Apple's Angst (27 page)

“Hey, remember me?” Apple asked loudly and boldly, extracting her inner Happy, bending down and looking at Sloan Starr directly. “My hair is different. I work at
Angst
magazine. We met a couple weeks ago. You were walking out and I was in the reception area.”

Sloan looked at her and Apple felt her heart sink. She was mortified. He didn't seem to remember her at all.

“
Angst
magazine? I was in the waiting room?” Apple repeated. “I used to have very curly hair.”

“Right! Hair Girl!” he said, slapping his hands on the table. “The one with the gorgeous curls.”

“Right!” Apple said and laughed with relief. She hadn't exactly made a fool of herself. “Well, it's different now. Obviously.”

“I like it,” said Sloan. “I'm really digging it. It's hot! Why don't you sit down? Join us!”

Sloan patted a spot next to him, and immediately the guy sitting next to him got up and left, making room for Apple. She sat down.

“Hi,” said Apple. She didn't have anything else prepared to say.

“Hi,” Sloan said. “Again.”

They stared at each other. Apple's confidence was beginning to wane. She needed to think of something to say other than hi.

She looked over at Emme, who was beaming at her. Apple waved her over. Emme jumped up. When she got to the table, Apple introduced her to Sloan Starr. Immediately, Emme made herself comfortable.

“So how did you end up at
Angst?
You want to be a tabloid reporter or something?” Sloan asked Apple.

“Right. Don't you know who she is?” Emme asked, laughing. Obviously, Emme had been listening in on their conversation. Apple knew what Emme was about to say, but for some reason she didn't care. Apple was thrilled to be surrounded by new people, and amazed at how confident she had been to stride up to Sloan. Now he was talking to her! Every girl in her right mind would want to be in Apple's position.

“She's the daughter of Dr. Bee Bee Berg! You know, the Queen of Hearts,” Emme said, giggling. “You're in the presence of … well, the
Princess of Hearts.”

“No kidding,” said Sloan, looking at Apple with even more appraisal. “Dr. Bee Bee Berg has, like, a huge following!”

For once, Apple was completely proud to be her mother's daughter. Who knew her mother's name would impress cute, young celebrities like Sloan Starr?

“Do you have a boyfriend, Princess of Hearts?” Sloan asked.

“Do you have a girlfriend?” Apple shot back. She couldn't believe how easy it was to flirt with him.

“She does have a boyfriend, but there's trouble in paradise,” Emme said to Sloan, “so you might have a shot.”

Apple wasn't sure if she should be mortified or grateful that Emme had shared this news with Sloan.

“We should hang sometime.” Sloan grinned at Apple. “In fact, I'm coming by
Angst
next week as a guest on
Angst TV
. They begged me to come. You should come watch. That will make it more interesting for me, if there's a beautiful girl hanging around.”

“If they'll let me hang out,” Apple said. “I mean, I will be there. I have a one-minute spot on the show each week, but I'm not sure if they'll let me stick around to watch people's interviews.”

“Don't worry. I'll make it happen,” Sloan said. “So you're a TV star too?”

“Well, not like you. I mean, you get to meet and interview all the really cool people. And all my friends watch your show. I have no idea if anyone will even watch
Angst TV
, let alone the one minute I'm on it.”

Sloan nodded. “You think I'll ever meet your mom?” he asked.

“What?” Apple said, laughing.

“She's just so … she's so entertaining. Well, not her so much. But her guests? Who really has that much shit going on in their lives that they're willing to share? It's like watching a train wreck. You can't turn away.”

“I know exactly what you mean,” said Apple.

Sometime later in the night, Emme whispered in her ear, “See? I bet you've forgotten all about Zen and Lyon! Who are they, anyway, but just guys you've grown up with and go to school with?”

Apple found herself entranced with Sloan. He was gorgeous, charming, funny, and extremely confident in himself. Being around such confident people made Apple more confident too. Maybe confidence was contagious. She couldn't remember laughing so hard in a long time. And she had forgotten all about Zen and Lyon. Emme was right.

Emme took out her camera phone and started taking pictures of her friends. Apple wasn't sure, but it seemed like Emme was also taking photos of her talking to Sloan. Apple
hoped
she was. She'd get Emme to e-mail them to her so she could forward them to her friends. This was a night worth remembering.

Two hours later, sweat pouring from her face, Apple was both exhausted and exhilarated. She hadn't realized how late it now was. Though technically she didn't have a curfew, she knew if her parents heard her walk in at this hour, they would be far from thrilled. She had danced with Sloan, talked animatedly with his friends, and drunk too much. She hailed a cab and thought about how much fun she'd had. She wanted to leave on a high
note. She had offered to leave money on the table for their drinks, but Sloan had explained that it was taken care of, that he had some sort of arrangement with the club. Apple didn't question it. Emme's friends were fantastic. Sloan's friends were fantastic. It wasn't until she got home, letting herself in quietly as a mouse, and had shut her bedroom door that she realized Brooklyn and Happy hadn't shown up. What had happened to them? Apple found out soon enough, after grabbing her BlackBerry from her bag.

“We're outside! Can't get in. List!” was Happy's first text.

Happy's second: “Come get us!”

Her third: “Where are you?”

Finally, her fourth: “It's been thirty minutes. The doorman doesn't believe we're with you.”

The fifth: “We've left.”

Apple felt horrible, but there was no point in apologizing at this hour, especially by text or e-mail. It would be easier to explain in person. Her friends would understand. If Happy had been in the presence of Sloan Starr, surely she would have forgotten to check her texts as well.

