Mixed Messages

by Tina Wells

  It matters to me! Zee thought. She had expected the assistant teacher to be more understanding.

  “You worked really hard this week,” Ms. Vardolis reminded them. “Are you going to throw that away?” Landon and Missy shook their heads. “Or would you rather show everyone what you can do?” Conrad and Marcus nodded yes. “Besides, you made a commitment to play at Brookdale Day. You may be upset, but you promised your town a show, and that’s what it deserves.” Chloe and Ally shifted awkwardly from foot to foot. “You’re a real band, and real musicians don’t let their audiences down.”

  Zee looked from one band member to the next. We are a real band. “We should sing,” she said. “We’ll never be a professional band if we don’t act like professionals.”

  “That’s the spirit, Mackenzie,” Ms. Vardolis said. “Just like a leader.”

  Ohmylanta! Zee thought. Kathi was looking at Ms. Vardolis, squinting her eyes and squeezing her lips together. The last thing The Beans needed right now was to remind Kathi how impressed Ms. Vardolis was with Zee.

  Chloe and Jasper moved closer to Zee, and Ally gave a little nod. But the other band members shifted in their places and looked at the ground.

  “Roxy’s right!” Kathi suddenly blurted out.

  “She is?” Jen asked.

  “It would be stupid to let Bluetopia ruin everything,” Kathi said. “More than it already has, that is. Right, Jen?”

  Jen nodded. “Definitely!” She turned to Marcus.

  Marcus looked over at Chloe. “I’m in,” he announced. “What about you?” he asked Conrad.

  One by one, The Beans headed across the park to the stage.

  Once they had gotten there, Kathi turned to Zee. “That’s leadership.”

  Zee had to agree with Kathi. She had gotten the group back together—even if it was just because she wanted to make Zee look bad.

  The instruments, microphones, and amplifiers were already set up. “The only thing missing is the band,” Zee said.

  “And the cool T-shirts,” Ally said, pointing to Zee’s backpack.

  “I almost forgot.” Zee slid the backpack to the ground and started handing out the T-shirts to the rest of the group.

  “Cool,” Marcus said quietly as Zee handed him his.

  Landon took his. “Thanks.”

  “This was such a great idea, Zee,” Missy told her, pulling her orange tee over her head.

  Things weren’t back to normal, but they were better than they had been fifteen minutes before.

  Mr. P stepped onto the stage. “Hello, Brookdale!” he announced. A cheer went up from the small crowd that had gathered on the grass. As he began thanking the Brookdale Day committee, people slowly moved over from the vendors and food stands to find their place on blankets and lawn chairs.

  Then Mr. P was ready to announce the main event. “We are pleased to kick off Brookdale Day with a hometown band.”

  “Woo-hoo!” someone in the audience hooted.

  “All right!” another person yelled.

  The crowd made Zee feel better. She noticed that the rest of The Beans were starting to smile.

  “I’m pleased to introduce to you—” Mr. P continued. “The Beans!”

  The audience applauded politely. With Zee leading the group, The Beans hurried onto the stage. The others followed behind and picked up their instruments. Zee looked out at the faces in front of her. As she scanned the crowd, she saw her mother waving. Zee smiled. Her smile grew bigger when Adam gave her a thumbs-up.

  Zee pivoted around to look at the others. “Are you ready?” she mouthed. They nodded. “One, two, three, four!” she counted off loudly.

  On the beat, The Beans started playing. At first, they had some trouble with timing, and Zee was afraid they might fall apart altogether. But little by little, as people filled in the empty spots on the grass and started clapping along, they played better. By the end of the first song, there was even a small group of girls dancing with one another.

  Zee tried to remember everything that had worked in rehearsals and everything that hadn’t. But it wasn’t until Zee thought about the fun everyone had had with the karaoke machine that the music fell into place.

  By the final song, The Beans were as amazing as they had been during rehearsal. Zee got so caught up in the music, she completely forgot about Bluetopia, her crush on Jasper, and Landon’s crush on her. When they finished their set, people rushed the stage.

