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[Chapter Four]

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bedizen \bih-DY-zuhn\

(v.) To dress or adorn in gaudy manner.

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"You are going and that's final!" Olivia cried, holding up the thirtieth outfit. Each one she suggested I automatically said no to. They were all provocative and slutty. "I'm giving you one veto and one veto only," she commanded. "If you reject this outfit you have to wear the next one." She held up a micro mini skirt and a tube top.

"Hell no," I muttered, disgusted. Olivia grinned and held up a dark green shirt with dark jeans. Her satisfied attitude led me to think that the green shirt was her plan all along. I looked at it carefully and decided that it wasn't so bad. It was going to be tight fighting and probably push my breasts up, but it wouldn't reveal anything or make me feel too uncomfortable.

"I'm so excited for this party!" she squealed suddenly. I hated to put a damper on her high, but why would she be so excited for this party? It was going to be a bunch of dumb jocks, getting drunk and horny, grabbing slutty girls' asses. Sounds like a party to me; gosh I wonder why I never went before.

Olivia noticed my less-than-enthusiastic attitude and scowled prettily at me. "Don't be such a party pooper," she scolded, "It's going to be fun. Just stick with Andrew and me and you'll be fine. I'll make sure those nasty basketball boys don't get their cooties all over you."

I stuck my tongue out at her and grabbed the shirt of the evening, hating the pretty green fabric already. It just looked like it was going to lead to a disaster. Sighing in frustration I slipped my other clothes off and tried the shirt on, grimacing at the tight, but not uncomfortable, fit.

Olivia took one look at my face and burst out laughing, "It really isn't that bad, Day, but you should probably change your face." Her eyes flitted over the top and stopped at my bust, "And you should lose the bra."

I looked down and realized that my bra was merely making the situation worse. It was confining my breasts and pushing them flat...not attractive at all. Muttering obscenities under my breath, I unclasped my bra and pulled it off, giving a sigh of relief when I could breath again. "I'm not really comfortable with," I motioned to my breasts, "going free."

Olivia continued to laugh at me and threw me my jeans, "You look fine, Dayna. The shirt is amazing and makes you look beautiful. Trust me, okay?"

I huffed at her and pulled the jeans on. I was not looking forward to the party tonight and her peppy attitude was not helping, but I knew she would never make me look bad. I trusted Olivia's judgment and if she said the shirt made me look good, then I'd believe her. I still wasn't comfortable ditching the bra, though.

She pulled on a blue dress and Grecian styled flats that flattered her legs. "Wow, Olivia, you look fantastic. Andrew is going to die."

She sputtered indignantly for a moment before giving up completely. She must have seen the look on my face. "Is it that obvious?"

I nodded sagely, "Very, but don't worry, it's our little secret. However," I grinned, "he definitely likes you back."

"Really?" she whispered happily. I nodded again and she gave a quick twirl that had us both giggling.

We had about a half an hour before Andrew would show up, so we quickly did our makeup—and by we I mean Olivia, I have no idea how to use anything other than lip gloss—and did our hair. This consisted of running a brush through my hair a couple times.

Andrew arrived right as we did our finishing touches and headed downstairs. He whistled appreciatively and circled around us like a vulture, "Hello, pretty ladies. I think I might just be the luckiest man alive." Olivia blushed at his praise and lightly bantered with him while I grabbed a drink from the fridge. It was only 6:30, we still had some time to kill before the party so we headed to the den and turned on the TV for some background noise.

"So any more problems with your mini-me?" Andrew asked, plopping down on the couch comfortably. I gave him a speaking look and he quickly amended, "Other than what happened at school today, I mean."

I shook my head in denial. Since the provocative posters my imitator had been laying low. I had no doubt that she would reappear tonight, sometime during the party. We were all going to have to keep an eye out for her and her antics. God, I sound crazy, talking about someone stalking me and impersonating me. Who would do that? Who would care enough to spend the time on researching me and imitating my actions? None of it added up.

Andrew must have noticed that I was getting annoyed because he quickly changed the subject to something menial in order to distract me. He started talking about one of his classes and the ridiculous amount of homework that he was assigned. "It's a conspiracy, I swear!" he exclaimed, "The teachers must all get together and pick a week to assign all of their big projects so that we don't have a life."

Olivia quickly agreed and started mentioning all of the projects she had been assigned, "Oh!" she gasped, "that reminds me. There was this new guy in my class this afternoon. His name is Kyle Drake, and he's yummy." Both Andrew and I frowned—for different reasons of course. Yet another sore subject to think about. I still hadn't figured that guy out, but believe me; I would get to the bottom of this situation.

"Yah, we met him," I muttered darkly.

Andrew gave me an understanding look and glanced at his watch. "Time to go ladies." He stood up and stretched. I grinned when Olivia tried to act unaffected by the strip of skin revealed when his shirt inched up.

I protested all the way to the car and then all the way to the party. "We're only staying for an hour."

"Three hours," Olivia whined.

"One and a half."

"Two and a half."

"One and a half."

"Two—hey! You didn't compromise on that one!"

I smirked, "One and half?"

