The Doggy Divas: Roxy’s Rules (3 page)

So, I don't get it. I mean, Matt clearly likes Roxy
-
he's allowed, right? I overheard Liz ask him when they could finally hang out so she could tell him all about pageant camp. Poor Matt must not be the brightest bulb because he asked if Roxy could come too.

When Liz started interrogating him about why he wanted Roxy there, I knew he was in trouble. As expected, Liz freaked out when he revealed that he had been hanging out with Roxy while Liz was gone. No wonder he spilled the beans about their kiss!

Roxy was crying so hard she could barely see where she was going. She wanted to run past the school gates and keep going until she was far away from Liz, Matt, the dogs, and school.

I'll just start over, dye my hair, change my name. Is there a witness-protection program for girls shunned by their popular best friends?
Roxy wondered as she desperately tried to find somewhere quiet to hide for the rest of lunch.

She just wanted to find a safe spot to dry her tears and collect her thoughts. She finally collapsed under a shady tree far from the masses and pulled out a mirror to fix the blotchy makeup mess that was now all over her face. A few stray dogs came up to Roxy looking for affection, but she was in no mood.

“You dogs have ruined my day already—get out of here!” Roxy hissed. “Go on, move it!”

The dogs whimpered and tried to lick Roxy's face one last time before wandering off. Roxy felt bad, but she didn't have it in her to be nice to anyone right now—not even those confused and helpless dogs.

“You know, they just wanted you to pet their heads. Dogs are like people. They need reassurance.”

Roxy was startled that anyone was talking to her. She thought she'd picked a spot far enough away from human contact. But Kim Pierce stood a few feet from her—with the same dogs Roxy had shooed away now happily eating treats out of Kim's hands.

Great…I found my way to Dog Central Station
. Roxy let out a long, deep sigh.

“Um, that's nice,” she mumbled. She didn't mean to be rude, but she would much rather be alone than making small talk with Kim about dogs.

“I'm really not in the mood for any kind of company right now.”

Kim sighed, pulled a small ball out of her bag, and tossed it around with the pack of dogs that surrounded her.

Roxy buried her head in her hands. How had she managed to go in one day from seventh-grade queen to such a lonely outcast that Kim Pierce was the only person paying her an ounce of attention? Roxy felt the weight of someone else's eyes on her. She looked up. Georgia Sweeney was sitting a few feet away. She lowered her gaze when she realized that Roxy had noticed her staring. Georgia just snickered to herself while knitting fast and furiously.

She knits? Like my ninety-year-old grandmother
?
Roxy wanted to scream. She prayed her BlackBerry would connect to the school's Wi-Fi even though she was so far from the main building. She needed to start researching boarding schools—anything to get far away from Kim, Georgia, all these dogs, and, most of all, Liz Craft. Roxy was sure her parents would understand.

I'm not going to survive a year eating lunch solo while watching Kim's Best in Show and being judged by Little Miss Knitter.

Someone tapped Roxy on her shoulder, and she nearly jumped out of her skin. Roxy hoped it was Liz. Maybe she'd realized that the scene by the picnic tables was slightly over the top and wanted to apologize. But instead, an annoying dog walker was trying to hand Roxy a flyer that explained the outlandish and ridiculous demands of their strike. Roxy started pounding the buttons on her BlackBerry. She needed to find a way to get out of town because she couldn't take much more.

“Attention, students of Monroe Middle School! This is Principal West.”

A hush fell over the lawn as everyone strained to hear what Principal West had to say. The last time he'd interrupted lunch had been the previous spring. The school had closed down for an afternoon then so MTV could film a reality show in the halls.

“Due to the dog-walkers' strike, we are declaring tomorrow ‘Bring Your Dog to School Day.'”

He paused while students started stomping their feet and cheering. The noise got so loud that all the dogs on campus started howling and barking in response.

“You must get a permission form from the front office. It must be signed by your parents and turned in when you and your pet arrive at school tomorrow!”

