Dating on the Dork Side -- SAMPLE

The Hit List

Author Note #1: This is an excerpt from a little later in the story.

Elle sat on the desk so the skirt of her cheerleader uniform fanned out around her. She crossed one leg over the other and planted her palms on the surface behind her.

"In case you haven't noticed, the guys in this school are tools," she announced. "And I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm sick of it."

A few girls shifted in their seats. Elle gave me the tiniest of nods, my cue to start the PowerPoint presentation. I clicked the mouse and the presentation lit up the screen just as one of the cheerleaders hit the lights. Elle, now standing to one side, fired up a laser pointer.

The first slide contained a list of sins committed by the boys in our class through the years. They started with bra snapping in fifth grade and ended with the prom date scandal last spring.

"Any of this ring a bell?" she asked. "Make you the teeniest bit angry? Anyone? How many of you seriously considered paying for a date?"

In the dark, I sensed a few involuntary arm jerks. A few fierce whispers floated in the air, but no one raised a hand.

"And what did you think when these guys, who we've known since kindergarten, went over to Prairie Stone and found dates there? How many of you ended up alone at the dance?"

This time, a chill settled over the group. Prom hadn't really been on my radar, but I'd heard the stories, of dresses bought, boutonnières ordered, and no-show dates.

"What's your point?" The question, sharp and angry, came from Clarissa. She'd been stood up too, and only had a date for the dance because Elle arranged a last minute substitute-- her own cousin, from Prairie Stone of all places.

"My point." Elle shook out her hair. "Is that the guys in this school store their brains in their butts and I think it's time we did something about it."

Somebody snorted. I suspected Sophie, but whoever it was captured the doubt swirling in the room.

"You don't think we can?" Elle faced the room, hands on hips. "I'm not saying it's going to be easy. But I have a couple of ideas. I got more than this fabulous tan in Greece this summer."

Here's the thing about Elle Emerson: She was the kind of girl who could say a thing like that and you still couldn't hate her. She pulled a slim paperback from her messenger bag and waved it for all of us to see. In the dim light, the picture on the cover blurred into something Medusa-like and a little frightening.

"My parents made me take a few enrichment sessions on the trip," she said, holding the book in front of her now. "Language lessons. The Classics. And the Greeks, they had some interesting ideas."

"Wait a minute," Sophie said. "You went halfway around the world ... for summer school?" Her voice cracked with the shock of it all.

"A small price to pay," Elle said. "But I am not paying because of some turd seed and his iPhone."

"Wait--" Clarissa's voice wavered, its usual strength and bitchiness masked by fear. "What happens in Greece stays in Greece, right?"

"I guess not." Elle tucked a lock of hair behind her ear as if to calm herself. "Photographic evidence exists."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive." Elle pointed to me. "Check this out."

I switched the view so the only thing on the screen was The Hotties of Troy login page.

"Camy," she added. "Will you do the honors?"

I logged in as Jason. We'd debated about this, about giving away one of the user IDs. But we figured if any of the girls read the on-screen comments closely enough, they could guess at this piece of information. Anyway, they still wouldn't have a password.