《Starlight》
Chapter 1: Dreams and Invitations
It was like a dream.
Rainbow lights surrounded me as I waved from the middle of a large stage, cheers below. Cheers that soon changed to screams. Gasping as smoke filled the room, I fell from the stage, my skirt ripping. The floor shook as feet ran in different directions, the flames growing bigger and bigger. And in all that chaos, only one thing mattered.
Reaching him.
¡°Arthur, I finally found you,¡± I muttered, coughing as I crawled towards him. Reaching for his hand, everything went dark as a voice screamed¡ª
¡°Good morning, and TGIF! You¡¯re listening to P202, bringing you the latest music, news, and music news!¡±
I jumped up, squinting in the sunlight peeking through the blinds. It was pretty quiet, save for singing birds and the music coming from next door. Rubbing my eyes, I stretched and leaned against the wall. ¡°The house is alive with the sound of music,¡± I sang.
The music instantly turned off. Laughing, I stood and walked over to my twin¡¯s room. I knocked twice; she answered in two seconds still in her bright pink nightgown. ¡°Did I wake you?¡± she said.
¡°Well, morning to you, too, Auria,¡± I said, making her frown. ¡°You did, but it¡¯s fine. Rather that than burning skin.¡±
¡°Burning¡?¡± Auria¡¯s frown grew. ¡°The fire dream again?¡±
¡°Yep,¡± I said with a sigh, leaning against the door frame. Ever since my 15th birthday, I¡¯d been having the same nightmare. The colorful stage, the burning room, and the likely dead guy wearing a red eyepatch. ¡°It was more real this time, though. I even learned eyepatch boy¡¯s name, I think. Arthur.¡±
¡°Arthur? Is that someone you know?¡±
¡°Nope. Maybe he¡¯s from a show or something.¡±
It became awkwardly silent before Auria snapped her fingers. ¡°That reminds me; they just announced the date for The Harmonia Festival.¡±
¡°Wait, seriously?¡± I excitedly followed Auria to her laptop as she opened Flitter.
Get ready, teens; we¡¯re 3 months away from the awesome, amazing Harmonia Festival!
Schools, start prepping your best performers for December 26.
Who will represent your school?
Harmonia Festival founder, Esther Stella, has announced that her annual gala is set for December 5. P202 will be outside conducting interviews.
December was looking to be an awesome month! Just like how that morning got better as Auria turned the music back up. Music we both knew very well. ¡°It¡¯s my song!¡± I said. Auria laughed as I danced around her room, singing along with the greatest singer of all time.
Ellie Stella!
¡°Come on, Auria; you know the chorus!¡± I said, grabbing her hand. Laughing more, she tossed me my hairbrush mic as we sang.
¡°One day when my heart tells me
To stand and pursue my dream,
I¡¯ll jump up, my voice going far.
And I¡¯ll shine just like the stars!¡±
Bang!
We jumped at the sound which was followed by, ¡°Serena Elayna Starr, it¡¯s way too early!¡±
¡°Why¡¯d he only yell at me?¡± I muttered, Auria rolling her eyes. She turned her music down, the vocals of Five Directions coming from my room. ¡°Guess we should hurry up and get dressed.¡±
¡°You mean you should hurry so we¡¯re not late again,¡± Auria said.
Mean.
I stuck out my tongue before sliding out of her room and into the bathroom. As I got ready, my dad¡¯s oldies played through the wall. Meaning my mom had likely already left and he was reading while listening to music. Contradictory much? Then again, he might¡¯ve been working on someone¡¯s watch, but that was really unlikely.
And again, why was I the only one to get yelled at?
Finishing up, I dashed to my room, turned my alarm off, and threw on my favorite hoodie jacket over a black skirt. Auria claimed I wore it too much, and the blue was a little faded, but that made it more awesome. Brushing my curls down, I snapped my star hairclip in, jumped into my sneakers, and grabbed my bookbag. As I left my room, my baby brother came out of his, his eyes closed. ¡°Have a good day, Noah,¡± I said, squeezing his cheeks. He swatted my hand away with a mumble, making me chuckle as I jumped down the stairs. Auria stood at the bottom holding my lunch and a blueberry muffin. Grabbing both, I stuffed them in my bag and beelined to the door. ¡°Bye, Dad! See you tonight!¡± I called.
