Lies Whispered From the Past

" I love this green bikini!" Chelsea Raven gushed when she caught her reflection in the mirror. She, her best friend Nikki, and Nikki's fugly tag-along Aimee Bowers were trying on swimsuits for Chris Martin's pool party. Nikki looked gorgeous in her black string bikini. For a moment, Chelsea was pretty jealous of Nikki. Her beautiful, long, volumous hair. Her to-die-for body. Her dreamy basketball star boyfriend, Byron. Her trajectory into popularity was inevitable. What Chelsea was completely jealous of was the fact she had all those things, and Nikki was more beloved than her. People practically threw themselves at Nikki, while they more or less avoided Chelsea. While she liked Nikki and admired her, Chelsea thought it wouldn't hurt to remind Nikki not to get ahead of herself.
" How do I look?" Aimee hopped out the bathroom, clad in a grey one piece.
" Like a hippo." Chelsea whisper-sneered.
Nikki shot her a look. " You look fine Aimee. The built in spanx helps your figure."
" Maybe you should wear a towel on your waist. It'd help your legs." Chelsea suggested.
" I'll go downstairs and get some!" Aimee said excitedly, rushing to get anything that Chelsea approved of.
" Ugh, Nikki. Can we talk?" Chelsea closed the door, making sure Aimee couldn't eavesdrop.
" What Chelsea?"
" Your hippo, Aimee. She has got to go. She is ruining our image."
" Aimee's great. She's sweet and funny."
" Our friends don't like her."
" She's been my friend much longer than any of you have." Nikki snapped, she hated it when any of her friends ragged on Aimee, especially Chelsea, considering she'd had been overweight in sixth grade.
" We're your friends now. The past is the past. Let her go. She's ruining your popularity. I mean, look at her! She's a fat tub of lard!"
' And you never were?!' Nikki thought to herself. The only reason she didn't say it was because she knew Chelsea would say that was in the past. Three years ago. But then, Chelsea looked at her like she said it.
" She's not just fat. She lacks a sense of fashion. She's so nerdy and awkward. Her face is zitty and gawky, and she's pale as a ghost. She's just like you were in middle school, a geekloid who could never get a clue. A loser, a wannabe so pathetic and ugly it's not even funny. You thought no one knew about that about you, huh? You may've been thin, but you were uglier than Aimee, to be honest, and not looks-wise. Because you were so desperate. You thought you we liked you because you were doing what we asked? We thought you were some tag-hag lapdog."

Chelsea's smirk shined bright on her face. Nikki's blood boiled. In sheer anger, she pushed Chelsea against her nightstand, causing Chelsea to knock over Nikki's collection of Bath & Body Works sprays. Chelsea looked alarmed and frightened, and seemed to be on the verge of tears.

" You think you're so perfect. Newsflash: you were some fat, immature brat everyone hated in the sixth grade. You may've been calm, calulating and fashionable, but you wanna know what we all thought of you? Huh, Little Miss Popularity? We all thought you were some stuck-up bitch who needed to get over herself. Nothing could hide that massive stomach, those love handles, your pudgy legs. Wearing those tight clothes. You thought you looked so hot. But you know what? You were probably fatter than Aimee is now." It was Nikki's turn to smirk.

There was a long pause. Chelsea looked stunned, but then she smiled.
" Congratulations. You know what we did? We perservered. We changed. We became the hottest, most popular girls in our grade. We went from nobody to US Weekly worthy in the course of a summer. You put on an act, but I know you better than anyone in our clique. Truth is, I know you'd do anything to keep things the way they are. I'm sorry for what I said, but I was being honest. I love you to death, Nikki. I just want to protect you from going back to the bullied middle schooler you were, cause I was there too. You grew so much, it'd be a shame you go back to all that because of some loser you don't need anymore."

Nikki felt a buzz in her pocket. She got her phone out. Aimee texted her, and said she was in the car.
" Trust me. The guys are talking down about you behind your back because of her. Its either the top spot or the rejects. In the end, its your pick."
Nikki thought silently. Was Aimee really holding back her true potential? Should she leave the past were it belongs? Were her friends really talking junk about her? Was Aimee the only thing standing in her way of true acceptance? She stared at a picture on her dresser of the two. They looked like they were having fun and had not a care in the world. And now that world was on top of Nikki's shoulders. What if cutting Aimee off relived the pressure?
" C'mon, let's go. Chris needs something to drool over." Chelsea grabbed Nikki's arm playfully, and they began laughing and joking with each other, as if their confrontation never happened.

