‘Monday!’ said Anne triumphantly, bouncing on her feet with excitement. Claire could tell she was relieved that Claire was finally in the Queen Bees. Now that they would both be members, they could talk about everything to their heart’s content. She knew Anne didn’t like keeping secrets and there were times when both girls were uncomfortably aware of the divide in their friendship over the summer. At the back of her mind, she wondered if Charlotte had deliberately done it that way but she quickly dismissed the thought. It was an exclusive club only for those who truly deserved to be in it. It was for winners. And finally, Claire was a winner.

19

Paul had ridden his bike to school on Monday morning. He knew it was a risk, but today, he was too happy to care. He’d spent most of his weekend daydreaming about Claire and in his mind, he pictured them together, boyfriend and girlfriend. What would Gavin make of that, he wondered gleefully. Paul going out with one of the popular girls. And not just popular but beautiful as well. He was obsessed with her hair, the long, golden waves making her look angelic and it got him hard just thinking about it. Gavin might even stop giving him a tough time – they could go back to being mates, just like before. They’d grown up in the same street for the first eleven years of their lives – it was only when Gavin’s dad had lost his job and they’d had to move to a rougher estate that things had gone sour between them. That and the streaming of the classes by ability.

As Paul double-locked his bike up and hoped no one would damage or steal it, he envisioned his new life. He and Claire would do everything together – study, do their A-level exams, apply to the same university, and graduate with honours, he as a doctor, and she… well, he didn’t know what her plans were, but she was intelligent and he would ask her what she wanted to be next time he saw her.

Gavin and he would be good friends again and Gavin would actually come to him and ask for advice on how to get a girlfriend. Brian would joke about being his best man at his wedding and Paul would shrug it off as if it was the last thing on his mind but really, he knew Brian would be his best man for sure.