That scarf video had received more hits than anything she’d ever done. Following that, the bow tie of the month club on her blog really took off. Everyone was emailing wanting the instructions for how to make one. She even wrote an essay for school: “Not Just for Guys—Bow Ties.” Within a month, the entire girl population of her middle school was wearing them. But that was in Haverford, near Philadelphia, on the East Coast. This was Indiana, smack-dab in the middle of the country. And these girls had somehow targeted her.

The girl with a bright neon-blue streak in her hair took a step closer. Her name was Carrie. She was short, squat really, and reminded Rose of a pug with a bad personality. Narrowing her eyes, Carrie took a deep breath.

“I know! Let’s play the truth game with her. Find out who or what she really is!”

“Yeah, think of this as the Circle of Truth—we get the facts!” Rose thought this one’s name was Brianna.

Rose touched the bow tie nervously. She loved it. It was pale blue with little white daisies. She had made it herself from some scraps of material and tied it bat-wing style.

“Oh, bow ties not for guys—we get it!” Carrie said in the snarkiest voice imaginable. So they had seen the blog! “What else did you find in your mama’s closet?”

But before she could answer, the third girl spoke up. “Never mind. Enough about the blog and the stupid YouTube videos.” This was Lisa. Very pretty. She had a sequin pasted onto her left eyebrow that pranced up to her hairline as spoke. She also had the deepest dimples Rose had ever seen. Flashing them constantly, she took a step closer. “You’re not exactly Mia Ryles.”

Mia Ryles! Rose nearly gagged. Mia was the thirteen-year-old YouTube sensation who was the complete creation of her fanatical mom, Monica Ryles. Talk about glitter! Mia was obviously Lisa’s inspiration. Her mom had rocketed Mia into multiplatform deals with everything from social media to hair products to fashion. The fashion was ghastly in Rose’s mind. She called it the baby-doll-cheerleader look.

“Okay, Rose, are you ready?” Carrie growled. Rose said nothing. It was as if her voice had taken a deep dive inside her. Her mouth was quivering. She felt a hot blister of tears behind her eyelids ready to boil over.

“For example,” Carrie continued, “when I was little, I peed in the swimming pool and the water turned this color blue.” She pointed to the streak in her hair. Some inspiration, Rose thought. Pee and chlorine! The other two girls were giggling madly.

“Guess what I did,” Lisa of the glitter said.

“I don’t know?” Rose croaked.