“I can’t believe it’s already December 5th,” said Razzel, clearing out her locker for the day. “Remind me again how we got roped into going to this talent show?”
“Come on, Raz,” replied Willow, “we promised Brent. He’s so excited.”
“What-evs.”
Since the day the talent show was announced, Brent Deital had carried on about rehearsing a complicated dance routine he deemed to be at a professional level, which infused several different dance styles. Willow and Razzel tried to appear interested, but when they couldn’t muster up the energy, Taren Swirkle more than made up for them with her unbridled enthusiasm… “Wow! That routine sounds killer, Brent.”
The talent show was to begin at 5pm. Willow stayed behind after her last class and did her homework in the school library while Razzel took the bus home, promising to return in time for the show. She couldn’t bear to spend one extra minute in school than she absolutely needed to.
Taren was in the school gym with Brent watching him rehearse his routine, boosting his ego with cheers of approval.
Willow finished her math homework at 4:30pm and decided she’d better make her way down to the auditorium. Usually Ginkelman was all but abandoned after 3pm, but today the halls were buzzing with excitement. Willow passed students dressed in all sorts of elaborate costumes. Brian Flimp, from Art class, was actually wearing stilts and kept on knocking his head into the ceiling as his mother reprimanded him for not measuring the ceiling height beforehand. “The auditorium is much higher, Mom, I swear!”
In the stairwell, Willow recognized a group of five girls from History class, dressed as the famous boy-band, Intone, rehearsing their dance moves. Willow stifled a laugh as she walked by, carefully avoiding eye contact.
Behind every corner she turned, there were students rehearsing for what they hoped would be the winning performance. Initially, only a handful of students signed up for the talent show, but once Principal Sabina announced the grand prize of a trip to Hawaii, while second place was a $500 gift certificate good at any store in the Fritzfield Mall, the talent committee had to turn students away once they reached their limit of 20 acts.
When Willow reached the auditorium, she could see that seats were already filling up with students and family members, waiting to cheer on their favorite act. She looked out into the vast assembly and spotted Taren waving to her from the sixth row of the center aisle.
As she began to make her way toward her friend, Willow was almost knocked over by a student wearing a polar bear costume and couldn’t tell whether it was a male or female under the bulky mask. She was grateful to finally reach her seat.
“Hey, Taren. Thanks for saving the seats. This place is almost full already.”
“I know,” replied a euphoric Taren, “and these seats are perfect, aren’t they?”
“They’re great. What’s Brent up to?”
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“He’s backstage for one final warm-up. I just saw his act in the gym and it’s totally original.”
“I can’t wait to see it,” said Willow. “I’ll just place my bag on this seat between us to save it for Raz.”
“Good idea; we wouldn’t want anyone taking - ”
Willow could see Taren’s eyes shift their gaze and knew something, or someone, had distracted her. Willow turned around to find herself face to face with Snella Burinbine, flanked by Carmen and Fusia, all holding digital cameras.
“Sorry, ladies,” said Snella, “but this section is reserved for the yearbook committee. Not that we wouldn’t rather be home doing anything else, but since we need to cover this pathetic snooze-fest, we will need you to vacate the area.”
“I don’t see any signs,” said Willow.
“I don’t have time to hang up signs, Krimble! Now move it along unless you want to have another …” Snella took turns smirking at her associates, “… accident. You tend to get very clumsy in this auditorium … don’t you?”
Willow gave Snella a heated stare before grabbing her bag and leaving the area, Taren walking silently at her heels.
It took some searching, but Willow and Taren finally found three seats together in the second-to-last row in the right aisle.
“This isn’t so bad,” said Taren, fully aware of Willow’s frustration. “At least it’s across from the main entrance. We can spot Razzel as soon as she comes in.”
“Yeah, but will she see us, all the way back here?”
“It’ll be fine,” said Taren, taking her seat. “I wonder where Shayla is tonight.”
“Who cares?” replied Willow. “I’m more concerned with where Razzel is. The show starts in 10 minutes.”
Just as Willow slumped down into her seat, Taren stood up again.
“There she is,” she said, waving both hands in the air for Razzel to notice her.
Razzel ran down the aisle, knocking into several parents, not pausing to apologize. Her anxious expression alarmed Willow; it was very uncharacteristic of Razzel to look worried.
“Will … thank God … I found you!" said Razzel, panting to catch her breath.
"What is it, Raz? What's wrong?"
"Your mom … called my mom … on her cell. It's ... "
"What?"
"It's your grandmother. She's ... in the hospital."
Willow's heart sank.
"Wha - what are you talking about?"
"I don’t know the details, but it sounds ... Let's just go! My mom's in the lot waiting to take us to the hospital."
Willow stood up, put on her coat and hat and flung her backpack over her shoulders. Taren wished Willow luck as she and Razzel darted for the exit. They ran through the halls, dodging students, parents and teachers along their path. Just as they reached the rear-building exit, Willow paused.
"Wait!” she said to Razzel, stopping short. “This means a lot to Brent."
Razzel was bewildered.
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"So what are you saying? You don't wanna - "
"Of course I'm going to the hospital, but you should stay. No sense in both of us missing his big debut."
"Are you sure? What if you need - "
"I'll be fine. Go. And tell Brent I’m sorry."
Razzel contemplated Willow's proposal for a moment.
"Alright, but tell my mom you made me stay. She’s parked by the giant red oak in the south lot, you know, where the graffiti - "
"I got it. I'll call you later, and thanks a lot, Raz."
"Get out of here,” Razzel ordered, “you're wasting time.”
