Play It Again

by Laura Dower

“What movie? Where?”

  “At my parents’ guest house. We’re renting the original Wizard of Oz and everyone’s coming over to watch it.”

  Madison was confused. “Everyone? Like who?”

  “From the play,” Drew said. “We said we’d watch the movie, remember? You were there.”

  “No, I don’t think so.”

  “You don’t know about the movie?”

  “No,” Madison said again. “No one told me there was a movie.” She was repeating herself like a parrot.

  “Whoa,” Drew moaned. “I guess Fiona forgot to tell you. She told me she’d ask you. I think. Yeah. We were talking about renting the movie the other day, and then I asked my mom if we could do it because we have a screening room. You know the one in the guest house?”

  “Uh-huh.” Madison felt the exact same way she felt in first grade when she was the only person in class who wasn’t invited to Willie Walker’s birthday party. Mrs. Walker said the invitation had gotten lost in the mail, but Madison never believed it.

  Drew was still talking. “And so everyone just sort of invited themselves. Egg has a big mouth—you know that.”

  “Uh-huh.” Madison grunted. So why hadn’t Egg told her?

  “I guess we forgot to ask you.”

  “I guess.” Madison grunted again.

  “But you were always totally invited.”

  “Why didn’t you ask me yourself?” Madison asked. “I mean, we only see each other all the time these days at the play and in computer class, too.”

  “Uh—uh—uh … I know…. B-B-But…” Drew was stammering a lot now. He did that when he got real nervous. “I’m SORRY,” he said. “I swear I thought one of the girls was gonna ask you. Fiona said she would. I SWEAR.”

  “What time does it start?” Madison asked.

  “Three,” Drew said. “Well, can you come?” he asked. “I mean, now that you know?”

  “I have one question,” Madison said. “Will Ivy Daly be there?”

  “I don’t think so,” Drew said.

  When Drew confirmed that Ivy would not be at the screening, Madison agreed to come over—no problem, no hard feelings attached.

  Drew sounded relieved when he said good-bye. Madison was relieved, too, that the conversation was over.

  As she hung up the phone, she felt freakier than freaky. Mom and the dog walked in the moment she put down the receiver.

  “Grrr…” Phinnie nuzzled Madison’s foot.

  “Will you take him for a w-a-l-k, please?” Mom asked as she kissed Madison hello.

  “Wanna go out?” Madison asked. Phin panted as she grabbed the leash and raced him to the door. Of course, Phinnie won—sliding to the finish. Whenever he ran anywhere too fast in the house, he’d skid across the polished floors.

  Madison walked around the block in a trance. She was trying to remember everything in her closet, row by row. She had no idea what she was going to wear to Drew’s place. Once she changed out of her sweatpants and oversized T-shirt from her dad’s alma mater, she had to put on something cute. Boys were going to be there. Hart was going to be there.

  Maybe she could wear the skinny jeans with the bejeweled striped crop top?

  Nah, too flashy.

  Maybe those purple leggings with the yellow double tank top?

  Madison just didn’t know what to wear.

  “Will his mother be home?” Mom asked Madison when she came back from the walk. Mom didn’t like Madison going places without chaperones.

  “I think …” Madison suddenly worried that Mom might not agree to let her go. She considered lying, but then admitted she really wasn’t sure. “I think so,” Madison said again, wishful.

  Mom finally said that Madison could go.

  “Thanks, Mom. This could be a very important movie, you know.”

  “Okay, honey bear,” Mom said with a nod. “Now go change. It’s after two-thirty.”

  The Movie

  I was the last person to get there.

  It’s weird to (1) not get invited in the first place and then (2) walk in when everyone else has already been there for a while. It’s like I had a neon sign on my head that said, “By the Way, I Was Invited at the Last Minute.”

  I always have over-thoughts—today I was the afterthought.

  Right away Aimee and Fiona made room for me between them on the floor, so it got better. Plus Fiona said it was all her fault for not asking me. She just spaced. After that it was pretty much normal for a while. Egg wouldn’t shut up; Drew was being Mr. Nice as always. His mom made all this popcorn and it was everywhere on the floor.

