Ricky Capaldo had never in his life felt so popular and so disliked at one instant. Word spread almost before he had the first thumbtack into the bulletin board in front of the girls' gym. He was immediately engulfed by half the females at Sweet Valley High, pushing and yelling as they fought to see which names were on the list. To those hopefuls who had been cut, Ricky became the object of intense outrage. But the twenty-five who made it were bouncing with joy, several of them hugging and kissing the shy, blushing squad manager.

"Hey, I don't even get to vote," Ricky protested, to no avail.

Elizabeth was making her way down the corridor in time to see Ricky surrounded by the happy girls. Annie Whitman's arms were around his neck, and she gave him a kiss.

"I think I'll post a list every day," Ricky said, laughing.

Turning around, Annie spotted Elizabeth and immediately ran over to give her a hug, too.

"Liz, I made it," Annie squealed. "Isn't it wonderful?"

Elizabeth laughed happily. "Yes, it sure is."

"I've still got to make the other cuts, though," said Annie, falling in step with Elizabeth. "Do you think you could possibly help me again? We've got a monster test coming up."

"Sure," Elizabeth answered. "Just say when."

"Well, let's see," Annie said, apparently doing a mental run-through of her busy schedule. "Tonight-no, I have a date tonight."

"Don't forget that I'm the 'Eyes and Ears' of Sweet Valley High," Elizabeth said. "Can I write that you and Tim Bradley are an item?"

"Tim Bradley?" Annie said casually. "Oh, I saw him once, but I'm not really interested."

Elizabeth marveled at the swiftness of Annie Whitman's romances. She had thought Tim was the very latest of Annie's boyfriends.

"Who then?" Elizabeth asked teasingly. "Ricky?"

Annie turned an astonished face upon Elizabeth. "Ricky Capaldo?" she said, wide-eyed.

"Well, the way you kissed him back there..."

Annie giggled. "I was just carried away! I never thought of Ricky as a boyfriend, you know? He always seems like-I don't know, just a pal."

Elizabeth nodded slowly. Most of the girls liked Ricky a lot, but as sort of a buddy.

"Well, then, who's the lucky guy?" Elizabeth was almost afraid to find out.

Annie smiled mysteriously. "Promise not to tell?"

"Remember, I'm a reporter," Elizabeth teased again.

Annie blushed. "OK, but don't let anybody know where you got this. I've got a date with Billy and Rick."

"Huh?"

Annie laughed and her eyes danced. "Billy's taking me to the Dairi Burger, and then later on Rick Andover is taking me to the beach for a late swim."

Elizabeth studied Annie in amazement. Here was a girl fighting to keep her grades up so she could make the cheering squad, but she had two dates. She already had a bad reputation but was perfectly willing to have an item in The Oracle about her going out with two guys, one of them a dropout with a really bad name around town.

"Annie," said Elizabeth, "you're a wonder."

Annie smiled, taking it as a compliment. "Boys I can handle. It's math that's a pain in the neck."

Annie waved and walked off down the corridor. "We'll set something up later, OK?"

"Fine," Elizabeth called after her.

Elizabeth didn't print the item about Annie's "double-date." Instead, she put in the names of the girls who had made the first cut on the cheering squad and mentioned that Annie Whitman, Cara Walker, and Sandy Bacon looked like the favorites.

The story in The Oracle had seemed to Elizabeth a fairly ordinary item, until she was pounced upon a few days later by a furious Jessica.

"Elizabeth Wakefield," Jessica declared as they were getting ready for school, "aren't there any rules in journalism about printing the truth?"

"Pardon me?" Elizabeth said, tuning in to her twin sister's building anger.

"What do you mean by saying that Easy Annie is one of the favorites to make the cheerleading squad?"

"Jess, everybody thought she was terrific."

"Not everybody! Not some of the more important members of the squad."

"OK. So you don't like her. Did you hear the applause she got?"

"Sure," said Jessica. "All her boyfriends. That's about two hundred right there. And I'm not the only one. Helen Bradley is on to her now, too."

