Model Flirt Read online

  Jessica stopped midsentence. Elizabeth was lying facedown in her bed, sobbing her heart out. A big box of blue tissues sat next to her on the bed, with a mountain of crumbled tissues surrounding it.

  Jessica's anger immediately turned to concern. "Hey, what happened?" she asked, picking up the box and taking a seat next to Elizabeth on the bed.

  Jessica's question only provoked a fresh outpouring of tears. "Shh . . . it's OK, it's OK," she said soothingly, rubbing her sister's back.

  Finally, Elizabeth hiccuped and pulled herself up to a sitting position. Her face was red and blotchy, and her hair was in disarray. "It's Todd," Elizabeth choked out between tears. "He and—I saw—art department—Simone." She burst into tears again and grabbed a tissue, blowing her nose loudly.

  Jessica's eyes widened. "You caught Todd with Simone?" she asked.

  Elizabeth nodded, a rivulet of tears streaming down her cheeks.

  "That is so despicable," Jessica declared. She brushed back a long lock of hair from Elizabeth's cheek and tucked it behind her ear.

  Elizabeth nodded and sniffed, wiping at her eyes. "I'm not surprised about the Stick," she said. "But T-Todd—" She waved a hand in the air.

  Jessica nodded. "I think this modeling thing has gone to his head." She was about to say that it was all for the best, since boring-as-butter Todd Wilkins was a total drip, but she bit back her words. Now was clearly not the time.

  Elizabeth brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. "Jess, I'm sorry," she said. "I went to the art department to find Todd, and when I saw him with Simone, I just freaked out and ran. I was so upset that I forgot about giving you a ride." Fresh tears came to her eyes.

  "Hey, you're going to drown if you keep this up!" Jessica said, scooting back across the bed and leaning against the wall next to Elizabeth. "Now don't worry about it," she said, propping a throw pillow behind her sister's back and placing a comforting arm around her shoulders. "There's nothing I'd rather do on a Thursday night than take public transportation in the rain."

  Elizabeth smiled through her tears. "You're the best, Jess," she said. Then she closed her eyes and rested her head back on the pillow.

  Jessica narrowed her eyes, her anger displaced from Elizabeth to Simone. Ever since Jessica had met the superskinny supersnobby supermodel, she had known there would be trouble. Simone was a spoiled prima donna who thought she was the center of the universe. And as the photographers assistant, Jessica was at Simone's beck and call—which meant fetching mineral water and celery sticks and supplying her with a constant supply of outfits and props.

  It was bad enough that Simone had been treating Jessica like dirt, ordering her around and making ridiculous demands. Messing with her was one thing. Jessica could defend herself. But moving in on her twin's boyfriend was something else altogether. Simone was going to pay.

  Chapter 2

  It was only nine P.M., but Elizabeth lay in bed, tossing and turning. The picture of Todd together with Simone kept dancing before her eyes, tormenting her. Elizabeth flipped on her side and wrapped the covers around herself, trying to shake the image from her mind. Outside, rain was pouring steadily down. Usually the sounds of rain soothed her, but tonight it just added to her anxiety.

  Think of the ocean, she told herself. She concentrated deeply, imagining the picturesque view at Ocean Bay. She saw hot, white sand and the foamy blue-green sea. White-capped breakers crashed onto the shore, and seagulls cut arcing patterns above the waves. Then she saw Todd and Simone walking hand in hand along the shore. Simone was barefoot and carrying her sandals in one hand, but her storklike legs were so long that she was almost as tall as Todd. I can't believe you took her to the beach, Elizabeth irrationally told Todd in her mind. Our beach. . . . Pain stabbed at her heart.

  Elizabeth shook her head and threw off the covers, sitting up in bed. It was no use. She couldn't sleep. She couldn't stop thinking about Todd and Simone. Sighing deeply, she reached over and turned on the lamp next to her bed. The first thing she saw was a copy of Flair on her nightstand. Leona had given her a stack of back issues so she could familiarize herself with the magazine, and this one featured a barely bikini-clad Simone. Elizabeth sucked in her breath, feeling assaulted by the photograph.