  “You were amazing!” one girl told Kathi.

  “Thanks!” Kathi beamed.

  “I want to download your CD,” another girl told Missy.

  Zee stopped signing autographs long enough to look over at Jasper. She felt a little tug as girls waited for a chance to talk to him. She was embarrassed when he looked over and saw her staring, but the feeling went away when he smiled.

  Marcus interrupted Zee’s thoughts. “Pretty good for a band that was broken up half an hour ago,” he said, nudging Chloe.

  Chloe put her arm around Ally. “Pretty good for any band!”

  “Yeah, I’m glad we’re all friends again,” Landon said, staring right at Zee.

  “The Beans are the best friends I have,” Zee said.

  “You’re right about that,” Missy put in.

  Zee searched the crowd for her parents and was shocked to see Kathi’s parents pushing their way through. “How could you do this to us?” Mrs. Barney asked her daughter.

  “Um . . . I . . . don’t know,” Kathi responded. From the scared expression on her face, Zee could tell that Kathi had no idea what her parents were talking about.

  “You publicly humiliated us when you said those things about Roxy,” Mr. Barney said.

  “You made the family look bad,” Mrs. Barney added.

  Kathi shrunk back from her parents. “But those notes were supposed to be private. I didn’t expect anyone to see them.”

  “Well, they did, and I’m sure they’ll have a fabulous time talking about this little incident at the tennis club.”

  Ms. Vardolis suddenly burst into the group. She leaned in and kissed Kathi’s mother on the cheek, then did the same to her father. “Aunt Roni and Uncle Skip! I didn’t see you standing there. I am just so proud of Kathi. If it hadn’t been for her today, we might not have had a show.”

  All three of the Barneys stared with their mouths wide-open.

  “Really?” Kathi said.

  “Do you mind if I borrow my cousin for a sec?” Ms. Vardolis asked the Barneys.

  “Uh . . . no,” Mrs. Barney stammered. “Go ahead.”

  With a relieved look on her face, Kathi followed her cousin. “Thanks,” Zee heard her say as they walked past.

  “I owe you,” Ms. Vardolis told her. Even though she wasn’t trying, Zee could hear most of their conversation. “I was very impressed with how you got The Beans onstage today—especially since I know you’ve been pretty mad at me.”

  “How’d you guess?” Kathi joked, glancing over at the blank screens.

  Ms. Vardolis laughed and put her arm around Kathi’s shoulder. “I expected a lot from you because I know how incredibly talented you are. But I’m sorry I didn’t praise you more for what you do well.”

  “You think I’m talented?” Kathi asked.

  “I’ve always admired you. Ever since you were born, my mother has told me you were the cutest baby and you sang the sweetest.” Ms. Vardolis leaned a little closer to Kathi. “When I was a teenager, I even tried to straighten my hair so it would be more like yours.”

  “My mom wanted mine to be curly like yours!” Kathi gasped.

  “Today I realized I was unfair to ask so much of you,” Ms. Vardolis went on. “After all, that’s what everyone did to me when I was your age. I’m sorry.”

  Then Zee heard Kathi say something she’d never heard her say before. “I’m sorry, too.” She hugged Ms. Vardolis.

  By now, the crowd was settling down and the next band was getting ready to go onstage.

  “Heads up, Beans!”
Mr. P shouted, motioning for everyone to gather around him. “You all did a fabulous job today. And I think you learned a valuable lesson about teamwork. So don’t give up on The Beans and don’t give up on Bluetopia.”

  “You don’t want us to get rid of Bluetopia?” Jasper asked.

  “Just because something has a couple of problems doesn’t mean you have to get rid of it,” Mr. P told him. “If you only focus on what went wrong, you’ll never accomplish anything.”

  “But a lot went wrong,” Conrad pointed out.

  “And a lot went right, too,” Mr. P said. “We featured Bluetopia because of all the great things about it. You created a place for people all over the world to hang out and get to know one another. Now you guys should talk about what you liked about Bluetopia and start from there.”