Slamming the door, we jumped off the porch to my bike, Auria climbing behind me. Once her arms were around my waist, I kicked off the ground and made my way down Pine Road. ¡°I really hope someone sings Shine at the festival this year,¡± I said.
I felt Auria shrug. ¡°I wonder who¡¯ll go this year?¡± she said.
¡°From our school? I¡¯m betting on Iris Adamos. She should¡¯ve gone last year instead of what¡¯s-his-name.¡± Auria giggled. ¡°But Shine wouldn¡¯t really sound right with her. She¡¯s too serious.¡±
¡°Then who would sound right?¡±
¡°Hmm,¡± I hummed as I stopped at the stop sign. ¡°Someone who¡¯s passionate, sparkly, and fun. It¡¯s hard to replicate Ellie, you know.¡±
¡°¡You basically described yourself.¡±
¡°Very funny,¡± I said with a half-hearted chuckle. ¡°You couldn¡¯t catch me on a stage. That¡¯s more you, Miss Theatre.¡±
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
Auria sighed; I could almost hear her rolling her eyes. ¡°I¡¯m not the one who knows the words to all of her songs and has her hairclip,¡± she said.
Shrugging, I began pedaling again as my fingers gently caressed my 12th birthday present from Mom. The day I swore to shine like the stars, just like Ellie. However, I didn¡¯t want to be exactly like her. ¡®Cause if I¡¯m being completely honest, the idea of singing and dancing before a bunch of strangers didn¡¯t sound fun at all.
It sounded freaking terrifying.
We reached a corner and turned, Pine Road merging into Main Street. The smell of pancakes and bacon floated into my nose, the boutiques opening their curtains. Neighbors were getting on the bus to head to work, some waving at us. I waved back as the music of beautiful Heartsgrove filled my ears. Dogs were barking, people were talking, and someone was crying in pain.
One of those was not like the others.
I slammed on the brakes in front of Starr Bakery, Auria almost flying off. ¡°Why did you do that?¡± she asked.
¡°Did you hear that?¡± I said, looking around.
¡°Hear what?¡±
¡°That cry? It sounds like someone¡¯s hurt.¡±
I tried listening for the voice when I heard whimpers coming from the alley between buildings. Obviously, that wasn¡¯t good, so I got off the bike and followed the sound. ¡°Wait, Serena!¡±
I kept walking as the whimpers grew louder. Reaching some wooden boxes, I gasped. Behind them was a teen girl in hot pink and black pulling a boy¡¯s ear. Tears filled his eyes; he couldn¡¯t have been much older than Noah. After taking in the scene, I stomped forward. ¡°Hey!¡± I shouted, the girl flinching. ¡°Let him go!¡±
The girl looked at me with a frown. A frown that slowly changed into a smirk, chills crawling down my spine. Letting the boy go, she walked towards me before taking a step back. As if she weighed nothing, she backflipped over the alley fence and out of sight. ¡°How the¡ª?¡±
¡°Serena!¡± I glanced back, Auria running towards me. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±
Before I could answer, there was a thud, the little boy sitting on the ground rubbing his ear. ¡°Hey, are you okay?¡± I asked, bending down. He flinched and brushed his dark brown bangs away to reveal the biggest green eyes I¡¯d ever seen. Clutched in his arms was a cartoon wolf backpack.
He may have been younger than I¡¯d initially thought.
The boy rubbed his eyes and looked down. ¡°I¡¯m okay, but thank you for helping me,¡± he said in a small voice.
¡°No prob.¡± He stood shakily and put on his backpack, wiping away any remaining tears. Wondering if there was anything else I could do, a grumble filled the air. I snapped my fingers, reached in my bag, and pulled out my breakfast. ¡°Here,¡± I said, holding it out to the boy. ¡°You can have it.¡± He stared at the gift before slowly taking it. ¡°Actually, how about I give you a ride to school? If you¡¯re out at this time, you must go to¡ª?¡±
¡°Um, speaking of school,¡± Auria said, pushing her watch into my face.
