The Queen Bee of Bridgeton (18 page)

"What am I
gonna
do? Sasha says those girls are
gonna
make my life miserable," I said burying my head into his chest and drinking in his scent. I felt so safe in his arms. Too bad I wasn't safe, not from the Bitch Brigade.

"She would know," he said sitting down on the couch with me still in his arms.

"What does
that
mean? Why were you two fighting just now?"

He kissed the top of my head. "We both care about you a lot and we're just…upset this happened. There's no telling what they'll do next."

My thoughts went back to the girl in the stairwell. What if they did the same thing to me? "Is there any chance they'll just forget about me and move on?"

"No, there's no chance of that.  I already told you," Sasha said, marching into the den with her laptop in tow. "They're going to make your life a living hell. Look at this. They've already made a website and a
facebook
page with all the pictures from last night." Sasha set the laptop on the coffee table and started scrolling down the pictures.  There had to be at least 20 of them each increasingly more vulgar.  Apparently, I had been doing some sort of striptease.  I couldn't look anymore.  I turned away and buried my face in Will's chest again. 

"And don’t even get me started on the YouTube video.” Sasha closed her eyes and shook her head for a second. “This is even worse than what they did to Leila Baker last year."

"What'd they do to her?" I asked. Sasha glared at me again.

"They started this ridiculous rumor that she was having an affair with her father," Will volunteered.

"Oh my God, that's awful," I said horrified at the thought.

"It got to the point where she couldn't walk down the halls without people calling her 'Daddy's girl'. She ended up leaving Bridgeton 'cause she couldn't take it anymore," he added.

"But why would anyone even believe that?" I asked.

"Because those bitches are evil geniuses," Sasha said.  "They knew Leila came from a close knit family.  You know, one of those families who kiss on the lips.  They took that and ran with it."

"Why is this worse?"

"Because this time they have pictures and video!"
Sasha roared as if I was the biggest idiot in the world for not understanding that.  Will
squeezed
me tighter.

"There's no need to yell at her.  She feels bad enough," Will said.  Sasha glared at him. 

"Why do they have so much power? Why does everyone believe what they say and just do what they want?" I asked.

"Because they're pretty, popular, and rich.
  They have what everyone wants.  And they usually get whatever they want.  But you got in their way.  You took what they thought was rightfully theirs; the star basketball player." Sasha gestured to Will.

"I can't believe I was ever with Ashley.  What was I thinking?"

"You were thinking with the wrong head. Next time why don't you keep it zipped up, huh?"

"You need to get off your God damn high horse, Sasha, before
I
-"

"Sasha, Will, please stop fighting. You're making me feel even worse. This is my fault for falling for such a childish trap. I should've been more careful."

 Sasha and Will glared at each other both seething with anger. Finally, Sasha broke the tension and turned away.

"So, I've been working this out in my head all day," Sasha said after pacing the length of the den several times.  She moved away from a sarcastic bitter tone to her all business tone.  "I think we have three options in how to deal with this. Option number 1, you switch schools.  That's out of the question, because your only choice is to go back to public school.  I'm not
gonna
let that happen.  Option number 2, we get Des' father to sue the Bitch Brigade for defamation of character or criminal negligence or something.  The problem with this is that it paints you as a victim and doesn't work toward restoration of your damaged character."

"Bitch Brigade?"
  Will asked when Sasha stopped for a breath. "You mean that's real?"

"That's what I said." Well at least I wasn't the only one who thought the Bitch Brigade was an urban legend.

"So that leads me to option 3," she continued ignoring our interruption. "We face it head-on."

"What do you mean face it head-on?" I asked.

"We embrace this image they're trying to give to you.  If we make it seem like you did this on purpose, there is no joy they can extract from taunting you with it.  We make it seem like
their
taunts are part of
your
plan."

"What plan? 
My plan to look like a slut?
  Sasha, I don't see how this is
gonna
work."

"No, hear me out," she said, getting excited.  Her brain worked faster than she could talk. "What they want is to destroy you, to humiliate you.  If you turn everything they do around and do it better they'll have nothing to stand on."

"Like what?"

"Like, I bet right now they're at Kinko's printing up flyers with you in your underwear to pass out at school.  We could print up flyers too and pass them out.  I can go online and start a rumor that you were a lingerie model in Europe and that's why you're so comfortable in your underwear.  We can show some of the publicity shots you took in Barcelona. You have one in a pretty skimpy costume right? Do you see where I'm going with this?"

"I think so," I said unable to hide my skepticism.  I looked over at Will and he seemed a bit more convinced.

"This could work," he said.

"But why the flyers?
  Why would I pass out pictures of myself like that?"

