKenzie’s birthday was today, and Ella didn’t want to insult her.
“You look absolutely fan-tabulous, McKenzie Maxwell! Happy 13th birthday, darling!” Ella gushed, giving the new teen a huge bear hug.
“I can’t thank you enough, Ella, and you look just as pretty as me,” McKenzie said while fiddling with the sapphire ring on her middle finger.
“C’mon, McKenzie,” Ella smiled, “We have to get you ready for your grand entrance.” Ella didn’t want to greet a nerd again.
Ella herded McKenzie to a room in the basement of the hotel where the most of the members of the clique were. A chair in the center, made out of fake gold with a velvet cushion, sat on a circular platform.
“Hey, McKenzie!” Kate said, flashing her toothpaste commercial smile.
“Happy Birthday!” all the girls said in unison. McKenzie blushed.
“Now,” Ever said, “You’ll be sitting on this chair, and when everyone is here, Sabrina will turn on the smoke machine and then you’ll rise up in the center! Then two confetti cannons will go off, and the party will begin! There will be a crew of 8th graders next to the chair, and once the music starts playing, you’ll jump into the crew and they’ll throw you up once in the air, and then set you down.”
Ever gestured to the chair on the platform.
“Also, your gemstones on your dress glow. Ever, Ella, and I got a special deal with the dressmaker,” Jasmine gushed. “Sabrina’s up there greeting guests. She has headphones on, so she’ll signal us when everyone’s arrived.”
As if on cue, Sabrina’s voice vibrated around the room: “Everyone’s here guys! I’m ready to go!”
They ushered McKenzie into the golden chair. The hiss of the smoke machine came from above, and Kate pressed a button on a computer, causing McKenzie to rise up with the chair.
“Good luck!” Ella cried after her. McKenzie gave her a huge cheesy grin.
“Here guys, I’ve got live feed of the party on this computer. My dad helped me set it up,” Kate said, beckoning them over to the tiny computer.
The girls rushed over to the computer and saw smoke invading the ballroom, covering the entire 8th grade with a white, misty cloud. Suddenly, blue sparkles came from the thicket of smoke.
“Those are the sequins on McKenzie’s dress!” Jasmine squealed with glee.
The smoke cleared and revealed an elegant McKenzie, poised in an intricate golden chair. Then two cannons boomed, and blue and white confetti flew everywhere, a joyful loud cheer followed, and the speakers started playing hit songs.
McKenzie leapt off the chair into the crowd of 8th graders. Ella didn’t see the rest, for the hidden camera was discovered by an 8th grader and he was now making silly faces at it, blocking the view of McKenzie.
“Oh come on!” Kate growled. “Someone tell that kid to move!”
Ever linked arms with her. “We’ll be able to see McKenzie upstairs. Why don’t we go? And Jasmine, tell Ella the next part of the plan.”
Jasmine nodded as the two girls skipped out, satin and ribbons flying after them.
“So, what’s this plan?” Ella said as she twisted a strand of blonde hair around her finger.
“So you know Michael Rogers?” Jasmine smiled, her brown curls bouncing up and down.
“Totally!!” Ella swooned, clasping her hands together. Michael Rogers, by most girls’ definitions, was the dream guy. However, he was taken by the one and only, Ever Primrose. Ella steamed as she thought of Ever holding hands with him.
“Well, Ever dumped him,” Jasmine said.
“What?!” Ella screamed in both shock and relief.
No one just dumped a cute boy like that. Ella switched boyfriends a lot, but she would never ever dump Michael.
“For a good cause! She wanted McKenzie to dance with him tonight so it would make her happy and she said it was your job to make sure he does,” Jasmine informed critically.
Ella’s jaw dropped and hit the floor. Was Ever trying to kill her? First she had to throw a huge pricey party and now she had to make Michael, the boy she always wanted as her boyfriend, dance with McKenzie. This was torture, and Ella knew it.
Ella put her hands in front of her. “Hold up. Hold up.”
Fire burned in her eyes. Who did Ever think she was? Ella was still the top of the top, the queen of social status. Even if this was McKenzie’s party and she was doing this all for a modeling job, losing her dignity as the alpha of the elite was definitely out of her range.
“No. Ever’s a maniacal devil, and I’m not doing it. I won’t do it even when I’m rotting in the ground,” Ella growled angrily.
