The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back (10 page)

I didn't know when exactly Jake would show up, which left me plenty of time to freak out about him driving me to school. In his cute red car. While pacing the hallway, I found Ella in the bathroom.

Scrubbing the toilet. (I told you she didn't care about Carlotta's job the way I do.)

"Hey," she said without looking up at me. "We need to work on your campaign today. You're way behind." She was right. Jake already had posters up all over the school. I suspected Mercedes Bentley was probably behind them—because they were a candid picture of a shirtless Jake laughing. Underneath it said, "Jake Kingston…does a student body good." Yes, I drooled, but as a feminist, I was highly offended. Highly.

Fine. I would admit to stealing one of the posters. In my defense, so did practically every other girl in school.

Fortunately, we weren't able to pass out any swag—no pencils, no candy, no buttons, no cookies, no hundred dollar bills. Campaigning bribery had gotten really out of hand, so the school only allowed posters and fliers. It would hopefully even out the playing field just a little. Maybe instead of winning by an avalanche, Jake would have to settle for just a landslide.

"I had an early meeting for the masquerade ball committee this morning and after I finished, I hung up some of those posters we worked on last night. Plus a couple others you haven't seen yet."

Oh my Buddha. "Are they sparkly?"

Ella stopped her scrubbing gave me a withering look. "It's your campaign, not mine. I'm not a total idiot."

"Could you, like, stop doing that for a minute? It's feeling like some sort of weird symbol. Like my campaign's about to go down that toilet."

"Or you're full of crap." She was teasing, but it was a real possibility. I had to be full of something to think I could dethrone Malibu Prep's reigning monarch.

"Anyway, let me know what you think when you get there." She stood up and took off her yellow rubber gloves, dropping them in her cleaning caddy (it's pink and she bedazzled it). She gave me a knowing smirk. "That is, if you're not too distracted by You-Know-Who."

I was still not in a place where I could talk with Ella about Jake, joking or otherwise. "I haven't even officially declared my candidacy yet."

Before she could respond, there was a knock at the door. My heart went into my throat. Trent would never knock. He practically lived at our house. It had to be Jake, and it was so unexpected. I thought he would honk or something. But he was knocking at the front door. Like, an actual gentleman.

It made me love him more.

But I stood there, frozen. I wanted to move. I wanted to answer the door before he got sick of waiting and drove off.

"That's Jake, isn't it?" Ella asked in a distracted tone as she brushed her hair. I couldn't respond. She stopped brushing to look at me in the mirror. "Tilly? Isn't that Jake? Don't you think you should answer the door?"

Answer the door? She might as well have asked me to perform open-heart surgery. The result would have been the same.

"Tilly?"

Still, I just stood there, not able to respond. Deciding to take matters into her own hands, Ella literally pushed me all the way to the front door. We stopped in the front entryway and she went around me to put her hand on the knob.

"Wait," I whispered. "I don't think I can…"

But she wasn't taking any of my excuses. She just smiled at me and said, "Your prince and carriage await, my lady."

Ella threw the door open, standing behind it so Jake wouldn't see her.

"Hey. You ready?"

I think I nodded, because he turned around to go back to his car. I know I didn't talk, because despite having mastered the fine art of speaking at the age of two, I had apparently forgotten everything I knew. Which was entirely stupid given that I had just spent a whole afternoon with him and had talked nonstop. But it was sort of unreal, as if the whole thing had just been some kind of dream and this was the reality. Like at the end of
The Breakfast Club
when Anthony Michael Hall's character tells Molly Ringwald that it was okay if she ignored him at school despite their day of bonding in detention and she said she didn't ignore friends but you know that it was a total lie and that on Monday most of those people never spoke to one another again. Seeing him was like that—we'd had this bonding-type afternoon and now it was weird.

Jake got in the driver's side and closed his door. Somehow I had managed to follow him and now stood on the opposite side of the car. I could do this. I would just pretend that everything was fine, and soon it would be. Fake it 'til you make it, right?

