The Mayfair Moon Read Online Free PDF Page A

question on the price was my way of saying I liked it. “What size are you?” She looked me over once, contemplatively. “Small? Maybe a medium?”
    “Medium fits good.”
    Beverlee glimpsed the tag and finally placed it in one of those skinny, upright carts made specifically for upscale clothing stores.
    “Thanks,” I said.
    We moved slowly through the aisles. Every. Single. Aisle.
    “Do you think Alexandra will like this?” she said about a dozen tops, a watch, two pairs of jeans and even bras and panties.
    I picked out a few likely outfits for Alex and then it was over to the shoe store. After thirty minutes there, Beverlee insisted we stop for lunch. She was full of energy, but I liked her. And I could tell that maybe she was a little lonely and I was perfect for filling some kind of void in her life. Uncle Carl wasn’t exactly the outgoing type and I could see why Beverlee might seek human interaction elsewhere. Really, Uncle Carl was kind of monotone.
    My first day at Hall-Dale was just about the way I expected it to be. Uncle Carl dropped me off on his way to work and the few students hanging around out front stared at me as though they’d never seen a thing like me before. I slipped down one long hallway lined by art-filled walls and made my way into the front office. It smelled of cinnamon candles and hospital soap. A man in a navy work jumpsuit stood high atop a ladder with his hands buried in the flickering fluorescent light fixture above him.
    “Good morning,” a woman at the front desk greeted. “How can I help you?” She wore tons of gaudy jewelry on her wrists and around her neck.
    “I’m new,” I said. “Adria Dawson.”
    “Ah yes, I have your class schedule right here.” She pulled a sheet of yellowish paper from somewhere behind the low counter and handed it to me. “Great to have you at Hall-Dale.”
    I smiled my thanks.
    “If you have any questions,” she went on, “or you need help finding your way around, just ask Julia.”
    I glanced around and behind me. The janitor repairing the light grumbled a curse under his breath and briefly sucked on the end of his fingertip.
    “Alright, it’s up and running, Mrs. Wiles,” a girl, who I assumed was Julia, said as she came around the corner from an office door. She added, “Just let the defrag finish.”
    “Julia, this is Adria...” Mrs. Wiles paused and glanced at me briefly.
    “Dawson,” I said.
    “Yes, Adria Dawson is new to the school,” she went on, “and if you wouldn’t mind showing her around, that’d be wonderful.”
    The girl tucked a book underneath her arm and smiled over at me, though she seemed faintly irritated. “Julia Morrow. I’m everybody’s hall-guide.” She walked fully around the counter, positioning her bag strap over her shoulder.
    I gave her a questioning look.
    “Oh no,” she said, realizing, “not that I mind at all, really.” She went to the office doors then. “This way—I think you’ll like it here.”
    I followed.
    “Wait.” Julia put up her arm in front of me.
    I froze at the door half a second before stepping back out into the hall. A small group of students walked past. Really loud. Gossiping about how some girl really ‘screwed up her hair’. Not until they were out of sight did Julia let me pass.
    “Drama Club,” she said. “As soon as they spot you, Dane Fethermore—totally gay, but don’t think I have anything against that—will either try to recruit you, or you’ll be their next target.”
    She led me out of the office just as the first bell rang. Students shuffled casually down the hall while a few darted past so quickly I felt the wind stir my hair.
    “Well, I’m not into Drama,” I said, “so they won’t be recruiting me .”
    Julia smiled over at me. “Not like real Drama Club,” she said. “They just stir up a lot of crap around the school.”
    Oh, that kind of drama, I thought.
    “Hey Jewels,” a guy said to Julia as he approached with a single book in