  “All right!” Jasper agreed.

  Marcus walked over to Chloe. “I didn’t mean to make fun of you,” he said. “I like you.”

  “You do?”

  “You’re really cool and funny,” Marcus explained. “That’s why I thought it was okay to joke around with you.”

  “Whose photo was that?” Chloe asked.

  “Some model,” Marcus said. “I got it off the internet.”

  “Too bad! He was really cute!” Chloe wiggled her eyebrows up and down.

  Seeing Chloe forgive Marcus so easily gave Zee courage. She walked over to Missy. “I’m sorry all I ever wanted to talk about with you was the twins. But that’s not the reason I wanted to be friends.”

  Missy ran her fingers through her hair. “Well, it’s not like I didn’t have a ton of complaints about them lately.”

  “Now at least we can also talk about what it’s like to have short hair,” Zee pointed out.

  Missy laughed.

  After Zee and Ally rode their bikes home, Ally said she had some things to do on the computer. “Not Bluetopia, I hope,” Zee joked.

  “No way!” Ally assured.

  Zee went into the TV room and flopped on the couch in an exhausted heap.

  “Hello, Zee.” Mrs. Carmichael came into the room and sat next to Zee.

  Zee sat up. “Hi, Mom.”

  “Adam told me that you weren’t so thrilled about the twins after all,” Zee’s mom continued.

  “I can’t believe he told you!” Zee said. “That was supposed to be private.” Inside Zee was more nervous than angry. Would her mother think she was a spoiled brat?

  “I know you didn’t mean for me to find out, but I’m glad I did,” Mrs. Carmichael explained. “I had no idea I was acting so crazy.”

  “I guess I was acting a little crazy, too,” Zee said. “I thought you might forget about me once the twins were here.”

  “I may forget a few things—like snacks and rehearsals—but I will never forget about you,” Mrs. Carmichael promised. “You’re my Zee.”

  Zee smiled and squeezed her mother in a hug. Then she remembered the babies and let go. “Am I squeezing too tight?”

  “Never!” her mother said, holding on even tighter.

  When they stopped hugging, Zee said, “I think I would like to move into the guest room.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Can I give it a total Zee makeover?”

  Zee’s mother smiled and nodded. Then she hugged Zee again.

  Zee raced upstairs to tell Ally what had happened. When she stepped into her bedroom, Ally was sitting on her bed with the laptop.

  “What are you doing?” Zee asked.

  Ally stopped typing. “Emailing my friends in France.”

  “Oh,” Zee said quietly.

  “Do you want to read what I wrote?”

  Zee wasn’t sure what to say. She couldn’t believe those girls had said such mean things about her and caused Ally and Zee to fight on their last day together. But Zee didn’t want to fight anymore. “Sure,” she said, and began to read the screen.

  * * *

  Hi, guys,

  I had such a great time in the U.S. with my BFF Zee. I got to do all of the awesome stuff we always used to do together. Here’s what I’ll miss most about her.

  She’s incredibly nice. She’s miserable if she thinks she’s hurt someone’s feelings.

  She’s really talented. She’s an amazing guitar player and singer. She writes awesome songs, too.

  She’s funny. We spent a ton of the time laughing.

  And she has great fashion sense. I know because sometimes we dress the same!

  I can’t wait for you to meet her.

  C u soon!

  Au revoir,

  A

  * * *

  “Thanks!” Zee said when she’d finished reading.

  “Anything for my BFF!” Ally logged out of her email.

  “Can I use the computer now?” Zee asked.

  “Sure. What are you going to do?”

  “I wanted to chat with Jasper about Bluetopia,” Zee explained.

  “Oh yeah!” Ally said. “Why didn’t you tell me you have a crush on Jasper?”

  “’Cause I’m not sure I do.” Zee paused. “But I’m not sure I don’t.”

  “Why not?” Ally asked.

  “I don’t want to mess up our friendship,” Zee said. “And I don’t know if he likes me like that.”

  “I wish one of you would fess up and find out!” Ally said frantically.

