But, Mr. Fanelli, you know that I should be Katharina instead of Angie Vogel.” It had taken me a day to corner him, but I’d finally tracked Fanelli down in the front office.
Ms. Murphy, the principal’s assistant, watched us in fascination.
“Sophie, my decision is final.” His voice shook a little, but his expression remained firm. “I am the director of this production.”
“Of course you are,” I soothed. “But it’s not fair. I’ve been a lead in every production since freshman year.”
“And you’re still a lead,” he pointed out reasonably.
“Everyone knows that Katharina is the star of the show,” I said scornfully.
“But don’t you think it might be time for a little new blood?”
“No, I don’t,” I said. My voice was rising. “Mr. Fanelli, you have to give me that part,” I shouted.
There was a loud snort from the front desk, but Ms. Murphy had her head buried in paperwork.
“No, I don’t,” he said. But he looked nervous.
“Maybe I should just quit altogether,” I said loudly. Fanelli hated offstage scenes, especially ones that took place a few feet from his boss’s door.
“Go ahead,” he said, but I could see a little bead of sweat form on his brow. “There are plenty of girls who would love to have the Bianca role.”
He was right. If I quit, he’d give my part to some other girl, probably some stagestruck freshman, just to spite me. On the other hand, the guy parts were a lot harder to fill.
“Fine, I will,” I said triumphantly. “But you know, Connor, my boyfriend, will go with me.”
“Now, let’s not be hasty,” he said. “We can work something out.”
I moved a little closer to the principal’s office and turned on the tears. “I’m just trying to do my best for Kennedy High,” I wailed.
“What do you want?” he said.
I opened my mouth immediately, but he cut me short.
“I can’t give you the role of Katharina,” he said. “It would cause way too many problems.”
I hadn’t really expected that he would take the role away from Angie, but now I knew I could make a demand. “A guaranteed lead for the spring musical,” I said.
We shook on it and I tried not to inhale. He overdid it on the cologne. “You’re smarter than I gave you credit for,” he observed.
“That’s what everyone says,” I replied. “See how easy that was?”
I was at my locker at lunch the next day, waiting not so patiently for Connor. We had a standing Wednesday lunch date. Juniors and seniors could leave campus for lunch, unlike the freshmen and sophomores, who were confined like prisoners to the lunchroom swill.
I was sending him a where are you? text message when Olivia Kaplan appeared.
“All alone?” she smirked at me. Olivia was the biggest gossip at school, and I could tell by her smile that she was dying to reveal something.
“Just waiting for Connor,” I said nonchalantly.
“Oh, yes, it’s Wednesday.” Her eyes gleamed. “Well, I wouldn’t want you to go hungry. I just saw him drive off with Angie Vogel.”
Which is why she’d hurried back to rub my face in it. I grabbed my wallet and car keys. “Oh, that’s right. They’re getting a jump on memorizing lines. I must have forgotten. Connor’s so conscientious.” I smiled at her as though I didn’t have a care in the world, but inside I was seething.
“Of course that’s it,” Olivia said blandly, but I knew that look on her face. It was the look of a gossip hound on the trail of a juicy scent.
I was going to kill Connor when I caught up with him.
I strolled away, aware of Olivia’s beady eyes watching my every move. Fortunately, Monet hadn’t left for lunch yet. I caught up with her at her locker.
“Let’s go to Wicked Jack’s,” I said.
“But it’s Wednesday,” she said.
I smiled at some random guy who was watching us.
“I know that,” I replied through gritted teeth. “Evidently, Connor has other plans.”
“Are you okay?” she said.
“Of course I am, why?”
“Because you just smiled at Jason Brady, the guy who put his hand on your butt in PE when we were freshmen. You hate that guy.”
It was true. I couldn’t believe I had smiled at Jason Brady. The guy was a total perv. A casual smile was like an engraved invitation to him.
“He won’t bother me,” I said with confidence I didn’t feel. “Everyone knows I’m Connor’s girlfriend.”
A fact I would remind Connor of as soon as I tracked him down at Wicked Jack’s and scoped out the situation.
