Jeff hangs up and marches back to me. “Your mother is a nice lady, but no more fan calls.”
“Okay.” I grin at him. “Thanks. That probably made her year.”
“You’re welcome. Now go get your beauty sleep. Eliminations are tomorrow night.”
Chapter Ten
Clarissa clutches my hand, just like the last round of eliminations. But Vanessa stands on the other side of me, her shoulder pressed against mine. She has her eyes closed and her hands in a steeple over her mouth and nose.
To fill the half hour slot, the time preceding the live eliminations consisted of interviews with each of us. They’d asked us who we think will go, but I hadn’t answered that.
Now, as I scan the line, I think about each performance. With voting, these things could be so unpredictable. Who stays is purely a popularity contest, and doesn’t reflect a person’s abilities.
“We will ask the fifteen acts who are continuing to the next round to step to stage right,” Steven says. “So, in no particular order, the contestants for the next round are…”
He allows a long, expectant pause to hang in the air as he opens the envelope. “Vanessa Peterson…”
Vanessa yips and hurries to the stage right.
Name after name is called. Jessica is called, then me. I glance back at Clarissa as I head over, and she smiles, mouthing congrats. I count down as they come to the last seven acts. I hold my breath, watching Clarissa as she shuts her eyes, hoping. I don’t know what I’ll do if they’re sent home.
“Alex Little…”
Clarissa clings to Lucas’s arm.
“And last, but not least…”
Just spit it out!
“The Murphys.”
Clarissa and Lydia squeal, throwing their arms around Lucas and Arnie.
“No,” Jessica says softly.
Whitney stands in the eliminated group. She hangs her head and sobs.
Jessica shoves past me and wraps her arms around Whitney. I understand how she feels. If Clarissa had been the one eliminated, I’d be lost.
Clarissa rushes to me. “We both made it.”
I hug her. “We did. I’m so glad.”
“Me too.”
Isaiah grabs my head and kisses the top of it. “On to the next round.”
I smile. “Top fifteen!”
He laughs and wraps his arm around my neck.
As the eliminated group leaves, Jessica and Whitney glare across at me. Despite trying to ignore it, their contempt makes my stomach clench.
***
The next round is less than a week away. With two of Jeff’s contestants eliminated, he has more time for us, so he increased my slot to almost three hours. Clarissa voiced her concerns again.
“Are you sure he isn’t into you?”
“I am.” He tells me about his wife and kids too much for him to be pushing for an affair.
“How do you know?”
I look into her eyes as we sit on our beds watching TV. “Let’s see, it went something like, ‘My wife said you performed so well and she’s been bugging me to tell you. Oh, and my oldest son, he’s thirteen, wants your autograph and hopes to meet you.’ Then he followed up by showing me photos of his wife and kids.”
Clarissa frowns. “Oh, that’s…okay, he isn’t.”
“Yup.”
“I guess he just really wants you to win.”
“Maybe.” I sigh, lying back onto my plush, freshly changed pillow. “I did some digging. One of those couples that got into that affair scandal last year was under him.”
Clarissa tosses her legs over the side of the bed, her back going rigid. “Seriously?”
“Yeah.”
She lets out a long whistle. “That explains it then. Miss Wholesome will improve his image again.”
I chuckle. “I guess. Goodnight.”
“Night.” She flicks off the TV and pulls out an e-reader, disappearing under her blankets with a small light.
A loud thud wakes me. I roll over to see Clarissa asleep. The green numbers on the digital clock read 2:24 a.m. Thud. My breathing becomes strained as my chest tightens. Thud. The corridor.
I tiptoe to the door and peek through the hole. Jessica stands against the opposite wall of the corridor, facing our door. I pull back, hoping she can’t see me, then realize how ridiculous that thought is. The room behind me is completely dark, while the corridor is well lit. I look through again and see her punch the wall. Thud.
What’s she doing?
She pushes off the wall and paces in front of the door. She then rests back against the wall and punches it again.
