Read Pretending to Be Erica for Free Online

hideout or something. Mr. Harold is a jerk, gives way too much homework. And don’t say the word
fat
in Ms. Anderson’s class. She flips.”
    “Right.” I smother a laugh.
    “Nacho day is Wednesday—it’s the only lunch worth eating.”
    “No good tacos?” I lament.
    “I know this great place around the corner that has awesome tacos.” Her eyes light up. She whips out her cell phone. “Here, give me your number.”
    Smile a lot; be pleasant. This friend thing doesn’t seem so hard. It’s like conning, but without the lure of scoring money. The bell rings. Merril offers me her hand. I take it and stand.
    “Your first period is Roth, right? Let’s go.”
    Merril leads me through the crowd, all of us in the same uniforms of plaid and blazers. Paintings line the main hall, and polished wood floors gleam. Everyone in the world says hi to Merril, and she slings some intimate inside joke back to each of them. She’s obviously popular. I fight the urge to smile at people. The real me—Violet—burns to talk to someone. Being in a huge crowd of people my age lights up every nerve. But I’m Sal’s protégé down to the subconscious bone. I keep my eyes from meeting anyone’s gaze—the more evasive and mysterious I am, the more damaged I’ll seem. Erica is damaged.
    Merril pulls me into Mr. Roth’s class. He nods. “Good morning, Erica. Hello, Merril.”
    “Mr. Roth, can’t Erica sit by me?” Merril pouts. “Taylor can switch into her seat, right?”
    “Maybe if you get on your knees and beg my permission, popular, I’ll think about it.” The voice comes from the black-haired glaring girl slumped in her seat. Her eyeliner is even thicker today. She puts her feet up on the empty chair in front of her. So her name’s Taylor. Merril smiles sweetly.
    “It’s not like I’m asking you to jump off a cliff, Taylor. But if you’d do that, too, I’m sure everyone would appreciate it.”
    “There’ll be no need for that kind of animosity.” Mr. Roth clears his throat. “Taylor will remain where she is. Erica, please sit in the seat I assigned you.”
    Merril shoots me an apologetic look. Mr. Roth goes over matrices, and boredom numbs my brain. I finish the sheet he assigns for homework in five minutes, but stow it away to turn in tomorrow with everyone else. James Anders, the blond boy next to me, sleeps through the whole class, but the worksheet under his head is half-finished with right answers. He obviously got bored like I did, and gave up.
    Second rule of conning: set up contacts. Merril is the first of my information pipelines. She’s one of the most popular juniors in the school, with friends in all grades. If I maintain my friendship with her, I’ll know about everyone and everything.

    “Taylor is the daughter of a lawyer, so she acts superior all the time.” Merril sips her soda. “The kid you sit next to—James Anders. His dad’s a concert pianist or something. Totally a lazy slacker. He sleeps in every class and lies to get out of PE.”
    “He seemed nice.” I pick at my salad. Erica is skinny. Violet, on the other hand, wants beef. I try to imagine the salad as a massive cheeseburger. Merril sniffs.
    “Not worth your attention, trust me. Now, Kerwin over there.” She nods to a group at a table, where a dark-haired boy sits surrounded by friends. Instantly, I can tell he’s the one she’s talking about—too handsome to look at without getting blinded. “British transfer student. Well, technically Wales, but whatever. Captain of the varsity soccer team, takes all AP classes, and did I mention he’s hot as hell?”
    “You didn’t have to say it; it’s obviously one of those facts of life.” My eyes flicker away, looking for James. Does he eat in the cafeteria? His skinny frame makes me think he doesn’t eat at all.
    A girl with a very noticeable chest walks up to our table, smiling. “Erica, is it really you?”
    Brown hair, round face, about 5'5". My mind flicks back to the