At First Bite Read Online Free Page A

around and chatting. There are the Goth girls, alldressed in black with torn tights and sullen expressions. There are the geeky boys, crowding around someone’s laptop (Dylan would fit in with them). There are the jocks, wearing gym shorts and the school colors, orange and gold.
    Then I zero in on
my
kind.
    In the center of the classroom stand three girls. One has a copper-colored ponytail and bronzed skin. She’s wearing a white dress cinched with a yellow belt and matching yellow flats. The second girl is petite, with straight black hair. She wears denim shorts paired with boots — very LA. And the girl who’s speaking, holding the attention of the other two, looks like a Barbie come to life. Blond ringlets fall to her shoulders and her lips are glossy. She has on a pink T-shirt, a floral-print skirt, and the same wedge espadrilles that
I own.
    The way the blond girl holds herself — one hand on her hip, smiling coolly at her friends — reminds me of someone. Then I realize: She reminds me … of myself. This girl is the Ashlee Lambert of Santa Monica Academy.
    Or, at least, the Ashlee I used to be, before bats starting showing up at my bedroom window.
    But somehow, seeing this girl fills me withconfidence. What was I so nervous about? I’m still
me.
And I’m still going to start fresh. Starting now.
    I lift my chin, take off my sunglasses, and march toward the popular girls. Some of the Goths and jocks look at me, shocked. Clearly, other new kids usually aren’t so brave.
    I come to a stop in front of the blond girl. She pauses mid-sentence and raises an eyebrow at me.
    “Hi,” I say. “I’m Ashlee Lambert. I just moved here from New York City.”
    The blond girl purses her lips. The two others watch her, waiting. I feel my palms start to sweat.
    “Hi there, Ashlee,” the blond says at last, her voice almost too sugary sweet. “I’m Paige Olsen. Introduce yourselves, girls,” she adds, keeping her eyes on me.
    “I’m Wendy Lee,” says the black-haired girl, giving me a tiny, hesitant smile.
    “Carmen Espinoza,” says the girl with the ponytail, her voice curt.
    “Nice to meet you,” I say, looking right at Paige.
    My heart lifts with hope. This is it. These girls will welcome me into their fold, make me the fourth member of their crew. I picture all of us going shopping in Beverly Hills. Hanging out in one another’s bedrooms. Getting mani-pedis. Maybe Eve andMallory will fly out to visit me, and the six of us will all have fun together.
    And soon enough, I’ll nudge Paige out of the way.
I’ll
be the one that the other girls pay closest attention to, and that every kid in the school will know.
    “So tell us, Ashlee,” Paige says slowly, tapping one espadrille against the floor. I wish desperately that I’d worn
my
espadrilles today, but my feet were too sore and red. As if she knows what I’m thinking, Paige’s eyes travel from my bulky sneakers up to my face. “Are you in …
disguise?”
she asks.
    Wendy and Carmen titter, and my stomach sinks.
    “Yeah,” Carmen jumps in. “Are you, like, a spy or something?”
    “Or maybe she’s cold,” Wendy coos.
    Flustered, I yank off my sun hat. How did I forget to remove it? I shake out my hair, hoping the girls will notice its lustrous quality and realize that
I’m one of them.
And I’m not dressed
that
atrociously. I even have a designer bag! I try to hold it up in a subtle way.
    But I can tell it’s too late. The girls are exchanging knowing glances and rolling their eyes.
At me.
Alump forms in my throat. This isn’t supposed to be happening!
    I open my mouth to explain about my sunburn — although, would that make me sound even dorkier? — but then the bell rings. Kids start to take their seats.
    “Later,
Rash
-lee,” Paige drawls, leading Carmen and Wendy away. The girls burst into giggles, and I hear Carmen murmur, “Did you see how her hands were all red?”
    Hot tears blur my vision and I drop into the first available