Starring Me

by Krista McGee

  “That sounds terrible.”

  “Hello.” Kara took the script back from Addy so she could try to memorize her lines. “Only ten girls are chosen. She wants to do all she can to make sure Deb is one of those ten.”

  “So what are you going to do?”

  “I’m going to be the best fan you’ve ever seen.” Kara handed the script back to Addy. “Ready to practice? ”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Addy winked.

  Cheers to You

  CHEERLEADER: (Cheering) G-o-o-o-o Team Panther. P-A-N-T—

  FAN: (Grabs Cheerleader’s pom-poms) Excuse me?

  CHEERLEADER: I’m in the middle of a cheer. Do you mind? (Pulls the pom-poms back) G-o-o-o-o Team Panther. P-A-N-T—

  FAN: But why are you cheering?

  CHEERLEADER: (With her pom-poms on her hips) Because . . . (Cheering again) Team Panther is red hot. R-E-D H-O-T. Red hot!

  FAN: I agree. I’m a huge Team Panther fan.

  CHEERLEADER: Then join in. I’ve got more pom-poms. (Picks some up and hands them to Fan)

  FAN: (Laying the pom-poms down) Thanks, but don’t you think it’s kind of weird? Cheering for Team Panther?

  CHEERLEADER: Why would it be weird?

  FAN: Because Team Panther is a cheer squad.

  CHEERLEADER: So?

  FAN: So no one cheers for a cheer squad.

  CHEERLEADER: Exactly. (Cheering again) I say Team, you say Panther. Team. (Waits, but Fan refuses to speak) (Louder) I say Team, you say Panther. Team . . .

  FAN: No, I’m not cheering for a cheer squad.

  CHEERLEADER: Some fan you are.

  FAN: Seriously. Team Panther is the best in the state. Cheering for them is like . . . like cooking a meal for a great chef.

  CHEERLEADER: Everybody needs a cheerleader. Even cheer squads.

  FAN: No, I’m pretty sure they don’t need a cheerleader.

  CHEERLEADER: (Grabs Fan) Look, they’re about to go on! (Cheering) Russian, Herky, Basket Toss. Go, Team Panther, show ’em who’s boss!

  FAN: Great. You just made them mess up.

  CHEERLEADER: (Shouts) That’s okay, Amber. (To Fan) Obviously, I need to be louder. They need more spirit.

  FAN: (Fighting with Cheerleader over the pom-poms) No, you need to be quiet. Can’t you see they’re trying to concentrate? This is their big move.

  CHEERLEADER: The Fountain. Their signature. Don’t worry. I’ve got this. (Cheers) Way up high in the air. Go Team Panther. Catch them if you dare. Go Team Panther. Up into the sky. Watch those Panthers fly. No one can compare. Team Panther!

  FAN: Great. They just dropped their flier. You’ve got to stop. They’re going to lose the competition.

  CHEERLEADER: Look at them; they’re waving at me. Begging me to cheer them on to victory. (Shouts) Don’t worry, Team Panther. I’m here for you.

  FAN: Those aren’t waves. Those are their fists. They’re going to come over here and beat you if you don’t stop.

  CHEERLEADER: I’m beginning to think you are anti-cheer.

  FAN: (Getting angry) No, actually, I am very pro-cheer. I drove all the way up here—left at three o’clock this morning—just to see this.

  CHEERLEADER: And yet, instead of cheering Team Panther on with me, you’re silencing their biggest fan. If they lose, it’s all your fault.

  FAN: My fault? You’re yelling as they cheer, disrupting their concentration, and it’s my fault?

  CHEERLEADER: (Cheering) Team Panther. T-E-A-M—

  (Fan tackles Cheerleader, but Cheerleader keeps cheering, despite the attack. Cheerleader hits Fan with her pom-poms, knocking Fan out. Cheerleader gets back up and looks out.)