The trio arrived with the party in full swing. Katy Perry's fun 'California Gurls' was blaring through Chris' speakers with the guests either sipping on whatever's available at his parent's built in bar, splashing it up in the indoor pool, dancing to the beat or making out anywhere comfortable. The house looked like a spring break utopia.
" Hey, babe. What's up?" Derek Campbell walked up to Chelsea, holding a martini in hand. Chelsea stroked his brown hair and looked into his green eyes.
" Something will in a couple of minutes." Chelsea said suggestively, dropping her gaze to his waist.
" That's my hot girlfriend!" Derek said, picking her up and kissing her. Nikki scopped the scene for Byron, while Aimee looked uncomfortable. Finally, Nikki spotted him, looking uncomfortable as some Latina chick who looked way too young to be in high school tried to flirt with him. Her body was wrapped in a towel, covering up her nakedness. Nikki made her way over to them.
While she had nothing to worry about, putting the gropie in her place would take her a rung higher.
" When Flash and Trash comes into style, then he'll call you."
The girl, obviously embarassed by her lack of clothing, scooted away from them, leaving the couple to talk.
" Hey sweetie. Who's that girl?"
" Just some middle school chick who snuck in the party. Name's Felicia."
" You into her?"
" Nah, she's desperate."
" Good answer." She shamelessly kissed him in front of the other party goers, relishing the jealous looks she was getting from the girls.
" Get a room." A blonde girl jeered in her direction. Her friends giggled.
Nikki stopped momentarily, retorting, " Get a life!".
Many party goers laughed at the girl, including her friends. She stomped on her heels and walked off. Two insults and a public makeout session, Nikki felt on top of the world. Chelsea and her forgot their fight, and mingled with their boyfriends to the beat of summer's hottest songs. Nikki didn't know where Aimee was, and frankly didn't care. Maybe Chelsea was right, Aimee was just slowing her down.
" You're too hot." Byron whispered in her ear. " Let's take this to the pool."
" Nice, man!" Derek hi-fived Byron. Next thing Nikki knew, Byron picked her up like he was carrying his bride to their honeymoon, and he ran to the pool. He threw her in, and then tossed himself in with her. Nikki, turned on by his boldness and his glistening, rock solid body, began to make out with him again. She was displaying it like a show in front of all her friends. She could practically hear Chelsea telling her after the party, " I'm so proud of you. Your loser days are far behind."

Aimee had tried to navigate her way through the party, but Chelsea and Nikki ditch her in record time. She thought Chelsea would be prone to pull such a sneaky move, but her darling friend Nikki? How could she abandon her like that? Aimee tried to flounce throughtout the party, but she was intimadated by all the hot girls in bikinis, all the ripped guys. This wasn't her crowd, and no one was paying her attention. She eventually made her way over to the snack bar, and helped herself to some barbeque chips. Next thing she knew, Monica Paley slid next to her. Her white swim suit sharply contrasted against her dark skin, but she looked flawless either way. Her hair was natural, with pretty cornrows braids swept to the side. Aimee constantly wondered how black people got their hair that way, but all Nikki ever said was that it was 'in the genes'. As Monica chirped a friendly hello to Nikki's friend Lisa as she passed by, she took the liberty to encourage Aimee.
" You know, you deserve better. You're not fat. Appearently, these people can't tell the difference between fat and curves. Don't let these jerks get to you." Then Aimee watched Monica walk away, joining her boyfriend Marcus Brown, a player on Byron's basketball team. That was it, Aimee's night had been brightened. Nothing could bring her down.
" Yo, I didn't know this was a pig party!" Derek Campbell jeered his way toward Aimee.
" Yeah, I'm in the mood for some porkchops." Chelsea Raven replied, betraying her.
" Let's put a little ketchup on it." Another jock came up to Aimee, squirting her with a bottle of Hunt's.
" Cut it out!" Aimee felt cornered by everybody. It seemed she finally gained attention, the wrong kind.
" Jeez guys. That's so nasty." Byron chimed in. He seemed to finally defend Aimee, and she was grateful. Maybe Nikki was there for her after all.
" Relish is more like it!" Byron sloshed the nasty sauce all over her made up hair.
" Now just a bit of mustard on the thighs." Derek poured it on her all over her legs.
" Stop it!" Aimee hollered. " Look. I'm a freaking mess!"
" Sorry, lets clean that up." All three guys picked her up despite Aimee's protesting her lack of swimming ability. They threw her in the deep end of the pool, all the while videotaping it for YouTube. Aimee choose to stay down there as long as possible. After all, nothing could get worse than being humiliated on the internet.

As usual, she was dead wrong.