Twice the Talent (12 page)

“What? Oh, sure,” Ava said, quickly strapping on the brace.

She practically skipped out of the office ahead of her mother, she was so happy.

“Mom, I can go to practice tonight, right?” Ava asked.

“If Dr. Rodriguez said so, then yes,” Mrs. Sackett replied.

“Woo-hoo!” Ava cheered again.

Ava's mom shook her head and chuckled. “Trust me, I'm as happy as you are that you can play basketball again.”

The car approached the park on the way to the Sacketts' house, and Ava could see Jack shooting hoops by himself. His backpack was thrown off to the side—he must have stopped at the park on the way home from school. Ava looked at her mom—and her look said everything.

Mrs. Sackett pulled the car over. “One hour, Ava. Then you need to get homework done before tonight's practice. Got it?”

“Got it!” Ava said. “Thank you!”

She ran—for the first time in three weeks—to the basketball court.

“Hey! Over here!” she called out.

Jack turned toward her and grinned. Then he passed her the ball. Ava dribbled it up to the basket, then jumped up for a layup shot. The ball bounced off the backboard into the net.

“Good to have you back,” Jack said.

“Okay, everybody! Acts one through five, please stay backstage. Acts six through twenty, we need you to wait in the music room!” Alex yelled over the hubbub of voices backstage.

It was the night of the Variety Show—thirty minutes before the curtain opened, to be exact—and Alex was running around backstage with a clipboard, just as Emily had predicted.

“Okay, I've got the first five here!” Chloe called out.

“Great!” Alex replied. “I'm going to the music room.”

Alex headed there to organize the remaining acts—but she was on a mission, too. Her plan
to win Lindsey back wouldn't succeed if Alex didn't find her friends, fast.

Chaos greeted her inside the music room, as the performing students talked excitedly, warmed up their voices, practiced their acts, and put the finishing touches on their costumes. Alex spotted Ava first, going over the line dance with Toe the Line. Her sister wore a cowboy boot on her left foot and a sneaker on her right foot with the brace.

Alex waved at her twin, but Ava was concentrating hard on the moves and didn't notice.

Next, Alex passed by Max. She was surprised to see that he had cleaned up nicely for the event. He wore a white shirt tucked into black pants, and a black skinny tie. Gel slicked back his normally messy hair. He looked up from his box of props as Alex walked by and gave her a thumbs-up.

When Max asked her to be his assistant, she had worried that she might have to wear some silly costume. But Max told her to just stick to black and white, so she'd worn a short black skirt with a white blouse, black tights, and black flats. She and Max would look perfect together onstage.

That was a good thing and a bad one too. She liked Max but she didn't
like
him—not the way she liked Corey. And she knew Corey was definitely going to think she might
like
Max once he saw them onstage together. She had tried to grab a minute with Corey to talk with him about it, but there never was a right time at school, and she'd been busy every day after school prepping for the show.

Alex pushed the worry aside. She had bigger things to take care of first! She spotted the Dancing Divas in a corner and rushed up to them.

“Hey, you guys look great!” she said. Each of her friends wore a short red pleated skirt, a white T-shirt, and a brown vest embroidered with red hearts.

“When are we on, Alex?” Emily asked, nervously tugging on the end of her skirt.

“You're number ten,” Alex told them. “I'll come get you in plenty of time, don't worry.”

Then Alex took a small drawstring pouch off her shoulder. “I made something for you guys,” she said.

She pulled out five thin elastic red headbands. On each one, Alex had sewn a red felt heart that
she'd embroidered with zigzag lines in black thread.

“Broken heart headbands, to go with the song,” Alex said.

“Oh, Alex, they're perfect!” Rosa gushed, grabbing one, and each of the girls took one, even Lindsey.

“So cool,” Emily said. “We should go put these on in the restroom, so we can see how they look.”

“I wanted to do something for you—all of you—to apologize,” Alex explained. “I honestly think your dance is really cute. And the main reason I didn't want to do it is because I can't dance. I mean, I seriously can't!”

Emily nodded. “I know. I've seen you,” she teased.

“So, the show needed a magic act, and I'm helping Max Beedle onstage,” Alex said. “I hope you all understand. All I have to do is hand him things. It's so much easier than dancing.”

Then she looked at Lindsey. “I know you don't like him. But I really think he's nice, and he didn't mean to hurt your feelings. And you're my friend first, Lindsey, always.”

Lindsey sighed and looked down at the
headband. “I know. I'm sorry for not talking to you, and I'm sorry if I was mean to Max. He's actually not so bad.”

“Thanks,” Alex said, and she remembered why she was friends with Lindsey in the first place. Under that armor, she could be really nice.

“Group hug!” Annelise called out, and the girls converged on one another, giggling.

“All right, I've got to get backstage,” Alex said, looking at her watch. “The show's starting soon. You guys are going to be great!”

Alex could feel the excitement in the air once she got backstage. The lights in the auditorium had dimmed, and Ms. Farmen walked onstage under the glow of a spotlight.

“Welcome, everyone, to the Ashland Middle School Variety Show!” she announced. For a small woman, she had a commanding voice, Alex had always thought. “This year's theme is the Wild West, and I'm sure we're all in for a wild time tonight. So sit back and enjoy the show!”

Ms. Farmen walked offstage as the curtain opened behind her. Jack and Spencer stood there with their backs to the audience. Then hip-hop music blared through the speakers and they came
to life, launching into their dance. The audience went crazy.

Backstage, Chloe motioned to a girl in a sparkly blue dress.