His car smelled new and leathery and Jake-like. I got in, sat down, and my knees folded up into my chest. The seat was way too far forward, as if the last person who sat there had been tiny and delicate, like Ella. I fumbled around for the release in the front to scoot it back, trying not to think about who had sat there last. I snapped my seatbelt into place and looked over at Jake. He put his arm behind my seat and turned toward me. Every sense snapped to attention and I held my breath.

He gave me a small smile and then looked over his shoulder. Oh. He was just backing up. Not making a move.

I was so stupid.

I usually only felt that dumb when I was doing calculus.

Oh my Buddha, calculus!

The events of the last twenty-four hours had totally distracted me. I had calculus homework due first period and I had totally forgotten about it.

I started mentally cursing as I dug through my backpack, looking for my math folder.

"You okay?"

"Fine, just forgetful." I'm pretty sure I started saying some unkind things about calculus's mother under my breath because Jake raised one eyebrow and looked over at me. "Jeez, what did calculus ever do to you?"

"Here's the thing. Math and I broke up two years ago, and now whenever we get together it's just weird and awkward for both of us."

He laughed. Laughed and laughed and I couldn't believe that I'd made him laugh like that. It made me feel all bubbly and warm inside and suddenly I didn't want anything but to make Jake Kingston laugh over and over again. His laughter was contagious and I started laughing along with him.

Calculus, shmaculus. How could I ever need math when Jake's laugh existed?

When his laughter finally died down, he glanced over at me for probably a tad bit longer than was safe considering he was driving, and said, "You have a nice smile, Mattie. I never noticed before."

Probably because it had been obscured by a sea of metal, but I wasn't about to remind him. What was that thing Ella always said about compliments that I ignored because I knew no guy would ever compliment me? Oh yeah. I was supposed to just say thank you instead of trying to talk him out of it by convincing him that my appearance was in fact heinous and he was obviously delusional. "Thanks," I croaked out. I couldn't believe it. Jake Kingston had just given me a compliment. He thought I had a nice smile! We would have such beautiful babies with his eyes and my smile.

No, I had to focus. Had to finish this up. I couldn't be that girl. Even though I totally already was that girl.

I managed to concentrate just enough, but I won't lie, it was really hard. I didn't realize just how distracting he could be in close quarters.

All too soon the ride was over. Jake turned his car off, undid his seatbelt and looked at me. I saw a lot of kids in the parking lot, but not the one I most wanted to see me at that moment. I stayed put.

"Are you, uh, getting out of the car?" I could hear the amusement in his voice.

"Can we just wait one minute?"

"For what?"

How do you explain the delicate and crazy intricacies of teenage mean girls? "For…Mercedes Bentley to get here."

I kept scanning the parking lot, refusing to look him in the face. When he looked at me, I sort of wanted to spend the rest of the day just staring into his eyes. Which was both weird and time-consuming. I couldn't afford the distraction. I had a mission.

"Again I say, why?"

Did he honestly not know about the Riding in Jake Kingston's Car Award? He had to know. Or maybe he wasn't full of himself like another guy would be and it wouldn't even occur to him.

I sighed. He was so amazing. Focus! We were talking about Mercedes. I had to explain myself.

"Let's just say it'll wipe that perpetual smirk off her face."

"Okay." He sounded like he thought I was crazy. I realized that this was, for lack of a better word, his friend. But I was sure Mercedes was very careful not to show Jake her true self. I tried to think of a diplomatic way of telling him how awful she really was.

"She's not always so nice."

Jake let out a chuckle. "You don't have to tell me. She can be kind of a witch sometimes."

"I'm pretty sure if you look up the word witch on Wikipedia, Mercedes's picture will be there." I did not tell him that I was the one who posted it.

Off to my right I saw Scott's silver sedan pulling up. He and Mercedes got out of their car and started walking toward school.

"There she is. We have to get out. Hurry!" I struggled with my seatbelt, too anxious to exact some well-deserved payback. "What is wrong with this stupid thing?" Jake calmly leaned over and pushed the button, instantly releasing it. I had no time to be embarrassed. Mercedes had to see us together.

