The next morning dawned the same as any other school day morning. Having fallen asleep way too late after painstakingly finishing my lab report, I woke up almost too exhausted for the 1 hour daily beauty routine. Almost. By the time I was showered, dried, primped, and polished, my mom was calling from downstairs for breakfast. And as usual, I skipped the veggie omelette and went to Starbucks. Luckily enough for me I had that extra money from last night to foot my coffee bill for the next few weeks - my mom would flip if I asked her for money to buy one of "those insanely fatty, exorbitantly sugary, instant-weight-gain-in-a-cup" Starbucks drinks.

Pulling into my customary spot in the parking lot a few minutes early, I took five minutes to check my phone messages. Half of them being group texts from Tierra and Katie with more juicy (and probably fictitious) gossip about Dakota, I deleted them without pausing to read the details. One string of texts was from Brett asking if I'd seen his wallet (which he found by the door halfway through the seven messages in which he threatened to disown me as a sister, only to say 'nvm, got it') and another string was from Deanna inviting me to a party that Saturday. Party being code word for a get together in order to plot Dakota Schneider's downfall. The last thing I checked was the snapchat I actually listened to - it was a video from Tyler.

"Hey Maddie darling," came his voice from my phone, his face dark and blurry and nearly cut off as he was clearly walking somewhere last night. A subconscious smile slipped onto my lips, "Thanks for having me over tonight, I had an awesome time...especially our little adventure at the beach. Yeah, I definitely owe you lunch and a coffee for that one, so if you wanna do something this weekend, give me a call. Or talk to me tomorrow. Or leave me a sexy love letter in my locker, whatever works. See ya tomorrow!"

Like hell he owes me a lunch, I thought, he owes me a gourmet dinner for throwing me in the ocean!

"Put that thing away and get your butt outta the car girl!" shouted someone from beside me. I jumped and almost dropped my Starbucks all over myself as Courtney leaned on the window.

"Geez, don't do that!" I laughed, starting to flip the roof up then climbing out.

"I tried calling you like 5 times last night, where were you?" she asked, as we headed for the picnic benches.

"I was, uh, busy," I said with a little smirk. Courtney's eyebrows shot up.

"Oh really?" she asked, glancing at me sidelong through her Ray-Bans.

"Long story, but Tyler was over yesterday," I said, grinning as I reminisced.

"Oooh!" Courtney squealed, "Did anything happen?!"

"Almost...I think. Brett and Brandon interrupted though," I said. Courtney made a disappointed "hmm" sound as she patted me on the back.

"Well at least something almost happened," she said.

"How come you called?" I asked, refusing to get lost in disappointed thoughts about what could have happened if my idiot brother hadn't stormed into the basement.

"I think I might break up with Olivier," she said simply, her face suddenly tightening.

"What! Why?" I demanded, stopping in my tracks. We weren't very far from the picnic tables and I wanted to hear the full version before she had to censor it too keep the juicier bits from Katie's eager ears.

"Well you know when that new jerk dissed me yesterday? Olivier was driving me home and I started going off about it. He was good about it at first, but when I started asking him whether he thought I was a 'hothead' or whatever, he said 'Well, you can have your moments...' so I just went all batshit at him and he went all French-swearing at me because I was so mad." Courtney said really quickly, as if relieved to finally get it all out.

"Oh sweetie, I'm so sorry!" I said, hugging her. It wasn't like this was their first fight though. They were one of the worst on-and-off couples I'd ever known. I'd bet $50 that they'd be making out by lunch.

"Yeah, well, whatever. I think I'm just gonna go to class," Courtney said, shooting a look towards the picnic table, "Look out, your not-so-secret admirer is back,"

I shot a look towards where Deanna, Craig, Katie, and Olivier were sitting, only to note with dismay that Courtney was right. Thankfully his back was turned, but just the sight of him was enough to make me shudder.

William James Dawson III, only child and sole heir of the ridiculously wealthy Dawson family, was junior golf champion at the Royal Oaks Country Club (one of the most elite and expensive clubs in the area) and an accomplished polo player. Yes, you read right, polo...as in the sport of Princes William and Harry. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if Will had played with them at some point.