Jasmine’s eyes lowered to the ground, “But, Ella, McKenzie’s birth-“
“I don’t really freaking care. So if you excuse me, I’m going to talk to Ever!”
Ella’s blue eyes were stormy and mad, as if a hurricane was brewing inside. She stood up and thundered upstairs. A couple was blocking the doors to the ballroom. Ella gritted her teeth.
“Get out of the way,” she scowled, shoving them both roughly. She kicked the door open and a blast of music hit her. The disco ball was making the floor multi-colored with pinks, greens, and blues. Some party guests turned to see the commotion, but Ella was already rushing past their confused faces. Her eyes frantically tried to spot a brunette with a silver dress. A disgusting color, Ella thought angrily in her head. Everything that reminded Ella of Ever had suddenly turned repulsive, like festering flesh. She finally saw Ever dancing with McKenzie and Sabrina, having fun doing the Cha Cha Slide.
“Ever!” Ella barked as she ruthlessly pushed through the crowd of dancing kids. Ever turned her head. “What in the world is wrong with your empty shell of a head?!”
Ever’s green eyes widened innocently. “What are you talk-“
“Shut up! Stop acting like an imbecile! Shut up!” Ella screamed. She ripped off one of her sandals and hurled it at Ever’s pretty face, hoping it would land on and squash Ever’s ski-slope nose and turn it tomato-shaped. Unfortunately, Ever played on a competitive badminton team, and deflected the shoe with her arm, but it left a red mark the size of a shoe. The music had stopped playing, and it wasn’t long before everyone noticed what was going on.
“Ella, calm down!” Ever said sternly. Even her superior acting skills couldn’t cover the wickedness in her eyes.
“This is not your school! Go back to the streets and die!” Ella screeched, hurling her other sandal at Ever. The sandal hit Ever’s arm again. “Get out!”
She pointed to the door murderously. Ella wasn’t in the mood to be all birthday cheery for McKenzie, nor was she in the mood to put up with all this repulsive nonsense Ever was making up. Ella was in the mood to break Ever’s spell that she had casted over the entire grade. She wanted to scratch her manicured fingers all over Ever’s face and make it scarred and ugly: exactly what Ever looked on the inside.
Chapter 6- Showdown
“Got anger management issues, Miss Little Alpha?” Ever jeered, kicking Ella’s fallen sandals away from her.
Ella boiled. She was pretty sure her face was as red as her grandmother’s hot chili sauce. Ever wasn’t a perfect modeling girl with a nice attitude. She was a LBR: a Loser Beyond Repair.
“And by the way, Goldfeather,” Ever scoffed, “I don’t live in an apartment. I live in a mini-mansion. With my parents.”
Everyone in the party gasped. Ever had given an emotional speech about being a homeless orphan and working her way up to being a model. She had lied. She was filthy, dirty little liar. And Ella hated her for that. She glanced at McKenzie. She felt bad for the new teen, for her birthday party was changed into a showdown between two rivals instead of a fun night. But, this wasn’t the time for pity. It was time for revenge. There was nothing Ella did better than revenge.
“Can it, Centen,” Ella spat, using Ever’s real surname. “Your whole life screams out ‘fake’! You belong somewhere with fake people!”
Ever looked like she could rip twenty throats out at once. Her poison-colored eyes narrowed. Ella let out a shaky laugh.
“Do you think you can control Hearst Middle School? You don’t even have the potential to rule first graders! Did you come here because you were rejected by everyone else?” Ella screeched, a gigantic face smile etched on her face.
“Where did you come from, Ella? Loserville? You have, what, two, three, four, five friends? I bet even Penelope has more friends than you! You think you rule the school? A funny joke, Ella! Penelope? Come out here!” Ever said smugly, flipping her hair over her shoulder. As if that was cool.
Penelope Riggers, or Piggers, as Ella called her, stepped out of the crowd, wearing a hideous jean skirt with tie-dye splotches and a T-shirt that said, “I’m not short, I’m fun-sized!” She nervously chewed her poorly painted nails.
“How many friends do you have, Penelope?” Ever questioned.
“Uh, uh,” Penelope stammered. “Sakura, Nishan, Hallie, Godric, Lucinda, Kiwan-“
“Ha!” Ever shrieked triumphantly. “A small nerd beat you out on a simple friend competition! You’re the loser here!”
