On the Flip Side (12 page)

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Authors: Nikki Carter

BOOK: On the Flip Side
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Next thing I know, we're on stage in front of all these people. This is worse than a concert of fans. This is the entire music industry waiting to see if we can bring it.
And guess what?
We totally bring it!
After the first chorus, we have planned Dreya's rap break, but when Dilly steps to the microphone too, I'm surprised.
He and Dreya go back and forth on the mic, wowing the crowd with their incredible lyrics. I didn't write one line in the entire rap. Maybe Dreya does have the talent to write her own hits.
Everyone stands to their feet when I start the second verse, and Bethany's background vocals ring out loud when she harmonizes with me on a few notes like we used to do back in the day.
When we get a standing ovation by the crowd, I am shocked and humbled. It's like they accept us into the music scene! We're the newbies, and we're being welcomed with open arms.
 
Finally, it's time to present the T-Mobile Breakthrough Artist of the Year award. I didn't know how much I wanted to win until they started reading off the nominees' names.
I hold my breath as the presenter says, “And the winner is ... Sunday Tolliver.”
I sit frozen in place when she says my name! Did she really just say me? Did I really just win an American Music Award when I just started in the music business not even a year ago?
When I don't jump out of my seat, everyone in my row hauls me up! Unlike Mystique, I want, and
need
, everybody to come up on stage with me. Sam hugs me tight and holds my hand as we go up to the stage.
I know that everyone is expecting a speech, but I stand in front of the microphone for a moment, trying to think of what to say.
“Wow ... I didn't write anything, because I didn't think I would win. So, I'm just gonna wing it up here. I want to thank God, because ... y'all just don't know what I went through last year. I was at a place ... um ... I didn't think I would be able to go to college, and then everything happened so fast. Big D, Mystique, Zillionaire, Evan, Caterina, Lawrence, and everyone at Reign Records, thank you so much for this opportunity! Thank you, BET, for producing the reality shows that put us on the map. To all of the fans who bought the album as soon as it was released on iTunes and Amazon and everywhere else—I appreciate you for not bootlegging! To my crew who hold it all the way down, my cousin Drama, Bethany, Dilly, Gia, Piper, Meagan, DeShawn, and Ricky, y'all are the best! Hey Aunt Charlie and Manny! To my mommy, I love you! And last but definitely not least, Sam, you are the best songwriting partner I could ever want or dream of having. We did this together, so I share this award with you. And ... I hope we keep making beautiful music together.”
The applause is thunderous! I hope no one from the audience can see the tears streaming down my face.
Everything right now is so ... perfect! I wish that I could just stay in this moment for the rest of my life.
17
T
his after-party is jumping. Epsilon has rented out an entire nightclub for all of their artists and every label on their line. New artists are performing and it's wall-to-wall beautiful people here. And my aunt Charlie is in the middle of it all.
I tried to get Dreya to talk her into going back to the hotel, to enjoy room service and the cable TV. But Aunt Charlie wasn't having it. She came to Los Angeles to get her party on. Even if the majority of people in this room are at least twenty years younger than she is.
The good thing about Aunt Charlie is that she's fly as ever. I've got to give it to her, the platinum wig is on point with its loose spiral curls that wave down her back. Her dress is cold too! It's black and skin tight. My auntie has a banging body and while she doesn't look as young as we do, she definitely doesn't look her age.
Aunt Charlie is already on the dance floor when I get there with my crew. She's got a very young-looking guy grinding all up on her, and she's enjoying every second of it.
“Look at your mom!” Bethany says to Dreya as we walk in. “She is getting it in!”
Dreya shakes her head. “That's how she rolls. She never got to have a lot of fun when she was our age, because she had me. So just let her kick it!”
I guess. I'm just glad it's not my mother out there. If Dreya is okay with it, then I guess I am too.
Sam is still holding my hand. He hasn't let me go since I won the award. I was surprised that Dreya congratulated me. I was afraid that she was going to be angry that she didn't win. But she seemed cool with it, so maybe everything is back to normal between me and my cousin.
Dreya's friends Kiki and Tasia walk into the party with wide eyes like two little kids at Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory or something. Tasia came ready to catch a baller with her sheer lace dress. Underneath the black lace she's wearing a pair of shiny boy shorts and a tiny, tiny bra. Very little is left to the imagination.
Even Kiki, who seems most comfortable in jeans, a button-down shirt, and a tank top, dressed up. She's got on a tiny skirt and cute ruffled blouse. She does look uncomfortable as what wearing those high-heel shoes, and as soon as we're on the dance floor for two minutes she takes the shoes off and holds them in her hand.
