Hell Week by Rosemary Clement-Moore Read Free Book Online Page B

the "real" paper.

    "Who do you think it is?"

    My ears perked up while I stood at the Starbucks kiosk in the student union, watching like a vulture as the barista steamed the milk for my latte. Somehow I'd made it through my eight o'clock class on only one cup of coffee, but now I needed a high-octane infusion ASAP.

    A second girl answered the first. "I think it's that skinny girl from Sutter Hall. You know, the one with the Lisa Loeb glasses. She looks like that snobby intellectual type."

    "She can't look like the type. That would defeat the pur- pose of being incognito."

    "Is that what you're wearing?"

    Since I'd been shamelessly eavesdropping, it took a mo- ment to realize the question was directed at me. Turning, I saw Hillary with her hands on her hips, the RG on her chest standing out like a blazon. It's a bird, it's a plane, it's . . . Rho Gamma Girl.

    I pointed to my new name tag. "Look. No graffiti."

    Her blond ponytail whipped back and forth as she shook her head. "You look like you just rolled out of bed."

    As a matter of fact, I had just rolled out of bed and into a clean pair of jeans, a T-shirt, and a worn Bedivere U. hoodie, then on to my eight o'clock calculus lecture. There had to be something unhealthy about math that early in the morning.

    "Sorry. I guess I should have dressed up for class. Like that." I pointed to a pair of Kappa Phis walking by wearing the exact same thing I was, except their hoodies said and they had standard Greek-issue ponytails instead of un- ruly dark brown bobs.

    Hillary huffed in annoyance, then waved the subject aside, back to serious Panhellenic business. "Forget it. I'm asking everyone"--she addressed the girls at the table, too, unfurling the newspaper that had been rolled up in her hand--"if you have any idea who this is."

    No question who she meant, but in the interest of clarity she pointed to the anonymous silhouette beside the byline-- not Secret Squirrel, to my great disappointment, but the Phantom Rushee. "We were just discussing that," said one of the gossiping girls. They all had name tags pinned to their T-shirts. The speaker was Lindsey. "Brianna thinks she knows someone."

    Brianna didn't look happy to be put on the spot. "I said I knew someone who looked like the type."

    "And I still say she won't be a type," argued a third girl.

    "There's no way she can completely hide it," volleyed Brianna. "Surely it will show."

    "What will show?" I asked, figuring it would be suspi- cious to remain silent.

    "That she's not one of us, of course."

    Maybe that was the purpose of the ubiquitous ponytail-- to show there were no sixes on the back of any necks.

    Hillary saved me from saying this aloud and wasting good material for my next article. "Since you girls know each other best, Panhellenic is asking for your help. Just keep your ears open, and if you have any ideas who this Phantom Rushee might be, you'll tell one of the Rho Gammas."

    The rushees nodded, and I did, too, projecting inno- cence and cooperation as hard as I could. Maybe a little too hard, since Hillary's glance lingered on me, a little too long and a little too narrow-eyed. Possibly she suspected me, possibly just disliked me, but clearly I'd better tone down the smart-ass a bit if I wanted to avoid the scrutiny of the Panhellenic Council, which was starting to scare me just by reputation.

    "Where are you going tonight?" she asked me, meaning, of course, which houses had invited me back.

    "The same as last night." Meaning all of them had, since I'd been on my best behavior. The only one that surprised me was the Sigma Alpha Xis, since the girl there--Devon--had said outright that they were fairly exclusive. But maybe she'd put in a good word for me.

    "Don't be late this time," Hillary chided. "Recruitment is serious business, and the houses need to know if you are committed."

    I nodded obediently, and she left to continue her witch hunt. No falsehood there. I certainly agreed that we should