The guys’ door opposite ours flies open and Lucas’s head pops out. “Hey!”
Jessica glances over, her head lolling to the side. “What?”
“Get back to your room.” Lucas gestures down the hallway.
She spouts out a string of unsavory insults.
“Hey!” He points at her fiercely. “Just go. You’re freaking out my brothers.”
“Send out Isaiah.”
“No. He’s sleeping.”
She points at my room. “In there?”
Lucas steps out and shuts the door behind him. “No. You need to go or I’ll call security.”
She steps closer to him and runs her hand down his chest. “Lucas.”
He pushes her away. “No.”
“But I’m all alone in my room now.”
“I don’t care. Make a new friend.”
“How about, maybe, you?” She grabs his junk.
He grunts and shoves her back. “No.”
“Lucas.”
“No.” He knocks on the door to the guys’ room.
She grabs his butt. “Don’t let me sleep alone.”
He pushes her away, but she grabs his shirt. Is she drunk or completely stupid?
For some reason, I’m compelled to do something to help Lucas. Probably because I’ve lost my mind from lack of sleep. I unlock my door and open it. They both swing around and Jessica steps away from him.
“What’s going on?” I ask, rubbing my eyes, blinded by the corridor lights.
“Nothing. I got locked out,” Lucas says quickly.
Jessica smiles sweetly at me, except her heavy makeup has dried badly and the gesture makes her face look like it has cracked. “We were on a date.”
Yeah, she wishes.
“No, we weren’t.” Lucas glares at her.
“Can I smell alcohol?” I sniff.
Jessica’s face falls. “Well, I should be heading back to my room. Night.”
She hurries away, disappearing into the elevator at the end of the hallway.
Lucas sighs, slouching. “Thanks.” He turns and knocks again.
“I saw what happened,” I say, leaning against the doorframe. Despite her nastiness, I do feel sorry for her, and she’ll probably feel embarrassed in the morning. “She’s not coping well with Whitney leaving.”
He shakes his head as he jiggles the handle. “Isaiah got back an hour ago and crashed. They went out drinking and he said she whined the whole time about how unfair it is.” He knocks again. “Come on, guys.”
“I don’t think they’re going to answer.”
He grunts, lowering his fist. “Great.”
“Why don’t you…” Do I really want to invite him in?
He glances back at me. “It’s fine.”
“Our room is set up the same as yours. You can use the couch.” What am I saying? This is Lucas; the guy who loves to show me his cold shoulder.
He rubs his neck and knocks again. He waits for a moment, then slumps, glancing back at me. “Yeah, okay.”
I step aside and he slips by me into our room. I flick on the lamp, waking Clarissa.
She rubs her eyes, then gasps. “Lucas!”
“I got locked out,” he grumbles.
“So you came in here?”
He averts his gaze. “Mmm.”
I open the closet and pull out the spare pillows and blankets, h
oping to avoid any kind of awkward and contentious conversation. All I want is sleep.
“Hailey, are you okay with this?” Clarissa asks in a high-pitched voice.
Nodding, I walk over to Lucas, offering him the bedding. “I told him to come in.”
Clarissa’s knees bounce under the blankets as her gaze darts to the door. “Isaiah will flip if he finds out.”
“Serves him right,” Lucas mumbles as he takes the blankets from me. “He wouldn’t let me back in. He probably told Levi and Arnie not to answer the door too.”
“It’s not like you haven’t done the same thing,” Clarissa mutters.
Lucas scowls at her. “I wanna go back to sleep.”
“Fine.” She pulls the blankets over her head.
Lucas turns toward the couch.
On the floor between the two beds, I notice one of my bras. My cheeks burn as I kick it under the nightstand, hoping Lucas didn’t notice. “Well…goodnight.”
“Yup.” He sinks onto the couch and covers his head.
I flick off the light.
My alarm tinkles at six like always. I slide out of bed as Clarissa rolls over. Half unconscious, I shower, humming to myself the song I’d soon be singing with Jeff. I grab my towel and dry, then realize I’ve forgotten to bring my bra with the rest of my clothes.
