Lies Whispered From the Past

The first day of school meant being stuck in closet hell for Cassie. She went to orientation for Malibu Vista: many of the girls were in booty shorts and stilettos while she was rocking an old AC/DC concert shirt and light blue jeans. Cassie always envied guys because no matter what scenario their regulation outfit was always a sports jersey, jeans and Adidas. Her parents were laid-back. Once she left the house in an outfit a stripper would deem too sexy to test out what they would say, and Joseph asked WHERE she was going, not WHAT the heck was she wearing. Cassie found a navy blue tank top with light pink polka dots all over it, courtesy of Trina letting her have a third of her own wardrobe the month before she left. It came a matching pink belt. "Perfect" was the word floating in Cassie's head. Now jeans or skirt?...

Felicia Alvarez didn't understand why her little sister was freaking out over her outfit for her first day of grade seven. Felicia already had her outfit planned weeks in advance: a pink skimpy tube top, tight jeans that would cut off a size zero's circulation, and pink four inch stilettos. And you better believe her black lace thong would be showing. Had she might as well throw on a t-shirt that had the words 'I'm a big, fat slut!' on it? Oh yes, but that's what she was going for. Being a sophomore, having college guys chase after you gave you a sense of pride, or that was the case for Felicia. Boys didn't matter to Marcia, at least not yet. In sixth grade, she had the biggest crush on Byron Mitchell. She asked him to the spring formal, but he harshly turned her down in front of the whole cafeteria, all because he was an eight grader. Since then, she vowed he would be sorry. In freshman year, she dropped the whole PETA lover look for a sexier, older style. Byron's jaw dropped when he found out it was Felicia. She was confident he would ask her out if it hadn't been for that skank Nikki Sutton. He did indeed drool over her, though. And once, just once, he did chase after her and they had... well... That encounter gave Felicia all the hope she needed. So later that day she would confront him about it.
" Now I wonder if Ramirez Sanchez is seeing anybody.." Felicia continued asking her herself when the most delicious boy toy ever invented walked up her street...

" What's the point in owning a car if I can't drive it to school?" Tristan asked his little sister Cassie. He was on fire. The move across the country, leaving his peeps behind, now this crap.

"Tristan, you're acting like it's 500 miles away, not five minutes." Cassie was sick of his whining. You'd expect a baby to cry all night, not a man whose about to go to college. So you moved away from your friends. Boo-frigging-hoo.

" Anyway, it would be a waste of gas, and we all know your lazy behind ain't getting a job anytime soon."
" Where I'm going I don't need a job. the Lakers will be begging-" Tristan stopped dead in his tracks. A Latina cutie was giving him that look. Tristan couldn't help staring, either. Cassie, in a moment of confusion, saw what he was looking at. She could see why: that chick was every horn dog's dream. Acing the looks department and desperate enough to have her thong showing.

" Like you stand a chance with her. Even after you get famous."
" Aw, shut up. I've never seen you with a boyfriend."
" At least I don't try only to fall flat on my face."

Tristan was a hot commodity back in the Bronx, though. Every month, a new girl was hanging around the apartment watching movies with him, doing homework and chilling at the pizza parlor. Sometimes Joseph and Lisa even caught him and his girlfriends making out on the couch. But this was Malibu, in the heart of L.A. Let's just face it: Tristan couldn't pick up an L.A. chick if she were made of handlebars. Yet he didn't know that. All he knew that there was a school at the corner of his eye and was was ready to conquer basketball, girls and college scouts in that order. Period.

Nikki Sutton strolled into Malibu Vista High's parking lot in her boyfriend's brand new BMW. True, it was a little too Beverly Hills, but what was the point of having something if you can't flaunt it? She loved how every single student dropped everything whatever they were doing and began staring at her and Byron. The summer had been less than thrilling, but Byron had promised he wasn't going anywhere at least until least the end of October. She ended up forgiving him as she always had, but she made the stupid mistake of thinking he'd clear his schedule for her. The minute she stepped out of the car, he kiss her on the cheek and said 'Gotta meet with Coach. You know how he is.' Not that he loved her or he would be thinking of her or a simple goodbye, just his regular 'Gotta go.' Her younger cousin, Kiki Sutton suddenly appeared at her side. Nikki's best friend Chelsea Raven was already walking toward her. Nikki plastered on her best fake ass cheery smile and began the morning's gossip round-up.

" You'll never guess which freak is in my homeroom class this year," Kiki began," Hector Johnson."
" Ew, that kid who sniffed your dead frog in science when you were in grade six?" Chelsea asked.
" Yep. That Hector."
" He should be put in an asylum. You couldn't pay me enough money to LOOK at a dead frog." Nikki said truthfully.
" Really, we already got all the money in the world." Kiki then
pulled some lip gloss out of her purse and applied it. This was what Nikki liked about her cousin: she wasn't a poser. She was born cool and popular and no one could make her do what she didn't want to do. She never changed her look for anyone nor changed her behavior, even when most people though she was nothing more than a big, fat bitch. Nikki couldn't claim that herself.

Her whole high school career was a mere lie, even if it had been a successful lie. This was an advantage of social obscurity: most people forgot who you were before you were popular. Kiki moved to Malibu from Nevada when she was in sixth grade, after Nikki's makeover. She never knew there was a point in Nikki's life when she was afraid of everybody, not the other way around. Nikki had a fear, a rather pathetic one, that Kiki would totally ditch her if she found out the truth. And this was her LITTLE cousin. All Nikki could do was step on everyone else as if she were the first lady herself.

" Well hello, Hector Deflector."
This is what Nikki Sutton said to Hector on his way to homeroom. Awesome, he couldn't even go 15 minutes unscathed.
" Maybe the frog can make out with you this year. I mean, who else would?"
Tyrone, Kiki, Mike and Chelsea Raven snicked into their palms. Nikki and Chelsea went across the hall into their homerooms, and Hector sped off before Tyrone and Mike could inflict any pain the had in store for him. That can wait until gym.
Hector's eyes flinged across the room looking for an empty seat. There was one beside a pretty new girl, but she looked like a popular. Apparently, Tyrone made that choice for him.

" Look homo, find someone else to hump you." he pushed Hector into the desk. Then he tried his hardest to hold back tears. He saw from the corner of his eye the new girl reaching toward him.
'Great, what insult does she have for me?'

" Hey, I thought that was really mean. What Tyrone did." she said.
" You did?" Hector asked, surprised she was even looking at him. God, she was pretty.
" Yeah, what a bully. By the way, my name is Cassandra. I'm new. Moved from the Bronx."
" Oh. Hey, I'm Hector. How do you know Tyrone?"
" He tried to flirt with me when I came to the front entrance. What a dog."
" Well, he only hollers at girls he thinks are fine." And she was: Cassandra wore a navy blue tank with pink polka dots all over it, a matching pink belt with a matching pink mini skirt and it was all tied together with navy blue wedges.

" He can take that up with the hand." she raised her palm.
Hector giggled. Who knew, this year may not be so bad. He was thinking this until Tyrone slammed his head against his desk.

" That shows you for messing with my girl." Tyrone winked at Cassie, who rolled her eyes.
Well, so much for that.