"They could be campaign flyers," Will
volunteered
.

"Good idea.  Finally, a worthwhile contribution from you," Sasha said to Will with a sneer. 

"Campaign flyers?
 
Campaign flyers for what?"
  I asked.  Sasha and Will were at a loss.

Then out of nowhere Desmond said, "Prom Queen." 

"Oh my God, honey, you're brilliant!" Sasha exclaimed as she rewarded him with a kiss. Then she turned to me and said, "You're going to be Bridgeton's next queen if it's the last thing I do."

"But I don't want to be Prom Queen," I said terrified at the prospect. The Prom queen had to give a speech; in front of people.
Because, of course, a speech would have to be in front of people.
  I didn't do speeches. Now, I could get in front of a group f people and dance. I could
  even
get in front of a group of people and
talk
about dance. But any other subject and I panicked in front of a crowd. I couldn’t help but think back to the bathroom conversation incident.

"I really don't care what you want to be," Sasha snapped at me again.  It shocked me how quickly she went from excited to angry.  "This is just to divert people's attention off of the fact that you got plastered at a party and stripped. If you can't get through this you might as well transfer or…kill yourself."

I felt Will tense up. How could she say something like that? She had no idea how she was hurting both of us. Will looked away, not wanting Sasha to even be in his line of sight anymore. "She didn't mean anything by that," I whispered to Will. 

Sasha knelt in front of the laptop and started typing furiously for a few minutes. "Now there are a couple of key elements we have to make sure are addressed," she said looking up from the screen. "Number 1:  we have to make sure everyone knows we are two different people.  So, I will be your campaign manager," Sasha stood and paced the room again.  "Number 2:  this whole episode occurred because of your relationship with Will, so we have to show everyone that you two are stronger than ever.  If they see they've failed to drive you apart, they may give up. So, Will, you have to support her like
crazy.
  I want to see public displays of affection everywhere."  Sasha knelt in front of the laptop again and typed. She checked all the social websites that Bridgeton students frequented trying to find the next party and she started sending anonymous emails to the popular kids. Will, Desmond, and I just watched her operate, all afraid to interrupt her thought process.  "Okay, the plan starts tonight," she continued. "There's a party at Caitlin
Tuten
-Rhodes' house and we're all going."

Sasha spent the rest of the day planting rumors about my non-existent modeling career and convincing me I needed a sexy outfit for the party that night.  I was completely mortified.  She actually wanted me to do another impromptu striptease.  She also coached me on what to say to the Bitch Brigade if they had any comments for me. 

"Brittany is the ugly one," Sasha explained while she straightened my hair with a flat iron.  "The liposuction, the nose job, and the boob job have helped, but there is just no hope for her smile.  The girl looks like Mr. Ed.  If she says anything to you just
say
something like, 'hey, horse mouth, I think your chest is leaking'." 

I thought about Brittany's appearance for a moment. She did look like a horse. Under normal circumstances, I would never result to childish petty insults, but I wasn't about to oppose Sasha so I just sighed and said, "Fine, what else."

"Now on to Ashley.
Ashley is a whore. If Ashley says anything to you, just say that Will told you that her
vajayjay
smelled like fish or that she was so loose having sex with her was like throwing a hot dog down a hallway."

"Sasha, I can't say those things! It's just not like me." I turned around in the chair and looked at her.  My eyes pleaded with her to try to think of another way. There had to be something else I could say that wasn't so crass.  "I can barely believe those thoughts would even cross your mind. When did you start using that language? There has to be another way," I said.

"Fine, then say that
Will
got tired of having to wait in line every time he wanted to stick it in."

"No, I will not!  Besides, Will didn't say those things."

"Well, ask him about it.  I'm sure he'll agree with me," she said as she turned me around and resumed her efforts with my hair.

"No, he won't. He's different now."

"That's what
you
think."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing.
Let's just move on to Lauren
DeHaven
.  She's the biggest bitch of them all.  Do you know what she did to
Naseem
, the exchange student from Iran?" she asked kind of rhetorically since she didn't give me a chance to respond. 
"Her first day at school Lauren
DeHaven
told her that the word for 'meet' was actually another four letter word that begins with 'F'.
  The poor girl went up to everyone that day saying 'pleased to F you'.   I still can't believe you took a drink from her."  Sasha shook her head disapprovingly. "But I have so much dirt on her, she is going to rue the day she crossed us.  First of all, her father is about to declare bankruptcy.  He made some awful investments and her family is practically broke.  Her mother left her father and ran off with their accountant and her brother is so addicted to pain killers he's been in rehab twice in the past year."