7:25.
¡°You¡¯ve gotta be kidding me!¡± I said. ¡°We¡¯ll have to¡ª¡± Before I could say more, the boy sprinted past us. ¡°Hey!¡± I reached out to him, but he was already gone.
***
Lunch A¡¯s bell rang throughout J. Albert High, classroom doors opening. I shuffled alongside my peers, conversations around me. Such as:
¡°Hey, do you wanna hang out after school?¡±
And¡
¡°Oh my God, did you hear? Stacy and Jimmy broke up again.¡±
Along with¡
¡°When did Mrs. Swartz say she was giving back the quizzes?¡±
¡°Next week, I think. Wanna bet Cielo got the best score?¡±
I sighed, unable to chip into any of it. All day, I¡¯d thought about the little boy in the alley and if he was okay. However, what irked me at that particular moment sat in my bookbag.
A paper with a giant 10/20 written on it.
Sighing again, I walked down the stairs into the cafeteria. The smell of fried chicken hit my nose as I went to my table, dropping my head on it. My cheek cooled on the smooth wood as a loud voice got closer. Feeling the table move, I looked up to see the dark brown hand of my awesome best friend, Tayla Mitchells, put her lunch down. Next to her skipped chatty Jae Seong. Both sat and stared at me. ¡°Um, you alright?¡± Tayla said.
¡°No!¡± I shouted, banging the table. ¡°First, I had that stupid fire nightmare again. Then, I saw this poor kid getting bullied, but he ran off and I don¡¯t know if he¡¯s okay, and I ended up almost being late ¡®cause of him.¡±
¡°Se¡ª¡±
¡°Then, to top it all off, Auria got a great score on that stupid US History quiz while I got a crappy one.¡± I dropped my head on the table. ¡°It¡¯s last year all over again!¡±
¡°Serena, calm down!¡±
¡°But if I end up flunking, Coach Evans might kick me off the team for real. Then Mr. Smith will call my parents, and they¡¯ll take all my games.¡±
¡°I think you¡¯re overreacting.¡±
¡°You know how my dad is! What do I do, Tayla?¡±
She sighed, hand on her forehead. ¡°First, will you calm down?¡± she said. ¡°Now, why don¡¯t you talk with Mr. Smith and see if you can retake it? If not, just do better on the next one. The year literally just started.¡±
In the ten years I¡¯d known Tayla, she¡¯d always given good and straight to the point advice. Especially the kind I didn¡¯t want to hear.
¡°If you say so,¡± I mumbled.
Tayla rolled her eyes with a laugh. Mean. ¡°Hey, look on the bright side; there¡¯s still a football game tonight. Us versus the Creekstone Sharks. Unless you no longer want to go?¡±
¡°Of course I still wanna go,¡± I said, Tayla chuckling. Taking out my lunch, I caught Jae staring at me. ¡°You good, Jae?¡±
¡°I know what else could cheer you up,¡± she said, grin slowly spreading across her face.
I knew where this was going.
¡°Let¡¯s go to the mall!¡± she shouted, the neighboring table covering their ears. ¡°We can shop at Parkies and then, like, go to Lady Topaz¡¯s concert. Two stones, one bird!¡±
¡°Isn¡¯t it¡who¡¯s Lady Topaz?¡±
¡°Who¡¯s. Lady. Topaz?¡± Whipping out her phone, she thrust it into my face. ¡°She¡¯s only, like, one of the most popular Youtubers right now. She¡¯s sings tons of cover songs and sounds amazing.¡± On the screen was a girl wearing a pretty pink mask singing with a pretty okay voice. ¡°And not only is her show only one dollar, which all goes to charity by the way, but she¡¯s doing a face reveal at it.¡± Jae held her phone to her chest. ¡°We have to go.¡±
That was a lot.
