Bratfest at Tiffany's by Lisi Harrison Page B

pushing!” Miss Kuznick yelled.
    But it was too late. Josh threw Alicia into the pool. In her cover-up.
Oops
!
    Like a supermodel in a slow-motion underwater commercial for some new exotic perfume, white cotton parachuted around her while her silky, deep-conditioned hair fanned out in all directions. Once she was on the bottom, the cover-up settled against her body. Tiny victory bubbles escaped from the sides of her mouth, and she imagined Massie and the NPC gazing over the side of the pool, applauding her on a brilliantly executed plan.
    The overhead muffled boom of Josh’s cannonball entry shattered the fantasy but not the mood. And Alicia resurfaced beaming, feeling safe, protected, and humiliation-free. She slapped the heavy wet cover-up on the side of the pool, then joined her panting, treading classmates.
    Cam finally slipped in the water, mindful not to splash baby Kate, whose arm was in Olivia’s mouth as she slowly lowered herself into the water via the ladder.
    Baby Kate burst into hysterics and squirmed to free herself. “Olivia, take her out of your mouth!” Cam shouted as he sidestroked his way to his rubber child’s side.
    Olivia released her canine grip and Kate fell into the water.
    “You can’t just drop her like that!” Cam shrieked.
    “Why?” Olivia dismissed her overprotective baby daddy with an eye-roll. “She’s wearing wings.”
    Alicia and Josh treaded and giggled, partly because of Olivia’s cluelessness, but mostly because they were together.
    “So spill it,” Strawberry panted. “Why weren’t you sitting with Massie during lunch today? Are you guys fighting?”
    “Opposite of yes!” Alicia gasped at the mere implication and accidentally swallowed a gulp of chlorinated water. “It was a total mistake,” she insisted, ignoring Josh’s knowing underwater foot-nudge. “I thought she would be at eighteen and—”
    “Is she mad at you?” Kori paddled into their circle. “You know, for ditching her?”
    “I didn’t ditch her, it was a—”
    Puuuuuuuuuurpppp
.
    Alicia was grateful for the whistle. The last thing she needed was to get bombarded with questions she herself had been struggling to answer. Besides, she didn’t want to think about Massie right now. Because
now
she was playing underwater footsie with Josh. And his feet were rea-
lllly
soft.

WESTCHESTER, NY
WRAP STAR GOURMET
    Wednesday, September 9th
3:53 P.M.
    The NPC sat around a red horseshoe-shaped booth in back of the crowded 1950s-style diner, nervously tapping their manicured nails against the turquoise Formica tabletop. Claire, wishing she had nails to tap, picked at her mangled cuticles.
    “So what’s this emergency meeting all about?” Dylan finally asked, removing her chocolate brown leather blazer.
    Massie spoon-swirled peach fro-yo around her canoe-shaped china dish.
    “Yeah, just tell us.” Kristen dumped a pile of salt onto the table, then carved a
K
in it with her finger.
    “Let’s give Alicia another minute.” Massie checked the time on her iPhone. “If she’s not here by three fifty-six, I’ll start.”
    Dylan sipped her lemon water while eyeing a plate of cheese fries that were en route to a table of chunky seventh-graders. Kristen added a dash of pepper to her salt pile. Massie slapped her fro-yo with the back of her spoon. Claire gazed out the window.
    A girl standing across the tree-lined street caught her attention. Like Alicia, she was wearing a white pleated tennis skirt, green platform sandals, and a white short-sleeved button-down with a cute little tie. But this girl was wearing a bright pink New York Yankees cap, and Alicia would never—
    The girl took off the cap and jammed it in the bottom of her black leather bag. She waved goodbye to someone in the distance, looked both ways, then power-walked across the busy intersection. It
was
Alicia. The only person who refused to run, even while dodging SUVs during rush hour.
    “Heyyyyy.” She scurried over to their table and slid