  CHEERLEADER: Oh no! Team Panther lost. (Looks down at unconscious Fan) It’s all your fault. (Shouts) It’s all her fault. I should have stopped her earlier. I’m sorry. (Looks out) What? I can’t hear you. What’s that in your hands? Your pom-poms? Aww, you want to give them to me? . . . You want to what? Oh no! (Runs out)

  Chapter 7

  I can’t believe I am sleeping in the White House.” Kara jumped up out of bed. “Four days ago, I was auditioning to star in a TV show, and today I am waking up in the White House. My life is amazing. Can you believe it?”

  “I can’t believe you can be that loud this early.” Addy pushed herself up on one elbow.

  “But we’re at the White House.” Kara shook Addy. “And Mrs. Jackson is going to give us a grand tour. The First Lady is giving us a tour!” Kara’s voice got louder as she spoke, and Addy grabbed Kara’s hands and pried them off her shoulders.

  “Kara, it’s seven thirty. We should still be sleeping.”

  “We can sleep later—when we’re not at the White House.”

  Addy threw her pillow at her friend and reluctantly walked to the bathroom for a shower.

  “I’m at the White House,” Kara belted out. “Three days at the White House. Gonna get a tour of the White House. The White House, the White—”

  A knock on the door interrupted her solo. Kara opened it to find Jonathon Jackson, First Son, smiling at her. Beside him stood an incredibly good-looking boy who looked very familiar.

  “Chad Beacon?” Kara said, trying to smooth back her long red hair and look somewhat presentable. Chad, at a few inches over six feet tall, tan, muscular, with blond hair and hazel eyes, reminded Kara of the pictures of the Greek gods she had seen.

  Jonathon smiled. “We were afraid you’d be sleeping, but we heard the singing, and . . .”

  Kara’s face burned. “You heard the singing?”

  Chad spoke up. “Yes. Very nice. Did you make that up yourself?”

  Greek god stands outside my door and what does he hear? Me singing the White House song. Kill me now.

  “Let me shut the door so I can die of embarrassment in private, okay?” Kara hid behind the bedroom door.

  The boys laughed and pushed the door open.

  “We won’t stay long,” Jonathon said, his brown eyes scanning the room for Addy. “I forgot to mention Chad was coming in today.”

  “Forgot, huh?” Chad laughed again. “You’ve got him so wrapped around your finger, he can’t even think straight.”

  Now it was Jonathon’s turn to have a red face. He ran a hand through his light brown hair. “Chad, this is Kara, Addy’s friend. And, Kara, that does not go further than us, all right? ”

  “Jonathon.” Kara put her hands on her hips. “That girl is as crazy about you as you are about her. I don’t know why you guys are acting all shy about it.”

  “We’re waiting on God’s timing,” Jonathon said.

  “You are?” Chad wrapped a muscular arm around his friend’s shoulder. “You didn’t tell me that. That’s awesome.”

  “And how can you not know who Addy is?” Jonathon pulled himself away from Chad’s arm. “Didn’t you watch the show?”

  “You know my parents don’t let me watch much TV.” Chad shrugged.

  “Not even my show?” Jonathon asked.

  “Nope. When I wasn’t doing a concert, I was working on my science project. I built a telescope and charted the stars.”

  “Wow,” Kara said. “I want to go to your school.”

  “He’s homeschooled,” Jonathon said. “And we all want to go there. Right now, he’s on a field trip. For a month.”

  “During the summer?” Kara asked.

  “My parents own an orange grove, so we take our big break at harvesttime, November through January. The summer is the middle of my school year.”

  “Oh yeah. I remember you talking about that on America’s Next Star.”

  “You watched it?”

  “I voted for you,” Kara said. “A lot. I’m pretty sure I’m the reason you won.”

  Chad laughed. “Well, thanks then.”

  Addy came out of the bathroom, a towel on her head and a White House robe wrapped around her thin frame.

  “Jonathon!” Addy pulled her robe closed at the top.

  “I’m sorry, Addy,” Jonathon said. “I was just
introducing Chad to Kara.”

  “Chad Beacon.” Kara pointed to the handsome boy standing at her door. “He won America’s Next Star the year before last. Not that you’d know. Addy watches about as much TV as you do, Chad.”

  Addy stuck her hand out. “Nice to meet you. And excuse my friend.”