Monday morning, Apple walked into Cactus High. She had spent almost all day in bed on Sunday, recovering from her Saturday night, and she felt energized, like she had drunk ten cups of coffee. She hadn't done any homework in days and the assignments were piling up,
but she brushed the thought away. She hadn't spoken with her friends the day before, as she'd spent most of her time sleeping and, when she was awake, organizing her clothes. Apple rushed to the Spiral Staircase, where Brooklyn and Happy had already gathered. Her aunt had been furious with Apple in the morning because Apple was running late. She couldn't decide what to wear and her aunt had huffed, “My God, you are driving me crazy. I want the old Apple back. The one who wore jeans and a tank top and didn't give a rat's ass about looking stylish. That Apple was so much easier. AND SHE DIDN'T KEEP PEOPLE WAITING!”

Apple had apologized to her aunt, and now she had to apologize to her friends for the mix-up on Saturday night.

“I'm so sorry,” she said to Happy and Brooklyn immediately, when she reached them.

Brooklyn gave her a half-hearted smile.

“What
happened
to you?” Happy asked. “We texted you, like, a billion times.”

“I know. I'm so sorry. I didn't get them until I got home. I was dancing, so I didn't get your messages,” explained Apple.

“You were
dancing?”
Brooklyn asked. “I can't believe it!”

“I was,” Apple said and she felt a smile creep on her face. Just thinking about how much fun she had had Saturday night made her gleeful.

“Please don't be pissed off. Honestly, it was just a mix-up. I should have checked for messages, but I totally forgot. You're not going to believe who I was hanging out with! Once you hear, you're not going to
be as pissed off, I promise,” Apple said, eager to spill the news about Sloan Starr.

“I'm
not
pissed because
I
didn't get to meet Sloan Starr and you were hanging out with him, even though
I'm
obsessed with how gorgeous he is and envy his job,” Happy said crankily. “I'm pissed because you invited us out and then forgot about us! And you're the one who asked us to meet you there.”

“I'm so sorry! I just—” Apple started to say. “Wait! How did you know that I was hanging out with Sloan Starr?”

She watched Happy and Brooklyn exchange glances.

“What?” Apple pressed her friends. “How did you guys know?”

Brooklyn handed her her iPhone. Apple grabbed it and looked at what was on it. She couldn't believe what she saw on the website Brooklyn had pulled up. It was a photograph of Apple looking very cozy with Sloan Starr. It looked like she was practically sitting on his lap. Had she really been that close to him?

“I don't believe this!” Apple cried. “What site is this?”

Happy told her it was one of the gossip websites—one that Apple had heard of but had never checked out.

“You're a celebrity now,” Happy said, sounding not overly friendly. “It says so right here under your picture. ‘Apple Berg, of
Angst
magazine and daughter of the Queen of Hearts, getting cozy with Sloan Starr.'”

“Obviously, you were having too good a time with Sloan Starr to remember your old friends,” Happy continued.

“That's not true, Happy. I invited you!” Apple
protested. She thought Happy was acting immature. But her mind was on the photo on that website. How had it gotten there?

“How do you think Lyon is going to feel when he sees this?” Brooklyn asked. “I mean, you know what I mean. I would feel bad if I were him, seeing my girlfriend like that.”

Apple hadn't even thought about that. She was still so shocked her photograph was on a gossip website. It was true that the photograph made Apple look very cozy with Sloan, and that she was spending time with another male who wasn't her boyfriend. Plus Apple knew now she couldn't tell Lyon that she had worked late at
Angst
, as she had planned to do if he asked what she had done on Saturday night.

“It wasn't like that!” Apple protested. “We just talked! I'll make it up to you guys. I promise. Please don't tell Lyon.”

“Of course we're not going to tell him,” said Happy, speaking for both her and Brooklyn. “But people are talking about it. All Sailor's friends are asking her for more information about it. Lyon is going to find out, unless he lives under a rock.”

Apple grabbed Brooklyn's iPhone one more time to look at the photo.

“I do look good, though, right?” Apple asked. “I mean, I don't look fat or ugly, right?”

Her friends simply nodded. Apple pretended not to notice the look they exchanged—once again, it was meant to happen behind her back, but Apple saw it, right in front of her face.

It was at that point that Apple realized her life really was changing drastically. She felt like she was having an out-of-body experience. Students in the hallways were looking at her and whispering as she walked by. Obviously, many other students aside from Brooklyn and Happy had seen the photo of her and Sloan. Apple wasn't sure if she felt embarrassed or pleased. But then, Apple thought, how many people get to hang out with Sloan Starr at a cool nightclub? Of course they're talking about her. Who wouldn't?

“I
just don't think we're working out,” Lyon said a couple of weeks later. He was driving her from school to
Angst
magazine. He had waited patiently—though, Apple noted, with a gloomy look on his face—as some of the younger students talked to Apple, asking for her autograph. A couple of them even asked if she was dating Sloan Starr. Apple just smiled politely. She didn't want to let them down, since they seemed to adore her and to want her to be dating Sloan. She felt that if she admitted the truth she would let them down. Apple barely spent any time with Lyon anymore. They saw each other briefly in the mornings, but Apple had been arriving to school later and later each day as she focused more and more on her appearance. Apple could only half blame this on choosing an
Angst-
worthy outfit. She had been staying out late at night a lot as well, going out to trendy hotspots with Emme after work, making it nearly impossible to drag herself
out of bed in the mornings. Lyon had never mentioned the photo on that gossip website of her with Sloan Starr. She had a feeling that he knew about it, and she was grateful that he didn't ask about it or demand an explanation. What could Apple say? She was not guilty of anything. She hadn't done anything but have some fun and meet new people. Apple hadn't brought it up either.