Page 27 of Spin the Damn Bottle

At the start of February, after she shoots Judith a particularly frosty look during dinner, I ask Mel what's their deal on our way to our bedrooms.

"Jude is fine," she replies tightly.

I snort. "Right. That was convincing."

Melina sighs. "I'm not a gossip, Nadia. People like me because they know their shit stays private with me."

"I'm not a gossip either. I just wonder why there's some tension between two of my friends," I reply reasonably. "But if you'd rather not say, no worries."

Mel hesitates, then opens her bedroom door. "Fine. Come on in."

My eyebrows twitch up an inch. She's never invited me into her bedroom before.

I walk into a space that looks nothing like mine, except that it's the same size. The walls are painted black, and completely covered. There are two guitars, several posters, and rows upon rows of books everywhere.

Her bed is covered with a red comforter and black pillows.

I always see Melina in uniform, so I never realized she was quite this fond of metal stuff. I suppose she tends to paint her nails black or bloodred, but she's hardly the only one.

"I like what you did with the place."

"Really?" She's genuinely surprised. "I thought you were more into, I don't know, princessy stuff."

"Princessy?" That's how she sees me?

"You know, frills, pink, whatever."

"I like rollerblading and I saw Transcendence in concert last summer," I say, pointing to one of her posters, showing a group of four hot guys who took the alternative rock world by storm two years ago. "Not that there's anything wrong with pink. I'll pass on frills though."

Mel grins. "You know Transcendence is a Heritage group, right?"

My jaw falls. "Shut up."

She walks to a fluffy rug and sits on it. "Yeah, they're thorns and stems. Tons of celebrities only make it because they're in the club."

"Thorns and stems?" I echo, joining her.

"You don't know much, do you?" She rolls her eyes. "Boys never think to give us the information we need. Did he at least get you to sign the NDA?"

I nod. "Yeah, before talking to me about his club."

"Good. Well, there are essentially two ways of joining the Heritage.You're either a legacy, and you're in because of your parents, or you're recruited. When we recruit a guy, he's considered a thorn until he's a full member of the club. Then he's a stem. For the girls, they're petals, then blossoms. That lingo is only used for us juveniles. They drop the appellations once we hit thirty. We're just members, then."

"So, you're a…blossom?" I guess.

"No, I'm a legacy. You're essentially a petal, though. Or you will be once Jason officially initiates you."

"Initiates," I repeat with a sneer. "It sounds like a cult."

"I mean, religion has nothing to do with the Heritage, so not really, but it operates in secrecy, and to the world, we pretend to be a simple private club into philanthropy, so it's not the worst analogy."

"So the members of Transcendence were recruited?"

She bobs her head. "Yep. The Heritage picks exceptional people and helps them reach their potential. You wouldn't believe the number of actors and singers we've sponsored. Anyway, back to Judith. We used to be super close, but she's been on a downward spiral for a while. I don't have anything against her. I'm just worried for her."

I remember what Judith told me at the start of the year—that she'd been buying drugs at Jason's club. "Spiraling how?"

"Self-destructions of various types. Too much alcohol, drugs, shopping. She barely even studies—her mom bribes the teachers so she passes her classes. Her mother took her credit cards over the summer, and she's been fucking guys for money to finance her habits since."