The Pretty People

CHAPTER 28

     When I got home, I had 3 missed calls, 2 text messages, and 1 voicemail--all from Justin. Wait, make that 3 texts, because an unknown number texted me. I deleted all of Justin's messages and read the new one I got:

Oh Rachel, I'm so sorry about your breakup with Justin! I'm crying for you right now, trust me! No matter what you say to him, he won't change his mind. I have him under my control. Now that you guys are done, leave both me and Justin in peace.

~Jessica

I couldn't foward the message and angrily threw my phone onto my bed and flopped onto the soft, lavender colored sheets. Jessica was probably a really good actress & convincer; I can't imagine how she was able to convince Justin that she was innocent. I still couldn't believe that I dumped Justin. Whatever, he deserves it for not believing me. Jessica is the bad guy, not me! I breathed in deeply and stared up at the ceiling at the light above me and quickly fell asleep.

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     The next day, I was at starbucks and was drinking an iced mocha--my favorite, when I heard whispers and laughs behind me. I turned around to see Justin and Jessica laughing at me. I moved over to a different table, but the people around me laughed, too. The laughing grew louder and louder, until I couldn't take it anymore. I abruptly stood up, and a piece of paper flew from behind me onto the floor. I picked it up. There was a loose piece of tape on it, and in black sharpie, the word "LIAR" was written on it. Jessica strutted up to me and whispered in my ear, saying "Now everybody knows." Suddenly, Melanie, Tiffany, Sadie, Carla, and Kelly all walked up to me. Melanie walked foward. "Poor Justin. Maybe we shouldn't trust you, either." "I'm not lying!!" I screamed, but she shook her head back and forth and back and forth. I shot out of my bed, sweating. It was only a dream, and it was still the same day; my silver alarm clock read 3:42; I was asleep for only 2 hours, I could probably do something else today, so I smoothed out my hair and got off my bed.

     I needed to get my mind off of things, so I called Kelly to see if she could hang out with me today. She didn't pick up. I put my phone aside and sighed sadly. A few minutes later, Kelly called me back. She must've gotten my missed call. I picked up right away. "Hi." I said. "Hey Rachel!" Kelly said brightly on the other line. "Sooo, I was wondering if you wanted to go to the mall or something?" I asked. "Sure! I like the mall. Malls are fun! We're gonna have fun!" she said. I rolled my eyes. "How many coffees did you drink?" There was a pause. "Anyway," I said, "How about we meet there in an hour?" "Okay!" Kelly said. We talked for a few more minutes and then hung up.

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    "You look sad, is everything okay?" Kelly asked me while we were having dinner in the food court. "Not really..." I replied, picking at my teriyaki chicken and fried rice. "Therapy session mode!!" she cried. I sighed. "Okay, what's on your mind?" Kelly asked. "Everything." I explained to her how I met Justin's ex, Jessica, in Miami, and how she befriended me just to get closer to Justin and because I "stole" her "boyfriend." "Aw, I feel so bad for you. Jessica sounds SO lame. She was just jealous. Let's get revenge!" Kelly said hungrily, with a sinister grin on her face. "And how am I suppossed to do that when I vowed never to talk to either of them again?" I whined. "Actually...this might be easier than either of  us thought." Kelly said, pointing to the other end of the mall. I looked over and saw Jessica, in a cobalt blue halter top and white skinny jeans, sitting with Justin, and they both had cups of frozen yogurt. I felt like steam was going to come out of my ears. Were they actually together now? I felt like I was going to cry. Then, Kelly jumped in front of me. "Well, can we get revenge now??" she asked. "Fine." I said, pressing my lips together. "But how?"

     I strode up to Jessica when Justin left to go to the bathroom. "Hi." I said, tapping her shoulder. Jessica flinched and turned around. When she saw me, her eyes narrowed. "What are you doing here?" she asked. "Oh, nothing, I just wanted to talk about what happened earlier today." I said, batting my eyelashes. "Go. Away." she said. "You know, it takes a real bitch to befriend someone like that just so they can steal her boyfriend." I saw Kelly and Justin walking towards us. She gave me a thumbs up and told Justin to stay in his place. "Well, he's my boyfriend now. I won, you lost, so deal with it! I bet you wish you could've gotten the whole thing on videotape, don't you?" she said, putting her hands on her hips. "But guess what? Justin's MINE, and there's nothing you can do about it. He is TOO easy to fool!" Justin cleared his throat behind her. She whirled around, innocently looking at him. "Hey babe!" she said brightly. "Jessica, can I talk to you?" he said icily.

     "I busted Jessica. She lost it and stormed out." Justin said to us. I nodded. "Now that she's out of the way, will you give me another chance?" he asked. It was so hard to say no. "Maybe later, but not for a while." I said, shaking my head. Both him and Kelly's jaw dropped. "Wait...why?" "Because you fell into Jessica's trap, and so did I, but you didn't believe either of us did, and the way you didn't trust me was both hurtful and messed up." I said. "So my answer's 'no,' at least for now." I said, firmly. "Good-bye, Justin." I said, grabbing Kelly's arm, and walking away as far as I could from him.