"Uh-oh," said Elizabeth. "Did Tim Bradley tell her something?"

"Only everything. That Easy Annie lived up to her nickname all the way, that's all." Jessica rummaged through her twin's closet until she found the blouse she was looking for.

"I'm sorry, Jess," Elizabeth said. "But I report what I see, and Annie was the most popular girl to try out. Those are facts."

"Yes, and she'll never make the squad. That's another fact," Jessica snapped.

"How do you know that?"

"Because I know."

Jessica disappeared into the bathroom, slamming the door before Elizabeth could question her further. Maybe Annie will get so interested in some guy that she'll forget about cheerleading, Elizabeth thought. Sure, and maybe the Pacific Ocean will dry up and become a desert, she added to herself.

Elizabeth was on the front lawn one afternoon when Annie dashed up to her, hugged her, and said, "I got an A on the math test! I think I'll nominate you for Woman of the Year!"

Despite her many dates, Annie seemed to have gotten the hang of math. Elizabeth had gone to Annie's apartment two more times to coach her, each time hiding her visit from Jessica.

She thought back to the last session and sighed out loud. She and Annie had just taken out their books when the doorbell rang. Annie got up to open the door, and Elizabeth could see a tiny gray-haired woman standing in the hallway.

"Annie, dear," the old lady said timidly, "I'm afraid I've misplaced my glasses, again."

"Don't worry, Mrs. Jorgenson." Annie put her arm around the woman's shoulder and gave her a gentle squeeze. "I always find them for you, don't I?" Annie turned back to Elizabeth. "I shouldn't be more than a few minutes. Would you mind waiting?" she asked apologetically.

Elizabeth smiled. "Go ahead. Of course I'll wait. I've got some work of my own to look at while you're on the great hunt."

A minute after Annie dashed out to Mrs. Jorgenson's rescue, Elizabeth heard a key turn in the lock. Oh, no, she thought. Just what I need, a chat with Mrs. Whitman and call-me-Johnny. She had managed to avoid being alone with them since the first tutoring session. They both made her nervous.

"Hi, kitten, I'm home!" Mrs. Whitman called out as she whirled into the room. Seeing Elizabeth sitting on the white sofa, Mrs. Whitman flashed her a brilliant smile. "Hi, um..." A frown crossed her face. "Now don't tell me. I know you. You're-ah, you're-"

"Elizabeth Wakefield, Mrs. Whitman." Thank goodness Johnny wasn't with her, Elizabeth thought.

There was another brilliant smile. "Of course. Annie's pretty friend with the pretty name."

Hurry back, Annie, please, Elizabeth prayed to herself.

"Where's my baby?" Mrs. Whitman asked.

Relieved to be off the subject of her pretty name, Elizabeth told her that Annie had gone down the hall to help out a neighbor.

"Oh, I bet it's that loony old Mrs. Jorgenson," Mrs. Whitman said in disgust. "Why Annie lets that old lady bother her is beyond me. She'd be better off staying here with a nice friend like you. And I'm going to tell her how rude she's being," Mrs. Whitman concluded. The smell of liquor mixed with the scent of her perfume.

"No, it's all right, Mrs. Whitman. Really it is," Elizabeth protested. "I think it's nice of Annie to help out like that." You could probably learn something from your daughter, she added silently.

"Well, of course," said Mrs. Whitman, changing her viewpoint at once. "That's my Annie. She's so sweet, so generous with her time. I've always encouraged her to be kind to everyone."

I'll bet you have, Elizabeth thought as she watched Mrs. Whitman sink gracefully into a dark blue, velour-covered chair. The blue was a perfect backdrop for Mrs. Whitman's white slacks and long-sleeved, white silk shirt. No one could deny that she had the looks and poise of a professional model.

"Tell me about you and Annie, Elizabeth. Have you been good friends a long time?" The bright smile was back on her lips.

Elizabeth winced at being put on the spot like that.

"Well, Mrs. Whitman, Annie and I have known each other for about a year. I like Annie, but I don't know if you could say we're really good friends."