  And then the doorbell rang. Of course it was Ivy. She decided to come at the last minute. Drew was nice to her, too. All the boys. were. She was wearing this shirt that was way too tight and jeans that were too tight, too.

  I could almost pretend she wasn’t there if I sat with my back to her. But when we paused the tape for snack break, Aimee got up to go talk to her. I couldn’t believe that! Even Fiona thought that was a little weird.

  Hart wasn’t there. I wonder why? Lindsay wasn’t there, either. I guess no one remembered to invite her, either.

  It’s bad enough that Ivy has to win things like elections and play parts, but suddenly it’s like she has to win people, too. When she and Aimee started singing their duet just for fun, I wanted to RUN.

  Tonight when I see Dad for dinner, I know he’ll say I’m over-thinking this whole Ivy thing. After all, it is just one play. But what if this isn’t a temporary thing? Aimee’s brothers all told her there are MAJOR changes in seventh grade. What if changing friends is one of them?

  But how do you just forget to invite your BFF to the movies?

  After feeling snubbed at Drew’s, the last thing Madison was prepared to deal with was Dad’s girlfriend, Stephanie. But Dad invited her along for dinner, despite Madison’s protests.

  “I want you to be nice,” Dad pleaded. “Please.”

  Madison tried. Dad seemed so blissed out when he was around Stephanie. He smiled nonstop and made even more dumb jokes than usual.

  And Madison had to admit, Stephanie really was nice. It was just hard to see another person sitting across the table from Dad where Mom used to sit.

  At dinner, Stephanie told Madison how she’d been an actress all through college. She was so enthusiastic, which took Madison by surprise.

  “You were?” Madison asked.

  Stephanie nodded. “I think being in a show is a terrific way to find out more about yourself. When you act, you can become anyone or anything.”

  “And what about being offstage?” Madison asked. “Being a stage manager?”

  “Well.” Stephanie leaned in a little closer to Madison and whispered, “Then you’re in charge—of you, of the cast, of everything.”

  Madison noticed Dad’s expression as he looked at Stephanie. His eyes were shiny like wet marbles. He couldn’t stop staring.

  It was embarrassing.

  Madison didn’t remember if Dad ever looked at Mom that way. She tried to search her memory banks like she searched on the Internet, thinking of specific “search” words to see if they’d trigger any memories: love, dinner, kiss.

  But she came up empty. No matches found.

  That night before bed, Madison fished through her piles of files, pictures, and words about theater, acting, taking charge. She thought maybe she could make Stephanie a collage, too?

  She’d do one for Bigwheels first … then one for Stephanie.

  Madison shut her eyes tight. What she really needed was sleep.

  The play was only days away.

  Chapter 11

  The Wiz

  I learned how to sew a cape. Actually, I sewed part of Hart’s cape. Mrs. Perez really sewed most of it. But still, it’s like a part of me will be with him during the show. How cool is that?

  Tuesday. Boring. I am so busy, I barely have time to write. I have like two hours of homework and it’s ten o’clock already. We had anoth
er dress rehearsal today. It was forty-eight minutes exactly. Didn’t stop for anyone. One funny part was when Ivy forgot her line in one of the songs and I had to cue her. She was MAD about that.

  Thursday. Wow. Final run-through. We cleaned the stage afterward. Aimee’s dances are so great. It’s better that Rose is in the dance numbers because when they dance side by side, Aimee blows her away. Aimee has been so busy practicing, we haven’t really talked. Fiona has a cold, but it actually makes the bad-witch voice better. Egg is good, too. We’re all GREAT! The Wiz is GREAT!!!!

  On Friday, Madison logged online before breakfast. With The Wiz on the horizon, she was feeling ultrasuperstitious. She decided to go to TweenBlurt com for a little help. Just before every major life event Madison would visit “Ask the Blowfish” on her favorite Web site.

  Right now was no exception.

