Excerpt of House Of Wacks by Denise Gwen

"Come here, young man," Rexie said, "and take a seat. You’re our first victim."

"Victim, huh?"

Rexie chuckled. "Don’t tell me you’re not gonna enjoy it! Two women massaging white goop all over your body?"

Nerd Boy smiled. "Two gorgeous women."

Rexie threw her head back and roared with laughter. "Wow, kiddo, you are a charmer! I’ll bet you have the girls fighting over you."

"Um, no, not really," Nerd Boy stammered.

"Huh," Rexie said. "If I were a girl your age—" She massaged a generous portion of the white paste onto Nerd Boy’s face until it covered every single freckle.

He looked so strange now, without his freckles. But there was no mistaking that shock of bright red hair.

"Why don’t you finish his hands for me, Jordan, while I see what Burt’s up to?" Rexie set off to supervise Burt as he placed the paraffin wax blocks into the trays for warming.

Jordan scooted her chair closer to him, then dipped her fingers into the mixture of cornstarch, baby powder, and some sticky substance that made the powdery bits cling to the skin. She got her fingers good and chalky, then reached forward to gingerly dab it on his hand.

In a quiet voice, he said, "I see you at school a lot."

"I know. I see you, too."

"How come you never say hi?"

Jordan stopped, abashed. "Um, I don’t know."

Actually, Jordan did know. She was popular. And she had a circle of friends—the awesome foursome—and nobody broached that inner circle. Including cute red-haired boys like Keith here. Perhaps it was time to broaden that inner circle.