Roxy groaned. Kim clapped her hands and squealed in delight. Georgia just kept knitting. Didn't Principal West realize that technically
today
was Bring Your Dog to School Day? Roxy wished she could find a way to get Principal West to pin the blame for all this doggy mayhem on Liz. It was no use, though. Even if Roxy could come up with a way, Liz's specialty was sucking up to adults. Liz should have had hundreds of detentions over the years, but she just batted her eyelashes and gave a “Who, me?” look that got her out of trouble every time.

Roxy looked over at Georgia knitting away. She must have stared a little too long because Georgia put her needles down and gave Roxy a nasty look.

“Can I help you?” Georgia sneered. “If you take a picture, it might last longer!”

“I, uh, I was just looking at the dogs over there,” Roxy stammered.

Roxy knew that she wasn't exactly Georgia's favorite person—and the feeling was definitely mutual. One year ago to the day, on the first day of sixth grade, Roxy and Liz had met Georgia for the first time. She had just transferred to Monroe Middle School, so she was standing in the hall all alone, looking at her schedule.

With her petite figure, raven-black hair, and deep-blue eyes, Georgia looked like she belonged in their group. Unfortunately, Georgia had unknowingly picked out the same T-shirt as Liz to wear to school that morning. They both were wearing a vintage, rock 'n' roll baby tee from the legendary music club CBGB in New York City. Liz's cousin had actually worked there in the '70s, so Liz's shirt was authentic.

Of course, Georgia couldn't help but overhear Liz mocking her cheap, department-store version. Everyone in the hallway heard Liz go on and on. Anyone else in school would have just walked away and let Liz have her moment. But not Georgia Sweeney. She took one look at Liz's hair extensions and announced that Liz “looked like Barbie's cousin…totally fake!”

Georgia was officially declared “toxic.” The news that everyone should stay away from the “big-mouthed new girl” spread like wildfire. Georgia had sat in the outskirts of the lunch area ever since—and always received nasty looks from Roxy and Liz whenever they crossed paths.

Now Georgia collected her things and stomped off without saying good-bye. Not that Roxy expected her to say anything—but she couldn't take much more of being ignored. The ball that Kim was tossing to the stray dogs rolled into Roxy's schoolbag.

“Um, excuse me,” Kim called over meekly. “Can you throw it back? You can play with us if you want.”

Roxy rolled her eyes and pushed the ball back on the ground toward Kim and her pack of dogs.

“No thanks,” Roxy muttered as she started to collect her things. Kim was now surrounded by at least ten dogs. They seemed to instinctively know that Kim would take care of them.

“Cookie, play dead!” Kim commanded. A foxhound instantly rolled over onto its back. If Roxy wasn't in such a bad mood, maybe she would have been more impressed. Instead, the scene just made her feel worse.

Standing up to leave, Roxy noticed something silver and shiny a few feet away. It was one of Georgia's knitting needles. The “devil Roxy” on one shoulder encouraged her to leave it behind (or throw it into the bushes), while the “angel Roxy” on the other shoulder told her to throw it in her bag and track down Georgia later.

Why does the angel always win?
Roxy sighed as she dropped the knitting needle into her book bag and started to make her way back toward the main building. So far, Roxy and Liz weren't in any of the same classes together. Roxy hoped the same was true for her remaining afternoon classes.

People are calling my new friend “Kim of Bark.” I'd take the nickname as a compliment, but I don't think she likes it too much.

And I wasn't fooled when Liz tried to give me a note to bring to Kim.

She told me it was Roxy Davis's adoption papers. Her friends laughed when Liz explained that since Roxy was now an orphan, Kim should take her in. But Roxy is not of any canine breed I know. So I just ignored Liz and walked away. But not before I saw her snarl at me.

Just for that, I let out a little bit of gas during my departure. Liz looked at her friend Jessica, wrinkled her nose, and made a sour face. I'll never tell that it was me!

