The Sweetest Thing Read Online Free PDF Page B

pillows.
    â€œAll this remodeling is making me
insane
,” she moaned. “You have no idea what it’s like, having people in your house all the time, moving your stuff around. It reminds me of
Mike’s Princesses
, when those horrible, horrible soundmen would string up microphones all over my kitchen and spy on my conversations.”
    â€œYou mean the kitchen on the
Mike’s Princesses
set?”
    â€œWell, yes, but it was the only kitchen I’d ever
known
.” Sara-Beth’s eyes filled with tears. “Couldn’t they allow a girl a little privacy?”
    I blinked, but fortunately Sara-Beth recovered before I had time to respond.” Anyway, I’m just so relieved to see you. Tell me,” she begged, grabbing my arm, “what’s happening out there in the real world? How’s … everything? How’s … school?”
    â€œSchool’s okay.” I stretched my legs out onto a dusty pink pillow. “I actually wanted to talk to you about Meredith and Judith, though.”
    â€œOh, Meredith and Judith!” Sara-Beth wriggled with delight. “They’re so adorable. The happy one and the smart one. Like Tweedledum and Tweedledee. Let’s all hang out soon!!”
    â€œDefinitely.” I nodded. “But yesterday when we were at the salon, Meredith was talking about this guy she likes, Adam—but then it turned out that Judith likes him, too. They’re pretending it’s okay, but I’m just worried the whole thing will spiral out of control, that they’ll get into a huge fight and none of us will be friends any more,” I said in a rush.
    Sara-Beth slapped her hands to her face in mock horror, and I couldn’t help but start cracking up. The situation did sound pretty ridiculous and overblown when I said it out loud.
    â€œI guess I’m worrying about it too much,” I admitted. “It’s just that they’re my only real friends at Stuy. Plus, something like this happened to them before, where they fought over the same guy and practically killed each other. So I guess I’m just scared that history will repeat itself.”
    Sara-Beth nodded sagely, her dangly gold earrings swinging around her face. “Oh, Flan, girls can be so silly. When I was your age, I was always getting into fights with my friends.”
    â€œReally?”
    â€œOf course! My friend Ashleigh-Ann Martin and I were always trying to get the same parts in movies and TV. If I went in to try out for a new pilot, she’d be there too, flirting with the casting assistant. If my agent was talking to some up-and-coming director, then her agent was on the other line. For a while there, we got really competitive. It almost ruined our friendship when I got the lead in
Blennophobia
and they accidentally assigned her to the catering crew.” Sara-Beth giggled at the memory.
    â€œSo what did you do?” I asked, running my fingers over the rough gold braiding that lined the seams of my pillow.
    â€œWell, we finally made a deal. If there was a project we both really, really wanted”—Sara-Beth leanedforward conspiratorially—”then neither of us would try to get it.”
    â€œReally? Neither of you?”
    â€œNope. Because if one of us got it, then we couldn’t be friends anymore, and neither of us would be happy.”
    â€œWow.” I pushed my hair behind my ear. “I mean, Meredith and Judith said they wouldn’t let a boy come between them again, but they just seemed so upset … and into him.”
    â€œYou can borrow my solution if you want. Set an official rule like I did with Ashleigh-Ann and then really make them stick to that promise.”
    â€œDo you think they’d agree to it?”
    â€œProbably. How do you feel about facing west? Are we facing west right now? Nada says we all think most clearly when we’re facing west.”
    I grinned and leaned over to give her an