As she saw the disappointed look on Mrs. Whitman's face, Elizabeth quickly added, "Annie's a year younger than I am, you know. I'm sure her good friends are girls her own age."

Mrs. Whitman didn't respond for a few minutes. "I guess you're right," she said slowly. "I hope you're right, Elizabeth. I've just never met any of them." There was a long, awkward pause.

Finally Mrs. Whitman spoke again. "Elizabeth, may I talk to you about Annie?"

Wishing she could say no, Elizabeth said, "Sure."

"Is my little girl, ah ... well liked at school?"

"Well liked?" Elizabeth echoed.

"I mean, is she popular?"

Oh, boy, Elizabeth thought. Popular doesn't say half of it. Elizabeth wondered if Mrs. Whitman took any notice at all of her daughter's comings and goings. She appeared to be genuinely concerned about Annie, but she didn't seem to understand how important it was to make the time to pay attention to her. She was simply too wrapped up in her own doings.

"I'm probably not the right person to ask, Mrs. Whitman," Elizabeth hedged, "but from what I've seen, I think Annie's popular."

Mrs. Whitman let out her breath in relief. "I'm so glad to hear that. I worry about my baby. You see, my schedule keeps me so busy that I don't have much time for Annie."

My mother's busy, too, Elizabeth wanted to say. But she always has time for Jessica and me.

"And of course there's Johnny."

Elizabeth shivered at the mention of his name.

"I just wish Annie would bring more of her friends home," Mrs. Whitman continued. "She should have parties at home, like the other kids do. Don't you agree, Elizabeth?"

"Well, I think that's up to Annie, Mrs. Whitman." Elizabeth knew that if she were Annie, she wouldn't want to invite her friends to this home.

Annie burst through the door. "You'll never guess where I found her glasses this time! They were on the pantry shelf between the cat food and the plastic-" The smile left her face, and the light seemed to go out of her eyes as she looked from her mother to Elizabeth.

"Mom," she said, "how long have you been home?"

"Just a few minutes, baby," Mrs. Whitman said, getting to her feet. "I'll leave you two pretty girls to get on with your work. It was nice to see you again, Elizabeth," she said as she left the room.

"'Bye, Mrs. Whitman," Elizabeth called to the retreating back.

Annie looked at Elizabeth nervously. "What was my mother saying to you?" she asked, a note of fear in her voice.

Elizabeth crossed her fingers behind her back. "Oh, we were talking about school and things," she fibbed.

But the study sessions had been worth it. Annie had sailed through a small quiz, and now she'd passed the really big test, the one that decided the grade for the marking period.

"Annie, I'm so proud of you." Elizabeth was glowing. "This is even bigger news than the cheerleader tryouts."

Annie grew sober, and she stared at Elizabeth. "Oh, Liz, don't even say that. Nothing else will count if I don't make the squad."

Walking home that day, Elizabeth wondered why she had done it again. Why had she gotten involved in Annie Whitman's life when she knew perfectly well that Jessica hated the girl? Maybe that was the reason. Because poor Annie just didn't realize what a powerful enemy she had.

Elizabeth sighed, resolving to forget about the whole problem and concentrate on the evening ahead. The round of tests that had kept everyone studying was now over. That meant a full house at the Beach Disco that night. Elizabeth couldn't wait to let loose with Todd on the dance floor.

The crowd was already going strong by the time they arrived that night. The Surfers' Waves, a band from Northern California, were playing some hot new tunes, and everybody was having a terrific time. Jessica was there with Skip Harmon. She was wearing a black-and-red striped top and her shortest skirt. It had taken her almost two weeks to get Skip to ask her out, because Skip was a senior and had often told everyone he never looked at any of the junior girls.

"He'll look at me," Jessica had told Elizabeth. "And what's more, he'll ask me out within a week."

Elizabeth had laughed. "No way."

"What do we bet?"

"Who washes the Fiat next?"

"You're on," Jessica said.

Dancing with Todd, Elizabeth made a mental note never to bet against Jessica when it came to snagging a guy.

"Want to help me wash the car Saturday?" she said in Todd's ear.