[on hiatus] Metamorphosis of a Mean Girl (How To Rule Your High School Part 2)

Chapter 1: The Return to Clairview

"Does this mean we can be friends again?" he asked finally, when I was unable to fill the silence between us with an apology. He'd pushed off the wall and nodded for me to follow him towards class.

"I hope so," I said, keeping more space between us than I'd used to. His eye-crinkling smile, however, gave me an invisible tug towards him.

"I've really missed you, you know," he said pulling the chem lab door open for me.

"Tyler, I-" I started, but cut myself off as a lump lodged itself in my throat.

The world had turned red.

As if they'd done absolutely nothing wrong to begin with, Ethan and Dakota walked down the hall hand-in-hand. I felt my hands clenching into fists and I wanted nothing more than to give Dakota a black eye to match Ethan's. Tyler followed my gaze and swore.

"Come on, let's sit down," he said, turning me around by the shoulders as my arms quaked with rage. He tried to move quickly, but my feet planted themselves in place, refusing to move. Something was boiling up inside my stomach and I knew that if someone didn't do something about me really fast that I was three seconds from pulling an Incredible Hulk and assaulting Dakota with my bare hands.

"Mr. Grant, I think Madison needs some water," Tyler's voice sounded far away, drowned out by the pounding of my heartbeat in my ears. My vision had blocked out everyone and everything save for the couple coming down the hallway towards me. My feet had started to move towards them, fists ready at my sides, when Tyler grabbed my arm and wheeled me around down the opposite hallway and into the closest girls' bathroom.

As soon as the door had closed behind us, I spontaneously combusted.

"Let me out of here!" I growled, whirling back towards the door and trying to duck around Tyler.

"Maddie relax," he said, physically blocking me from the door as best he could.

"Dammit Tyler!" I shouted, stamping my foot like a 3 year old, "Did you see them? Did you see the way they're walking around like they did nothing wrong?"

"I did, but you're not going back in there until you've gotten yourself under control," Tyler said, resting his hands on my shoulders, "She deserves a good punch, if not more. But if you hit her you'll get suspended and she wins,"

"Oh screw suspension! That pathetic excuse for a human being deserves worse than a punch. I should gouge her damned eyes out!" I screamed. Tyler let the scream echo in the silence of the empty girls' bathroom as I panted, catching my breath. As the roaring pulse in my ears quieted, the world wasn't red anymore. When my fingers had finally uncurled, Tyler let go of my shoulders.

"We good?" Tyler asked, ducking down to check my face. The bell rang and I rubbed a hand along my face, heedless of the damage it would do to my perfectly applied makeup.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," I said, blowing my cheeks out, "Let's just get to class,"

We exited the bathroom, Tyler walking unnervingly close to me and once again reaching out to open the classroom door.

"Do you think you can play along? Because I have an idea," he said, hesitating with his hand on the handle.

"Does it involve me strangling her?" I asked. He grinned down at me.

"Nope, but I have a feeling it'll be a gut-wrencher for Ethan," he said. I raised an eyebrow as Tyler slung an arm around my shoulder, nuzzling his nose into my hair as he pulled the door open. I felt myself blush beet red at his actions, too stunned to resist.

"Giggle. Act like you're enjoying it," Tyler whispered into my hair as he pulled me into the classroom. I obeyed, giggling like a schoolgirl as I looked up at him. He gave my shoulder an encouraging squeeze as he steered us towards our lab bench, releasing me only once we we'd reached our seats.

My heart had set to hammering again, this time not from rage but from all those old feelings surging back to the surface. As I struggled to control how flustered Tyler's act had gotten me, I didn't realize I had an audience. Only once I'd gotten out my chemistry notes and settled in for class did I notice that Ethan had turned around, watching us with something unreadable in his grey eyes.

"Green eyed monster looks good on him, doesn't it?" Tyler whispered as he leaned over again, pressing himself up against my shoulder. I grinned over at him and he tucked a piece of hair behind my ear.

When I looked back at Ethan, his jaw muscle was pulsing before he whipped back around to face the front. I grinned over at Tyler and he shot me an encouraging wink as Mr Grant called the class to attention.

Seeing the pain on Ethan's face had been incredibly satisfying, but it wasn't nearly enough payback for what he'd done. As I watched the back of his head, I wondered what Vicky had planned. Whatever it was, I hoped it would destroy not only Dakota, but Ethan as well.