Everyone knows what--or rather, who--Alice did at the party. And if that weren't bad enough, she sent all those texts to Brandon, those filthy texts, and they were such a distraction that he crashed his truck. Alice isn't just the school slut--she's responsible for Brandon's death. Everyone knows it, so it must be true. 
 A sort of terrifying look at high school rumor mills and gossip, how everyone wants to believe sordid details but never wants to verify them. 
 There's a hopeful enough ending, but I doubt if Alice will ever truly recover from the trauma of her junior year.