Stealing Bradford

DJ just shook her head as she stared at her old friend. Then she turned away from the group and headed straight toward the office. Taylor might be mean and selfish, but she didn’t deserve this. No one did.

“I’d like to see Mrs. Seibert,” she told the receptionist.

“Do you have an appointment?”

“No, but this is an emergency.”

“Let me see if she’s back from lunch.”

DJ had to wait about five minutes, but she was eventually allowed in the counselor’s office. She quickly explained her dilemma, and Mrs. Seibert took careful notes and finally, using her own computer, checked out the website.

“Oh my!”

“Yeah, pretty disgusting, isn’t it?”

“Let me make some calls,” she said quickly. “We’ll see what it takes to shut that thing down, and then I’ll get some legal advice.” She picked up the phone and then turned to DJ. “Do you know who might’ve done this?”

DJ considered the question and then just shook her head. She knew she couldn’t accuse Casey. She honestly didn’t have a shred of evidence; it was only a hunch. Hopefully, she was wrong. But even if she discovered that Casey was the creator of this mean hoax, DJ didn’t know if she could turn her in.

“Thank you for coming forward with this information,” said Mrs. Seibert as DJ stood. “I’ve heard of incidents like this before, but never in our school. I guess it’s about time we created a harassment policy that covers the Internet.”

DJ nodded. “Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.”

“Pick up a note from the receptionist to excuse you for being late to class.”

“Thanks.”

By the time DJ got to drama class they were in the midst of auditions. Eliza was onstage and doing a pretty good job of singing “I’m Gonna Wash that Man Right Out of My Hair.” Not surprisingly, Taylor was nowhere to be seen. DJ had already tried Taylor’s cell phone, which went straight to messaging. DJ took a seat in the back of the auditorium, wondering if there was something more she should do. Was there someone else she should contact? Her grandmother perhaps? But what good would that do? Maybe it was best to simply wait for this whole thing to blow over.

“How are you doing?” whispered Rhiannon as she slipped into the seat next to DJ.

DJ shrugged. “Frustrated.”

“You mean because of the thing about Taylor and the photos?”

“Have you seen it?”

“Barely. I could hardly stand to look.”

“I just got through telling the counselor. They’re going to try to get it shut down.”

“Taylor didn’t really post those herself, did she?” asked Rhiannon.

“No, of course not. She might be selfish and thoughtless, but she’s not an idiot.”

“I actually feel sorry for her.”

“Me too.”

“Do you think she’s coming for auditions?”

“I think she’s got other things on her mind.”

“Mr. Harper suggested I try out for the role of Liat, but I think it’s only because I’m short.”

“Do you want to?”

“Maybe…but I don’t know if I can pull it off.”

DJ flipped one of Rhiannon’s red curls. “Maybe with a wig.”

“And makeup.”

DJ considered mentioning that Taylor had planned to audition for Liat, but then she wondered why bother bringing it up? For all DJ knew, Taylor might not want to live here now. With almost everyone turned against her and people making fun of her, she might be on her way back to California right now.

The afternoon seemed to go more slowly than usual, and in seventh period Taylor wasn’t in PE. Not that this surprised DJ. But it did concern her. Everyone was still talking about the photos and making tacky jokes at Taylor’s expense. Even during volleyball practice, some of the girls, including Casey, took their potshots at her. Then, as DJ drove them home after practice, she actually quizzed Casey to see if she might’ve been involved.

“Come on,” she urged Casey. “Just come clean if you did it.”

“I don’t see why you even care who did it,” Casey told her. “Taylor deserved it, didn’t she?”

“That’s not the point. Were you involved?”

“What difference does it make who was involved?”

“I just want to know.”

“What’s going on here, DJ?” demanded Casey. “Are you feeling sorry for Taylor now?”

“I just think that it was wrong to do that—I mean, to use MySpace to hurt someone like that.”

“How about how Taylor hurt Rhiannon? Was that right”

“No, but—”

“I don’t get you, DJ. You act like you care about Rhiannon, and then it’s like you’re obsessed with helping Taylor.”

“I just wanted to know if you were involved.”

“It feels like you’re turning against me.” Casey let out an exasperated sigh.

Of course, Casey’s defensiveness only increased DJ’s suspicions. Not that she’d know what to do if she discovered that Casey was the culprit. Still, she felt badly for Taylor. And when she got home, she felt somewhat reassured to know that the other girls at Carter House were starting to feel a little uneasy about Taylor too.

“So you guys didn’t see her at all this afternoon?” Eliza asked DJ and Casey.

“Not since US History,” said DJ. “Same as you.”

“Maybe you should check in your room,” suggested Kriti. “See if it looks like she’s packed up or taken anything.”