The next day at Orchid University, Pedro and Guillermo made it to campus. Guillermo had another engineering class today while Pedro had two classes for Tuesdays and Thursdays this semester.

"I'll see you around noon," Guillermo said.

"Okay, Guillermo," Pedro smiled.

Guillermo went off to the E-building again, and Pedro was about to hit the K-building when he found himself face to face with Natalie, who was giving him a creepy smile.

"Hello, Pedro," Natalie said.

"Oh, hello, Natalie," Pedro said awkwardly.

"Where are you headed off to?" Natalie asked.

"I've got English class at 8:10," Pedro replied.

"Oh, what a coincidence," Natalie smiled. "I've got English class at that time, too. Maybe we can walk to class together, you and me."

Pedro was a bit freaked out, but he didn't want to be rude. "Well, okay," he shrugged.

Pedro and Natalie walked into the K-building and went up to the second floor. Pedro wasn't very comfortable with Natalie, who was very happy to be with him.

"Isn't this great, Pedro?" Natalie asked. "Just you and me walking to class together."

"I'm glad you like it, Natalie," Pedro said flatly.

Soon enough, Pedro and Natalie made it to K-235, and in the front row of the classroom was Cristabel.

"Hey, Crista," Pedro smiled.

"Hola, Pedro," Cristabel smiled back.

"May I share your space please?" Pedro asked.

"Please do," Cristabel smiled.

Pedro went around and took the seat beside Cristabel. Natalie was dismayed that Cristabel was in this class, too, especially since Pedro wanted to sit with her. She wasn't willing to let Cristabel steal Pedro away, so she sat in the other seat next to Pedro.

"So, Pedro, got any plans for this Friday?" Natalie asked.

"Yes, actually," Pedro replied. "Cristabel and I are auditioning for the upcoming play."

Natalie was slightly disappointed to hear that Cristabel was doing something with Pedro, but she didn't want to let the girl ruin her happiness. "Oh, how fun," she said. "But of course, I've played the lead in seven plays in a row. In the sixth grade, I was Amris in The Little Fish Girl. Then in the seventh grade, I was Nayli in Mambo in the Catskills. Then in the eighth grade, I played Annie in The Love Diary."

"Pretty good, Natalie," Pedro said.

"Then in the ninth grade, we put on Hair Gel, and I played Lacy Turnbaum," Natalie went on. "Then I played Amatista in The Crookback of Notre Dame when I was in the tenth grade. Then I played Alex Montana in A Snow White Story when I was in the eleventh grade. Oh, and finally, when I was in the twelfth grade, I played Pristina in The Ghost of Love." She fired a superior smirk at Cristabel, hoping to make her feel inferior and lose her confidence.

"Good to know, Natalie," Cristabel said awkwardly.

"I know, and I'm sure to get the lead in this one, too," Natalie boasted. "Then I'll gave gotten the lead for the eighth year in a row."

"Well, let's see if you can get the lead role as top student in my class," the English teacher said, putting a syllabus in front of each student.

The teacher told the students what to expect, and he explained what they'd be learning. But Natalie didn't pay much attention—she was too busy ogling Pedro, and at the same time, she was firing hateful glares at Cristabel. Natalie didn't want to lose a boy, and she wouldn't let any girl take any boy away from her. She was determined to snag Pedro, and this play had to be the perfect way to achieve that goal.

Once class was over, Pedro and Cristabel spoke to each other as they left the classroom, and they each had a class after this one.

"If I don't see you later, Pedro, I'll see you tomorrow," Cristabel said.

"Nos vemos," Pedro smiled. He was about to go off to his next class when Natalie started following him with a smile on her face.

"Isn't this great, Pedro?" Natalie smiled. "Just you and me. Now we can go to the campus restaurant for a date without that Cristabel getting in the way."

Pedro was annoyed with how Natalie wouldn't get out of his hair, and he especially didn't like how she was bashing on Cristabel. "I have another class today, Natalie," he said, trying to be nice. "After that, my brother and I will be going home."

"Oh, is that so?" Natalie asked with a sheepish smile.

"Sí, I'll see you around," Pedro said before going off to his next class.

Natalie was dismayed that Pedro wouldn't make time for her, and she was especially covetous of his affection for Cristabel. She went downstairs and met up with her friends. "It's not fair, and it doesn't make any sense," she whined. "I'm the one sweet-talking to Pedro and working for his love, but he wants nothing to do with me. But Cristabel does nothing to make him like her, and he likes her more than me anyway. What does she have that I don't?"

"Maybe it's that she speaks Spanish because she's Hispanic, like him?" the redhead guessed.

"I speak Portuguese, Ruby, because I'm half Brazilian," Natalie scoffed. "That should make me better than Cristabel."

"Maybe Pedro is just different from the boys you knew in high school," the brunette surmised. "Not every boy has to like you the way you like him."

"That's impossible, Tori," Natalie snapped. "Every boy is obligated to like me. I've snagged every boy there was. I've never lost a boy to another girl, and I'm not going to start now. If I'm going to get Pedro to like me more than Cristabel, I've gotta do something to make it happen."

"And just how are you going to do that?" Ruby asked.

"By auditioning for this play that the school is putting on," Natalie replied. "This is the perfect way to make Pedro mine."

"How do you know that?" Tori asked.

"Because I've played the lead in every play I've done, so I'm sure to get the lead in this one," Natalie sniffed. "Everyone knows that the leading man falls for the leading lady."

Natalie, Ruby, and Tori went to F-113, and they all signed up for the play. Apparently, so many students had already signed up that the list was about 35 sheets long.

"Wow, you'd think pretty much every student on campus was auditioning," Tori said.

"Maybe everyone in school is auditioning for the play, but I'm still a shoo-in to get the lead," Natalie boasted.

Later, once Cristabel and her sisters and cousins got home, they joined their fathers and grandmother for lunch. Cristabel mostly stayed quiet while the older girls talked about what to do to get ready for auditions.

"So, chicas, any special plans for this afternoon?" Victor asked.

"We're thinking about going shopping for special lotions to apply before auditions on Friday," Lucera replied.

"Sounds good," Felix smiled.

"What do you say, Cristabel?" Flora asked.

"Oh, sounds good," Cristabel shrugged. She was excited about this week, but Natalie's attitude towards her was really bringing her down. Her relatives didn't let the look on her face go unnoticed.

"Crista, is there something on your mind?" Carmen asked.

"No es nada, Abuela," Cristabel said.

"Come on, hermanita," Anabela urged. "You know you can talk to us when something is bothering you."

Cristabel knew now that her family would want her to tell them what was wrong. "Well, yesterday, I met this girl named Natalie—she's in my English class—and she's not very friendly," she explained. "She's been giving me a hard time because she wants Pedro to like her more than me, and she likes to pretend she's better than everyone else. You'd think that snotty teenagers would grow out of that by the time they're done with high school."

"I'm afraid high school graduation doesn't change snotty people overnight, mi nena," Victor said.

"Papá is right," Anabela agreed. "But one thing's for sure: Natalie will just have to learn at some point that nobody is obligated to like her."

"You said it, Anabela," Araceli agreed. "One day, Natalie will be living in the streets because she peaked in high school."

"That's right," Lucera and Flora chorused.

"Well, you have a point there," Cristabel smiled. She herself was willing to move on and try something new.

After lunch, the girls went shopping at the mall to find some good lotions, soaps, and nail polish colors to use on Friday before auditions. As time passed, Cristabel practiced her audition for the play.