Jon and Karyn parted directions at their lockers, him leaving her with one last kiss that was both short and possessive. Karyn headed off, blushing. Jon turned in the opposite direction, his heels clicking authoritatively with every step. He could hear whispers and comments from other students glancing in his direction, a "He's absolutely working it" from one girl here, a "That's fucking hot" from another, a "Hell yeah" from a boy. He smiled. The Mrs. Kline in his head loved the attention and sought it out. The Karyn in his head gave him the choice of how to use it. The Jon in his head leaned into it. Half of looking good is just confidence, right? he thought. Well, he had confidence in spades right now if he wanted to. And he liked the responses he was receiving. So he returned the approvals with knowing glances and flirtatious winks.
He stepped into the men's bathroom and walked right up to the mirror. His make-out session with Karyn had definitely left him needing a touch-up. And his Elle Woods look really didn't fit the red lipstick he'd been using earlier. He looked through his purse and found a sparkly bubblegum pink. Perfect. A few quick swipes and he was smirking in satisfaction. I wonder what my history with my mom looks like now, given how this easy is, Jon wondered. He almost turned to go, then quickly added some mascara as well. Why not? He ran his hand through his long black hair - ok, so maybe that didn't fit with the rest of his pink attire, but he still looked objectively good. Both the Jon and the Mrs. Kline inside his head were in firm agreement on that. He blew a kiss at himself in the mirror, and then headed off to math class.
Mr. Williams was more or less checked out in class. He ran through a quick example, and then gave everyone a bunch of worksheets with examples for them to work through. "Do it alone or together, whichever you prefer," he intoned. Last class on a Friday for an old teacher well past normal retirement - the perfect conditions for students that don't really want to do the work, either.
As soon as class was turned over to the students, a girl named Heidi turned around in her seat and faced Jon. "Jon, did you get those clothes from the costume closet in the auditorium?"
He gave her his wolfish half-smile. "Sure. I needed a change of clothes after an accident in the cafeteria, and where else are there options in the building that are good enough?"
"Well, it looks REALLY good," she gushed. Heidi turned to her friend sitting next to her. "God, that's so smart. I wish I was brave enough to pull that off."
"It does look good, Jon," he heard from his left. Sitting in the back corner, next to him, unavoidable like the plague, came the voice of Sarah McMillan. Jon rolled his eyes. How would Mrs. Kline respond here?
"Well, thank you, Sarah," he turned to her. The look he gave her was confident, sure, and a little sensual. "If you need any tips, I'm happy to share."
Sarah smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. Whatever changes had occurred to Jon's social status with his boosted muscles, confidence, energy, and flair had apparently had only so much of an effect on Sarah. "And what's this I hear about you having a date with Karyn Black later today?"
"It's true," Jon responded, and then leaned in with a wicked grin. "And we're going to have a very good evening together."
Sarah rolled her eyes. "I don't understand what you can possibly see in her. She is utterly beneath you."
Jon paused. Karyn had said that Tiffany and others in Sarah's group of friends had been responding more positively to her. So when we fixed Karyn's hair and breasts, maybe that went back to normal. But now I'm like this, and so me being with Karyn doesn't make sense to them anymore. That might be a loose end we'll have to deal with at some point. Although I guess it depends what we have Karyn cross out in the notebook, too.
"You don't need to understand it, Sarah," Jon tossed his hair and turned back to his worksheet. "All you need to know is I have everything exactly where I want it right now."
Sarah continued to glance at him, tapping a pencil to the paper. "I suppose, Jon. I suppose. But you being with her still doesn't make any sense." She sighed. "One of these days, you need to let me in on your little secrets, and maybe that'll clear it up."
Jon's eyes widened. All of the confidence from Mrs. Kline shrank away as his blood ran cold.
"Here," he heard Sarah say. "Copy off me." And he felt her fingers touch the side of his head.
New emotions swirled inside Jon. How does a head cheerleader get to be the head cheerleader? Good looks, for sure. Confidence and swagger, of course. The ability to be a stone cold bitch, in some cases. But also knowing all the gossip in the school and being able to use that to her advantage when the moment calls for it. And you can't gossip if you can't be honestly interested in getting all the details, and occasionally sharing all the details as well. And that compulsion settled into Jon's head and took roots. He fought against it. Karyn gave you more strength in being able to choose how the things you copied affected you! And Mrs. Kline's voice spoke up in response. But what's more dramatic than gossip? it questioned with a feminine and hungry laugh.
And Jon found himself turning back to Sarah, both hands outstretched in a feminine gesture of someone who is about to spill all the tea. "Oh my God, Sarah," the genuine enthusiasm in his voice shining through. "You are not going to believe what I have to tell you."
