imagine classes w/o u guys.
Ana: How IS it? Ur roomie? Ur room? BBM us pix.
Lauren: OK,OK! Will take TONS of pix. J Itâs amazing. Whisper loves it, 2, I think. My roomie, Khloe, is so cool. Her horseâs name is Ever. Bay mare w a « . Sooo cute!
Ana: Thatâs great, Laur! Iâm rlly glad u like Khloe. It would b awful if u guys hated each other.
Lauren: Def. R u ready for school?
Ana: OMG, thanks 2 Brielle (I think), I am TOO ready. She came over & even picked out my 1st day clothes.
Ana: I sketched Bri in action and it came out a giant blur.
Lauren: LOL.
Lauren: Thatâs my âAnaArtiste.â
I referenced her Chatter handle.
Ana: Has she BBMed u yet? Tay?
Lauren: Not yet. Prob scrambling 4 school.
Ana: Iâm sure theyâll b in touch soon. Weâll all b thinking about u & missing u!
Lauren: Same.
Khloe looked over at my frantic typing. âOld friends?â she asked with a smile.
âYeah,â I said. I returned her smile, but her use of the word âoldâ made me feel uneasy.
Lauren: Gotta run, but miss u and ttys!
Ana: Mwah! Ttyvs!
Lauren: VVS!
I locked my phone, shoving it back in my pocket.
I hadnât said anything to Ana, but I felt a little down that I hadnât heard from Brielle or Taylor. I could message them, but I was the one whoâd left and I didnât want to seem like a baby, like I was already homesick. Even though . . . technically . . . I might have been feeling a tiny bit sick. For . . . home-type things. I took a deep breath. Theyâd write soon.
They were just as busy as I was. Brielle was probably at the mallâher arms filled with piles of clothesâand Taylor was probably . . . no, definitely . . . in his pool, swimming laps. They werenât going to disappear just because Iâd switched schools.
âHey,â Khloe said, catching me off guard. âWant to go make some tea?â
Homey relief rushed through me. A cup of honey vanilla chamomile tea is exactly what I need, I thought. The ingredients always calmed me down.
âThat,â I said. âIs the best idea ever.â
I was beginning to realizeânew friends could sometimes make you feel just as good as old ones could.
TEA? PARTY!
THE COMMON ROOM IN HAWTHORNE LOOKED like something out of Charlotteâs Sarah Lawrence catalog.
A bunch of students were inside, two on a sectional sofa-slash-chaise watching the flat-screen mounted on the pastel purpleâpainted wall. Others, curled up in recliners, read or texted. The room, which Iâd expected to feel institutional, felt warm and inviting.
There were shelves of books and DVDs, a couple of gaming systems and a full kitchen. While I warmed the kettle on the stove, Khloe sat on the counter, talking to one of the girls Iâd met this morning. No matter how hard I tried, I couldnât remember her name!
Once Iâd finished making the tea, I made my way to Khloe and . . . and . . . ugh! I was going to seem so rudeif I made it obvious I didnât know her name. I tried, telepathically, to make Khloe say her name the second I got over to them.
âThis looks fun!â Khloe said, taking tea boxes from my hand. âLike we should have a tea party or something.â
What was her name?!
The girl brushed a stray curl out of her face and smiled at me. âI know we met in the frenzy of this morning. But youâve probably met a million people today. My name is Lexa Reed. Friend of drama-queen Khloe Kinsella.â
I breathed a huge sigh of relief.
âLexa, of course! Iâm Lauren Towers. New roommate of drama-queen Khloe Kinsella.â
âTowersâaha! Thatâs why Khloâs been calling you âLT,ââ said Lexa.
I raised an eyebrow at Khloe.
âThatâs right,â Khloe said, pointing at me. âYou have been nicknamed. I declared it so.â
I looked at Lexa. âI guess Iâve been nicknamed.â I laughed, not