  She picked up the magazine and examined the cover. Usually pictures of models in bathing suits offended her feminist sensibility, but this one was particularly artistic. It had clearly been shot by Quentin Berg. The photo was in black and white, with a grainy quality that gave it a dated look. Elizabeth had to admit that Simone looked good. She was perched on a white boulder, her long legs folded gracefully underneath her. Her sleek asymmetrically-cut jet black hair provided a sharp contrast to her flawless ivory skin. Her full lips were pursed together in a pout, and her pale and strangely blank eyes stared directly at the camera. She was obviously beautiful, but she seemed empty—and cold. And she was so skinny that she looked like a starvation victim. But obviously, that's what Todd wanted. He didn't want someone with life. He wanted someone with status. Supermodel status.

  Elizabeth scowled, feeling like a nobody, a nothing. She felt like her entire self had been made worthless. She could change her interests, but she couldn't change her looks. She'd never be six feet tall. She'd never look like a supermodel. Elizabeth balled her hands into fists, seething with frustration. Then she tore off the cover of the magazine, ripping it into tiny pieces. She threw the pieces on the floor, watching in satisfaction as they scattered over her cream-colored carpet.

  Elizabeth slid out of bed and kicked at the torn pieces on the floor, crushing Simone's lips into the carpet with her heel. She paced from one side of her bedroom to the other, grinding her teeth. She stopped at the door and surveyed her room, itching with dissatisfaction. It was so impeccably neat and orderly. She looked in disgust at her perfectly clean desk with her reference books and computer, at her armoire with her shoes all lined up, at the tidy bookshelves. . . . Her room used to give her a sense of peace and a desire to work. Now she felt caged in. Elizabeth yanked open a window, letting in a gust of cold, windy air. Then she grabbed her clothes from the bed and threw them on the floor in a heap.

  Maybe it's all my fault, Elizabeth thought, pushing her clothes out of the way with her foot as she crossed the room again. After all, she had been neglecting Todd. Ever since she had found out about her internship, the job had been the only thing on her mind. Todd had called her—and faxed her—and had even driven all the way to L.A. to see her. But she hadn't given him a second of her time.

  Then Elizabeth dismissed the thought as ridiculous. When Todd had trained like a madman for the basketball finals last season, she had barely seen him at all. And she had understood. Besides, this internship was just two weeks long. Just because Todd hadn't bothered looking for an interesting position was no reason Elizabeth shouldn't try to make a future for herself.

  Elizabeth grabbed a woolen blanket from her bed and flopped dejectedly onto her pale velvet divan. She couldn't believe that all these years could be erased in a second—in a kiss. Todd was her constant companion, her other half. It seemed like they'd always been together. And Elizabeth had thought they'd always be together.

  A jumble of random memories flooded into her mind, causing her chest to constrict in pain. She remembered seeing Todd at basketball practice the week before, wearing cutoff blue sweatpants and a canary yellow T-shirt. She'd stopped by to see him after school, and he'd turned and sent her a kiss, mouthing "I love you" in the air. She saw his brown eyes staring at her intensely at Miller's Point, a popular parking spot high above Sweet Valley. And then she saw herself and Todd together in the park one afternoon years ago, when they had shared their first, tentative kiss. . . .

  Elizabeth curled her legs underneath her and wrapped her blanket around her shoulders. She didn't know how she was going to make it through the school year. Sweet Valley was full of too many memories. She reached over and picked up the framed picture of Todd from her bookshelf. He was smiling at her, and his deep brown eyes were warm and trusting. She quickly put it back, laying it face down on the shelf. How could you throw it all away, Todd? she thought in pain, hot tears coming to her eyes. How could you betray me like this? How could you betray us like this?

  Tears trickled down her cheeks, and she jumped up, brushing them angrily away. She couldn't let herself go to pieces. After all, she still had her pride. It was bad enough that Todd had fallen in love with someone else, but he had cheated on her—at her own workplace. Elizabeth shook her head in disgust. She had thought that Todd was different from other guys. She had thought he cared about things that really mattered. But no, as soon as a supermodel walked into the vicinity, he was history.