It was no secret to anyone that he had just gotten home from a tournament in England, hence his absence. And as if being a polo player wasn't enough, his dad also owned a myriad of sailboats which they kept anchored off their huge waterfront estate just outside of town, so Will was an avid sailor too.

Like all A-listers, Will was an ideal specimen of a perfect guy: sun-bleached golden brown hair, lightly tanned skin, a body that was obviously toned, and the most intense icy blue eyes I'd ever seen. He was a hot object on the dating scene too, but unlike most of the junior A guys, he rarely wasted his time with sophomores or freshmen, choosing instead to only pursue juniors or seniors.

If you couldn't already guess, he was one hell of an arrogant bastard.

He knew he could have any girl he wanted and he exercised that power, usually dating multiple girls at the same time. They didn't care though, Will was filthy rich and he treated them all like princesses until he dumped them often for no reason other than being bored. He was my very least favourite of everyone I had to hang out with, but I had to be friends with him because he was born an A-lister. King Sleaze-a-Lot just so happened to be hot on my trail because he'd already run through all the junior A girls and almost all the Wannabes - senior and junior girls included.

"Want me to come with you?" I offered, warily regarding Will's back. Sure he was a good dresser, sure he was hot, but seriously, looks and money aren't all of it. I can stand only so much A-Lister attitude per day and just spending one period alone with Will can fill my monthly quota. He's the type of guy would yell at a waiter if he forgot to refill his water the second he took a sip of it.

"Nah, it's okay. I've got math, so I'm gonna go get a seat in a corner. See you at lunch!" Courtney said, air kissing my cheek. Math was the class she shared with Olivier, so no doubt she wanted to sit as far away as possible. Last time they fought, he passed her an endless number of notes asking for forgiveness until she finally took him back just to get him to stop bothering her.

"M'kay, call me if you need me or anything," I said as she walked into the school. Olivier had spotted her and was following her with his eyes. Once she'd gotten inside the school, he stood up and followed. I shook my head, not looking forward to hearing about whatever was going to happen during her math class.

"Maddie!" Deanna called from the table. I smiled as I approached, careful to take an end seat so I could make an easy escape when Tyler showed up.I should've gone with Courtney, then I could've avoided Mr. Too-Cool-For-Himself, I thought.

"Aww, what're you doing sitting so far away?" Will asked, patting a spot on the bench next to him. I smiled and shrugged as my insides seethed.

"This green tea thing is doing nothing for my energy," I said, sitting next to Deanna and thoroughly ignoring Will as I lobbed the empty Starbucks cup towards the garbage.

"Where were you yesterday?" Deanna demanded, "I called like 8 million times. We were all over at my house, it was so much fun!"

"Yeah, you missed a really good time," Will chimed in, as the rest of the table jointly agreed. Okay, so I missed a major A-list shindig but whatever, it's not like I actually enjoy spending time with these people. I do it to keep my social market value way up there - you can't be popular and openly hate the "in" crowd. Anyway, it wasn't like I was sitting at home eagerly flipping through a textbook or something, I was chilling with 3 other A-listers, my favourites.

"I was out jogging, then I watched a movie with Brandon," I said, shooting a look at Will. If there was one person that could disconcert him it was Brandon Whitney, whose modeling contract with Hollister was enough to make even the most secure (excuse me, make that arrogant) guy doubt himself. Add that to the fact he wasn't au courant that Brandon was like a big brother to me and, well, it makes poor William just a little bit unhappy. Courtney has assured me that he's asked her whether there's anything between Brandon and me, but Courtney, like the best friend she is, always replies, "Well, he's always at her house, sometimes even alone with her, so I guess there might be something..."

"What is it with you and him?" Deanna asked, scoffing slightly, "He's always at your house."

I smiled to myself that she'd taken the bait.