Olivia glared and looked to Andrew for help. He sighed, muttering something about being the mediator, "We're staying for at least two hours and nothing less. End of discussion."

"Ugh," I whined, "you always take her side!"

Andrew shot me a wicked grin, "That's because I like her better. Besides, I said end of discussion. Too bad, Porthos."

"No fair, playing the Musketeer card," I grumbled. I had to remember that I wasn't the only one going to the party and that in the end Andrew was still my ride. However long he stayed, I stayed. Bugger.

We pulled up to the party minutes later and I could already feel dread casting itself over my body. The music was so loud that we could hear it pounding into the car. Beer cans already littered the front lawn and people were spilling out of the doors, already plastered. It was only 7:30 for Christ sakes, pathetic.

"Dayna!" I heard someone call drunkenly.

"Kill me now," I muttered to Andrew and Olivia. They ushered me inside quickly, keeping an eye out for Reese, Connor or Mark. I made my way to the kitchen and grabbed one of the few waters, planning on holding onto that for the whole night.

"Hey babe," someone slurred from behind me. I kept from groaning and turned around to snarl at whoever it was, but stopped when I saw a grinning James. "Glad you could make it!" he exclaimed, sweeping his arms out and sloshing some of his beer around. I took a step back to avoid the flying drops and smiled graciously. I couldn't be rude to the host, no matter how petulant I was feeling.

"Thanks for inviting me," I yelled above the loud music, "Awesome party!"

He laughed and set his drink down, "Want to dance?" Before giving me a chance to say no, he had an arm wrapped around my shoulder and was pulling me into the living room where people were practically having sex. Lights were flashing everywhere, illuminating the sweaty bodies and groping hands. I shot a desperate look back at Andrew and Olivia but they just gave a sheepish grin. Fine. I see how it is. They were going to pay for that later.

James had arms wrapped around my waist and was pressed up against my back. I felt his breath on my neck and resisted shuddering in disgust. I don't know why I wasn't attracted to him, he was gorgeous, but something about him was off. We swayed back and forth, dancing to the beat; he was surprisingly good at dancing for being drunk. When he started to move his hands, I got uncomfortable and tried to wriggle out of his arms, but he mistook it for eagerness.

"Let go," I warned him, but he continued to rub against me, and caress his arms up and down my torso. "James, I'm not kidding, let go!" I wrenched myself from his grip and took a step back. I pointed a shaking finger at him "Stay away." Stumbling from the dance floor, ignoring his protests, I ran out to the backyard and sat on a bench. If I had to stay here all night, I would.

My luck had run out though, because not five minutes later, Connor found me. He too was drunk, although, perhaps not as much as James was. "Hey Dayna," he smiled cutely. "What are you doing out here all alone?"

"The music was too loud for me," I said lamely.

"Oh," he replied dumbly. "Can I sit out here with you?"

I gave him an expressionless look and then shrugged, "I guess. I don't really feel like talking though."

Connor's eyes lit up and he quickly plopped himself on the bench next to me. "I'm fine with that!"

It took me a moment to register what he meant and what he thought I meant, but when I made the connection I leapt to my feet. "That's not what I meant," I quickly corrected. "I just want to sit here in silence, by myself, just thinking. No talking or touching or...anything!"

He look disappointed, "Why don't you want to make out with me anymore? You were so eager last time." He looked angry for a minute and stood, "Is it because of Reese and Mark? The other guys you made out with? Or is it someone else?" Connor looked scary and I realized that he was slowly becoming possessive.

I gave a humorless laugh and backed away slowly, "No, it's not that at all. It's something else completely. I'm sorry for leading you on, you seem like a nice guy and all, but you're not my type." With that, I quickly ran back into the house and bumped into someone along the way. "Sorry," I muttered, looking up at whoever I had hit.

Kyle Drake smirked back at me, "Maybe you should watch where you're running," he suggested haughtily.

I glared at him, "Maybe you shouldn't stand in the way."

He scowled and took an exaggerated step away from me, "Enough room for you, fat ass?" he sneered.

Shock colored my face. How dare he? What gave him the right to treat me this way? I was about to give him a piece of my mind when some girl appeared out of nowhere and attached herself to his arm. "Kyle!" she whined, tugging on him, "come dance with me!" I winced at her grating voice and took a step away.

Kyle shot me a look full of loathing, commanding me to get the girl off of him. I shrugged my shoulders and smirked. Another girl materialized and whined at him too. He looked pissed and disgusted. I chuckled softly and watched as they dragged him off to dance with them. At least I got some entertainment out of this evening.

Which reminded me...I pulled out my cell phone and saw that it was already past 9:00, yes! Time to leave this hellhole. Searching for Andrew and Olivia was going to be a hard task, but I wasn't going to wait around for them to find me. We'd be here all night long if I depended on them. They weren't in the living room area, so I turned around to head in the other direction, but was stopped by a hard body of muscle.

"Hey baby," a deep voice crooned.

I looked up slowly in dread and winced, "Hey Reese." Really? Can't I catch a break? All I needed now was for Mark to show up and demanded something from me, and then my checklist would be complete.

"I've been looking all over for you."

