Teen Witch of Beverly Hills (Preview Only)

3. Mean Girl Games

It's a nice day, so Riley and I grab a table in the school's courtyard as we normally do during lunch. As we take our seat, we notice Maddie, Bridget, and Libby sitting a few tables over. They sit chatting to one another as they twirl their long hair with their freshly manicured fingers and obnoxiously smacking their gum. One of them sees us looking and they all turn to cut their eyes back at us.

"What is their problem?" I ask Riley.

"Not a clue," Riley says, shrugging. "They've been making those faces so long, they're probably stuck that way."

Before I can say anything back, we see Logan walking in our direction. Instead of stopping at our table, he passes by us and heads towards Maddie's table. We watch him in shock as he sits down next to Bridget. Bridget turns to look straight at us with a huge grin spread across her face. It's obvious she's dangling Logan in front of Riley.

"Are they together?" Riley asks, turning to me with a dropped jaw.

Bridget leans over to peck Logan on his cheek, answering Riley's question. Bridget knows exactly what she's doing.

"Ignore her, Riley. She's just trying to get under your skin."

"I know," she replies. "Why Bridget though? What does he see in her?"

I don't have the answer. I don't know why any guy would ever be attracted to Bridget. She is one of the meanest girls at Beverly Hills High.

"I don't know, Riley. But she goes through boys left and right. She'll probably move on to a new guy by the end of the week."

"That's true. But how can I compete with her?"

"Are you kidding? Under all that plastic is just a scared, insecure little girl. That's why she's so mean. All three of them."

Riley nods in response, her shoulders relaxing a bit.

"Don't worry," I continue, "Logan will see Bridget's true colors soon and he'll realize he made a huge mistake."

As we sit at the table picking at our lunches, I think back to the love potion I found in my mother's spellbook. It wasn't what I was looking for at the time, but it may be exactly the thing Riley needs now. I hate seeing Riley so sad over a dumb boy. Besides, I can't stand Bridget. 

"I have an idea," I say, turning to Riley. "Do you want to come over to my place after school?"

She shrugs, "Sure."

"Ok, I'll meet you in front of the school after the bell then."

After school, Riley and I walk back to my house. When we get to my street, I see my mom outside tending to her garden again. She smiles at us when she sees us approaching.

"Hey girls!" She says, with her warm smile.

"Hey Mom," I reply as Riley and I make our way up the front steps of my house.

"How have you been, Riley?" Mom knows all about Riley's struggles this year with Logan and her grades. Riley is practically my mother's second daughter.

"I've been doing good. Thanks for asking, Ms. Flores." Riley replies with a smile.

"You girls grab a snack. I've got to run a few errands in a minute. Let me know if you need anything while I'm out."

"Thank you," Riley and I both reply back to her in unison before shutting the front door behind us.

After we grab an assortment of snacks from the kitchen, we head up to my bedroom. I peek outside my window to see my mom backing out of the driveway. I feel my shoulders relax.

"So, what did you want to show me? What's this big idea you have?" Riley asks me with a laugh, as she flops herself down onto my bean bag chair.

"Okay, don't freak out. And you can't say anything about this to anyone."

"Okay," Riley says back to me, with a hint of hesitation in her voice. She stares at me with a mixture of confusion and concern across her face.

"It's nothing bad. Don't worry." I say, walking over to the basket I left the spellbook in yesterday. I carefully pull the book out, bringing it close to my chest, before turning back to Riley.

"What is it?" Riley says, her eyes focused on the book wrapped in my arms.

I walk back over to Riley and sit down in front of her, placing the spellbook on the floor between us.

I look up at Riley and see her eyes are wide. "Is that what I think it is?"

I nod.

"You're not supposed to have that, are you? I thought your mom banned magic."

"That's why you can't tell anyone. Not even my mom. But I saw something in here yesterday that I want to show you." I say as I open the book, flipping over to the page with the love potion.

Riley stands up from the bean bag, then sitting on the floor next to me. "A love spell?"

"Yes. It's a love potion. Feel like getting Logan back?"

Riley gasps, "Oh my gosh, Ellie. What if your mom found out?"

"She won't, as long as we don't tell her."

Riley examines the page for a minute, before squealing with excitement.

"I can't wait to see Bridget's face," Riley replies, laughing.

*photograph by Kimberley Gordon