Title: Friend or Foe?

Author: Alan Hitchen

Email: darkmere2000@yahoo.co.uk

Disclaimer: Popular is the property of Touchstone Television

Pairing: None as such

Rating: PG-13

Information: Follows on from Devil in a Fast Car

Summary: Nicole looks for an ally

"Spam."

"Yes, Satan?"

"I'm gay."

"Oh."

"Oh. Is that it?" Nicole fumed. "I'm spilling my guts here and that's all you can say?"

Caught off-guard, Sam racked her brain for a quick answer. "Oh? Oh! Do you want me to set you up with Lily?"

Nicole was puzzled by this response. "Why would I want anything to do with that Latina hayseed?"

"Well, she's the only one I know who..."

Nicole threw up her hands in horror. "Stop right there. I said I was gay, not blind."

Taken aback by this slur on her friend, Sam hit back sarcastically. "Wow, Satan. I'm impressed, with sweet talk like that you'll have no problem getting a date with any girl."

"Now look, SPAM! I came to you because..." Nicole's voice trailed off as she began to think that this wasn't such a good idea after all.

"Yes. Why did did you come to me? It couldn't be because you've lost your one and only friend could it?" Then the penny dropped and Sam smiled as everything became clear to her. "Oh. I get it. Your only friend AND object of your affections. You want me to fix things up with Brooke."

Nicole's face froze. She was not going to cry. She was not going to beg. She was not going to do this at all. "Forget I spoke," she said curtly and turned on her heels to go.

As she watched her immaculately clad behind walking away, Sam reproved herself for noticing that Nicole had one at all, let alone a nice one. Then she turned her thoughts to the conversation. It didn't make much sense to her, she was sure that she'd missed something, perhaps Brooke would know what it was.

Back at the Palace, Brooke was doing her homework when Sam popped her head around the open door. "Brooke."

"What is it, Sam?" Brooke replied distractedly.

"About Nicole."

"What's she done now?"

"Nothing. She just told me something."

Brooke stopped writing and turned around. "She didn't come on to you as well did she?"

Sam entered the room fully and sat on the bed. "No, not exactly. She told me she was gay. I mentioned Lily and she went ballistic. I mentioned you and she clammed up and went away. I wondered if you knew what's going on. Is she gay?"

"Like I care," Brooke snorted. "As far as I'm concerned, Nicole is just an attention-seeking trollop. She's not gay, she's just desperate. It must really bite that Josh chose Carmen over her." She turned back to her homework. "Serves her right."

Sam rolled her eyes, clearly it wasn't just Nicole that the Josh/Carmen thing was biting. "So," she said, "reading between the lines here. You're not making up with Nicole anytime soon?"

"Anytime ever!"

"Don't you think that's a little harsh? I doubt she had to force Josh to... you know, and I nearly... and you had broken up with him."

Brooke turned again to face Sam in some annoyance. "You know what I think, Sam? I think that if, and I repeat, IF, you had a boyfriend, she would be carving his notch on her bedpost right now. She's a man-grabbing slut and I hate her. This gay thing is just an attempt to get your politically correct sympathy."

Sam stood up to go. "Well, if you're sure?"

"I'm sure. Take my tip, Sam. Stay away, or she'll stab you in the back like she stabbed me."

Next day, as she regarded the isolated figure eating alone in the corner, Sam couldn't help but feel sorry for Nicole. And despite what Brooke had said, she felt sure that Nicole had been reaching out to her. So she excused herself from Lily's discussion on the evils of strip mining and went over to the blonde cheerleader.

"Room for one more?" she enquired.

"What?" Nicole's head jerked up at the unexpected intrusion. "Oh sure, Spam, the more the merrier." She indicated the empty table with a bleak smile. "Squeeze yourself in." Sam took a seat and then just looked at her, not knowing how to start the conversation. "What's this? A spot the loser competition?" Nicole snapped.

"Sorry. No. About what you said yesterday."

"I said forget it."

"I can't. Look, Nicole, you came to me for a reason, I'd like to know what it is. Are you really gay?"

"Yes," Nicole admitted quietly.

"Brooke?"

"Yes."

"You wanted me to get you together?"

"No."

"Then what?"

"I had thought after I told Brooke, Mary Cherry would have outed me quicker than you can say k d lang. I had this idea I could use you to put a spin on it. Somehow make it okay and keep me popular."

Sam was baffled. "Why, Nic?"

"Why am I gay?"

"No. Why do you want to be popular? After all, it's lonely at the top isn't it?"

"Top of what?"

"Popularity Peak. You've spent so much time and effort climbing to the top of the mountain, only to find when you got there, that there was no one to share the view with. You're a popular cheerleader. So popular in fact, you haven't got a single friend to your name. Was it worth it?"

"No," Nicole admitted, "and I knew wasn't when Marley died."

"Then why?"

"Because it's expected of me. Like mother, like daughter. She's a cold, unfeeling, heartless bitch, and so am I."

Sam reached out to touch Nicole's hand. "I don't believe that," she said kindly. Nicole looked down at the hand, then with an expression approaching astonishment, back up at Sam, tears welling in her eyes.

"I don't want to be like this, Sam. I'm rich, well-connected, popular... and completely alone. I'm so lonely. Please help me, Sam. Please."

This emotional outburst was totally unexpected, Sam didn't hate Nicole, but she didn't like her either, and there was Brooke to consider as well, what could she say?