“Number two, you're up next!” she said. Then she nodded to Alex. “Let's get number six in here.”

Alex ran to the music room to get the next act. Only five acts were backstage at a time. When one act went onstage, Alex would bring another group backstage to wait. The committee had planned out the show like a well-oiled machine, and she was loving it. Plus, she got to catch a glimpse of all the performances.

After Billy Scarbek balanced a chair, a broom, and a hockey stick on his nose, all to thunderous applause, it was the Dancing Divas' turn. Alex had to admit that they all looked supercute, and the headbands just made them even more so.

Alex watched her friends as the music played on stage.

“. . . nothing hurts more than a broken heart . . .”

She still thought the act was a little silly, but she would never let her friends know that. They did move in perfect time and looked adorable besides. By the time they had traced their last
heart shape in the air with their fingers, the crowd was in love with them.

Alex ran back to bring act number sixteen into the waiting area, and when she returned, she heard Chloe call her name.

“Alex! Max! You're up next!”

Alex suddenly felt her palms get sweaty. Speaking in front of people didn't normally make her nervous, but this was different. This was a magic act! What if it was terrible? What if she made a mistake?

“Come on,” Max said, pushing his cart of props onto the stage.

Alex followed him, squinting under the bright lights.

“Hello, everyone. I am Max the Magician, and this is my lovely assistant, Alex!”

Alex waved to the audience, as they had practiced, and was relieved to hear the crowd applaud.

“Alex, my hat, please,” Max said, and Alex's nerves left her and they began their routine. Alex had gone over the moves so many times she knew them by heart.

Four minutes later, after Max had made a stuffed rabbit appear and disappear and pulled
an impossibly long string of colorful scarves out of Ms. Farmen's pocket, the act was over. Applause and cheers followed Max and Alex offstage.

“Wow, guys, that was so cool!” said Emily, who had stayed backstage with the Dancing Divas to watch the magic act.

“Yeah, and you were pretty funny, Max,” Charlotte added, and Max blushed.

Chloe handed Alex her clipboard. “Nice job. Can you get me number eighteen, please?”

Alex headed for the music room, relieved to be an organizer again instead of a magician's assistant.

What did Corey think of that?
she wondered, but that was a problem for another day.

Two country ballads, three jazz dancers, and one opera singer later, it was time for the final act: Toe the Line. The crowd roared when the dancers came out. Alex anxiously watched, hoping everything would go okay for Ava.

Onstage, Ava looked out at the crowd. There, in the front row with her leg sticking out, was Kylie.

“Go, Ava!” Kylie cheered, just as she had at Ava's basketball game.

All right, Ava, you can do this!
Ava told herself.
For Kylie!

The music started, and Ava focused with all her might. Carly wouldn't be calling out the steps during the performance. But that was okay, because she had practiced so much that the steps were burned in her memory.

Walk forward!

Grapevine right!

Grapevine left!

Step, tap!

Step, tap!

Pivot right!

The song was over before Ava knew it, and the crowd erupted in applause and cheers. The Toe the Line dancers bowed and then marched off the stage.

“Ava, you did it!” Alex cheered, running up to hug her sister.

“Yeah, I did,” Ava said, as if she didn't quite believe it herself.

“Great job, everybody!” Kendall called out. “Some of you might know that we have a Variety Show tradition every year. Ice cream at Rookie's!”

All the performers and crew let out a cheer.

“I think I sweat at least two gallons tonight,” Alex confided in her sister. “Some ice cream would hit the spot right now.”

Mrs. Sackett and Coach gave them big hugs as the girls came out from backstage, then dropped them off at Rookie's, which was decorated to look like an old-fashioned ice cream parlor. There was a long counter with stools in front of it, and round metal tables with padded chairs.

Inside, the place was packed. Alex spotted the Dancing Divas crowded around a small table and waved. Then Ava tapped her.

“Come say hi to Kylie with me,” she said, pointing.

Kylie and Owen were sitting around a table with two empty chairs, and Kylie was motioning for them to come over.

“One of the benefits of a broken leg,” Kylie said, when they arrived. “It's easy to get a table.”

“Why don't you guys tell me what you want, and I'll place the order,” Owen said.

“Chocolate shake, please,” said Ava.

“Vanilla shake, please,” said Alex at the same time.

Kylie laughed. “That's so perfect. You guys are,
like, the same but different. Both milk shakes, but different flavors.”

“Wow, that is deep, Kylie,” Ava teased.

“I think Kylie's right,” Alex said thoughtfully. “We are alike in some ways, but in many ways we're different.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” her sister agreed.

Owen came back. “They'll bring the stuff to our table,” he said. Then he turned to Kylie. “Did you see that video I posted for you? It's instructions for making a Stellar Warrior costume. Super cool.”

Kylie picked up her phone. “No way! I've got to see that.”

Soon the two of them were engrossed in the video. Ava turned to her sister.

“Do you think we're more alike, or more different?” she asked.

Alex looked thoughtful. “Well, different, I guess, but alike in the more important ways.”

“Like what?” Ava asked.

“Like, we both tried new things tonight,” Alex said. “Would you have believed me if I told you a year ago that you were going to be onstage in a Texas Variety Show doing a traditional Texas dance, and killing it?”

Ava laughed and shook her head. “No way. I would have thought you were crazy.”

“And who would have ever thought I would be a magician's assistant?” Alex said. “So we're both brave. And that's a pretty important way we're alike.”

“And don't forget talented,” Ava said. “I mean, who knew I could line dance or you could do magic?”

“Exactly,” said Ava. “I wonder what other hidden talents we'll discover here in Texas?”