Wrapping the towel around myself, I dash out. Glancing around, I wonder where my bra has gone.
Something behind me moves. I tense as I remember Lucas. I swing around to see him with his back to me. Crap, crap, crap. I pluck out my bra and dash back into the bathroom.
After pulling on my underwear and jeans, I dig through my bathroom drawer for my eyeliner and mascara.
The door opens. “Oh sh—”
I scream.
Lucas stumbles back and hits the wall.
“Get out!” I yell.
His hands fly over his face. “I’m sorry! I thought you’d gone!”
Clarissa appears and shuts the bathroom door. She bursts out laughing.
I pound on the door. “Not funny.”
“It…is…” She collapses with a thud on the floor.
“I’m leaving,” Lucas says.
I pull on my shirt and hurry out of the bathroom. “Don’t bother. I have to go anyway.”
His face has turned bright red. He stares at me, wide-eyed. I can’t tell if he’s revolted or lost for words. Either way, I don’t want to find out.
I grab my bag as Clarissa continues to roll with laughter, and I open the door to leave.
Isaiah pauses his route from his room to ours. “What’s going on?”
Glancing behind me, I decide closing the door at that moment would be the best choice. I pull it shut. “Cartoons.”
“Clarissa doesn’t ever wake up this early.” His eyes narrow. “Lucas disappeared last night. You wouldn’t happen to know where he is?”
“I’m late.”
He glances at my room. “Let me walk you down.”
“Okay.” Whatever got him away from where Lucas had given me one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. As we walk, I let Isaiah drape his arm around my shoulders.
In the elevator, he moans. “I have a headache.”
“I’m not surprised, since you went out drinking,” I mumble.
He raises an eyebrow. “How did you know that?”
I clear my throat. “You do it all the time.”
“No, I don’t.”
I meet him dead in his dark brown eyes. “Yeah, you do.”
He purses his lips, unwrapping his arm from around me. “You’re pretty hard to impress.”
“I don’t like drunks.” I stare up at the descending floor numbers.
“Why?”
I let out a puff of air as I remain fixated. “My dad was a drunk and beat the crap out of my mom.”
Isaiah winces. “Oh.”
I shrug. “She got away. It seemed her self-preservation instincts kicked in the second he laid a hand on her daughter. I don’t really remember much else about him except that.”
“You talk about it so calmly.”
I manage to crack a grin and glance up at him. “It was a long time ago. I’ve moved on. Mom’s remarried. Life keeps moving.”
“Yeah.” His gaze shifts away from me. My revelation has unsettled him.
The door opens and I hurry out, not wanting to continue this uncomfortable conversation. He rushes after me and catches my arm. “Hailey, I’m sorry if…” He sighs. “I should cut back on the drinking.”
“Just about every night is a bit excessive,” I say, raising an eyebrow.
He grimaces. “Yeah, when you say it like that.”
“Look, I gotta go.” I hurry over to the self-serve breakfast table.
He grabs a white paper bag for me. “We’ll talk later, yeah?”
“Sure.” I drop a muffin in the bag and grab a plastic cup with orange juice. “Bye.”
“Bye.” He waves as I trot away.
***
I skip off the stage feeling like I aced my song. Martin grabs me and asks a few questions as I beam excitedly. He laughs at my jittery giggling and comments on how cute I am. Apparently, I’m acing the girl next door image as well.
When he lets me go, the act after me has almost finished. The Murphys are afterward, so I dash out to the backstage viewing area. As I arrive, Isaiah takes center stage, back to being the lead singer. The deep throbbing bass reverberates around the room as the lights flash on the stage like a nightclub. The chart-topper suits Isaiah as he sings and flirts with the crowd.
He points and winks at Drusilla, making her laugh and blush. The women in the audience fall all over themselves, squealing like sixties Beatles fanatics.