Ella’s grip on sanity was loosening. If Ever continued to exist in Hearst Middle School as one of the popular kids, her entire world would be upside down until she or Ever left. Ella cursed her fate. She’d had the school in the palm of her hand for eight years straight and now, her last year at middle school, the year she was supposed to make glorious history, Ever had come to snatch it all away.
“Well, Ever,” Ella said in a steely calm tone. “Let’s do the same thing with you then. Who here is Ever’s friend?”
Only a quarter of her groupies raised their hands. The rest of them looked repulsed, as though Ever had shown them a dead frog and thrown it into the crowd.
“Five!” Ella counted happily. “You’re as much as a loser as I am! Yay!”
Ella’s false cheery tone must have annoyed Ever to the breaking point, because Ever took off her shoe and catapulted it at Ella. Ella didn’t have fast reaction time, and only saw the shoe flying through the air. Ella didn’t feel the pain of a high heel digging into her cheek. Someone had intercepted the shoe. It was McKenzie.
“Move out of the way, McKenzie,” Ever sighed, as if brushing McKenzie off like a little sister. “This girl deserves far worse than a high-heel in her cheek.”
McKenzie was rubbing her shoulder, the spot where the shoe had hit her. “No, Ever.” Ella gasped loudly. Little McKenzie was standing up for her. She always thought McKenzie was just someone who watched drama silently and didn’t interfere with anything. She was beyond flattered, but worried for what Ever would do to McKenzie.
“Whatever you did to Ella, you upset my friend, and I don’t like that. Stop fighting at my party that Ella not you organized and get lost,” McKenzie said in a monotone, jerking her thumb in the direction of the grand entrance.
Ever’s face gave a look of surprise. “Since when did Ella organize this? I told her to do this! She never does anything like this because she’s so selfish!”
“I don’t believe it,” McKenzie sniffed. “Get out unless you want the bouncers to escort you out!”
Ella felt shameful. Ever had told her to throw the party. She was glad McKenzie didn’t believe it though. Meanwhile, Ever scowled. She took off her other shoe and threw it at McKenzie, who lithely dodged while pulling Ella with her. Ever trudged unhappily to the doors and then broke into a sprint and disappeared into the dark night, leaving her shoes.
McKenzie picked up the shoes like they were dirty socks and tossed them into the garbage can where all the used plates, cups, and discarded refreshments were. She dusted off her hands. “Okay! Music on! Let’s dance!”
The DJ started pumping out “I Knew You Were Trouble” by Taylor Swift and the eighth graders of Hearst Middle School continued what they were doing before, but it was clear that everyone had the alpha versus alpha fight in their head.
McKenzie shuffled up to Ella. “What exactly was that about, Ella?”
Ella rubbed her eyes. “Ever was making me ask Michael Rogers to ask you to dance with him…”
McKenzie wrinkled her nose. “Michael Rogers? The boy you like? I wouldn’t dance with him, besides I already danced with the person I like.”
Ella suddenly felt a burst of joy. “So, you’re not interested in Mike?”
“Nope! I like Kent Marino, the boy with brown eyes and brown hair,” McKenzie swooned, looking at a boy near the refreshments table wearing sports shorts.
Ella thought Kent wasn’t exactly a fit boyfriend, but she wouldn’t do anything to hurt McKenzie now, not after she had stood up for Ella.
“So, how’s your birthday party?” Ella asked. She knew it was a stupid question, but it was all she could think of right now.
“Actually, great!” McKenzie answered surprisingly. “Excluding the part where I got hit with the high heel, the part where Ever left was awesome!”
Ella cracked a smile. McKenzie was odd in a sweet way. She was glad Ever made her host this party. That way everyone would see what Ever was inside.
* * *
The school was a warzone. On Monday, half of the school stuck with Ella, and half of the school stuck with Ever. Ella was proud to say that Michael Rogers had sided with her. Unfortunately, Jasmine decided to follow Ever instead. At least Ella had McKenzie, Kate, Ali, and Sabrina. Ella was putting on eos lip balm when Jackie Summers tapped her shoulder.
“Hey, uh Ella,” Jackie said timidly.