“How do y'all dance in these things?” she asks me as she slips the heels on her hands.
“I don't dance in them. I dance in flats!”
Sam pulls me away from the crowd, and I realize that we're following Evan into the VIP area. When we get into the sealed off room, Mystique, Zac, and Big D are there, as well as the executives from Epsilon Records. Finally, Evan is claiming Dreya for the evening. He escorts her to his private table, where the champagne is flowing freely.
Sam whispers to me, “You know that's trouble, right?”
I nod, but don't reply. I really wish that my cousin would make the right choices for who she wants to date. No one can tell her anything, but in this case, I'm sure Aunt Charlie would be all for it!
Dreya waves her hand at Sam and I. “Come over here with me!” she says.
Evan nods at Sam to let him know it's okay and we go over to Evan's table to sit down. I notice that Mystique follows us with her eyes, and she's expressionless. I wonder what she's thinking, because I know she's not feeling Evan right now.
“Sunday, guess what?” Dreya says with an excited expression on her face.
“What?”
“I'm moving to New York with Evan.”
My mouth drops open as I sit down. “Get the heck outta here! Are you serious? Then ... why was he at the award show with that other chick?”
“She was a hired escort. He can't go public with us like that. Not yet. But we will in time.”
I can't imagine my cousin moving to New York City.
“Now, I'll be able to keep an eye on Sam for you, and make sure he's not getting with any random chicks.”
Sam rolls his eyes. “Whatever, Dreya. I don't need anyone watching me. You can go 'head with that.”
Dreya laughs out loud. “Dang, Sam! I'm just playing. I'm not gonna have time to worry about what you and Zac are doing anyway. I'm going to be too busy living it up!”
“What did Aunt Charlie say?”
“At first she wasn't feeling it, but when Evan gave her the deed and keys to a new house in Lithonia, she changed her mind.”
“OMG! He bought your mother a house?”
“Yep. It's a little three-bedroom bungalow, but it's big enough for her and Manny and even Auntie Shawn if she wants to come with them. It has a pool too!”
I know that my mother will be happy beyond belief that her sister will have a home of her own. I also know that she would never want to live with her.
Something about Evan and his generosity just seems strange to me. It feels like he's trying to buy Aunt Charlie's support, but that is totally unnecessary. Dreya does whatever she wants to do anyway. No one could've told her not to be with Evan or move to New York with him.
“I'm happy for Aunt Charlie. She hasn't had her own place in a while. Did y'all get Manny Transformers stuff for his room? You know that's what he likes.”
Dreya laughs out loud. “Yes, that little runt's room is tricked all the way out in Transformers stuff. I even got him a new comforter, so he can throw that other one away. It's probably saturated with pee anyway.”
Now this makes me laugh! One day poor Manny is gonna get us back for all this teasing about his bed wetting.
“Y'all want some champagne?” Dreya asks as she pours herself another glass.
“No, and don't you think you've had enough? Last time I checked we were still under age,” I say.
“Boo!” Dreya says. “Stop being a party killer. Nobody is about to get drunk on champagne, Sunday.”
“Maybe not, but still no thanks.”
“Suit yourself.”
Evan stands in the middle of the room with a champagne-filled glass raised to the sky. “Hey, everybody. Let's lift our glasses up to celebrate the wins from Epsilon Records artists tonight. Mystique with three wins, the Bama Boys with their phenomenal sweep in the country categories, and our new princess of Reign Records, Sunday Tolliver!”
Everyone hurries to get glasses in hand to raise the toast with Evan. Mystique's frown deepens after she takes a sip of champagne and sets her glass down. This thing between her and Evan has the potential to turn into a hot, steamy pile of drama. I hope it doesn't. I'm on a drama break.
Mystique walks over to our table with her glass in hand. She stops in front of me and kisses both my cheeks. She ignores Dreya, which is completely okay, I think, because Dreya ignores her too. There's a mutual dislike going on there.
“Congratulations, Sunday. You deserved that Breakthrough Artist award. No one has hustled harder this year than you. None of the other nominees even came close to your shine.”
Dreya grins because she gets the extreme diss from Mystique. Surprisingly, she doesn't respond to it.
“Thank you, Mystique! I think everybody in that category worked hard, even Truth. I wouldn't have been mad if someone else won. We're all grinding.”
“That's for real,” Sam says. “We're taking this hustle to new heights.”
“Well, say what you want,” Mystique says, “it takes more than hustle, or hooking up with someone famous to stay relevant in the game. You need talent too, and Sunday, you've got that part on lock. Don't let anybody tell you differently.”