"Oh really?" I chuckled weakly. I took a step away, "Well now that you've found me, I'm just going to—"

Reese grabbed my wrist before I could turn and walk away. "Nuh-uh," he grinned, "I just found you. You owe me a dance and a kiss."

"Look Reese, not right now, okay?" How about, never again? I tried to pull out of his grip, but he reeled me in like a fish fighting at the end of a pole. "Seriously. I'm not in the mood to dance or make out or anything. I just want to find Andrew and Olivia and go home." But my words weren't getting through his drunken stupor. He saw me and wanted to dance and make out. That's all he could comprehend at the moment.

Protesting, he pulled me out to the dance area and wrapped his arms around me. I searched the crowd frantically for someone to help me, but the only person I found was Kyle. He was dancing with some other chick and smirking happily at me. He was clearly enjoying my predicament. Screw you Karma, we're through.

I scowled and stood stiffly as Reese tried to dance with me. He pouted, "Why don't you want to dance with me?"

I sighed and pushed against his chest lightly, "I just don't want to."

"No one rejects me!" he said, clearly outraged. "Reese Pennman is a stud muffin!"

I choked back my laughter and gave him a somber look, "Yes you are, which is why we can't dance. I don't deserve you!" He looked confused for a moment, as if he couldn't decided to be flattered or disappointed, so I took the opportunity to give a fake sniffle and run away, fast.

Since my search for Andrew and Olivia wasn't working out, I found the quietest area of the house and pulled out my phone to send a text to both of them, asking where they were. I got a text back from Olivia a couple of minutes later. I gasped when I read what she had typed, 'I'm home, you bitch'. Confused, I texted her back quickly asking what was wrong. Her reply came seconds later: 'What's wrong??? You were effin KISSING Andrew, that's what's wrong. God, you are such a slut. I can't believe we were friends'

I nearly dropped my phone when I read that. First of all, I would never kiss Andrew, and secondly, Andrew would never kiss me! How did this happen? I tried to call Olivia, but she refused to answer so I left her a voicemail, praying that she would listen to it. "Olivia, I never kissed Andrew! I would never do that to you. I know how much you like him and I know how much he likes you. He would never kiss me either! I haven't seen either of you since James pulled me away to dance. Please call me back ASAP."

I hung up and saw that I had a text from Andrew. It said: 'Meet me at the car'. Thank goodness for that. Practically running, I spotted Andrew before he saw me, and noticed that he looked extremely stressed out and nervous.

"Andrew," I said softly when I reached the car, "what's wrong?"

He blushed when he saw me and shuffled his feet nervously. He refused to look at me, and kept shifting his eyes away. "Nothing's wrong," he mumbled, "are you ready to go?"

I narrowed my eyes and pushed my face close to his, "Bullsh--."

He stumbled back a step, "Just get in the car, Dayna."

"Where's Olivia?" I challenged angrily. If this was all because of a stupid kiss that never happened I was going to wring Andrew's neck.

"She went home," he said harshly, glaring angrily at me.

"Why?" I pushed, hoping he would just break down and tell me what his problem was.

"Because she saw us kissing, that's why," he seethed. His eyes were burning with rage and agony. Andrew was pissed at me and guilty about what had happened. I felt my face pale when I realized what he said. We had kissed. Olivia hadn't just imagined it.

"What was I wearing?" I asked softly.

Andrew growled, "What? Are you drunk?"

"No, answer the damn question."

"Um, I'm not sure. It was dark, but you had on a sweater or something I think." Ha! I wanted to scream triumphantly, it wasn't me.

"Andrew, I'm not wearing a sweater, nor did I bring one," I explained slowly, hoping he would get it.

"Then who kissed me? Because it was definitely you."

I frowned, "Tell me exactly what happened."

Andrew leaned back against the car and thought back, "Well after you left with James to dance, Olivia and I wandered around the party for a bit. I had to use the bathroom, so I told her I'd be right, but when I came back she was gone. So I started to search for her and eventually ended up outside, which is when I heard you call my name. I recognized your voice and I even called you Dayna. You came over to me and grabbed my hand. That's when you called me Athos and kissed me. I was so shocked that I didn't push you away at first. But when I did, you laughed lightly and walked away. I looked around and saw Olivia staring at us. Before I could go after her, she left. I got a text a few minutes later telling me that she was home."

"Shit," I muttered.

"Yah," Andrew said miserably, "shit just about sums it up."

I shook my head, "That's not what I mean. I was referring to the fact that mini-me had the gall to kiss you. See this is just more proof that someone is pretending to be me. I was with James and then Connor and then Reese all night long. I only just managed to get away. So there's no way I had time to kiss you."

Understanding dawned on Andrew and he got really excited. "All we have to do is tell Olivia and she'll believe us, right?" I wasn't going to be the one to pop his bubble so I agreed with him, reassuring him that Olivia would listen to reason.

Right now, she was the least of my problems. If she didn't believe us, then that was her own fault. Right now I needed to figure out who my impersonator was and why. There had to be some way to trap her or something. No longer did I think that I was going insane. Some one was out there, acting in place of me and screwing up my life. A detention was one thing, but tearing a friendship apart was a whole other story.

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