Social Order by Melissa de La Cruz Read Free Book Online

only fair: This show was Lauren’s thing. For now. Ashley had every intention of making sure the cameras were pointed her way as often as possible.
    To Ashley’s surprise, the producers weren’t old and boring at all. In fact, they dressed more like college students than television executives. They were even younger than her parents, Ashley guessed. The female producer was Tiffany, a friendly-looking Asian girl intrim black pants and a fitted shirt, clutching a bulging leather Filofax.
    The two guys were Matt and Jasper, both in T-shirts and jeans and somewhat interchangeable, with their shaggy hair and five o’ clock shadows. Matt laid his laptop open on the marble-top coffee table, clambering to his feet to shake their hands. Jasper had a British accent, which seemed to make the whole meeting even more exciting. Mrs. Page was acting like he was Orlando Bloom, gushing over him like a besotted fan.
    Ashley’s parents were embarrassing sometimes, like when they kissed each other in public, or when her father played his Phish records when her friends were over. But they had nothing on Lauren’s mother, their self-appointed driver and chaperone. She was dressed like an extra in Pirates of the Caribbean , her hair tied with a gaudy bandanna, her white shiny stretch pants too tight, and her gold leather sandals laced tightly around her plump ankles.
    The Pages had only been rich for about the last five minutes, and Mrs. Page hadn’t learned yet that you shouldn’t buy everything you see in a Vogue Versace ad and wear it all at once.
    â€œShall I order tea?” Trudy asked Jasper in whatsounded like a quasi-British accent of her own, and Ashley raised her eyebrows at A. A., sitting on the other side of the table next to Tiffany. Lauren must have noticed: She flushed bright pink. Ashley would have felt sorry for her, but why bother? Lauren should be grateful the Ashleys were there at all, willing to be pretend-friends with her. Without them, her show would be canceled after one episode.
    â€œI’ve already asked for iced teas for everyone—is that okay?” Tiffany said with a smile, cracking open her giant organizer. “I know we all have a time crunch, so we should get down to business right away.”
    â€œOf course,” said Ashley, giving Tiffany her friendliest smile.
    Tiffany told them the concept of the show: five groups of friends in five big cities, competing to be the “Preteen Queen” of their hometown.
    â€œWhat do you mean compete?” Lauren asked. “My dad didn’t say anything about the show being a competition.”
    â€œYeah, is it like America’s Got Talent or something?” said A. A., who didn’t look too excited about that aspect either. “I thought it was supposed to be like The Hills .”
    â€œIt is like The Hills ,” Jasper said soothingly. “That’swhy we wanted a group of friends—we wanted to show what life as a tween is really like, all the highs, the lows, the laughter, and the drama.”
    â€œThe catfights, you mean,” said Lili wisely.
    â€œWe like to think of it as creating tension,” Matt put in, grinning.
    â€œAnd who decides the winner?” Ashley asked, her mind already racing to figure out how to slay her rivals—er, her friends.
    â€œThe audience, of course,” Tiffany told them. “The first five episodes will showcase a group of girls in five different cities. After each show, the audience votes. Only one girl from each city will be selected to go on to the next round.
    â€œThe five winners will be flown out to live in a penthouse in New York for two weeks to battle it out for the national title. Whoever wins gets a contract with a top talent agent, a publicist, a once-in-a-lifetime shopping spree, and the cover of Teen Vogue .”
    New York City! It was Ashley’s dream to live in New York, especially with a team ready to take her to the social