Mystique makes eye contact with another artist who waves her over. It's one of the Bama Boys. They want Mystique to do a duet with them on their Christmas album. I think that's going to be funny. An R & B star with a country-western group. But I see she's trying to maximize all streams of revenue and all fan bases. Can't be mad at that.
“I'll talk to you some more later, Sunday,” Mystique says as she walks away.
As soon as she's out of listening range, Dreya bursts into laughter. “That heffa is so jealous of me and Evan. Do you know she wanted him before she got with Zac? She hooked up with him when she was on our level, trying to get in the game. How she gonna be hating on my come-up?”
I do not reply, because I don't want to get in this. Besides, I don't have an opinion on anything Mystique did or allegedly did before I knew her. It doesn't have anything to do with me, or Dreya for that matter. I also am not going to give Dreya my thoughts on her hook up with Evan. I think it's a mistake. Clearly she thinks it's the best decision she ever made.
“I guess we'll all see what worked or what didn't work ten years from now,” Sam says. “Hopefully, we're all still living the fab life.”
I nod in agreement. Whether it's singing on a stage or running a successful entertainment law practice, I'm going to be living the fabulous life. Because fab for me isn't fly parties, jewelry, big houses, or vacations. My fabulous is living life with the people I love, and not having to worry about how the bills get paid.
Actually, I think that is beyond fab!
18
B
ack on campus, Gia and Piper are getting a taste of the celebrity life when people come up and congratulate them for their performance on the American Music Awards.
We're sitting in the campus courtyard, trying to get some study in and being totally unsuccessful. First of all, the weather has finally turned, and there is a nip in the air—enough for us to wear sweaters and sweats. And Meagan just can't seem to concentrate without hating.
“It's not like you guys actually did anything, for crying out loud,” Meagan says as she pulls her sweater tight around her body. “You were back-up dancers.”
“Well, I was just happy to get a check!” Piper says. “Thanks, Sunday. Anytime you want me to work for you, just let me know. I can sing a little bit too.”
“Really?” I ask. “Let me hear what you got.”
Piper sings the first few lines of the “Star-Spangled Banner.” Actually, she murders the first lines of the song. I have never heard such screeching in my life.
“You're kidding, right?” I ask.
Piper laughs out loud. “Wow. You are straight hating on my skills.”
“I witnessed no skills,” Gia says.
“Me either,” Meagan says.
“Oh, guess what? The Gamma Phi Gamma girls are straight jocking me!” Gia says. “They want me to choreograph their routine for the spring step show.”
Meagan replies, “That doesn't mean they're jocking you! They just know that you put together a slamming routine. It doesn't mean that they want you in the sorority either.”
Gia laughs. “I don't care one way or the other. I was just sharing the news.”
Piper asks, “Are we studying or aren't we? I've got to make sure I get good grades on these midterm exams. I've got a few scholarship applications pending, and I need to make sure my grades don't slip.”
“Scholarships?” Meagan asks. “But you're already in school. You're still looking for scholarship money?”
“Yes, of course I am. I would like to stay in school and finish,” Piper says. “Plus, my financial aid stuff is totally up in the air. I still can't find my mother.”
“You should report her as a missing person,” Gia says. “Will that help? How long have you not been able to reach her?”
“Since my senior year in high school. But my grandmother said she came through about a month ago and robbed her of her Social Security check, so it's not like she's hiding away in rehab or anything like that.”
Meagan is always highly uncomfortable when we talk about Piper's family situation. She says, “I can't imagine growing up with a meth addict for a mother.”
“Well, she wasn't always a meth addict,” Piper explains. “She started off just drinking and smoking weed. Then she graduated to heroin, and when that got too expensive she downsized to crack and meth. Honestly, I'm surprised she's still alive.”
“You don't sound sad about it,” Meagan says.
“I am numb to it,” Piper says. “She's not ever been around, so I know that she gave birth to me, but she doesn't feel like my mother.”
My heart goes out to Piper. She tries to act so strong about her mother being on drugs, but I know that it hurts her. She's lucky to have her foster parents.
Piper says, “Listen, change the subject, okay? Talking about Stella is a real downer. Plus, I might be dating someone new, so that's a more fun thing to talk about, right?”
“Who is the someone new that you might be dating?” Gia asks.
“Remember the guy from Truth's entourage that asked me out on a date the night of the awards show?” Piper asks. “Well, he's in Atlanta and he goes to Georgia State.”
“Get the heck out of here!” I say. “Truth has friends that go to college?”
“Turns out he's not really Truth's friend. He's Truth's cousin. He sometimes works as Truth's assistant on the road, because Truth knows that he can trust him. His name is Anthony and he's really nice and smart. He's a sophomore, and he's going to school for civil engineering.”