The last bell finally rang, and Roxy let the sea of dogs, teachers, and students push her to the front of the courtyard. Her cell phone buzzed for the first time all afternoon. Roxy felt a jolt of hope. Maybe it was Liz?

The roads are still a mess. U need to walk home. Sorry, Pumpkin. Love, Dad

Roxy tried to fight back tears for the second time that day as she made her way to the sidewalk. With her head down, she desperately searched her bag for her iPod. Music always cheered her up. But then Roxy remembered the iPod was still docked to her alarm clock in her bedroom.

“Roxy!” a voice called out. “Roxy!”

It was Liz. Roxy breathed a sigh of relief. Liz was going to apologize. Within minutes, they would start laughing about how this was just a big misunderstanding, link arms, and join the other girls to celebrate the first day of school over frozen yogurt at the mall. Roxy knew that Liz could never stay mad at her for long.

“Hey!” Roxy said with a smile. “I'm so glad you…”

“I need the Fashion Bible,” Liz said tersely. She sneered at Roxy and held her hand out expectantly. “It doesn't belong to you anymore, so if it's in your bag, hand it over.”

“I don't have it,” Roxy said. Her heart sank into her grungy, unfashionable gym socks. Seventh grade officially sucked. “It's at home.”

“Do I hear an attitude?” Liz asked. Once again, a small crowd formed almost immediately around them. Roxy wasn't surprised. It was Liz vs. Roxy. In one corner was Liz, the most notorious queen bee in the history of Monroe Middle School. And in the other corner was Roxy, the queen bee who had recently lost her crown—along with any hope of ever having a social life. It was like a made-for-TV movie and a reality show rolled into one. And, since it
was
the first day of school, no one had anything else to gossip about except the dogs. So, for now, the crowd circled Liz and Roxy and waited for the sparring to begin.

“Maybe,” Roxy muttered under her breath. Then, she spun around and stomped away—holding her head as high as she could manage while feeling totally defeated.

“Keep walking! Good thing you have on your smokin' hot sneakers!” Liz yelled after her.

Little Roxie barked in response, as if to say, “That's right! You're a failed fashionista.” Roxy had a feeling that little Roxie knew better than to cross Liz—just like everyone else at school.

“You're much better without that phony girl.”

Roxy looked up just in time to avoid bumping into Georgia, who seemed to appear out of nowhere.

Why can't I escape her? And why does she always look like she's sizing me up?

Roxy's first instinct was to ignore Georgia, but at this point, her day was already ruined. Besides, no one else was talking to her, so a conversation with Georgia was better than nothing. But that didn't mean Roxy planned to let Georgia slip into her life as her new BFF.

“Oh yeah?” Roxy asked. “What do you know about phony? You think you're so great—tell me, how many friends do you have?”

“Just answer this: what do you talk about besides how Liz Craft thinks she's more important than the President of the United States?” Georgia asked with a laugh. “Oh wait, let me guess—you also talk about how Liz Craft thinks no one looks better than her in clothes. Or how beautiful she looks in cubic-zirconia-encrusted pageant crowns. And what are those fake teeth called—flippers?”

Roxy felt herself start to smile. She even had to suppress a laugh. She couldn't let Georgia know that she wasn't that far off from the truth about Liz.

Yes, Liz is self-absorbed, but she was still a good friend to me. Wasn't she?
Roxy wondered.

“Whatever,” Roxy said quietly. “We're just having an off day. Everyone is stressed because of the dog-walkers' strike. We'll be back on track tomorrow.”

Georgia let out a snort. “Wow! If you believe that, then I believe a dog is going to overthrow Principal West.” She laughed. “I mean, honestly, it's not so bad eating lunch by the fence. It's quiet, and you can get a lot of homework done…”

“I'm sure things will be back to normal tomorrow,” Roxy mumbled. “Liz is just having a bad day.”

“If you say so,” Georgia said as she turned down the street that led to her house. “You know what they say about denial…it's never in style!”

Roxy stared after Georgia. What a nosy freak! She started to walk away in a huff, but she banged into something white and fluffy, and fell forward.