I glanced at Tayla, who shrugged. ¡°What about the game?¡± she said, voicing my thoughts.
¡°Like, before the game. Around 3. Please?¡±
The show did sound interesting, but the shopping bit did not. The last time we¡¯d gone shopping at Heartsgrove Mall, that fashionista had kept us there for three hours before only buying
One
Ribbon!
Nervously chuckling, I picked up my unopened orange soda. ¡°Well¡ª¡±
¡°I¡¯m in,¡± Tayla said. She was actually serious. ¡°What? It could be fun, and it¡¯s seeing a game and a concert in one day. Like Jae said: two birds, one stone.¡±
She had a point. ¡°But¡ª?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll pay for Chuckie¡¯s Burgers.¡±
¡°Sold! You¡¯re the best, Tayla,¡± I said happily, throwing my hands in the air¡along with my drink. ¡°Crap!¡± Spinning around, I reached to catch it and froze. The can had landed in the hands of the last person anyone at JAHS wanted to cross.
The sophomore class rep, Kaiden Brenton.
He turned the can in his hand before his cool amber-brown eyes looked at me. ¡°Is this yours?¡± he said.
¡°Um, yeah,¡± I said, holding my hand out. ¡°Sorry about that; I didn¡¯t mean to throw it.¡± Kaiden sighed and held out the can.
¡°Brenton!¡± We jumped, jerkhat Michael Smith walking towards us. ¡°What are you doing?¡± he said, glancing between us. ¡°We have better things to be doing than talking with¡them.¡±
Rude, much?
Eyes growing colder, Kaiden tossed the can at me. ¡°Watch where you throw things,¡± he said before walking away with a cackling Michael.
¡°That was awkward,¡± Tayla muttered, letting out a breath.
¡°He¡¯s kinda a jerk, huh?¡± Jae said between bites of food.
¡°Which one?¡± I said, snapping my drink open. Taking a sip, I rested my head on my hand as the boys vanished from sight.
Chapter 2: The Mall Show
Sitting outside Chuckie¡¯s Burgers, I stuffed a handful of fries into my mouth. People went up the escalator near our table, Tayla watching me with a smirk. Taking a bite of my cheeseburger, I sighed happily. ¡°This is the best,¡± I said. ¡°Ending a long day with my best friends, a show, and a game.¡±
¡°Plus Mr. Smith is letting you retake the quiz,¡± Tayla added, taking one of my fries.
¡°Meaning I can stay on the team and my parents might not kill me.¡± Tayla rolled her eyes as I took a sip of my chocolate shake before turning towards Jae. A big smile was on her face as she looked through her three bags of clothes while scrolling on her phone. I couldn¡¯t tell what she was most excited about: shopping or seeing Lady Topaz. As much as I wanted to go to the football game, Jae being so happy was nice. ¡®Sides, I really did love shows. That¡¯s why every year, I made sure to attend¡ª
¡°Serena?¡± I flinched, Tayla waving her hand in front of my face. ¡°Earth to Serena, do you copy?¡±
¡°Not at all,¡± I said.
Tayla sighed while shaking her head. ¡°I asked if you saw The Harmonia Festival announcement?¡±
¡°A¡oh! You mean the date? Yeah, Auria showed me.¡± I took another bite of my burger. ¡°December¡¯s gonna be awesome! You going this year?¡±
¡°That¡¯s what I was about to ask you,¡± Tayla said with a laugh. ¡°I will if you do.¡±
¡°I wouldn¡¯t miss it for anything! Maybe someone will finally cover one of Ellie¡¯s songs.¡±
¡°You say that every year. Remember when we watched that cover of Jump and you said it was bad?¡±
¡°¡®Cause it was! She didn¡¯t have any of Ellie¡¯s passion or moves.¡±
Shaking her head, Tayla rested it on her right hand. ¡°Honestly, I doubt someone will cover one of her songs after what happened to her.¡±
I crossed my arms. ¡°That¡¯s more reason for someone¡ª¡±
¡°It¡¯s time!¡± Jae said suddenly, jumping up.