I guess you really can't judge a person by their family. What if someone judged me because of Dreya? Yuck.
“Okay, so Truth has a nice cousin. That is possible,” I say. “I would just be careful kicking it at any of Truth's events.”
“It's tripped out that you have only negative stuff to say about Truth, because according to Anthony, Truth has nothing but great things to say about you.”
I lift my eyebrows in surprise. “I'm shocked that he has anything to say about me at all.”
My cell phone buzzes. It's my mom calling. “Hello, Mommy,” I say.
“Sunday! You need to get home, right now.”
My heart rate quickens. “Is there something wrong?”
“No, honey, nothing wrong at all. I just got home from work and you have some mail from Epsilon Records today. It looks like a check.”
“Did you open it?”
“No. Do you want me to?”
“Of course!”
I get up and walk away from my friends, because I don't want them to see the expression on my face when my mother reads me the dollar amount.
I hear her rip the envelope open, then I hear her scream, and then she drops the phone.
Finally, she picks the phone up, and says, “Thank you, Jesus! Thank you, Jesus!”
“How much is it?”
“I have never seen this many numbers on a check. It says one million, six hundred, eighty-eight thousand, four hundred fifty-seven dollars, and twenty-three cents.”
Next, I scream! Mystique told me that the check would be huge, but I had no idea that it would be that big.
“Mommy, that's almost two million dollars.”
“Yes, it is. What do you want to do?”
“I have no idea.”
“Well, let's not do anything yet. Let's pray, and then meet with a financial adviser tomorrow.”
“That's a good idea. Okay, Mommy. You know you can give notice at the post office now. You don't have to work there anymore.”
My mother laughs out loud. “Two million dollars of your money is not enough to cause me to quit my job. That's why people end up broke again after they get a windfall. You can help me out, but there's no way I'm quitting my job yet.”
“But, Mommy ...”
“No, I won't hear of it.”
“Okay, Mom. Dreya's calling me on the other line. Maybe she got her check too.”
“Go ahead and talk to her, and come over here tomorrow morning.”
“Okay, bye.” I click over to Dreya. “Hey. What's up?”
She's crying. Oh no. Not a good sign.
“Did you get your check?” Dreya asks.
“Yes, I did. Did you get yours?”
“Yes,” she bawls. “It was only for thirty-two thousand dollars! That ain't no money.”
“Thirty-two thousand? That can't be right! Your album went gold.”
“Big D said that I spent thousands of dollars against my advance on my apartment, clothes, and my car. He said that because I didn't write any of the songs, I only got about twenty-five cents on each sale.”
“But ... I mean, it's thirty-two thousand dollars you wouldn't have had before, Dreya. You should invest it. You're moving to New York with Evan, so you won't have any expenses, right? Just save your money.”
“Big D said that you and Sam made more money off my record than I did, because y'all had songwriter and producer credits on my record and on yours.”
So that's why my check is so large. I made money off of her sales and my sales. I want to feel sorry for her, but I can't because everyone told Dreya she was spending way too much money on everything.
“Well, maybe on your next record you should try to get some songwriter credit. Like you should take a stab at writing some of your own lyrics. That way when it's time to get paid, you're more than just an artist.”
“Yeah, it's whatever. Everyone wants to treat the artist like crap, and there wouldn't be a project without the artist. I started this off for you, Sam, Big D, and everybody else. If it wasn't for me hooking up with Truth, none of y'all would have anything popping. But I'm the one looking like Boo Boo the Fool.”
I don't know how to respond to Dreya's rant. Part of what she says is true. Her dating Truth was the catalyst to this thing with Epsilon Records. But we've worked hard—much harder than she has. No one is going to keep thanking her for our success. I know I'm not, and I know Big D isn't either.
“Dreya, I don't know what to tell you. If you need anything, you know I got you. Just say the word.”
She laughs out loud. It's a dry, hurt, and bitter laugh. “You got me?
You
got
me?
That's real funny, Sunday.”
“Well, I don't know what you want me to say, Dreya. Do you want me to be sorry about the money I made?”
“I don't want anything from you, Sunday. You always find a way to come out on top and make me the underdog. But trust and believe my time is coming. All of y'all are gonna be coming to me for favors.”
“All right then, Dreya. I have to study for an exam. I'ma have to holla at you later.”
I disconnect the phone call, but I stand here in total shock. Dreya lives in some kind of fantasy world where the entire universe is out to see her fail. I only want her to succeed, but I can't convince her of that fact.
All I know is that after I see that financial adviser tomorrow, I'm taking my mom shopping for whatever she wants. And then maybe, just maybe, I'll get a little something for me.
I'm a millionaire!

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