Starring Me

by Krista McGee

“No, no.”

  “CIA?”

  “You have a very active imagination, Kara.” Flora shook her head and motioned for Kara to sit back down. “Just a business.”

  “But you said you’ve traveled all over,” Jillian said.

  “I have.” Flora smiled. “I am a single woman, and I use my extra money and vacation time to see the world.”

  “That sounds fun.”

  “It is quite enjoyable.” Flora nodded.

  “Flora Lopez,” a nurse called from the door.

  Jillian and Kara helped Flora to an examining room. A few minutes later, the doctor pulled the curtain and stopped short. “Flora. Nice to see you again.”

  “Again?” Kara looked from the doctor to Flora.

  “We’re old friends.”

  “You’ve been here before?”

  “Plenty of times,” the doctor said. “In fact, Ch—”

  Flora waved her hands to stop the doctor. “No, no. Um, girls, I do believe I am fine where I am. Would you mind going back to the waiting room while Dr. Smith completes his examination?”

  Kara noted the blush on Flora’s cheek and winked at Jillian. “Sure, Flora. No problem.”

  The doctor shut the curtain and Kara stood still, trying to listen to their conversation.

  “Kara,” Jillian whispered. “Don’t eavesdrop. That’s rude.”

  “It isn’t eavesdropping,” Kara whispered back. “It’s spying.”

  A nurse stopped to look at the girls and they made their way quickly back to the waiting room.

  “Don’t you want to know the story behind those two? ” Kara asked when the two were seated in the smelly waiting room once again.

  “Only if Flora wants to tell us.”

  “But she doesn’t,” Kara said. “Which makes me even more curious.”

  “I’m sure it’s nothing.” Jillian picked up a magazine from the table beside her.

  “Then why send us out?”

  “Maybe she had to come in here before for something embarrassing, and she doesn’t want us to know about it?”

  “Or”—Kara pushed Jillian’s magazine down—“Dr. Smith and Flora had a romance long ago. He left to pursue his dreams of practicing medicine among the sick and dying in Africa and she stayed here, working like a slave for the Mafia. He tried to get her to come along, but she refused. She couldn’t or the people she worked for would kill him. She loved him too much for that, so she sacrificed her happiness for his life. That’s why she’s never married. She’s never gotten over her first love.”

  “You really have an active imagination, you know that? ” Jillian opened the magazine to an article about Chad Beacon.

  “I saw him this morning. Right here.” Kara pointed to the picture. “He got pounced on by a fan, and I came to check on him.”

  “Right.” Jillian looked at the magazine cover. “Was Prince William there too?”

  “I’m being serious,” Kara said, but Jillian kept reading, obviously not interested in conversing with her.

  Kara pulled her book from her purse. Jane believes me, don’t you, Jane? She returned to the world of Northanger Abbey.

  Kara looked up half an hour later to see Flora hobble out on crutches, Dr. Smith behind her.

  “You girls need to make sure she stays off that foot for a while, all right?” the doctor told Jillian and Kara.

  “Yes, sir.” Kara smiled. “But that won’t be easy.”

  “Just because you have crutches,” Dr. Smith said, “doesn’t mean you should be on them all the time. A couple hours a day, at most.”

  “But that’s impossible,” Flora said. “I have far too much work to do.”

  “I’m sorry,” said the doctor. “But if you want that ankle to heal, you’ve got to rest.”

  “Don’t worry,” Kara said. “We’ll make sure she stays off it. Right, Jillian?”

  “Of course.”

  “And don’t worry.” Dr. Smith put a hand on Flora’s shoulder. “You-know-who is just fine.”

  “Thank you.” Flora sighed. “I’m glad you were here to take care of him.”

  Kara looked over at Jillian. She raised her eyebrows toward Flora. Jillian rolled her eyes, but Kara knew there was more to Flora’s story than she was telling. And she was determined to find out what that woman was hiding.

  Chapter 27

  Kara walked into the kitchen to find Jillian preparing a salad while Flora sat at the table.