“What do you want, Jackie?” Ella sighed. She didn’t want to deal with one of Ever’s most prized friends. Jackie had been part of her clique, but became too full of herself and Ella had ditched her. Ella hadn’t got revenge on Jackie yet, but the day would come sooner or later.
“I just wanted to say, Ever’s wrong, and I think you are totally right, so I’m with you okay?”
Ella reconsidered her thoughts about Jackie. Maybe she did have a good heart, poisoned by Ever.
“That’s sweet, Jackie. But, if you’re going to ever be friends with me, you’ll have to get more people on my side. We have to take down Ever together, and if our support is equal, than no one’s going to win,” Ella stated. She felt like Ever, manipulating people to her own will. This was a different situation though; it was for the good of school and good for Ella herself. She wanted her eighth grade year to be perfect. If Ever never came to Hearst Middle School, Ella would be having the time of her life.
“Ella, how do you plan on defeating Ever?” Jackie squeaked.
Ella laughed and closed her locker softly. She slid a pink rhinestone ring on her finger casually and leaned against her locker. “Easy. We’re going to have an all-out prank war.”
Chapter 7 – Prank War
Ella lay out a huge sheet of paper. Expectant eyes were staring at her, waiting for her next move. Half of the eighth grade was crowded around Ella’s dining table. Ella had called them in her house to make a huge prank that would possibly drive Ever away, or at least gain more people to be on her side of this practical joke war. There was an unspoken agreement about the outcomes of this prank war: when one team lost, the leader of the group was going to leave the school, or sink into the lowest popularity group and never be seen again. Butterflies swarmed around Ella’s stomach. She really didn’t want to be treated like a person with a popularity ranking next to scum in the locker showers. But now wasn’t the time for fashion or love or any of that silly stuff: It was prank or be pranked.
Ella gave the eighth graders a sheepish smile.
“Any ideas for pranks? Or any ideas for a team name?” she called. Ella had no clue how to come up with ideas.
Dead silence choked Ella’s creativity off. Apparently Ella’s team was as imaginative as she was.
A hand popped out from the back crowd. “How about Team Anti-Ever?”
Ella nodded her head appreciatively. “Sure! I like it! Any objections?”
Solitude again. Ella swallowed down a frustrated scream. Half of the kids were looking at their iPhones instead of paying attention. At this rate, Ever was going to crush her like an ant. Ella sighed. If being a nice girl wasn’t going to work, Ella was going to be a mean girl.
“LISTEN UP, GUYS!” she bellowed, putting on the stare she usually only reserved for Ever. The people on their phones looked up hurriedly and pressed their power-off buttons. “ Let me ask that again, do you like the name Team Anti-Ever?”
“I like Team Strikeforce.”
“Team Anti-Ever is fine!”
“How about Team Awesome?”
“Why can’t the team be named after me?”
Voices quickly mixed with each other, and Ella groaned. Eight graders were as intelligent as kindergarteners when it came to raising their hands.
“STOP!” she yelled. The voices ceased, but not until she repeated her command the fourth time. “Let’s focus on pranks, not a team name yet.”
Everyone nodded in agreement. “Okay!” Ella said cheerfully.
“Let’s use some soap! Put it on the stairways and make‘em slip and fall!” hollered a boy lounging on a chair to the left. Ella picked up her lavender pen and wrote his idea down in big, bubbly letters.
“Freeze their locks so they can’t get their books!” a girl with red hair suggested. A few kids around her clapped her on the back.
“I have an awesome idea,” Penelope Riggers sniffed. Ella’s face lit up. The nerd had sided with her, and she was glad. They would need some tech whizzes if they were going to win. “Nishan, Sakura, Godric and I can hack into the electricity system and make the lights flicker wherever Ever goes.”
Ella wanted to hug Penelope, but then Ella would have to shower at least six times to get the nerd-essence off, so she thought otherwise. “Brilliant, Riggers!”
She wrote down the idea enthusiastically.
“Yo, Ella. I got some bugs at my house. Centipedes, caterpillars, spiders, you name it, I got it. I’ve got loads. Let’s put those in their lockers,” another boy with a hooked nose called.
“But what about freezing the locks?”
Ella clasped her hands together. “We’ll compromise. We’ll freeze half of the locks and put bugs in the other lockers.”