There was no sign of him or his gorgeous costar when we walked into the restaurant. Where were they? Connor was a creature of habit and Olivia Kaplan said she had seen them leave campus. I tried not to jump to conclusions. Connor had never given me a reason not to trust him. But I wasn’t stupid. Angie Vogel was beautiful, and he was spending a lot of time with her. He’d better have a good explanation.
Wicked Jack’s is pirate-themed, decorated in head-to-toe pirates’ booty. There are stuffed parrots, treasure chests, and even a skeleton wearing a skull-and-crossbones bandanna. Tacky, but the food is good and affordable. And it’s close enough to school that we could make it back without getting a tardy slip.
Vanessa waved at us from a corner booth. “Sophie, Monet, over here,” she said.
I didn’t feel like talking to anyone, but I squared my shoulders and called out, “We’ll be right over.” Then, to Monet, I said, “Will you get me a salad? I might as well get the inquisition over.”
“Sure,” she said. I handed her a twenty and watched her walk off. We’d managed to stay friends even though she wasn’t into the whole popularity thing and I was. I knew she thought it was silly to care so much about what other people thought, but she never made fun of me or trashed me behind my back.
The girls at the corner booth, however, were a different story. They were my couples friends, girls who dated Connor’s friends. We had absolutely nothing in common, except that we were each one-half of a power couple.
I plastered on a bright smile and headed for the booth. “Hi, all,” I said gaily and plopped myself down next to Vanessa.
Vanessa was still dating Connor’s best friend, Chase McDermitt, who had been a total player before Vanessa organized him into submission. He still was a bit of a player, truth be told, when Vanessa wasn’t around. Vanessa was also in drama, but it was only a résumé padder for her. She had her fingers in every extracurricular pie.
Everyone wrote her off as one of those bubbly blondes, but the girl was cold as ice when it came to her GPA. She was determined to get into an Ivy League school. My money was on Vanessa to make it happen.
“We were so surprised to see you here today,” Haley Owens said.
Haley dated Mark Vedder, a senior. She was a junior, had a passing resemblance to Alicia Keys, and sang in every musical.
Everyone knew it would be over the minute Mark graduated from high school and left to play college basketball on the East Coast. Everybody except Haley, that is.
“No biggie,” I said. “Connor wanted a little more rehearsal time, that’s all. And I thought it might be fun to mix it up a little.”
Connor had his faults, but a wandering eye wasn’t one of them. He peppered his conversation with way too many bro’s and dude’s, had once eaten an entire apple pie without offering me a slice, and sophomore year, during his annual ski trip with his parents, had forgotten to call me for an entire week. That was it for Connor’s faults.
Haley piped up. “I’d be careful, Sophie,” she said. “Angie Vogel is serious competition. And they’ve been spending a lot of time together. Jason says she’s all Connor talks about these days.”
“He does, does he?” I said. I started to say something more, something I’d probably regret, but Monet came to the table loaded down with our lunch.
Vanessa leaned in close to me. “Sophie, I just want you to know that no matter what happens, we’re still here for you.”
I’d believe that when I saw it, I thought. And I ignored the rest of what she was trying to say.
“Everything is fine,” I assured them. “Connor’s just excited about his role. It’s a big deal for him. Who knows where it could take him? You know how important extracurricular activities are on college applications.”
They all nodded in agreement, but Monet gave me an inquiring look.
As if the whole subject bored me, I speared a leaf of lettuce with my fork. “Now, what’s been going on with you guys? I’ve been so busy with rehearsals that I need you to catch me up on the latest.” But as I put the lettuce in my mouth, it tasted a little like sawdust.
Haley said, “Speaking of rehearsals, how’s it going with gorgeous Dev?” She glanced at Monet and shrugged. “I know he’s your brother, but he’s totally hot.”
Monet replied, “But Sophie and my brother have known each other forever. She’s immune to his questionable charms, right, Soph?”
“Exactly,” I said firmly. “Dev’s like a brother to me.” Monet had been burned before by so-called friends who just wanted to get closer to Dev. It was always a sore topic.
Besides, I didn’t need any speculation going around about my costar and me. Not when there was evidently already enough gossip about Connor and Angie.
I’d talk to him and make it clear that his professional admiration for his leading lady was becoming fodder for gossip. I didn’t realize that it was much too late for a heart-to-heart with my boyfriend. Matters were already well out of my hands.