“What the…?” Roxy exclaimed. An oversized sheepdog was lounging in the middle of the sidewalk and didn't so much as budge when Roxy crashed into him. “These dogs are ruining my life!”

“Sorry! I was looking all over for him!” Kim said breathlessly as she came running over with about seven other dogs trailing behind her. “You know that you really shouldn't yell around a dog that you don't know. Even a gentle dog can be set off when it senses anger…”

Roxy just let Kim keep rambling and walked on without saying a word in response. She just wanted to get home and put this day behind her. She'd discovered a website during study hall that she was anxious to look over in more depth at home. It was for a student-exchange program in Australia. Unless she joined a shuttle mission to the moon, Australia was about as far away from Monroe Middle School as she could get.

Roxy finally made it home and quietly unlocked the door. She slowly let it shut without a sound and caught a whiff of dinner baking in the oven. Her mom was making a macaroni-and-cheese casserole with a special ingredient—sliced hot dogs.

It was Roxy's favorite dinner even though everyone, including her parents, thought it was disgusting. Her mom only made it on the first day of school and on Roxy's birthday. Right now, Roxy didn't have the heart to tell her mom that her appetite was gone. She managed to make it up to her bedroom before anyone noticed.

Now what?
Roxy wondered?
Liz and I should be texting like crazy or hanging at the mall.

Roxy flopped down on her bed and opened her laptop. Her Twitter feed popped up, and as Roxy scanned the list, she instantly was made sick to her stomach by what she read.

@TIARALIZ: My girls, the mall, and that hot server @ Yogurt Station. Happy 1st day of school 2 us!

Girls? Yogurt Station? Hot server? Without me?
Roxy felt a too-familiar knot in her stomach and tried to hold back a flood of tears. She felt like the loneliest girl to ever walk the halls of Monroe Middle School. Without her friends, who was she?

“Roxy? Can I come in?”

Somehow Roxy's mom had figured out that her daughter was home and had been lurking on the other side of the bedroom door. If she stayed really quiet, Roxy wondered, would her mom think a dog on the loose had kidnapped her? Maybe that would give her a few more minutes of peace. She wanted to avoid telling her mom about her humiliating day.

“I'm kind of busy,” Roxy lied. “Can we talk later?”

Her mom opened the door anyway and sat down next to her on the bed.

“I heard about all those dog walkers going on strike! What an exciting day!” she said. “Good thing we don't have a dog, huh?”

Roxy shrugged her shoulders.

“I hear that you can bring your dog to school tomorrow,” her mom said with a chuckle. “Are you going to help Liz with little Roxie?”

Roxy wasn't sure what to say. Why were moms so nosy? She just wanted to be left alone.

“I don't know, Mom. I haven't talked to her about it yet,” Roxy said as she played with the bottom of her ugly gym sneaker. “I want to get started on my homework…”

Her mom stood up to leave.

“Are you sure you're okay?” she asked. “You don't sound very excited. Especially with the way you've been carrying on about starting the seventh grade all summer long.”

“I'm fine. I'm just tired. Is that a crime?” Roxy asked weakly.

Her mom winced and then gave her a small smile.

“Okay, okay. I get the hint,” her mom said as she started to walk out of the room. But she stopped and turned back around. “Oh, do you want to invite Liz to dinner? I know she hates the hot-dog-and-macaroni casserole, but maybe little Roxie will want the leftovers.”

Her mom laughed and shut the door.

Roxy was too upset to even yell something back to her mom about being rude. She stared at her cell phone. “Zero text messages” blinked back at her, and her stomach tightened once again. She had gotten used to her daily texts and phone calls with Matt. Now she couldn't even call him. Roxy had lost all her friends on just the first day of school.

She opened her laptop and went to her Facebook page. She hoped that maybe Liz had written on her wall or poked her—just something to let her know this was a major misunderstanding. But as Roxy scrolled through all her friends' status updates, she thought it was weird that she didn't see even one from Liz's account.

