I closed the door to my locker and made my way toward class… and saw Rhonda come around the corner before Missy spotted her.

Missy was giggling at something Bethany had said, and she wasn’t watching where she was going. She slammed right into Rhonda, who went down on her butt like a sack of Jell-O dressed in saddle shoes. Rhonda’s armful of books scattered everywhere. Her three-ring binder opened, and papers rained down like a ticker-tape parade.

“Watch it, Chubby!” Missy snapped.

The other girls laughed.

“Yeah, are you blind?” Brittany asked. “Oh, wait—I just noticed your clothes. I guess you are!” The Princesses kept on walking.

And what did I do?

I kept on walking too. Of course.

Hey, I’ve got enough problems already. I’ve got a bet to win! Besides, I’ll never make friends at this school if I go around helping people like Rhonda.

This Is Probably a Ginormous
Mistake, But…

Actually, I didn’t do that.

I helped Rhonda pick up her books. Why, you ask? It’s simple.

I am an idiot.

I mean—that’s obvious, right? I’m supposed to be winning over the Princesses, not making friends with people they hate. I have a bet to win.

“WHAT’S YOUR NAME?” Rhonda asked me as I helped her to her feet. I will never, ever get used to that screechy voice of hers. Her clothes were even wackier than they had been yesterday. Every single thing she was wearing had an R on it.

“I’m Georgia,” I told her as I collected her books. “Georgia Khatchadorian.”

“THAT’S BEAUTIFUL!” Rhonda shrieked.

“Um, thanks.” I gave her a quick smile and headed toward my class.

A moment later, I noticed the sound of heavy breathing behind me.

“SO, GEORGIA, DO YOU LIVE CLOSE TO HVMS?” Rhonda asked.

“Not that close,” I told her. “I have to take a bus.”

“I LOVE THE BUS! I HAVE TO TAKE ONE DOWNTOWN SOMETIMES FOR MY VOICE LESSONS.”

I wasn’t really listening. “It’s okay, I guess.” Isn’t she supposed to be going the other way?

“DO YOU HAVE ANY BROTHERS OR SISTERS?”

Is she serious? She’s never heard of Rafe? Wow, this girl does not get out much. “I’ve got a brother.” I picked up my pace a little, but Rhonda kept up with me. I wondered what would happen if I went into a bathroom. Or oncoming traffic.

“WHAT DO YOU DO FOR FUN, GEORGIA?”

OMG, is she my grandma or something? I wondered. “Well, I’m in a band.”

“YOU’RE IN A BAND?!?!”

Rhonda said it the way everyone else said, “You’re Rafe Khatchadorian’s SISTER?!” She sounded shocked. Amazed. Maybe even terrified.

“Yeah. We really… rock.” I was going to say “stink,” but then I realized that Rhonda would never know the difference.

“OMIGOSH, I WOULD DIE TO BE IN A BAND!” Rhonda hugged her books so tightly, I thought they might explode against the ceiling. “I LOVE TO SING!”