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Chapter 16

Blair

I sat at Claire's table and never in my life had I felt so out of place. As I sat with people who were nothing like me, I felt uncomfortable. I couldn't help but wonder why in the world I was doing this for Claire.

But then I remembered that I owed Claire. After everything I had done behind her back, I had to suck up my feelings of discomfort. If that meant everything I had done would be forgotten, I decided it was worth it.

Claire's friends were arguing about something I couldn't relate to, so I was left to stare at them as they animately fought over it. Tori and Jake were in each other's faces as they yelled at each other, trying to convince the other they were wrong. Ryder sat next to me, smiling as the two fought, and Maya was contributing to their argument at times.
   
    I hadn't said a word yet. I knew I was already messing up because Claire was talkative, but I couldn't help it. There was nothing I felt like I could contribute to what they talked about, so I was left to stay silent. Glancing at the clock, I internally groaned when I realized there was still half and hour left.

Suddenly, Jake and Tori began to die of laugher. Ryder and Maya joined in, leaving me confused because I had missed the joke. All of them were laughing so loudly that people were beginning to stare at us and I found myself flushing with embarrassment. Forcing a laugh, I prayed no one would notice how strangely I was acting.

Once everyone calmed down, their eyes suddenly landed on me. I froze at that, caught off guard as they all began to study me. With their eyes on me, I felt like an exotic animal and it took everything in me to not get up and run off. I hated when people stared at me.

"What's up with you Claire?" Tori asked, frowning. "You're really quiet today."

"Yeah, did your grandma die or something?" Jake asked, eyebrows raising.

I had to fight back a smile at that. Claire had been completely right. If I didn't act exactly like her, her friends would think my grandma died.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said, forcing a smile. "Just tired."

"Tired of Carter?" Tori asked, rolling her eyes. "Finally."

Jake snorted and I found myself wondering what was up with her attitude. I had always known that Tori wasn't the most pleasant person, but I hadn't expected her to talk to Claire like that.

"No, I didn't get much sleep yesterday," I said lamely, not knowing what else to say.

"Really?" Ryder suddenly asked. "Is everything okay?"

I looked at Ryder and became surprised to see that he looked genuinely concerned. It was touching because none of her other friends cared. They all returned to their own conversations after I had said that.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said, watching as Ryder relaxed. "It was really hot yesterday, so it was hard to sleep."

Ryder studied me for a minute and I stared back at him. From the way his eyes were on me and from the way he seemed to care, I knew he had a crush on Claire. It was so obvious and I wondered once again why Claire never thought about going for him. He was attractive and sweet, which were two traits I knew Claire liked in a guy.

"You seem really different today," Ryder finally said. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm positive," I said, forcing a smile as I prayed he'd drop the topic.

"Yes you are," he said, ruffling my hair.

I smiled at that and found myself relaxing. Compared to Claire's other friends, Ryder was so nice. Even though he was one of the popular kids, Ryder was the only one who knew the world didn't revolve around him. I decided to stick with him whenever I was Claire.

*****

At home, I removed the makeup I wore and thought about how I hoped Carter would fall for Claire fast. Being Claire was a lot more work than I expected. I wasn't fond of her friends either, so I hoped I wouldn't need to be her for long. But sighing lightly, I had a bad feeling Carter was too hooked on me for his feelings to change fast.

There was a knock on the door and I knew it was Claire. Shouting come in, I grabbed a hair tie and put my hair in a ponytail. I had no idea how Claire was able to have her hair down and around her face constantly. It was bothersome to me.

Claire walked into the room, and she went to my bed and sat on it. I turned to face her, noticing she had returned to herself too. Even though we weren't gong anywhere, Claire had put makeup on and she had left her hair out. It left me wanting to ask questions, but I decided against it. We were different people, which meant we did things differently.

"You're a genius," Claire said, grinning. "Seriously, you're brilliant. You're going to be the next Albert Einstein."

I laughed at that and found myself growing happy. It was weird having us talk again. But, it was a nice change.

"I'm guessing you and Carter shared a moment," I said.

"Yes!" she exclaimed. "And we talked! I freaking talked to Carter. You have no idea how happy I am."

Claire looked ecstatic and I found myself feeling really happy for her. Deep down I really did hope Carter would fall for her. Not just because I wanted Claire to be happy, but Carter deserved to be with someone who liked him as much as Claire did.

"I'm really happy to hear that," I said honestly.

"How was it like being me?" Claire asked, eyes softening. "I'm guessing hard."

"It was," I admitted. "But, I'll get used to it."

Claire suddenly looked sorry for me and I looked away. I wasn't fond of people pitying me for my personality, so I tried to ignore her look.

"I know I've said this a million times, but thank you Blair," Claire said. "It's really sweet of you to do this for me. You're the best sister anyone could ask for."

Her comment caught me off guard and I looked at her, surprised. From her eyes, I could tell she genuinely meant what she said, which left me feeling warm. Her words touched me and with my eyes softening, I knew that I had made the right decision. Picking my sister over a guy who could make me feel secure was the smartest thing I'd done.