I barely had time to grab my milkshake before she started dragging me across the mall. Sighing with a chuckle, I glanced back to see if Tayla was following before squinting. Mixed in with the shoppers was a familiar cartoon wolf backpack. ¡°Is that¡ª?¡±
¡°Is something wrong?¡± Tayla said, catching up. The backpack disappeared into the crowd, and I shook my head with a sigh.
It wasn¡¯t like I was gonna be able to chase it down anyway.
Jae pulled me into a small crowd before a small stage, tossing three bucks into a black bucket before letting go. Shaking my arm out, I felt Tayla move beside me as loud music started. A deep bass shook the floor, the crowd and Jae screaming. Lights flashed as the girl from the video walked on stage. Sparkling mask on her smiling face, she twirled in her shiny hot pink dress and began to sing.
The song was fast and had a good beat with a sorta Latin feel. Lady Topaz danced and sang around the stage, the audience clapping along. At different parts, Jae would throw her arm in the air and cheer. ¡°I think this is Queen by Blanca Espina,¡± Tayla whispered to me. I nodded while moving along. I could kinda see why Jae liked Lady Topaz so much. While her singing and dancing were okay, her outfit was cute, and she knew how to put on a show.
As the song came to an end, the crowd cheered, Lady Topaz¡¯s smile growing. ¡°Welcome, everyone,¡± she said. ¡°To-To¡ª¡±
¡°Paz!¡± Jae and the crowd shouted.
¡°Now, my next song requires a little wardrobe adjustment. And I did make a promise to my loyal fans.¡±
Oohs and aahs filled the area. ¡°This is it!¡± Jae said, clutching my arm. Slow as syrup, Lady Topaz removed her sparkly mask to reveal her face.
Her very familiar face.
¡°She¡¯s that bully!¡± I said, pointing at her.
A few glares were shot at me, Tayla quickly pushing my arm down with a nervous chuckle. ¡°I knew it,¡± Jae said, smile growing. ¡°I knew it was her.¡±
¡°You know her?¡± Tayla said, even though it wasn¡¯t surprising. JAHS¡¯s gossip queen knew everyone.
¡°Lady Topaz is Mira Oliveira, a junior at our school. She¡¯s, like, real close with Iris Adamos.¡±
Now that was surprising. But Iris was way better than Lady Bully.
¡°Now with that reveal,¡± Mira said, throwing her mask offstage, ¡°let¡¯s go on with the show.¡± The crowd cheered. ¡°Also, students of ¡®you know where,¡¯ make sure you vote for me in The Harmonia Festival qualifiers on December 11. Let¡¯s send Lady Topaz to Crawford Stadium!¡± The crowd cheered even louder. Mood slightly ruined, I glanced at Jae before pulling out my phone, another cover song starting.
--------
The show went on for thirty minutes. I yawned as Mira sang another cover song, Jae clapping along. I wanted to enjoy it for her sake, but it was hard ¡®cause of who Mira was. So instead, I scrolled through my phone and thought of how much funner the football game was gonna be. Just like how much better The Harmonia Festival would be if someone covered one of Ellie¡¯s songs. But no one could match her. She was amazing! I would¡¯ve given anything to had been born early enough to attend her Crawford Stadium show. To watch her sing Shine live and cheer her on from the crowd. Then, she would come to the edge of the stage and point at me. I¡¯d reach my hand to her, she¡¯d smile and say,
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¡°You!¡±
Blinking, I was back in Heartsgrove Mall. Instead of Ellie, Mira stood on the stage pointing into the crowd. No, she was pointing at¡me? I looked around, everyone¡¯s eyes on me, before seeing my hand raised.
Oh. Crap.
Before I could speak, I was pushed through the crowd. It was worse than the school hallway one minute to class. By the time I was on stage, my arms ached. I couldn¡¯t see Tayla or Jae at all in the fifty pairs of eyes glaring at me.
I thought I was gonna faint.
¡°Let¡¯s give a big hand to our volunteer,¡± Mira said, a few people clapping. A boy handed me a mic as she skipped next to me, flowery perfume making my nose itch. ¡°So, what¡¯s your name, where¡¯re you from?¡±
¡°Se-Serena Starr from Heartsgrove,¡± I stuttered.
