Know Your Enemy

Ugh, I was so frosted, I could spit. Which was saying something pretty serious, since girls like me never spit. I didn’t even like spitting in the sink after I finished brushing my teeth.

Hailey came up to me the next morning at school and completely destroyed my Thank-God-It’s-Friday good mood by telling me that she heard Lana had gone up to Harlow after we left Cal’s the night before in the bathroom. Immediately, my eyebrows had pulled together in irritation. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what Lana had up her sleeve.

Liam looked concerned when I sat next to him in math, probably because I slammed my books on my desk and let out a loud huff. I rarely displayed my bad moods, so the fact that I was expressing it so clearly was enough to make anyone stop and re-think what they’d just heard. “Are you okay?” he asked sweetly.

I glanced over at him briefly before bringing my eyes back to the paper in front of me, pretending to take notes as I explained, “Not really. Lana’s ruining everything again.”

Liam let out a low sigh, one so quiet that I barely heard it. “Are you talking about how she was talking to Harlow in the hallway this morning?”

In the hallway that morning?! Oh, no. The situation had just gotten a hundred times worse.

Liam seemed to notice the clenching of my jaw and cleared his throat uncomfortably. “And you didn’t even know about that, did you?”

“No. But thanks for telling me.” I scribbled down another note, my hand putting so much pressure on my pencil that I nearly tore through the paper. “I don’t know who this girl thinks she is, but she needs to back off Harlow.”

There was a short silence before Liam whispered, “Clara, don’t you think this is a little insane? Harlow’s a person, not a piece of property that you guys have to claim. Maybe she can choose who she likes more.” He paused for a second before continuing and saying, “And I know that you and Lana hate each other because you guys are the exact same person on opposite sides of the tracks, but did anything else happen?”

I clamped my mouth shut and turned back to my work, leaving him wondering and staring at my profile as he tried to figure it out.

But he would never be able to figure out the truth. I kept the truth so secret and hidden that no one in the entire school knew. Not even Hailey.

Because I couldn’t risk having the news finding the light.



At lunch, Hailey and I made our way through the lunch line, our trays perched on the shiny metal shelf in front of us. I kept my voice fairly low as I explained what Liam had told me that morning, how Lana had been talking to Harlow in the hallway, probably trying to convince Harlow to hang out with them that night and smoke cigarettes and do other unladylike things.

Hailey turned up her nose at the prospect and shook her head. “Maybe we misjudged her,” Hailey whispered back as I paid for my food. “Maybe she’s just the type to hang out with kids like Lana, and we had no chance to begin with. I mean, have you even seen her wear a skirt?”

“I refuse to believe that,” I sighed, stepping out of line so Hailey could pay for her salad and apple. Scanning the cafeteria for an empty seat, I saw Liam sitting alone, probably saving the seats around him for Hailey and me, and probably Richard, too.

But when I saw Harlow walking into the cafeteria, thankfully wearing a modest collared dress that hit just above her knees, I hurried straight toward her, knowing that Richard wasn’t going to be able to sit with us that day. Hailey paid for her stuff and hurried after me, firing question after question as she tried to figure out what, exactly, I was doing.

“Hi,” I greeted with a huge, cheesy smile as I reached her, interrupting whatever conversation she was having with Louis, just as I’d done the night before at Cal’s. Although I felt a little guilty for always intruding, I knew that there were bigger matters at hand. “Do you have anywhere to sit, Harlow? Because we have a place saved for you.”

Harlow raised her thin eyebrows and looked over at Louis, who shrugged uncomfortably. It was weird, but that kid always made me get a knot in my stomach. He just radiated this uncomfortable vibe whenever I was around him, and no matter what mood I was in, I felt instantly awkward.

“Would you mind if Louis sat with us, too?” she asked.

Louis’ eyes immediately widened, and he whispered something frantically in her ear, while Hailey and I exchanged a confused look. There wasn’t enough room for Louis at the table, but I didn’t want to sound rude by saying so. Louis seemed like a fairly sweet guy, even if he did run with the wrong crowd sometimes, and I wasn’t rushing to ruin my bubbly, friendly popular girl image to tear him down.

“No, it’s okay,” Louis replied, his face coloring to a subtle pink. “I can sit somewhere else. Thanks for the offer, though.”

Hailey frowned before opening her mouth, probably to tell him that we hadn’t offered anything, but I nudged her before she could get a word out. “Maybe another time?” I responded with a small smile.

“Maybe,” he agreed before clearing his throat. “I’ll just…” And then he was gone, weaving through the crowd, his light brown hair appearing and disappearing as he made his way to the lunch line.

Harlow had a lunch bag in her hand, which I found kind of cute and charming. I wondered if that was normal where she came from, but I didn’t want to come off as rude if I asked. “Follow me,” I ordered kindly as I turned around and started toward the table where Liam still sat alone, chewing thoughtfully on a burger as his dark eyes scanned a page in his science textbook.

“There you are,” he said when he saw us, his face lighting up. “I thought you might have gotten lost.”

“I don’t think so,” I responded. “Liam, this is Harlow, the girl I’ve been talking about. Harlow, this is Liam. He’s football royalty.”

“Should I bow?” she joked with a chuckle as she sat down in the seat to the left of me.

“Curtsying would be more appropriate,” Liam fired back with a loud laugh. “It’s nice to meet you, Harlow.”

“You, too.” Turning away from him, she unpacked her bag, taking out what looked like a turkey sandwich with all the fixings, a banana, and a bag of potato chips. She had a nickel in her hand, and she stood up. “I’m going to buy a milk. I’ll be right back.”

I nodded as I unwrapped the chicken sandwich I’d gotten from the lunch line and took a small, dainty bite. Once Harlow was out of earshot, I asked, “So what do you think of her?”

“I like her,” Liam confirmed. “I think she’s funny.”

“I still can’t figure out who she fits in with more,” Hailey expressed. “It’s kind of irritating me.”

“We’ll find out eventually,” I appeased her. “But right now, it’s definitely looking like she’s better off running with us instead of Lana’s group.”

And though I hadn’t been sure about the situation before the statement slipped out of my mouth, the second it did, a feeling of certainty settled in my stomach and soothed my racing mind. Harlow was definitely going to pick the good side, and I was dead-set on keeping her from regretting her decision.