Page 131 of Fraternizing with the Enemy
I looked around the dancefloor again, but couldn’t find the girl wearing a golden gown.
“For our queen,” the DJ began, drawing out the word and anticipation as long as possible. Everyone seemed to hold their breath and lean in, as if they wanted to be the first to hear the name uttered. “Madison Oliphant!”
I almost convinced myself I imagined him saying my name, or it was one of those weird flukes where words justsoundedlike other words. But, no, everyone in the gym turned to me, filling the air with a roar of applause. Maisie’s eyebrows were raised in surprise, but she clapped anyway.
Connor’s expression, though, reflected my thoughts. There was no way I should’ve won. People voted on Monday, before anything hit the fan. Everyone would’ve voted for Jade and Connor—there wasn’t a doubt in my mind. Something was wrong.
Maisie took my clutch from me at the same time that someone shoved me from behind, hard enough that I stumbled in my heels, barely managing to catch my footing. When I turned, there was no one there. A girl I didn’t know grabbed my arm and pulled me forward, and then someone else replaced her hands. Like a leaf, faceless students carried me forward through the stream of people, toward the middle of the dancefloor where the spotlight shined.
Mrs. Diego came up with a silver tiara and sash, and I lowered my head reflexively, even though my pulse was racing. “Congratulations, dear,” she said with a smile, one I couldn’t muster to return.
Something’s wrong.
“And for our king.” The DJ pulled out yet another dramatic pause. “Logan Castle!”
A collective sound of confusion rose through the gathered students, because most of them had most likely never heard the name Logan Castle in their lives.
For a split second, I imagined it like a horror movie—that Logan would walk through the crowd of people. Or, even more dramatically, Jade would have him by the hand, somehow having kidnapped him and forced him into the Brentwood gymnasium.
But no, the Jefferson High quarterback didn’t walk onto the dancefloor.
Ashton Shaw did. He had his tie wrapped around his head, the top three buttons on his collar undone, and his hair mussed. In his hands, he held what looked like a huge stack of printer paper, hugged to his chest so I couldn’t see what was on it. “Extra, extra!” he called while staring straight at me, gathering the papers in his grip. “Read all about it!”
And then he flung them upward, creating a confetti bomb of white.
I flinched, shielding my face from papercuts, but the students around me scrambled to snag sheets of their own. Ashton disappeared through the crowd, letting out awhoopthat was somehow louder than the excited chatter of voices and papers passed around.
Someone thrust a piece of paper into my hand, and an arm came around my back. I turned to find Kyle standing there, his dance attire mussed like Ashton’s, except his tie wasn’t wrapped around his head. “That dress looks good on you, Maddie,” he told me with a wild grin, and without hesitating, he pressed a wet, hard kiss to my cheek.
Kyle swung away as I wiped away his slobber, barely fighting the urge to vomit. I looked down at the paper he’d shoved into my grip. It was a picture, one I immediately recognized.
The picture Maisie had taken of Logan and me in my yard.
BRENTWOOD BABBLE EXCLUSIVE
Scan the QR code to reveal the secret couple!
By the time I’d read it and processed what it meant, almost everyone in the gym had their phones out, their screens glowing up onto their faces.
I didn’t have my phone—I’d given my clutch to Maisie. I searched for her, and by some chance, I had a straight line through the gathered groups of students. Maisie and Connor were huddled close together, peering at the bright screen of his phone. In almost slow motion, their heads lifted, gaze locking onto me.
In fact,everyonehad turned toward me. I had a feeling it wasn’t because of the plastic crown.
“Uh.” The DJ sounded uncomfortable. “So… Logan Castle?”
This is it, then, I thought, the urge to laugh bubbling up.So this is when the shoe drops.
Maisie suddenly was in front of me, her hand gentle on my forearm. “Come on,” she urged.
She wasn’t the only person suddenly in front of me, either. The students who’d been surrounding me now pressed in, swelling as if the crowd had taken a deep breath. Phones with their flash on were bright in my eyes, blinding me.
“Itwasyou in that Babble post?”
“Madison, you’re dating aBulldog?”
“How could you!”
“Who knew you were such a bully?”
