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“Fuck, Arabella!” Charlene hissed. “Why’d you do that? She’s bleeding.”

“She’ll tell on us now,” Christine agreed. She planted her hands on her

hips, daring June to do any such thing and see what happened.

Aberdeen just stood there, looking decidedly sorry and out of place, but

there was no way she was going to risk her status with the popular crowd to

say anything. She turned her gaze down to her white gladiator sandals. That

was the shit thing about Fairfield. They viewed themselves as progressive

for having abolished uniforms, but it just made everything worse for kids

like June. Granted, there weren’t many scholarship kids, so not many

looked out of place.

Arabella looked smug. “She wouldn’t tell anyone.” She sounded very

certain about that. “She’s clumsy. She opened her locker and the book fell

out right onto her face.” She stared June down menacingly, one perfectly

waxed and lightened brow raised in challenge. “Isn’t that right, Charity

Case?”

June said nothing. She bent and picked up her textbook. Her lip was

leaking all over the place, and she dipped further into the shadow of her

locker in search of a tissue. She told herself that Arabella hadn’t meant to

hurt her when she’d hurled the book at her. Had she? Was she really that

vicious?

Why does she hate me so much? I’ve never done anything to her.

It was very obvious that June was smarter, but the last thing Arabella

seemed to care about was intelligence. School wasn’t about academics for

girls like Arabella. That was the last thing on their mind.

June sensed she was alone, and when she peeked over her shoulder,

Arabella and her mean-girl gang had moved off. June was thankful that at

least the textbook hadn’t hit her glasses and broken them. That would be the

last thing she needed. Her face ached and stung, but she’d already stopped

the blood by pinching her lip for a few minutes. She tucked her book back

into her locker, shut the door firmly, and walked quickly towards the