  A flash of lightning illuminated the sky and a blast of rain shot through the open window. Shivering, Elizabeth pulled the window shut. Then she prowled across the room, feeling restless. She didn't know what to do with herself. She wanted to talk to someone. Jessica was wonderful, but she needed a friend who would truly understand her situation—like Enid. Enid always managed to make her feel better. She was levelheaded and could always give Elizabeth a sense of perspective about things.

  Picking the phone up from her nightstand, she carried it to the floor and plopped down on the carpet, bringing her knees up to her chest. She punched in Enid's number, waiting as the phone rang. But no one answered, and she hung up when Mrs. Rollins's answering machine picked up.

  Elizabeth blinked back tears, feeling a little desperate for support. She stared at the number pad, wondering if she should call Maria. She had been giving her friends the brush-off lately, and they were probably mad at her. But then again, they were her best friends. They would understand. They would be there for her.

  Without thinking about it any further, Elizabeth quickly dialed Maria's number. She twisted the phone cord around her finger as the phone rang. Maria, please be there, she thought.

  Finally Maria picked up. "Yes?" she asked, her voice giddy. Elizabeth breathed a sigh of relief.

  "Maria, it's Elizabeth," she said.

  "Oh, hi, Elizabeth," Maria responded, her voice turning distinctly cold. Elizabeth winced. Then she heard giggling in the background.

  "Is this a bad time?" Elizabeth asked. "Is somebody over?" She twisted the phone cord tighter in her hand, nearly cutting off the circulation in her fingers.

  "Enid is staying over tonight," Maria explained, her voice clipped and distant. "We're helping each other out with stuff for our internships."

  "Oh," Elizabeth said softly, hit with a pang of jealousy. Enid and Maria never used to hang out without her. "Why didn't you invite me?" she asked, trying to keep the hurt out of her voice.

  "Hmm," Maria said. "Just a minute." Elizabeth could tell she had covered the receiver with her hand, but her muffled voice came through anyway. "Enid, Elizabeth wants to know why we didn't invite her over." Elizabeth heard the girls giggle, and tears welled up in her eyes again. What was going on? Was the whole world turning on her?

  Enid got on the phone a moment later. "Hi, Elizabeth, it's Enid," she said.

  "Hi," Elizabeth replied tentatively.

  Enid's voice was cold. "In answer to your question, we weren't aware that you'd have time to hang out with two peons like us. You've been so busy with the power players that we didn't want to disturb you."

  Elizabeth didn't even have the energy to respond. She said good-bye quietly and hung up the phone.

  Elizabeth wrapped her arms around her body, feeling worse than she had before. She was completely alone in the world. First she lost Todd. Now she'd lost her two best friends.

  The rain pelted down around her, enveloping her in her solitude.

  "What horrible weather!" Enid exclaimed later that evening as she and Maria ducked out of the beating rain into the Dairi Burger, Sweet Valley's most popular teenage hangout. Enid shivered as she took off her raincoat and hung it up on a peg.

  Maria closed her dilapidated umbrella with difficulty and then dropped it into the bucket by the door. "I don't know why I bothered bringing that," Maria said, looking down at the umbrella in dismay. It was so windy that the umbrella had turned inside out, and the girls had gotten soaked during the short walk from the parking lot to the restaurant. A bolt of thunder rocked the sky, and a gust of cool wind shot through the door.

  Enid pushed the door shut and wrapped her olive green cardigan sweater tightly around herself. "Let's take a booth in the back," she suggested. "It'll be warmer farther away from the door."

  Despite the bad weather, the restaurant was hopping. The booths were jammed with students talking and laughing in groups. Pings and bleeps sounded from the game room.

  Enid headed for a booth in back, Maria a step behind her. A series of whistles and catcalls followed in their wake.

  "Lookin' good!" Bruce Patman, the richest and most arrogant student at Sweet Valley High, called out.

  "Foxy mama!" yelled out Paul Jeffries.

  Enid turned to see the commotion. A bunch of senior guys at a corner table were staring at Maria, practically drooling.

  Enid shook her head. "Looks like you're creating a stir, as usual," she said with a grin. "You've still got that movie star aura."

  Maria rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on," she scoffed, taking Enid's arm and hurrying her to the back. "Toilet paper commercials do not a movie star make."

