So there it was, guys. Any moment now, Cathy would be crowned Garbage Queen, and I was sooo going to love every second of it. I squealed and hurried back to the dance floor with Dawn and Carlizza. Shayna and June were keeping watch at the dumpster, and Shayna kept sending me crazy walkie-talkie messages, calling me "Butterscotch" and Dawn "Browniemush" as code names. I answered five annoying minutes later and gave her the update.
"Cool, Butterscotch. Hooitsjamis out!"
"Hooit... What?" We waited, holding our breath. Then Cathy burst out of the loos, skipping and squealing happily. We high-fived when she smiled at Diego and headed out through the door.
"Mission 2, accomplished!" I shrieked. "Who's 'we'?"
"We be the 'we's, b-girls!" We cheered, grabbed some pizza and soda, and tried not to imagine Cathy's malicious face. Five minutes later, June called... on her walkie-talkie, of course. She sounded awful, and for a moment, my heart stopped beating.
"How did it go, June?" She sighed, and my hopes fell.
"Let's get this party onnnnn!" she screeched, and we squealed, jumping and high-fiving. People who hadn't been staring at us before were definitely staring now.
"You mean she's locked in?" I asked.
"As good as locked."
"We're so badddd," I drawled.
"I knowwwww," she drawled back. Carlizza turned to me.
"So, what next?"
"We wait. Did you tap in the recording?" I asked her. She grinned.
"Sure as hell."
I spoke into my walkie-talkie. "As soon as the Homecoming Queen is announced, you'll let her in. Understood?" Silence. I shook the walkie-talkie. "Understood?" Silence. I panicked and spluttered, "Is anybody there? June? Shay? Who—" Okay, now what are the odds of running into a klutz on a social night? Because those odds are about to get BIGGER!
"Code name Butterscotch," Shayna said. I heaved a sigh of relief, annoyed. "Why did it take you so long to answer?"
"Code name."
"Okay, I'm so NOT saying that. Could you hook me up with your much more sensible teammate?" June came on, and I sighed. "Thank you. Once the Homecoming Queen is announced, you let her in. Understood?"
"Totally. Plus, Shayna went all dramatic and filled the dumpster with extra rotten cheese and eggs."
I pinched my nose and exhaled. "Goodness, doesn't the dumpster smell like a dead body already?"
"Just rubbing it in, Summer. It's gotta be an epic humiliation! She totally deserves it. See ya!"
"Yeah. Hurry and come on in for some fun."
"Like I want to see Max dancing with another girl," she sighed, cutting off. I heaved, feeling terrible for her and for all of my friends. They had to enjoy Homecoming. They just had to.
For the meantime, we were chilling out and having fun as the only dateless girlfriends on the floor. A few boys actually danced with us, probably out of pity, but it still felt fun. The music was upbeat but not really vibing, and I could tell from everyone's faces. They looked bored, almost sleepy from the steady British tunes that were probably all from Cathy's fave playlist. That girl is SO obnoxiously selfish. But we had fun nonetheless. (Does that sound trite to you? Because it does to me! Aaaaaaaaa!! Outdated language overuse syndrome!!!)
I danced with the Wright brothers (Yeah, I know. What?) and a few jocks who told me I looked nice. Some nerds went so jittery and drooly over me that I had to push them back to their dates. When Principal Wilbur came back, looking mad and flushed from probably being embarrassed, I ducked under the nearest table while he went onstage for the coronation. I spoke into the receiver.
"June, you're gonna open it in... Three." Principal Wilbur gave his boring trademark speech that would definitely put you to sleep if I wrote it down, and tore the wrapped paper open. "Two..."
"Our Homecoming King for this year's dance is... Diego Sanchez!" Everyone squealed and cheered as he walked shyly upstage. His jock friends pounded him on the back while the girls reached out for him. Principal Wilbur cleared his raspy throat and reached out for one more slip.
"And his Queen is... Cathy Walker!"
"One," I muttered, staring at the front door. Everyone looked around, whispering excitedly. I waited in anticipation, hoping that Cathy wasn't secretly an ancient witch who could turn herself into a mouse to escape sticky situations.
"Where's Miss Walker?" Principal Wilbur said, looking around.
"Miss Cathy Walker?" The whispers grew louder as Principal Wilbur waited. No Cathy. I was seriously beginning to consider the possibility of Cathy on an old, ragged broomstick when the doors flew open. No one noticed because I was the only one watching. Principal Wilbur cleared his throat and spoke into the microphone once more.
"In the absence of the queen, we'll crown our first runner-up, Miss Melissa Mc—"
"Wait!" Cathy screeched. The hall went dead silent, and everyone turned to face her. Shayna turned the lights on her with 'good' intentions, and everyone gasped. I couldn't really tell if it was the fact that she was there or the fact that we were all choking from the stench that hung around her. She reeked of garbage junk, rotten eggs, and moldy oatmeal, and her dress was a complete mess. There were banana stains all over the expensive satin and black, moldy stains that looked like what no one wanted to imagine. Her face was sooty and black, and rotten egg and oatmeal dripped down her head. Jenny barfed, and everyone held out their hankies. I could barely contain my laughter, same with June, Shayna, Dawn, and Carlizza. Principal Wilbur stared at her, shell-shocked, while Diego was the only smart one to remember to cover his nose.