¡°A local! Well, Serena, I hope you¡¯re ready to sing not just to our audience but all the people at home.¡±
¡°People at¡¡± I spun towards her, ¡°¡this is being streamed?¡±
¡°Of course!¡± Turning around, she lowered her mic and smirked. ¡°So, try not to embarrass yourself too badly, Little Miss Hero.¡± My nerves and frustration grew as she twirled back around, a fake smile on her face. ¡°Our friend here is going to help me sing a pretty difficult song. Let¡¯s cheer her on. To-To-Paz!¡± A third of the crowd echoed her. ¡°Now, Miss Serena, do you know the song Shine by Ellie Stella?¡±
Did I?
¡°Better than anyone,¡± I said, a few people giggling.
¡°Let¡¯s see about that,¡± Mira said, a small smirk on her face. ¡°Hit it!¡±
The music I knew all too well started, and Mira sang the first line. She danced around the stage with me trying to keep up, eyes on her. There were people staring. There was probably more watching online. But Shine was my song!
And Lady Topaz AKA Mira Oliveira was singing it all wrong!
After finishing the line, she pointed at me. I sang the second part, doing the dance moves I¡¯d seen Ellie do hundreds of times. A twirl, a clap, and a kick! Mira jumped back in, a frown on her face as we sang the chorus.
Definitely wasn¡¯t a real fan.
Soon, Mira, the crowd, everything faded away. All I saw were the lights and stage. All I heard was the music. It was like singing in my bedroom but different. It was like that morning in Auria¡¯s room but different. My heart was pounding, the lights were bright, and the music was loud along with my voice. It was¡
It was so much fun!
As I finished the second chorus, the music faded away. It was then, as I stood there panting, that I noticed the crowd again.
The crowd that was staring, mouths hanging open.
Mira skipped in front of me. ¡°That was¡great,¡± she said shakily. ¡°Let¡¯s move on to our last number.¡±
The mic boy escorted me off the stage as Mira went on with the show. I quickly moved through the crowd trying to find my friends. ¡°Serena, over here!¡± I heard Jae call. Seeing her waving hand, I rushed over, both girls standing with huge smiles on their faces. ¡°That was, like, amazing! I had no idea you could sing. Did you, Tayla?¡±
She shook her head. ¡°Not like that, anyway,¡± she said. ¡°How do you feel?¡±
Before I could say anything, someone tapped my shoulder. I turned, three girls smiling behind me. ¡°Nice job,¡± one said. ¡°Do you have a channel? I¡¯ll subscribe.¡±
¡°I¡ª¡± I tried to say when more people came over, focused on me more than the show. I wasn¡¯t sure what to do; the closest I¡¯d even experienced to it was when my team crowded me after I shot the winning goal at one of my soccer games.
The game!
¡°Guys, we gotta leave,¡± I tried to say, but it was drowned out by the show, the cheers, and the six people surrounding me, Tayla and Jae being pushed back. Someone grabbed my arm, and I tried to yank it away when I heard a familiar whisper.
¡°Follow me; I¡¯ll get you out.¡±
Glancing to my left, I gasped. Holding my arm was the little boy from that morning. I nodded and motioned for the others to follow. The boy pulled me through the crowd before we reached the escalators, the girls arriving a second later. ¡°That was scary,¡± Tayla said with a shiver.
The boy looked around before turning. ¡°This way,¡± he said. ¡°You need to leave the mall before the show ends.¡±
I looked at the other two, and we nodded. With many twists and turns, we followed him through the crowds, out a practically empty exit, and to the corner of Heartsgrove Mall and Main Street. Once he stopped, Jae collapsed onto the curb. ¡°Finally,¡± she groaned.
