Private School Kings

A Right Hand Woman

"Good work," Fletcher told me.

I couldn't get everything that had happened in the cafeteria out of my head. Especially what Heather had said about Fletcher almost going to jail, and the way she'd stroked his cheek.

"I hated that," I said, and it was true. Every moment I spent with Heather's eyes on me it felt like she was peeling off my skin and looking inside.

"Oh, well, it was great for me," Fletcher said, rolling his eyes. I was one to talk. It was true. Heather had pretty much torn him apart. "Anyway," He stood, approaching me and putting a hand on my shoulder, "You were convincing." His palm felt warm, even through my blazer. "I didn't know you could be nice."

I shook his hand off and scowled at his wry grin. "Shut up."

He leaned back against the desk and gave a nod. "Charming." He said.  I scanned my thoughts for a comeback, but I couldn't think of anything. That was even more annoying than his smirk.

A creek from behind him almost jolted me out of my skin. The back door, one that connected the journalism office with a conjoining classroom, creaked open. I froze, hoping no one had overheard Fletcher and me, but he stayed calm as he turned to face the girl in the doorway.

She was tall, taller than Fletcher, and thin in a gangly way. She had a sharp jaw and her dark hair was pulled into a high bun. The bottom part of the back was shaved, an undercut, and she had wispy bangs that fell into her eyes. She slouched, a backpack thrown over one shoulder. Her eyes passed over me in a slow scan and then fixed on Fletcher. "Hi."

"Hey!" He beamed, twisting to face her. I stayed silent, trying to gauge the situation. "Murphy, this is Madeline Kwan, my associate."

"Associate?" She scoffed, dropping her backpack beside the desk. Her voice was deep and sarcastic.

"Fine," Fletcher sighed. "My friend."

"That's a reach." She said. I decided I liked her. She stuck out her hand in my direction and I shifted. Kids at Pruitt were so weird. She didn't let it drop, so I gave in and shook. Her grip was tight, even though she had long thin fingers. Her nails were clear but pretty and pointed. They felt smooth against my skin as she dropped my hand. When she turned her head to look at Fletcher I noticed that one ear was heavily pierced, while the other just had the normal stud in the ear. It was weird. I realized I hadn't seen another kid at Pruitt with that many piercings. Back home it wouldn't have looked out of place, but now it stood out. "This is the girl?" She raised an eyebrow. "She's short."

"I know." Fletcher agreed.

"I'm not short." I cut in, annoyed that they were talking about me like I wasn't even there. "You're short!" I snapped at Fletcher.

Madeline laughed. "He is." She slipped into the desk chair and pried Fletcher's mug from his hands, taking a sip. "You put too much milk in your coffee." She said, and she let the mug rest.

"You don't have to drink it." He said, but he was laughing. They were clearly comfortable with each other. It made me feel left out, like the outsider I was. Just as I thought that Fletcher turned to me. It was almost like he was attuned to my thoughts. "Anyway, Madeline is going to be helping us take down The Lords."

That surprised me. I'd thought that Fletcher's mission had been a secret one. "Then why didn't you ask her to be King's Girl?"

Madeline laughed. "I'm gay, and I'm out. So, I don't think anybody would really buy that."

"Oh, cool," I said, feeling bad for not thinking of that as a possibility.

Fletcher grinned. "Plus, she's not popular enough."