"I dunno," I replied, fixing my gaze in the distance and deliberately letting a small smile creep to my lips like it did when I thought of Tyler, "He's just really...sweet, you know? A genuinely nice guy,"

'And damn hot' was the thought left unsaid, although I knew everyone was thinking it. Not knowing Brandon Whitney was hot is like not knowing the sky is blue - it's just that obvious.

"Well, I'm gonna go to class," Deanna announced, blatantly shooting a significant look at the rest of the table as she stood up. I got the uneasy feeling something was afoot.

"Oh yeah, me too," Craig agreed, as everyone except Will instantly jumped up and muttered reasons they had to leave. I tried to mask my dismay at the fact I'd nearly forgotten that Deanna and Will were tighter than Michael Phelps' butt. I should've suspected she was up to something and now I was going to pay for my inattention. When Will and I were suddenly left very much alone, I started counting down the 5 minutes until the bell, praying for someone else to show up to distract me.

"So Madison," Will began, in his unmistakably sexy voice. Unlike Brad's flirting though, Will's didn't work on me. It was irreversibly tainted by his being a total jerk.

"So William," I said, playing the game and offering him my empty, ditzy, trademark A-Lister smile.

"I missed you last night," he said, his lips curving into a deliciously attractive grin as he slid to sit across from me. I wanted to barf. Seriously hurl. Right into his pompous face.

"Ah well, next time I suppose," I said, then seeing his grin become genuine, felt complied to add, "I'm sure you had as much fun as I did with Brandon though." Ha. I relished the look of shock that colored Will's features before he composed himself.

"Yeah, it was okay. Katie made it worthwhile," he said. I tried to keep the scowl from my face, but he was watching me like a hawk, his cocky grin back in place.

Katie is to me what Brandon is to him: a secret nemesis. Katie's the group ho and it's one of those unspoken rules that she and I aren't really the greatest of friends. I don't know why, but we just never got along. I resent her for being such a skank and somehow getting to all the guys I like before I do. I think she resents me for being so close to my brother and the Senior A's. Her sister Amber is one of the Senior A's, but they don't really like each other.

Either way, it's petty politics and I prefer secretly hating her instead of trying to befriend her.

"Then I guess I would've just been in the way," I replied, my entire expression just shutting down in an attempt to get him to take it back. I hated myself for fishing for the compliment, but I couldn't start my day being passed over for Katie.

"Aww, come on Maddie, you know I'd pick you over her any day," he said, using that tone I recognized as Will-pleading. Will was too proud to please, so instead, he used this sort of hurt voice of 'come-on-baby-you-know-thats-not-true' to turn things around in his favor. Regardless, I was still buoyed by the compliment.

"That's sweet," I said, my smile genuine as I mentally ticked off one more victory for me on the Katie vs Madison scorecard.

"Well it's true. Shall we go to class?" he asked, standing and offering his arm. I fought to keep my eyebrows from rising. You can only pull of the James Bond-style debonair attitude if you're in a tux drinking a posh martini and driving a swanky Aston Martin. Not that you should be doing both at the same time...you get what I mean.

"All right," I said, feeling exceedingly awkward as I slipped my arm through his. We were just about to go into the school when I threw a last look over my shoulder and saw Tyler walking up from the parking lot, his eyes riveted on us. The second I looked though, he looked away and made his way over to where Brandon was sitting with Melody, another senior A. The door closed behind us and I felt this horrible pit of guilt suck all my insides down into my feet.

To put the cherry on the sundae of a rotten day, I had a full first period of French with William Dawson, Clairview's very own Casanova.

********

"Madie-sohn!" Madame Lapointe chided. I snapped out of my reverie as she spoke my name in her thick French accent.

"Yes, madame?" I asked. She shook her head in annoyance, her thin fingers coming to rest on her slender hips.

"Eet is not 'yes', eet is 'oui'. We speak French 'ere, eet is not English class!" she snapped.

"Oui madame. Je m'excuse," I said, demurely letting loose some well-accented French that none of my classmates would have been capable of. I'm actually really good in French class solely because my cousins live in France. Madame Lapointe loves me for it too, but in a cold-shoulder, subtle kind of way. She actually looked relatively pleased with herself as I spoke.