I chuckled and turned back to our savior. ¡°Thanks for that,¡± I said. ¡°You really saved me back there¡um¡¡±
¡°Marcus. Marcus Romano,¡± he said. ¡°And I suppose I¡¯m returning a favor.¡±
Tayla looked between us with a frown. ¡°This is the kid I was talking ¡®bout at lunch,¡± I said. ¡°The one Mira was bullying.¡± Tayla slowly nodded before I turned back to Marcus. ¡°I¡¯m surprised you were watching her show. After this morning, you¡¯re still a Lady Topaz fan?¡±
¡°Absolutely not!¡± he said with a huff. ¡°I was there for¡reasons.¡± He glanced away, arms crossed. ¡°Trying to scope out the enemy.¡±
¡°Enemy?¡±
He shook his head and turned back towards me. ¡°Are you planning on performing at The Harmonia Festival?¡±
¡°What?¡± I said in shock, jumping back. ¡°No way; that was the first time I ever sang on a stage.¡±
¡°Really?¡± Marcus said, frown growing. ¡°Didn¡¯t seem like it.¡± Pulling out a phone in wolf casing, he pressed it a few times and held it up. ¡°See?¡± On the screen was Mira¡¯s stream; more specifically, it was me singing Shine while Mira stood in the back like a deer in headlights. My voice was coming out the speakers. The first time I truly heard myself sing.
I wasn¡¯t half bad.
¡°You said you were from here,¡± Marcus said, pulling his hand back. ¡°May I assume you and Mira attend the same school?¡± I glanced at Jae, who nodded. ¡°So, you¡¯d be competing against her¡you should try out for the festival.¡±
He was serious.
¡°I¡you really wanna get back at her for this morning, huh?¡± I said with a chuckle.
¡°She¡¯s the reason I can¡¯t try out for the festival.¡±
Huh? ¡°You wouldn¡¯t had been able to, anyway; it¡¯s for high schoolers and college students.¡±
¡°Last I checked, 9th Grade was in high school.¡±
That day was just full of surprises.
¡°But before my band even had its first performance, Mira attacked us. She wrote comments on our videos and sent us messages that we¡¯d never make it as artists. This went on for weeks, and we fell apart.¡±
¡°She really is a bully,¡± Tayla muttered.
¡°I¡¯ve seen her do it to others. Saying nasty things and putting them down just so she could rise. Until today.¡± Marcus stepped closer to me. ¡°You outshone her.¡±
¡°I did?¡± I said, rubbing my head. ¡°She did look annoyed, huh?¡±
¡°After today, she¡¯ll likely work harder to win,¡± Marcus said. ¡°However, I believe with more training, you could outshine her again. You could defeat her and represent your school at The Harmonia Festival. I know it¡¯s a lot, but will you consider it?¡±
Darn right, it was a lot! But was that something I really could do? Could I sing in The Harmonia Festival on Crawford Stadium¡¯s stage. Did I want to?
¡°Do it, Serena,¡± Jae said, jumping up and grabbing my hand. ¡°You¡¯d kill it at the festival.¡±
I laughed, still in disbelief at all that had happened. ¡°If I did, I¡¯d have to fight Lady Topaz at the qualifiers.¡±
¡°So? That¡¯ll make it more interesting. But I would, like, support you since we¡¯re friends.¡±
¡°As would I,¡± Tayla said, taking my other hand. ¡°You looked like you were having fun up there. The most fun I¡¯ve ever seen you have.¡± She grinned. ¡°You have what it takes, Serena, but it¡¯s up to you.¡± I looked between my friends and Marcus and closed my eyes.
Ten minutes before, I¡¯d sung and danced on a stage before a bunch of strangers. But I didn¡¯t faint. I didn¡¯t run and cry like before; I had fun. Singing and dancing on stage was a lot of fun. It was warm, loud, and bright¡brighter than a star. Maybe I could shine like the stars in the same way as Ellie. Maybe I could¡no, I would.
I wanted to be just like her!
¡°I¡¯ll do it!¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m gonna sing and dance on the same stage as Ellie Stella! At The Harmonia Festival.¡± Marcus let out a breath as Jae hugged me, Tayla laughing. Excitement spread through me as my spinning thoughts landed on one.
I was gonna shine like the stars.