  “. . . I guess I like the story of Noah because it shows that God’s promises are true.” Jillian slid sliced carrots into the large wooden salad bowl.

  “Very true, my dear.” Flora noticed Kara and smiled. “What about you, Kara? Do you have a favorite Bible story? ”

  “Not really.” Kara shrugged, reaching into the refrigerator. “I’ve never really read much of the Bible.”

  “But it is God’s Word.”

  Kara rinsed a carton of cherry tomatoes. “There are so many different religions out there. How can you be sure yours is right? That your God is the God?”

  “The Bible says if anyone lacks wisdom, he should ask for it,” Flora said. “If you want to know what is true, ask God to show it to you.”

  “And if he doesn’t?”

  “Four thousand years of biblical history have stood firm, proving that he does answer those who diligently seek him.”

  Jillian leaned forward. “She’s right, Kara.”

  Kara laughed. “It’s like a conspiracy. First Addy, then Flora, now you. I’m being surrounded by Christians.”

  “Perhaps this is God’s way of showing you he exists.”

  “Maybe.” Kara thought about the chapters she had read in the book of John the night before. She didn’t have an overwhelming sense that God existed from those few pages. But it was interesting.

  Anna Grace walked into the kitchen. “Where is lunch? You said it would be ready by noon. We have to be at the studio by two o’clock for our dress rehearsal.”

  “And good afternoon to you.” Kara glared at the young woman. “Sure, we’d love some help.”

  Anna Grace pointed to Flora. “That’s the help. But she just ‘happens’ to be injured. Must be nice, getting paid to sit around and let other people do your work for you.”

  “You need to stop.” Kara walked over to the angry Alabaman. “You’ll get your lunch, and you’ll get to the studio. You can either go back to the pool and wait, or you can come in here and help us.”

  “Like I’d lift a finger for you losers.” Anna Grace walked around the kitchen, bumping into Flora’s foot on her way out.

  Kara started to walk after her.

  “Kara.” Flora’s determined tone stopped Kara in her tracks. “‘Do not associate with one easily angered.’”

  “What?”

  “It’s from the book of Proverbs,” Flora said.

  “Then you two are the only people I should associate with,” Kara said.

  “Some girls are just so self-absorbed,” Jillian said. “Anyway, I love cooking. And hanging out with you, Flora.”

  “Thank you, dear.” Flora smiled. “Let’s get that fish cooked, and then I think lunch will be ready.”

  After all the girls had eaten, Flora excused herself to take a nap. Jillian put the last of the dishes in the sink and turned to Kara. “So you really like Flora, huh?”

  “Sure.” Kara sprayed the counter with cleaner and wiped it. “Don’t you?”

  “Of course. She’s great.”

  “I know. You guys have a lot in common.”

  “We do?”

  “You know, you’re both Christians.”

  Jillian blinked. “Right. Yes, we do share our faith. I think I’m the only one here who is a Christian, don’t you?”

  Kara thought. “I guess you’re right.”

  Jillian relaxed into a chair.

  “Is that hard for you?” Kara sat next to her.

  “What?”

  “Being the only Christian.”

  “Oh no,” Ji
llian said. “Not at all. I kind of like it.”

  “Really?”

  Jillian looked at her phone. “We’re leaving in just a few minutes. I better fix my hair.”

  “Right. Me too.”

  Thirty minutes later, Kara stood looking at an actual set built just for the girls. One side looked like a typical suburban living room. The other was decorated like a retro loft. Both were three-sided, with cameras and lights all around.

  “While you were working with the help”—Anna Grace walked past Kara and whispered—“I was studying my lines. I guess we both spent our afternoons preparing for our futures.”

  Ashley walked into the room before Kara could respond. “All right, girls. Time to start. As you know, you’re all doing the same scene. Five in one, five in the other. The first group to go is Jennifer, Gina, Haley, Zoey, and Kylie.”

  Haley raised her hand. “But I went first last time.”