  “Nice to meet you too. And you, Kara.” Chad put his hand in Kara’s and she thought her heart would explode.

  “Yes, nice to meet you too . . . Chad. Nice to meet you, Chad.”

  Jonathon winked at Addy. “We were on our way to work out. How about if we meet in the living room at nine? Mom’s on a pretty tight schedule.”

  Kara leaned against the door frame and looked at Chad. “Nine o’clock, sure. We’ll be in the . . . the living room. Right. At nine.”

  The door shut and Addy burst out laughing. “I think that’s the first time I’ve ever seen you tongue-tied. You think he’s cute.”

  “Me and every other teenage girl in the world.” Kara sighed, looking at her hand. The hand Chad Beacon touched just moments before. “Why do you think those two boys are such good friends?”

  “They have a lot in common. Jonathon told me they met last year and hit it off. They do a lot of things together—”

  “Wrong,” Kara said. “They are friends because they are both beautiful specimens of maledom.”

  “Beautiful specimens of maledom?”

  “That’s right. And there are very few of those species in existence presently, so they need to stick together in order to survive.”

  “Or they could just be friends who have a lot in common.” Addy rubbed her wet hair with the towel.

  “I have less than an hour to get myself presentable enough to spend a day with Chad Beacon.”

  “What about me?” Addy asked, hands on her hips.

  “No offense, Addy”—Kara grinned—“but Chad is way prettier than you are.”

  Kara ran to the bathroom before the tip of Addy’s towel could reach her behind.

  Chapter 8

  She’s cute,” Chad said as the pair made their way to the White House gym.

  “I know.” Jonathon smiled. “And smart too. She wants to go to an Ivy League school. She’s thinking of Yale.”

  “Kara?”

  “No, Addy.”

  Chad laughed. “She’s pretty too. But I was talking about Kara.”

  “Oh.” Jonathon’s face turned red. “Kara is hysterical.”

  “And pretty.” Chad smiled, thinking of Kara’s shining auburn hair, her green eyes and creamy skin. “And tall. I like that.”

  “That’s true.” Jonathon nodded. “In heels, she might just be your height.”

  “That’s awesome.” Chad allowed his mind to linger for a moment on the thought of the beautiful redhead in heels, standing beside him. “But what’s this about waiting on God’s timing with Addy?”

  “Don’t laugh.”

  “Who’s laughing?” Chad gave Jonathon a playful punch. “I’ve been praying for my future wife since I was thirteen.”

  “Wow. So you don’t think I’m crazy.”

  “No way. But whenever I’ve talked to you about my faith, you’ve always blown me off.”

  “That was before Addy.”

  “I like this girl.” Chad raised his eyebrows.

  “So do I. But we’re not in a hurry. We decided to just take things slowly, get to know each other, and keep praying about where God wants us to go in our relationship.”

  “I want a girl like that.”

  “You can’t have mine.” Jonathon shot him a mock glare.

  Chad put his hands up in mock surrender. “Don’t worry. I don’t go for brunettes. Redheads are more my speed. Tall redheads.”

  “Does it matter to you whether she’s a Christian or not? ”

  “She’s not a Christian?” Chad opened the door to the gym, trying not to act like that was the worst news he’d heard in a while.

  “No.” Jonathon added some more weight to the dumbbells. “But she’s a great person.”

  “I hate this.” Chad hit the speed bag with more force than necessary.

  “What?”

  “Every time I meet a girl I like, I find out she’s not a Christian. Why doesn’t God let me meet Christian girls? ”

  “So you have to date Christians?”

  “If I’m going to get married, it needs to be to a Christian.”

  “Who said you have to marry her?”

  “I think the point of dating is to find your future spouse.”

  “Whoa.” Jonathon put the dumbbell back on the rack. “So you’re only going to date one girl?”

  “I don’t know about that.” Chad found his rhythm punching the bag. “Maybe. But I’m not going to date just to date.”

  “Why not?” Jonathon asked.

  “My parents always taught me to treat girls like someone’s future wife.”

  “No offense, man, but your parents were around when dinosaurs roamed the earth.”

  Chad turned to his friend. “With age comes wisdom. At least that’s what they tell me.”