I shoved the door open and jumped out, slamming it shut behind me. I'd hoped the noise would get her attention. It didn't. "She doesn't see me. Oh no. I'm missing my chance!"

Jake called out, "Scott! Mercedes!" and waved.

A bag of chips and a two-liter soda while playing poker yesterday with Jake: $6.98.

One deck of cards to play poker with: $1.99.

Winning the poker bet and seeing the look on Mercedes Bentley's face as I stood with Jake Kingston next to his car? Abso-freaking-lutely priceless. Mercedes had her arm through Scott's, but now she dropped her arm slowly and just stared at us. She looked totally shocked.

This was where I admit to being greedy and a tad manipulative and just a little ruthless, but it was Jake Kingston! I had to be forgiven for what I was about to do.

I don't know where this insane courage came from, but I actually said, "Can I ask you for a weird favor? You can totally say no and don't have to, but would you mind hugging me for a second?"

By now I think Jake found the whole thing hilarious. "Sure."

He enveloped me in a mixture of strong arms, warmth, and that insanely awesome Jake smell. I could have died. A little part of me wanted to turn and see Mercedes's face now, but all the rest of me wanted to cling to him like this was the Titanic and he was my life preserver.

Then the most amazing, incredible, unbelievable, fantastic thing happened.

Jake
kissed
me on the cheek. Actually put his lips against my cheek. My skin flamed up where he touched me and my knees threatened to buckle. I felt his warm breath against my ear and shivered. "How's that for icing on the cake?" he whispered.

He pulled back with a huge amused smile and I worried about my ability to stay vertical.

"Same time tomorrow, right?" he asked, throwing his bag over his shoulder. He smiled again and walked over to join his friends.

I wished I could have made some clever comment over my shoulder, tossed my hair saucily and sauntered off. Instead I made a sound like, "Gagrsnarf," and for the second time that morning, stood frozen in complete shock with my hand over my cheek and my heart racing.

I continued to stand there long after the parking lot had emptied, reliving the moment over and over again.

I told myself that if I didn't move soon, I was going to be late to first period.

Chapter 11

I was late to first period.

After calculus I went and officially declared my candidacy. The advisor already knew that I planned to run thanks to Ella's hard work. She hadn't been kidding when she said she had already started. In the main hallway, she managed to charm a janitor into hanging up signs from the rafters. The first one in each series would say "Vote," the second one "for" and the third "Mattie Lowe." I noticed people pointing at them.

She had also gone out into the courtyard and covered the entire ground in different colored chalk with "Mattie Lowe for President."

Then she had put up posters we had worked on together that had this picture of me that is one of the few that I actually liked where I sort of resembled Jennifer Garner in that show she used to be on where she was the spy and had the fuchsia hair (admittedly, where I got my current hair color inspiration from). We kept it simple. No clever little catch phrases (which I always found annoying)—just vote for Mattie.

Ella was amazing.

Then I would think again about that morning and the feel of Jake's lips on my cheek and get all fluttery and flustered.

Jake was amazing.

Everything just seemed so right, so perfect.

Life was amazing.

I couldn't remember the last time I had felt this happy.

Unfortunately, the universe had no intention of letting things stay that way.

At my locker I felt Mercedes Bentley staring at me. Usually she looked at me in this condescending, sneering way. But today she looked royally confused, like I was some alien who had just landed and she couldn't figure me out. I grabbed a pile of fliers I'd made up and smiled as I closed my locker.

I walked down the hallway, passing out fliers to everyone who would take them. Jake's kiss had given me a confidence I'd never felt before. I even managed to tell people, "Vote for Mattie." I couldn't stop myself from smiling at everyone, and lots of people smiled back.

I stopped short when a freshman that looked like a Mercedes Bentley-in-training stood directly in front of me. She was pulling along a mousy, quiet-looking girl who stood two steps back with her head ducked down. The quiet one didn't even make eye contact with me. The other one just stared at me.