  The other girls began complaining as well. Ashley held up a tiny hand to silence them. “First group, you’re wasting time. You get an hour to rehearse and then thirty minutes to tape.”

  “Miss Win.” Anna Grace’s accent was even more pronounced than usual. “I just want to say thank you for this opportunity, and—”

  Another wave of the hand. “The rest of you will be in the green room. Let’s go.”

  Ashley’s high-heeled shoes clicked loudly on the cement floor. The girls in group two followed her through the set to the lounge on the other side of the building. Ashley held the door open and the girls filed in.

  Anna Grace stopped beside Ashley. “As I was saying, I’m just so grateful—”

  Ashley looked down the hallway to make sure all the girls were in, shut the door in Anna Grace’s face, and clicked her way back to the set.

  Anna Grace looked around, her jaw firm. She sat next to Kara and said, “Listen, you better give me something to work with today.”

  “What?”

  “Everybody knows you’re the weak link in this group.” Anna Grace lowered her voice. “No agent, hardly any experience. It’s obvious you don’t know what you’re doing. I didn’t mind when we were on different teams. But if you’re going to work with me, you need to step up your game.”

  Anna Grace was trying to make her nervous. And she knows exactly what to say to do it. Refusing to let that girl win, Kara stood and walked to another chair.

  “Are you going to answer me?”

  Kara looked up, refusing to let Anna Grace intimidate her. “No. You’ve got me so nervous, I don’t even know if I can remember my lines. I may just fall apart and start crying in the middle. Ruin the whole scene. Destroy your chances of winning.”

  “You think you’re so funny.” Anna Grace’s face turned red. “Whatever. Just don’t blow this.”

  Kara closed her eyes and drew in several deep breaths. She had read a little of Addy’s Bible the night before. John was basically stories of Jesus. She wasn’t sure what to think of it yet, but she did know that when she was reading, she felt calmer. I could use a little of that calm right now. She opened her script.

  Reviewing her lines, Kara thought about her character and got excited about performing, in spite of Anna Grace’s efforts to unnerve her.

  Girl 2. I need to give her a real name. Something cool. Ooh, I can make her a Native American. She will be Girl Who Wins Contest and Becomes Super Famous. Or Mary.

  She isn’t the funniest one in the skit. Ava gets that one. But I need to show I can support her, that I’m not trying to get all the attention. Anna Grace always tried to go over the top. Girl 4 was not the crazy one, so she might just blow it for herself if she tries to overdo it. A girl can dream, right?

  “All right, girls.” Ashley opened the door to the green room almost an hour later. “Places.”

  Radioactive Monkey Brains

  Scene 1

  (Five girls are in their living room. Girl 1 is staring at the phone.)

  GIRL 1: Ring.

  GIRL 2: You know it can’t hear you, right?

  GIRL 3: I don’t know. Once, I told the radio to play my favorite song, and it totally did.

  GIRL 4: What if they don’t call?

  GIRL 5: They said they’d call either way.

  GIRL 1: Ring.

  GIRL 2: Seriously, stop staring at the phone. It’s not listening.

  GIRL 3: It might be.

  GIRL 4: It’s a phone.

  GIRL 3: Or maybe it’s not. I saw a movie once where aliens invaded people’s electronics. That’s how they got to know the earthlings before they ate them and took over the world.

  GIRL 5: The phone is not an alien.

  GIRL 1: Ring. Ring.

  GIRL 2: I want this so much.

  GIRL 3: We all do. But it’s not up to us anymore.

  GIRL 4: We left it all out on that stage. You know we did.

  GIRL 5: But there was some fierce competition.

  GIRL 2: Those girls from Detroit were amazing.

  GIRL 1: Ring!

  GIRL 3: One time, I saw a show about competitive yodeling. It was intense.

  GIRL 4: Competitive yodeling?

  GIRL 3: It’s totally legit. I swear.

  GIRL 5: If this thing doesn’t work out, maybe we should look into it.