  “So you don’t want Kara’s number?”

  “I want a whole lot more than her number.” Chad put on gloves and moved to the heavy bag. “But I can’t. I have to wait.”

  “You sound thrilled about that.”

  “I obey what I believe God is asking me to do.” Chad threw a left hook. “But I don’t always like it.”

  “So what are you going to do?”

  “I’m going to start praying for Kara.” Chad held the bag, stopping to catch his breath. “God didn’t put her around all these Christians for nothing. He’s after her.”

  “That’s exactly what Addy says.” Jonathon pressed the weights again.

  “Let’s hope we’re right.”

  Chapter 9

  And now we’re back in the living quarters.” Jonathon’s mother completed her tour of the White House.

  “I love what you’ve done,” Kara said. “I watched the television special where you talked about how you redid all the rooms. But seeing them in person. Wow.”

  “I’m glad you like it.” Mrs. Jackson smiled. “But I’m afraid I have to go now. I have another meeting in a few minutes. Jonathon, you take good care of your guests.”

  “Of course, Mother.”

  “Now you can take us to all the secret passages,” Kara said after Mrs. Jackson left the room.

  “Secret passages?”

  “Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about.” Kara folded her arms. “Tunnels going from here to a safe house miles away. Bookcases that are doors.”

  “You watch way too much TV.” Jonathon shook his head. “We do have a movie theater, though. And we get the stuff that isn’t even in theaters yet.”

  “Ooh.” Kara jumped up. “Do you have Mission to Atlantis? I am dying to see that.”

  “I’ll call and find out.” Jonathon pulled out his cell phone and walked away.

  “While you’re doing that, I need to run to the room,” Addy said. “Be right back.”

  “Looks like it’s just you and me.” Chad smiled at Kara.

  Greek god is smiling at me. At the White House. Oh yes. I could die happy right now.

  “So you like movies?” Chad sat on the couch and Kara joined him.

  “Love them.” Kara’s heart raced as Chad’s knee brushed hers.

  “What’s your favorite?”

  “I can’t pick just one.” Kara tried desperately to focus on the conversation and not on how incredibly good-looking Chad Beacon was. “It would be like asking you to pick your favorite song.”

  “I see your point.”

  Kara looked over at Chad to find his eyes on her. He’s looking at me! Chad Beacon is looking at me. I should say something. Something funny. Or smart.

  “So where are your parents?” Seriously, Kara? That’s the best you could come up with?

  “Hagerstown, Maryland.” Chad stretched out his legs.

&n
bsp; “Hagerstown?”

  “They love museums and Hagerstown has several.”

  “Ah.” Kara looked from Chad’s perfect face to his arms. Also perfect. Focus, girl. “And you didn’t want to go along?”

  “They like to have little getaways without me every once in a while.” Chad smiled.

  “Romantic getaway in Hagerstown?” Kara said.

  “Well, there are lots of museums there.”

  “Good for them,” Kara said. “So what do you do after this?”

  “Finish up history for school. Do some more traveling, then I start on my next big project.”

  Kara’s eyes widened. “And what’s that?”

  Jonathon walked over before Chad could speak. “We are on for an eleven o’clock viewing of Mission to Atlantis.”

  “Yes.” Kara stood. “I’d hug you, but I guess I’ll leave that to Addy.”

  Jonathon’s face turned several shades of red right as Addy came back into the living room.

  “What’s going on here?” she asked.

  “Mission to Atlantis in”—Kara looked at her watch—“forty-five minutes. I think Jonathon deserves a thank-you.”

  “Thank you, Jonathon.” Addy looked confused. Jonathon cleared his throat.

  “Hey, Kara.” Chad motioned with his head toward the door. “I think I left something in the gym. Want to come with me to pick it up?”

  “I’ll go, Chad.”

  “No, no.” Chad smiled at his friend. “You stay here. Relax. I know my way around. I just got the grand tour, after all.”

  Kara followed Chad. “Nice plan. Very subtle.”

  “You think?” Chad laughed, walking down the hallway toward the stairs. “I thought they might like some time alone together.”