Liz changed her status at least three times a day because she loved telling the world everything that happened in her life. She practically tweeted on stage during her pageants, and she definitely tweeted backstage! Roxy buried her head in her hands.

Please, please, please don't let this mean what I think it does!

Roxy opened up her friend list and searched for the name “Liz Craft.” Nothing came up. Roxy typed “Liz Craft” in the search field. Liz's picture popped up with the question Roxy feared more than discovering that vampires really did exist.

Would you like to add this person as your friend?

The room started spinning, and Roxy felt like she was going to pass out.

Liz defriended me on Facebook! Already? Didn't she want to at least try to think this through? Try friend therapy? Anything?

With one click of the mouse, Liz had made it as clear as a top coat of nail polish that she and Roxy were finished—for good. Roxy was about to log off from Facebook when she noticed the list of “Friend Suggestions” up in the corner of the home page. One of them was Georgia Sweeney.

Okay, why can't I escape this girl today? Maybe it's a sign.
Roxy tried to think it through rationally.
Liz defriended me. Maybe she'll come around…maybe she won't. In the meantime, I need to make some new, temporary friends.

Roxy remembered that Georgia's knitting needle was still in her bag.

An excuse!

Without thinking, Roxy opened the phone book, scrolled her finger down the page until she located the Sweeney listing on Mulberry Drive, and dialed. The phone started ringing. There was no turning back now.

“Hello?” Georgia answered slowly and suspiciously.

“Hello, Georgia? Hi, this is Roxy Davis…” Roxy said like she was calling Georgia on official business—and it sort of
was
business.

“Um, hey—what's up?” Georgia asked warily.

“You left behind one of your knitting needles at lunch today,” Roxy said matter-of-factly. “I wanted to let you know that I have it and will bring it back to you tomorrow.”

“Oh…well, thanks.” Georgia was so taken off guard that she sounded genuinely grateful. “I didn't even realize it was gone.”

“Yeah, I could give it back to you at lunch, but I think my dad and I pass your house on the way to school.” Roxy tried to stay cool. “Would you like a ride tomorrow?”

There was a long pause.
Did she hang up on me?
Roxy wondered.

“Um, well, I usually walk and I have a dog that will be coming along, so I'm really not sure if I need a ride…”

“You have a dog?”

“Yes. Why do you sound so surprised?”

“You just never mentioned it…”

“And considering that you've spoken to the lunch lady more times than you've even looked me in the eye, why
would
you know that I had a dog?”

Georgia's venomous tongue stung Roxy through the phone, but she refused to let it get to her.

Okay, so it's no secret that she speaks her mind. Maybe that's a good quality? Just ignore it, Roxy, just ignore it. You don't have many other options right now.

“I just meant that you didn't mention it today with all the strike stuff going on.” Roxy tried to stay calm. “Do you want a ride or not? As long as your dog is in a carrier, I doubt my dad will care.”

“Sure, why not?” Georgia responded. “It beats walking, and today has been strange enough. Nothing surprises me anymore.”

“Great. We'll see you at 8 a.m. sharp.” Roxy prayed her dad would actually be okay with making an extra stop.

“Okay. See you in the morning.”

Georgia didn't even wait for Roxy to say good-bye before hanging up.

Roxy absentmindedly kept the phone to her ear and barely realized she was listening to the dial tone. She'd thought that she would feel better having some sort of social contact, but she actually felt worse.

Great—what will Liz say when she sees me arrive at school with Georgia in tow?

Roxy checked Facebook one last time to double-check that the defriending wasn't a mistake. It wasn't. Roxy noticed that all the other girls from her crew weren't showing up on her friend list anymore either.

Okay, so I'm blackballed. How many actresses fall off the radar but then land a big blockbuster movie and get back on the A-list?

She sighed. The smell from the kitchen was too hard to resist. Since something had to go right today, Roxy headed downstairs to dig into some macaroni-and-cheese-and-hot-dog casserole.