  GIRL 1: Just ring, stupid phone. Ring.

  GIRL 2: You’re saying more words. Good.

  GIRL 3: When I was in sixth grade, my teacher taught us the longest word in the English language. It’s . . .

  (The phone rings. The girls freeze.)

  GIRL 1: It’s—it’s ringing.

  GIRL 2: I know.

  (The phone rings again.)

  GIRL 4: It might be them.

  GIRL 5: This is it.

  (The phone rings again.)

  GIRL 3: One time, I got this phone call that was super important, but right when I was about to hear the big news, my battery died.

  (The phone rings again. Girls 1, 2, 4, and 5 lunge for the phone at the same time. It falls on the ground. They follow. Girl 1 presses the Speaker button.)

  GIRL 1: (Out of breath) Hello?

  MAN ON PHONE: Hi, this is Rex Fanner, from the Unlimited Music Company.

  ALL 5 GIRLS: Yes?

  REX: Am I speaking to the band Radioactive Monkey Brains?

  GIRL 3: Yes, we came up with the name one day when we were bored in science, so we started surfing videos and saw this one about a zoo in Japan . . . (Girl 2 clamps a hand over Girl 3’s mouth)

  GIRL 2: Sorry. Yes, we’re Radioactive Monkey Brains.

  REX: I was at your concert last night.

  ALL 5 GIRLS: Yes?

  REX: And I think you’re terrific. I want to sign you on with our company.

  (The girls scream.)

  REX: How soon can you come out to Los Angeles?

  Scene 2

  (The girls walk into their apartment in LA.)

  GIRL 1: Wow.

  GIRL 2: This is unbelievable. Look at this place.

  GIRL 3: When I was three, I had a clock just like that cat clock. I used to sit and watch its tail go back and forth until I fell asleep.

  GIRL 4: (Pushing Girl 3 toward the clock) Then, please, look at this. Look at it a lot.

  GIRL 5: (Sitting on the couch) Our very own loft apartment.

  GIRL 1: (Pointing to a picture on the far wall) Look! Our poster. It’s us, guys.

  GIRL 2: The Radioactive Monkey Brains are taking over LA, baby.

  GIRL 3: I saw this movie once where mutant anteaters tried to eat the Hollywood sign. But their mouths were too small. All they could eat were the Ls.

  GIRL 4: I can’t believe this is happening. We’re making our own CD. We have a poster.

  GIRL 5: And a concert.

  GIRL 1: What?

  GIRL 5: Yep. Rex just told me. We’re singing downtown tonight.

  (All the girls scream.)

  GIRL 2: That is awesome.

  (Someone rings the doorbell.)

  GIRL 3: Coming.

  (She tries to o
pen the door, but it won’t budge.)

  GIRL 3: This . . . won’t . . . open.

  GIRL 4: (Pushing Girl 3 aside) Let me try. You’re right.

  GIRL 5: You guys must not be turning the lock the right way.

  GIRL 1: What lock?

  GIRL 5: What do you mean what lock?

  GIRL 2: There’s no lock. Not anywhere. It’s just a big slab of metal.

  GIRL 4: We’re trapped.

  GIRL 3: Once, my mom and I got trapped in a roller coaster for, like, thirty minutes. We couldn’t get out of our seats.

  GIRL 4: Be quiet. This is serious.

  GIRL 3: But . . .

  GIRL 5: We’ve got to think.

  GIRL 3: But I’m not done with my story . . .

  GIRL 4: (Pushing Girl 3 toward the cat clock) Watch the tail for a while, will you? We’ve got to get this figured out.

  (Girl 3 becomes hypnotized by the cat clock.)

  GIRL 1: Think. Think.

  GIRL 2: The door won’t open.

  GIRL 4: There’s no lock.

  GIRL 5: This is like a really bad riddle.

  GIRL 1: Think.

  GIRL 2: Okay, this is LA. This apartment is state of the art. Maybe there’s a switch over here or a button.