  In the lower corner of the homepage was a teeny blinking fishbowl with a question mark in the middle. Once the fish was clicked, a small window opened. There were simple instructions:

  Ask the Blowfish Yes or No

  And then the fish will say Hello

  Madison had to type a simple yes or no question into the little box on-screen. At first, she hadn’t been impressed. She’d thought the blowfish looked like nothing more than a puffy gum-ball with fins.

  When Madison had typed her question and hit ENTER, however, a bubble popped up with an answer and she’d gotten so excited! The answers weren’t all that specific, but Madison loved reading them, like wacko fortune cookie fortunes. Madison knew the way the answers appeared was random, but she wanted to believe them, anyway.

  She wanted to believe.

  Madison typed: Will the play be good tonight?

  The fish blew a bubble with its answer. “Things will go swimmingly.”

  Madison was very encouraged.

  Will everyone like the show?

  The fish said, “The tide is high.”

  Madison was still encouraged. She had to ask the next question.

  Will Hart talk to me tonight?

  The fish said, “Beware of sharks.”

  No way! Madison couldn’t believe a blowfish could possibly be SO right. It was like the computer knew about Poison Ivy. She was the shark, after all.

  Madison asked one more question.

  Does Hart like me?

  The fish said, “The tide is high.”

  Madison was thrilled to hear that … but then she realized that the blowfish already gave that answer once.

  “But it’s still a positive,” she told herself.

  She checked her mailbox, too, while she was online and found an electronic card waiting there. It was better news than what the blowfish delivered. On it was a picture of some kind of cartoon wizard.

  Make a Wish

  You’re a “wiz” at whatever you do! Thought this was funny! Hope everything goes well backstage. Write soon.

  Yours till the leg breaks,

  Bigwheels

  Madison closed her laptop and went down to the kitchen. She’d hang with Phinnie while she ate her cereal. When she’d finished eating, Madison got down on the floor beside him and rubbed his belly. Phin was snoring, curled up by the dishwasher. His shallow little breaths were so peaceful.

  Dogs have a way of telling a person everything will be okay just by lying there. Madison read somewhere that dogs never forget. Even if someone is gone for a year, once he or she comes back, that dog will sniff and love and be a friend just like before. When a dog does that, people know they’re home.

  “I have to go, Maddie! Do you want a lift to school?” Mom said, walking into the kitchen.

  Madison couldn’t pass up a ride this morning. It was raining.

  Was rain a good omen or a bad one?

  “We’re off to see The Wizard,” Mom joked as they pulled out of the driveway.

  When Mom said, “Wizard,” all Madison could think of was Hart.

  Everyone in homeroom cheered when Mr. Bernard made his morning announcements about the show.

  “To all the students at Far Hills who are participating in the revues from classes seven through nine, thanks for all your hard work. You have made this a very special week, especially for Mrs. Goode, who has devoted much of her teaching career to helping Far Hills students. I ask that all teachers and counselors please take into consideration that students who are participating in the show be given special …”

  Listening, Madison felt better instantly. She wouldn’t stress about her work right now. She couldn’t. She had to concentrate on the play.

  It would have been nice if Madison’s science teacher, Mr. Danehy, had been in agreement with Principal Bernard. While the majority of the seventh-graders could think of nothing else except The Wiz, Mr. Danehy thought it was important for the seventh graders to be thinking about tsunamis and sound waves.

  During last period, he announced a science test out of the blue—on waves of all kinds.

  “Test Monday. No exceptions,” he said, stepping into the science storage closet for a moment. No one, not even Hart, was ready for a test.

  When Mr. Danehy was out of sight, Chet stood at the front of the room and suggested that they go into his desk to steal the test so everyone could get an A and make Mr. Danehy bonkers. Egg thought that was a great idea, too. But Madison reminded them both that they probably didn’t want to get caught and be expelled, right?

  “Expelled?” Egg said.

  “Hey, I was only kidding,” Chet said.

  When Mr. Danehy reentered the class, the students pleaded for mercy in rounds like “Row, Row, Row Your Boat.”

  “Please, please, change the date?”

  “Mr. Danehy, we have play practice.”