"Bravo, ma fille! See class, Madiesohn knows eexactly wot I am expecteeng of you," she said, clapping her hands slightly with a smile. I smiled in return and Will chuckled softly next to me. As Madame Lapointe turned her back to us and began scribbling on the board in her elegant, lilting cursive, Will slipped a note to me.

Bravo darling. So how about drinks at my house this Friday?

I blinked a few times and tried not to snort, then pretended to be taking notes off the board to give myself time to think. Friday. What could I use as an excuse on Friday...My eyes lit up as I thought of an excuse and scribbled it on the piece of paper.

Sorry, Tyler's invited me to his surfing thing.

I paused. That was a little harsh. I scribbled down one more thing.

Thanks for asking though, maybe some other time

Honestly, why do I always feel the need to be so damned nice? I slipped the paper to Will as Madame Lapointe assigned us some reading. Perfect, now he'd be forced to leave me alone as our hawklike teacher patrolled the classroom while we read.

Flipping open my textbook, my heart sank as a fresh piece of folded paper landed on my desk. I sighed and opened it up.

Sounds fun. I'm hosting a polo afterparty Sat. nite, wondering if you wanted to come.

Lifting an eyebrow, my curiosity was piqued. Surely there'd be other A's at such an event. Besides, it's a party. If Will started to bug me I could find someone else to talk to or even bugger off to Courtney's house. I scribbled a hasty, Sure and passed the note right before Madame Lapointe walked between us.

****

I saw neither hide nor hair of Tyler all morning. At break I desperately tried to find him during my half hour of free time, but Deanna insisted on talking to me.

"So, Maddie. Are you coming Saturday?" she asked.

"What? What's Saturday?" I asked, half distracted as I peered through the hallways.

"My party," Deanna said, "You're coming, right? All the A's are, even the seniors,"

"Wait, it's Saturday?" I asked, my stomach sinking as her words sank in. Every A was going. In other words, nobody I knew would be at Will's party except for Will himself. My mind had a mini-spazz as I realized what I'd gotten myself into.

"Well yeah it's Saturday," Deanna said, shootting me an annoyed glance.

"I...I'm busy," I said, feeling horribly unhappy.

"Busy? Doing what?" Deanna demanded, sounding peeved.

"I'm going to Will's polo afterparty," I said, "But now that I realize everyone's gonna be at your place..."

"Whoa, he invited you?!" Deanna said, her tone changed from extremely pissed to quite amazed, "Maddie, that's like a total honor!"

"What? It's a party!" I said, getting defensive. It was just a party, wasn't it?

"No honey, it's a dinner gala," Deanna explained, "As in, all the polo guys get hot girls to go as their dates..." She trailed off and looked at me, amused.

"So I'm..." I couldn't even finish the sentence. I felt played and I hated myself for falling for it.

"...Will's date," Deanna finished for me, then pulled me into a quick, false hug, "Congrats, Maddie! I was wondering when you'd finally fall for him! Aww, you two are gonna look so cute!"

"It's really not like that!" I said with a frown.

"It isn't, is it?" came a voice from over my shoulder. I turned and met Tyler's hazel eyes. Tyler's cold hazel eyes.

"Hey, I've been looking for you," I said, relieved to have found him.

"Don't worry, I've already heard from Will," he said, his voice strangely stiff and calm, "You two are really perfect for each other." He fixed me with a sad look then walked away. I was dumbstruck. Completely forgetting about Deanna, I followed him and grabbed his forearm.

"Why won't you listen to me?" I demanded, "What did Will say to you?"

"It's fine Maddie. Seriously. You can date whoever you want," he said, turning to go again. I grabbed his arm again as the bell rang. I swore violently in my head.

"I'm not dating Will Dawson!" I said, "You know I hate him!"

"Do I? I saw the note Maddie, you agreed to go to that party with him," Tyler said, facing me for the first time and seeming rather aggressive.