I turn my focus to Clarissa. With a grin and sparkles in her eyes, she looks like she’s enjoying herself, but as Lucas steps behind her, I catch him throwing her a raised eyebrow as his lips twitch downward. I doubt anyone else would notice, though, since Isaiah holds the spotlight. Lucas doesn’t like how Isaiah flirts with the audience, I know that, but can’t he see how it wins the crowd over?
“Hey, Hai.”
I glance over my shoulder as Jessica steps beside me. She folds her arms as she watches. “He’s gorgeous, isn’t he?”
“Isaiah?” I look up at the TV.
“Mmm-hmm. And he has the star personality too.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I catch her scrutinizing me. I don’t break my gaze from the screen.
“You like him, don’t you?” she asks.
I scoff, my stomach tightening. Could my ridiculous crush really be that obvious? “No. I have a boyfriend.”
“That never stopped anyone before.” She sighs, shaking her head. “It’s not like he’d pay attention to you anyway.” She steps in front of me, her arms crossed as she juts out her hip. “Look, you’re super sweet, so I feel like I should tell you what everyone else is saying. You’re not cut out for this. The way you hang off them is a joke.” She motions at the screen. “Isaiah tolerates you at best. You should quit before you humiliate yourself.”
I draw a sharp breath. “Excuse me?”
She strokes my arm, and I fight the urge to slap her away. “I’m sorry, Hails,” she says, her voice oozing with false sympathy, “but you’re not that good. I think they wanted to show that they let anyone on the show, hot or not, so they took pity on you. You’re their pity contestant. Every time you go out there, everyone laughs.”
I push her hand off me. “You’re just bitter.”
She pouts. “Oh no, Hail. I’m the only person here being honest with you. You won’t make the top ten. You should pull out before it comes to that.”
I glance around, my tears pushing to the surface. No one pays any attention to Jessica and me as they prepare for their own performances. Are other contestants really talking about me like that?
“Look at Isaiah—he’s gorgeous,” Jessica says softly. “All of the Murphys are. Underneath all this makeup and fancy new clothing,
you’re still that drab, boring girl.”
“Shut up,” I snarl, gritting my teeth. Logically, I know what she’s doing, trying to manipulate me, but since these same thoughts swim below the surface in my mind, her efforts are working.
She smirks. “Hai, hon. I spend more time with Isaiah than you do. I spend more time with everyone than you do. You should just go back to school where you belong.”
I glare at her.
She flicks her hair back, her faux smile making me want to slap it right off.
“Hailey!” Clarissa’s arms wrap around me from behind. “Did you see us?”
Jessica’s smile turns cold, her gaze never breaking from mine.
“I saw,” I say, looking to Clarissa, but my heart aches. She wouldn’t say anything unkind about me, but she would keep the harshness from me. Strangely enough, that hurts.
“Isaiah was incredible!” Clarissa’s face glows.
Isaiah steps beside her, grinning at me. “I felt pretty good out there.”
“You owned the stage,” Jessica says, batting her eyelashes at him.
He winks at her. “Thanks, Jess.”
He told me he hates her, but he winked at her the same way he does me. I’m so confused. Could that mean his friendship with me is fake, just like with her? And what is he saying about me behind my back?
I pull away from Clarissa. “Excuse me.”
I rush to the empty change room. Tears stream down my face before I burst through the door. Pacing the room, sharp sobs burst out in spasms as I try to get some control over my emotions. Does Isaiah just humor me with his attention? I thought we were friends.
I sink onto the armchair and cry. Does everyone really talk about me like that? Do I go on national TV and humiliate myself? Am I a huge joke?
I wipe my nose with my sleeve. “I’m pulling out,” I whisper, staring at my blotchy cheeks and red eyes with mascara streaks in the mirror. “Tom said I’m wasting my time, I’m falling behind on my classes, and now…” I hang my head and sob.
The door clicks. My head snaps up as Lucas peeks through the cracked door.
Swiveling in the chair, I turn away. All I want is to be left alone. But he enters, closing the door without a sound behind him. He pulls up a chair to sit beside me.
Quest For A Popstar Page 10