The crowd gave a happy cheer. “Now, let’s discuss communication!” Ella pulled out a box of walkie-talkies she had nabbed from her dad’s office. “Take one of these and pass it around.” She handed the box off to Sabrina, who was sitting next to her.
“This is how it’s going to go. There’s Squad Freeze. Who’s got some sort of freezing chemical?”
A girl named Elsa with white blonde hair, and excited smile plastered on her face, spluttered, “You mean like Freeze Spray? Or Deep Freeze Cold spray? Or fast freeze?”
The boy standing next her joined in. “I have tons of those! My dad used to be crazy about those spray bottles!”
Ella breathed in relief. “Okay, you guys and a couple of others are in charge of freezing everyone’s lockers except ours and the other grade’s lockers. There’s Squad Bugs, lead by Igor, because he has all the bugs. Break into Mr. Swinter’s room and get all the locker combinations using a master key. Jackie, does your mom have the master keys?”
Jackie nodded. “My mom’s the head of the Board of Education.”
“Okay, let’s check that off. Now, Squad Soap will be with me. Bring all the dishwashing and bar soap you can find. Slather the stairs with soap. I don’t want an inch of the stairs not covered. If you have classes on the second floor, ditch them. You don’t want to look like fools slipping and sliding on the stairs. Squad Flicker, make sure you make the lights sync with the movements of the enemy. Don’t get caught. Squad Guard, do what you need to do to distract authorities. We don’t need a mass of detentions. Squad Cameras, you have the most important job. Whip out your phones if you see one of our pranks in action. We need to have a full video on the epic failures of Ever Primrose. This is all for tomorrow,” Ella barked, pointing at groups of people.
“This is awesome!” a girl whispered to her right. Ella was ecstatic. She was having revenge and having fun with half of the grade. Ella was going to rock this battle.
* * *
It was a cold, cold morning. Ella could see her breath as she stood at the front doors with a North Face jacket at four in the morning. The trees were covered in snow and the sidewalk was partially frozen, which they could use to their advantage. She counted the people in front of her. She counted the people in front of her. All of them were bundled up in winter jackets, their cheeks red from the cold due to either running or biking to the school. Some of them were carrying large duffel bags crammed with different objects. Ella guessed that was all for the pranking material. All fifty-six people had come prepared for their part in the prank. Probably for the first time in her life, Ella felt like people actually looked up to her with true respect. She had to give Ever credit for teaching her how to act nicely.
“When we’re done with our jobs, we meet in the lobby, okay? Then we go hide in the bathrooms for a few hours and when the first bell rings, get in your positions and take out your walkie-talkies so I can contact you. Got it?”
The kids whooped enthusiastically.
“Let’s get inside!” Jackie handed Ella the master keys and the whole team flooded into school corridors, splitting off. They had an hour until teachers arrived.
“Squad Soap! C’mon!” Ella ordered, beckoning them to follow her. She sprinted in her Adidas sneakers, her ponytail swinging behind her. She was armed with at least three different bars of soap and two dishwashing soap bottles. She skidded to a halt at the stairs.
“Let’s go!” she cried. She unscrewed the bottle cap of her soap and spilled it all over the first step and rubbed furiously with a scrub. The others were hard at work on the other steps. Squad Freeze was busy spraying lockers with some kind of unidentified chemical, but it was working. Igor ran in with a duffel bag of different kinds of bugs kept in jars. The lights were flicking on and off – probably Penelope testing out how the system worked. Sakura and Nishan had pulled off an amazing stunt. They had recorded an eerie little girl’s voice and broadcasted over the school intercom. Ella would have to rethink her opinion on nerds. Without them, this prank war would be a piece of cake for Ever. After all, Ever was an evil mastermind too.
The stairs were completely soaped-up. All of her dishwashing soap was gone. She put her foot on the steps and slid it around to make sure that the soap was slippery enough. Everything was going perfectly. Ever wouldn’t see it coming with the lights off. She and her squad walked to the lobby with soapy hands. The rest of the team was waiting there, casually talking about how the pranks were going. Ella clapped her hands for silence.
“Is everyone done?”
“Yeah!” everyone answered in unison.
“Then let’s hit the bathrooms!” Ella yelled. The girls and the boys dispersed into the lavatories. Ella ran into a stall near the slippery stairs and climbed atop the toilet seat, careful not to be seen. Ever was going down.