Welcome to Bridgeport Academy, an elite boarding school in New York where glamorous rich kids don't let rules get in the way of a good time.
[ Based on the It Girl series by Cecily Von Ziegesar ]
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The Bridgeport Inn was a short hike from campus, and Alex regretted wearing her pointy-toed pumps that looked sexy and sophisticated but pinched her feet. In her brand new black satin pencil skirt and bell-sleeved shell-pink blouse, she felt surprisingly glad to be on her way to a "forced threesome BFF bonding" no matter how fucked up it sounded. In her mind, she vowed to be nicer to Jasmine. After all, Jasmine had saved their asses by taking the blame for the E incident and had spent the whole summer thinking she was expelled (even if she probably hung out with sexy South African guys the whole time) and she'd been totally displaced by Kae. But Alex hadn't heard any rumblings about her being a giant Jersey girl liar, so maybe she should cut Jasmine a break.
She stepped into the Bridgeport Inn lobby, headed past the dusty grand piano and straight into the bar. The hotel was the closest one to campus, where parents most often stayed, and its look of shabby opulence seemed befitting to the school. The bar had clearly passed its golden age and settled into a period of slow, decadent decline. It was nearly empty except for Jasmine and Robyn, already seated at a wooden booth in the corner with three drinks in front of them.
"Your amaretto sour," Jasmine greeted Alex, indicating the one drink that wasn't half empty.
Alex slid in next to Robyn, who looked like a film producer or gallery owner in her emerald silk cardigan, her wavy bundles held back from her face by a pair of vintage gold barrettes. She would have looked very pretty, but her face seemed a little haggard, like she hadn't been getting her ten hours of beauty sleep.
"You guys are awesome." Alex grabbed the glass and took a small sip. Strong, just the way she liked it, but it still made her wince as she swallowed. Jasmine was wearing a plain black T-shirt and jeans, but with her red lips, she had the air of a movie star sneaking out for a quick drink under the paparazzi's radar. Alex leaned back against the wooden bench and looked at the framed nineteenth-century ink drawings of the Bridgepprt campus. "It's been too long since we've been here. I kind of missed it."
"It doesn't look like they've dusted since we were last here either." Robyn sniffed the musty air. "But beggars can't be choosers." She took another big sip of her drink, and Alex noticed that her glass was already empty. Wow. She was taking the breakup with Chris pretty hard.
"How was your day, Robyn?" Alex asked awkwardly, and Robyn stiffened, like she could tell Alex was feeling sorry for her.
"It was fine. You know, I'm going to survive. But I just...don't want to talk about Chris for a while, okay?" Robyn looked plaintively at her friends and twirled a lock of hair around her finger. "Let's talk about other things."
"Other boys, you mean?" Jasmine chimed in, polishing off her drink. "You get started without me. I'll get another round." She slid out of the booth.
Alex was still nursing her first drink and already feeling a little light-headed.
"How's the J-man?" Robyn suddenly asked.
"The J-man?" Alex repeated. "Come on, that makes him sound like a bad DJ or a pervert who only likes large-breasted women."
