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"I'm serious."

"Okay, okay."

"Anyone who makes a reference to you know what from now on gets fined," Star declared in official tones.

"Fined? You mean, money?"

Star thought a moment and shook her head.

"No. The fine will be a punishment--whoever slips up has to do all the group's chores and fetching for the day." She turned and looked back at Jade, who raised her eyebrows. "I don't hear your vote, Jade."

"Yes," she shot back.

Star looked at me.

"Yes," I said with a shrug.

"Okay, okay," Misty said reluctantly, as if she could envision millions of trips to the shed or upstairs in the house to fetch this or that.

"Then it's unanimous. Shut your big mouths or else," Star concluded.

For a few moments, we rode in a dead silence.

"Let's begin at Fun Time in the mall," Misty requested. "They've got great stuff: posters, things to hang, black lights, everything! After that, we'll get new curtains for Cat's room and look for some new bedding."

She was so excited, she made me feel like it was nearly Christmas.

"That sounds good and then we'll go to Vogue City and check out some of the new clothes. Cat needs something decent for parties," Jade said.

"What parties?" I asked.

"Parties I'll have and parties we'll have at the club," she replied.

I smiled to myself. My house had become the club in their minds. Would it ever in mine?

Misty drove up to the entrance so I wouldn't have to walk that far. Then she parked while we waited. Minutes later, the four of us entered the mall and as we walked around the lower level, I could see the way we attracted attention, Jade and Star seemed very aware of the looks we were getting, especially from men.

"What are you looking at?" I heard Star mutter under her breath when two rather good looking, young black man stared our way. She gazed quickly at me. "Don't look back at them," she warned.

"What?"

"Keep your eyes focused ahead and get so you can see them out of the corners. That way they don't feel you're encouraging them to be bold, and if they say something to you, just pretend you didn't hear," Star advised.

"They're not looking at me anyway," I said.

"They will," Jade predicted, "when I'm finished with you."

It gave me a happy, excited feeling. My heart fluttered and my face got warm. She and Star had an electricity about them as if they were made of magnets, pulling and turning eyes their way with every step they took. I heard boys whistle and many tried to get our attention. Misty laughed.

Jade smiled at me.

"We break hearts," she said with pride. "That's what we do."

I had to laugh, too, but really at the thought that I could fill any boy with so much longing, he'd be crushed if I didn't pay him any attention. That was usually my fate, not the boy's. Maybe though, maybe what the girls had would rub off on me. I certainly felt more imp

ortant just being with them.

At our first stop, Misty bought hundreds of dollars worth of decorations, posters, and pictures. I relied on their tastes and advice to make choices, embarrassed about not knowing who this actor was or that singer. Then we chose my new bedding and curtains.