"I thought it was a party, not a huge gala thing! And I didn't agree to go as his date, I thought he was just randomly inviting me!" I said, my face starting to flush as I got more and more frustrated. I was aware of the people watching us, the two fighting A-listers in the middle of the hall.

"Whatever, I've got to go to class," Tyler said, turning away.

"So you're going to believe Will Dawson over one of your best friends?" I asked his back. He paused and turned momentarily.

"Yeah, I guess that's all we are now, isn't it?" he said, his voice more than hinting at disappointment. Our eyes met and I realized the damage Will had done by getting to Tyler first wasn't going to be remedied by a 5-minute conversation. Yep, I was definitely in way over my head. Setting my face, I stormed off down the hall towards math class. Thankfully there were no other A-listers in my math class. There was no way in hell I'd be able to deal with someone else asking if Will and I were going out.

Plunking into my chair, I massaged my temples. Everything was going wrong. Everything! Deanna thought Will and I were dating, so by the end of the day the entire school would think so too. Tyler thought Will and I were dating and now he didn't even want to speak to me. And what was with his whole, "I guess that's all we are now, isn't it?" thing? What was that?!

"Rumor control sucks, doesn't it?"

My eyes flicked open, verbal retort ready for whatever insolent fool was addressing me during a crisis situation as bad as this. Instead, I was facing Ethan, who had turned around in his chair to face me. Something about those slate-gray-blue eyes caught my words in my throat.

"Shut up," I managed, not sounding nearly as harsh or frustrated as I'd hoped it would.

"Yet another reason why you don't need to hang around with those dorks. Nobody else tricks people into dating them," Ethan said, ignoring my retort. I looked at him quizically for a moment. He certainly knew a lot about the day's events for someone outside of the inner circle.

"How do you know about that?" I demanded, as the teacher passed out our new assignments.

"I heard dearest Mr. Dawson bragging about it in the gym locker room," Ethan said, his voice reeking of sarcasm, "He seemed so charming and down to Earth, I just knew you'd have jumped all over the opportunity." I frowned. I half wanted to tell Ethan off for assuming to know so much about me, but the other half of me wanted to prod and see exactly what Will had said in the locker room. And who he'd said it to, although I had a horrible feeling I already knew...

"What did the jerk say?" I asked, crossing my arms. Ethan looked amused.

"Do I look like a gossip to you?" he asked.

"Shut it and tell me," I said. Ethan chuckled.

"You're cute when you're pissed, despite the fact that's terribly cliche," he mused.

"Look, are you gonna help or not? What did the asshole say and who was he talking to?" I demanded. Ethan regarded me thoughtfully for a moment.

"You know, I think I'll tell you solely because you seem to hate dear William as much as I do. He said you two were passing notes when he asked you and you were all over the idea like crap on velcro...well, not word-for-word, but that's the gist of it. He was talking to some other friends of yours, that Tyler kid and a beefy, brainless jock-type."

Brad. Will told Brad and Tyler. Yes, that crowns it. William James Dawson III was now officially biggest asshole of the century.

"Bastard," I hissed under my breath.

"My thoughts exactly. If it's not too rude to ask, why would you even think of doing anything with a jerk like that?" Ethan asked, beginning to turn around as the teacher cleared his throat.

"Because I'm a freaking idiot," I muttered, staring down at my paper. Ethan's hand closed around mine and caught me by surprise.

"Give me a lift home and we'll work out a way to get the bastard?" he asked. I lifted an eyebrow as Mr. Collins cleared his throat a second time, this time staring at Ethan.

"Mr. Wheeler, flirting belongs in the hallways, not my classroom," the old man said, looking quite amused. Mr. Collins was the most laid back teacher I knew. He never threw shitfits and he was really nice all the time, but talking in class majorly peeved him.

"Sorry sir," Ethan apologized. I rolled my eyes at him, before flipping open my notebook and starting to take notes. Ethan's offer was tempting - it was always good to have a partner in crime when you're out to get revenge - but did I dare risk being seen with the guy that single-handedly insulted two of the most socially powerful juniors in the entire school?