The Rumor About Me (Luna East No. 1)

Chapter 1: Bianca's Party

It all started at Bianca Velasquez's weekend pool party. The next thing I knew, the rumor about Tristan Lobregat hooking up with me spread like wildfire at Luna East Arts Academy.

Of course, it was not true. Only Tristan and I knew exactly what had happened at Bianca's guest bedroom that night, but the students at Luna East were quick to judge. I couldn't blame them; Bianca's pool parties were notorious for hookups among juniors and seniors.

But what made the rumor persist was the fact that Tristan and I hung out in different cliques. He was one of the campus heartthrobs; I was a nobody. He was captain of the tennis varsity team; I was a student-assistant at the library. He had a throng of admirers; I only had Marge Altamirano as my sidekick. Clearly there was something wrong with the laws of hooking up as far as our social statuses were concerned.

Bianca's parties were exclusively for jocks, cheerleaders, and rich kids with cars. I didn't fall under any of the three, but I was best friends with Marge, who was a member of the women's football team.

I saw how Bianca had grimaced when Marge showed up with me at her doorstep the night of the party. Queen B-what students called her behind her back-gave me a fake smile before letting us in.

"I told you I don't belong here," I complained to Marge as we made our way to the backyard.

"Don't be such a killjoy. Just enjoy the party," she said, waving to her teammates.

People started cheering when they saw us-rather, when they saw Marge. Like Tristan, she was a head-turner. At five feet ten inches tall, she looked stunning with her olive skin and wild mane of brown curls. Those who didn't know her often mistook her for a cheerleader. They would be surprised to discover that she kicked ass as the interschool league's Most Valuable Player this year.

I was the complete opposite of Marge-plain with shoulder-length dark hair. Although I had fair skin, I tended to break out easily. I was eight inches shorter than Marge, and my slim frame screamed I don't do sports!

We hung out with Marge's team by the poolside. Her teammates were actually nice-a good thing because I would have probably walked out by now with the way some of the guests were sizing me up.

The men's basketball team suddenly appeared from the patio, carrying a large cooler. I knew it was full of booze judging from the the way students yelled in approval. They started giving out cans of beer. I didn't get any.

I stayed with the football squad for a while until I felt the need to use the washroom. I made my way inside and asked one of the maids, who directed me to what appeared to be a labyrinth of hallways.

It took me a while to find the washroom.

I did my business and started retracing my steps when Bianca suddenly appeared in front of me.

"Carly, right?" she asked.

"Yes," I answered rather meekly.

"Can you do me a favor? Can you get us a bowl of chips from the kitchen, please?" she asked, smiling sweetly.

I looked around us. There were two maids chatting near the hallway-why didn't she ask them? I wanted to decline, but I didn't want to argue with the host. Besides, I figured it was the least I could do since I had infiltrated her territory.

"Sure." I said.

She gave me another fake smile and touched my shoulder. "Thank you, Carly. We'll be in the second floor living room." She turned on her heels before I could even reply.

That was the start of Bianca treating me like a waitress all evening. After delivering the chips, she asked me for a bucket of ice. Then she wanted another round of beer for her friends.