  Even though Maria looked like a movie star, Enid knew she didn't want to be treated like one. Maria had been a successful film and commercial actress as a child. But when she hit puberty, the roles had stopped coming. Her family had recently moved back to Sweet Valley from New York, and now she wanted more than anything to be a normal teenager.

  "Well, you do look pretty chic," Enid said, glancing at her friend admiringly. With her funky retro look, Maria had a style all her own. Tonight she was wearing a pale blue forties dress with huge square buttons and thick army boots on her feet. An exotic green silk scarf was tied over her head, hiding her hair completely. "Maybe you should be interning at Flair magazine."

  "Ugh," Maria groaned, sliding into the booth opposite Enid. She pulled off her scarf and ran a finger through her short-cropped dark curly hair. "Don't even mention that name." She shivered and wrapped the scarf around her neck, tying it adeptly at the back.

  Enid shook her head. "I don't know what's gotten into Elizabeth lately."

  A waiter appeared at their table, and the girls quickly placed their orders—fries and shakes for both of them.

  Maria spoke in a low voice after the waiter had left. "You know, I'm worried about Elizabeth—she isn't acting like herself."

  "You can say that again," Enid agreed. "She's acting like some self-centered fashion plate. I would say that she's turned into Jessica—but in this case, that's being kind."

  Maria frowned. "I don't know, Enid. Maybe something's going on that we don't know about. I've known Elizabeth forever, and I've never seen her act like this. She's not usually inconsiderate—or egotistical. And she's never been interested in fashion."

  It's true, Enid thought. Usually Elizabeth was a totally loyal friend, and Enid could always count on her. But ever since she'd gotten her internship, Elizabeth had become an entirely different person. She was preoccupied, and all she talked about was herself. She had completely ignored Enid and Maria all week, and Wednesday night had been the last straw. In order to make up for neglecting them, Elizabeth had invited them to meet her in L.A. to go to a cappuccino bar after work. Enid and Maria had endured two bus rides and three traffic jams to meet Elizabeth downtown, only to find that Elizabeth couldn't make it because her boss wanted her to stay late. Elizabeth hadn't even been the slightest bit apologetic. Enid and Maria had been furious.

  The waiter set down strawberry shakes and two plates of fries in front of them. Enid squeezed out a mound of ketchup on her plate and grabbed a few fries hungrily.

  Maria bit her lip. "Maybe we should invite her to meet us tonight," she said thoughtfully. "She sounded upset on the phone." She pulled the wrapper off her straw and took a long draw on her shake.

  Enid looked at her friend in shock. "Maria, are you crazy? Did you forget about Wednesday night already?"

  Maria shrugged, dragging a fry through Enid's ketchup. "Well, we had fun anyway."

  After Elizabeth ditched them, Enid and Maria decided to make the best of being in L.A. They had strolled down Rodeo Drive and peeked in all the shops. Then they had gotten their pictures taken in a color photo booth and had gone dancing at an underage club. The teenage crowd had been a bit too superficial for their tastes, but they'd had a fantastic evening anyway.

  "Hey, that reminds me," Enid said, her eyes lighting up. "There's a guy at my literary agency who saw the pictures we took in the booth the other day. His name is Shane Maddox, he's an editorial assistant, and he's dying to meet you."

  Maria shook her head, waggling a fry at Enid. "Forget it. After my disastrous date with Kevin yesterday, I'm swearing off all guys. At least guys I don't know."

  Kevin Anderson was the set manager at the theater, and they'd gone out for lunch to an artsy little bistro. Maria had been talking about her date for days, but it turned out they had nothing in common. She'd said they spent an hour talking about California weather.

  Enid shrugged. "Oh, well, too bad. Because Shane's pret-ty cu-ute."

  "What does he look like?" Maria asked. "Just out of curiosity," she added quickly.

  Enid crossed her legs and leaned back in the booth. "Well, let's see. He's about six feet tall, broad-shouldered, and handsome. Plus, he has beautiful ebony skin." Enid knew that the last detail would get Maria. Even though her friend didn't prefer any single type, she had a soft spot for really dark-skinned guys.

  Maria's eyes widened, but Enid waved a dismissive hand in the air. "Oh, well . . . too bad. I'll just tell him you're not interested."