  Zee laughed and signed on to chat with Jasper.

  E-ZEE: Can I help u fix Bluetopia?

  BRITCHAP: If u still want 2!

  E-ZEE: I have a bunch of new ideas.

  BRITCHAP: I think we should use 1 of your old ideas.

  E-ZEE: ???

  BRITCHAP: Let’s test it on a small group b4 we invite so many ppl.

  E-ZEE: That is a good idea!

  Zee and Jasper continued chatting about Bluetopia and The Beans’ concert. Nobody mentioned the crush, so when they finally said good-bye, Zee had no idea where she stood.

  * * *

  Hi, Diary,

  You won’t believe what happened! Let’s just say that when it comes to my secrets, you’re the only diary I’m talking to from now on.

  I thought I wasn’t sure if I like Jasper or not, but now I am sure. I do like him. I mean like like him. But I can also be his friend. I don’t have to go crazy when I see him or think about him.

  Maybe he doesn’t like me back. I can live with that. I’ve still got a great friend. There’s no guy like Jasper! Landon’s nice, but I just liked him because he was so cute. We’re not interested in the same things. And now I know that’s really important to me. Thanks to Jasper.

  Zee

  * * *

  Chapter 16

  The Good-bye

  At the Los Angeles airport, Zee wiped a tear from her cheek. “I’m going to miss you so much!” she told Ally, hugging her—again.

  Ally blew her nose into a tissue. “I had such an awesome visit. I wish we could still hang out like that all the time.”

  “We will,” Zee promised. “When I come visit you in France.”

  Ally got a concerned look on her face.

  “What’s wrong?” Zee asked.

  “I’m just afraid you really won’t want to come—after what my friends did,” Ally explained. “I’m sorry I didn’t stick up for you sooner.”

  “Why didn’t you?” Zee asked.

  “Because you’ve always been there for me no matter what,” Ally said. “You’ve always forgiven me.”

  “Luckily, you always forgive me, too.” Zee smiled.

  “That’s the problem with my new friends. They make a big deal out of everything. I guess I was kind of scared of them.”

  “Are you scared of them now?” Zee asked.

  “No, they thought the email was really cool and can’t wait to meet you!”

  “Flight three-twenty-two to Charles de Gaulle Airport now boarding gate six,” the announcement called the passengers on Ally’s plane.

  “Oh no!” Zee said. She gave Ally another hug. “Good-bye.”

 
Zee waved as Ally slowly walked toward the gate.

  “You and Jasper have to get Bluetopia going again so we can keep in touch constantly,” Ally called across the waiting area.

  Zee laughed and called back, “We will.” She watched her friend disappear down the long corridor to the plane.

  Zee was quiet on the ride back to Brookdale. She was thinking about the email she would send her best friend.

  * * *

  Ally,

  I miss you soooooooooo much.

  Next time I will see you in Paris. Promise to show me the most delicious pastries, coolest shops, and cutest guys. Ooh-la-la!

  Until then, see you on Bluetopia!

  LYLAS,

  Zee

  * * *

  Then Zee got out her guitar and started writing her next song: “Double Trouble.”

  Online Glossary

  &: and

  @: at

  <3 (sideways heart): = love (<33 = extra love)

  =: equal

  1: one

  1st: first

  2: to; two; too

  2day: today

  2-faced: two-faced

  2gether: together

  2morrow: tomorrow

  2nite: tonight

  4: for

  411: information

  4get: forget

  4give: forgive

  4gotten: forgotten

  ASAP: as soon as possible

  b: be

  b/c: because

  b/f: boyfriend

  b4: before

  BB4N: bye-bye for now

  BFF: best friends forever

  bz: busy

  c: see

  CA: California

  cld: could

  every1: everyone

  g/f: girlfriend

  gr8: great

  GTG: gotta go

  GTR: gotta run

  H&K: hugs and kisses

  K: okay

  LOL: laughing out loud

  LYLAS: love you like a sister

  M: am

  mayb: maybe

  mins: minutes