  “The Wiz is over soon.”

  “Well,” Mr. Danehy said, standing in the back of the class with his arms folded against his chest. “I see.”

  Everyone breathed a sigh of hope when he said he would think about changing the test date. Thinking about it was better than nothing.

  Two hours before the show was supposed to go on, before anyone had on costume or makeup, The Wiz cast and crew gathered together backstage. Mariah and Wayne were there, too. It was pep talk time. Mr. Gibbons had something very important to tell everyone.

  “So here it is, kids,” he started out. “The moment we’ve all be waiting for, right? The Wiz is here.”

  “Yes, I am, Mr. Gibbons,” Hart called out. “I’m right over here.”

  That got a big, nervous laugh.

  “We had only a short time to pull together and do this, cast—”

  Drew interrupted. “And crew, Mr. Gibbons. Don’t forget.”

  “Yes, Drew, cast and crew. And I am wowed by how well you all worked together as a group.”

  Madison looked over at Aimee, who was sitting to her left, across the room at Ivy, and then over by the door at Lindsay.

  Fiona leaned over to the right and whispered in Madison’s ear, “Are you nervous?”

  “Big time,” Madison whispered back. “Are you?”

  “Big time.” Fiona stuck her arm inside Madison’s. “Remember when you told me not to be nervous? That day when the cast was posted?”

  They looked over at Aimee together and she pointed to Mr. Gibbons, who wasn’t looking in their direction at the time. He was talking too much tonight. He must be nervous, too.

  Aimee made a goofy face like she was pretending to scream silently. “Help me!” she mouthed the words. Madison and Fiona almost lost it when she did that.

  “So, kids.” Mr. Gibbons turned back toward them. “When you get inside the auditorium, there will be lots of activity. We’re the class leading off the program, and that’s a big responsibility. I want you to be careful, pay attention … and HAVE FUN.”

  He turned to Mrs. Montefiore, who had a few words to say. “I will lead vocal warm-ups backstage. After which everyone can get dressed and ready to go. Understood?”

  Everyone nodded.

  Ivy raised her hand
and talked at the same time. “Do we come out for standing ovations? How do we line up for our curtain call?”

  “That’s assuming people are clapping.” Mr. Gibbons laughed.

  Good one, Mr. Gibbons.

  “Actually that’s a good question, Ivy. You’ll get applause after each of your songs. And for the final number, you’ll all stay in place and take one last bow.”

  Lindsay had her hand raised, too. “Mr. Gibbons?” she asked.

  “Lindsay!” he said. “One more question?”

  “What do I do with Chocolate in between scenes again? Did you say something yesterday about cookies?”

  “I almost forgot!” He reached into his pocket and pulled out some Liver Snaps. “Chocolate loves these. One after each scene should keep her happy.”

  Everyone was twittering … chittering … more nervous than ever by now.

  “So go on out there and break a leg, everyone!” he shouted.

  The cast and crew burst into big whoops and claps.

  Madison heard Ivy whisper to Rose as they walked out of the room, “Gee, I hope fatso doesn’t eat all the Liver Snaps for herself.” She couldn’t believe Ivy could say something so cruel after all the hard work Lindsay had done.

  “Hey, Finnster!” Hart called across the room. “Wait up!”

  Madison felt her stomach flip-flop.

  “Hey, Finnster, have you seen my Wiz cape? Mariah told me you guys did something to it.”

  Madison grinned. “We sewed on silver stars.”

  “Whoa, that sounds cool,” Hart said. He ran his fingers through his brown hair. Madison could almost smell his shampoo.

  “Um, excuse me … Hart?” someone interrupted.

  It was Poison Ivy. Madison thought she had already left the room, but here she was.

  “Hey, Ivy,” Hart said with a sweet smile.

  Madison loved watching Hart smile, but only when it was directed at her—not her enemy.

  “I just wanted to make sure I told you again about getting to the cast party,” Ivy told him. She was speaking directly to Hart and ignoring Madison completely. “At my house. I can give you a ride if you don’t have one. I know you said your parents had to go straight home.”