Willow exited the building, passing a group of grandparents, making her all-the-more anxious to get to the hospital.
Just as she was rounding the corner of the school building to the rear lot, Willow heard the sound of screeching tires, followed by a scream, then a car speeding away. She sprinted around the corner of the building and, to her horror, she could see a figure lying on the ground in the middle of the crosswalk. No one else was around. Everyone was already inside getting ready for the show.
Willow ran to the lifeless body and was shaken to see a familiar face staring up at her, in a state of shock.
"Shayla!" Willow cried out as she knelt down alongside the victim. The only blood Willow could see was on Shayla's mouth and chin. Based on her mother’s accounts from the hospital, Willow surmised that Shayla must have internal-bleeding.
Shayla looked up at Willow and tried to speak. The moment she opened her mouth, she let out a cry of pain as she spat up blood.
"Ssshhh. Don't try to talk, Shayla. Just relax."
Shayla didn’t listen. She tried to mouth something to Willow, but Willow couldn’t make it out.
"Don't speak, Shayla and try not to move."
Again, Shayla insisted on trying to get her message to Willow. She gestured with her right hand for Willow to come closer. Willow put her ear a few inches from Shayla's mouth. She just barely made out the one word Shayla had been trying to say … "Ssscaared."
"Don't be afraid, Shayla. I'm here. It's okay."
Shayla's hand motioned for Willow to come closer once more. Willow put her ear to Shayla's mouth and listened as hard as she could to try and decipher the next message… "Ssss - "
"I know your scared, Shayla but - "
Shayla shook her head and motioned for Willow to come back. Willow listened intently to hear what Shayla was trying to say… "Ssssorrreee."
Willow stared at Shayla for a moment.
"Don’t you dare do this to me, Shayla. You think you could just apologize, and then leave me? No way! We’re starting over. We'll pick up where we left off by my tree-house before you got your precious red silk dress all dirty."
Shayla looked up at Willow and Willow saw her do something she hadn't seen in years: Shayla smiled. But then the pain became too much for her and she let out a huge gasp, spitting up more blood.
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"Alright, Shayla, let's start over." Willow placed one hand on Shayla's forehead, the other on her stomach, and peered directly into Shayla’s eyes. "Come on, Shayla, you'll be okay … you'll be alright." Shayla coughed up more blood. Willow struggled to hide the fear in her own eyes as she continued.
"Come on, Shayla…” Willow forced a smile past the dread coursing through her, “… time to get up now…."
Shayla gave Willow one final desperate expression before she closed her eyes and went completely limp.
"NO! SHAYLA! PLEASE! SHAYLAAAAA!
Akin to waking from a nightmare, Shayla bolted upright and inhaled a swift gulp of oxygen as if she had just been submerged in water. She looked at Willow completely mystified. She clutched her stomach with her right hand, dabbing the blood on her lower lip with her left.
"Willow ... what did you - "
"You scared the hell out of me, Shayla."
"But … you ... How?"
"Did you see the car that hit you?" said Willow, disregarding Shayla’s disorientation.
Shayla shook her head, her eyes transfixed on her redeemer.
"Shayla, I've got to go right now, but please, promise me you won't say anything about this to anyone."
Shayla didn’t answer. She continued to stare at Willow, speechless, now both hands on her stomach, where the pain had completely subsided.
"Shayla!" Willow raised her voice, startling Shayla out of her trance. “Promise me!"
Shayla gave a single, slow nod.
"Great! Look, I really do need to go. We’ll talk about this tomorrow."
Willow stood up and made her way to the large red oak tree, where Mrs. Fiora was waiting for her, leaving Shayla seated on the crosswalk, incredulously grasping her stomach.
Next Chapter
“Come on, Raz,” replied Willow, “we promised Brent. He’s so excited.”
“What-evs.”
Since the day the talent show was announced, Brent Deital had carried on about rehearsing a complicated dance routine he deemed to be at a professional level, which infused several different dance styles. Willow and Razzel tried to appear interested, but when they couldn’t muster up the energy, Taren Swirkle more than made up for them with her unbridled enthusiasm… “Wow! That routine sounds killer, Brent.”
The talent show was to begin at 5pm. Willow stayed behind after her last class and did her homework in the school library while Razzel took the bus home, promising to return in time for the show. She couldn’t bear to spend one extra minute in school than she absolutely needed to.
Taren was in the school gym with Brent watching him rehearse his routine, boosting his ego with cheers of approval.
Willow finished her math homework at 4:30pm and decided she’d better make her way down to the auditorium. Usually Ginkelman was all but abandoned after 3pm, but today the halls were buzzing with excitement. Willow passed students dressed in all sorts of elaborate costumes. Brian Flimp, from Art class, was actually wearing stilts and kept on knocking his head into the ceiling as his mother reprimanded him for not measuring the ceiling height beforehand. “The auditorium is much higher, Mom, I swear!”
In the stairwell, Willow recognized a group of five girls from History class, dressed as the famous boy-band, Intone, rehearsing their dance moves. Willow stifled a laugh as she walked by, carefully avoiding eye contact.
Behind every corner she turned, there were students rehearsing for what they hoped would be the winning performance. Initially, only a handful of students signed up for the talent show, but once Principal Sabina announced the grand prize of a trip to Hawaii, while second place was a $500 gift certificate good at any store in the Fritzfield Mall, the talent committee had to turn students away once they reached their limit of 20 acts.
When Willow reached the auditorium, she could see that seats were already filling up with students and family members, waiting to cheer on their favorite act. She looked out into the vast assembly and spotted Taren waving to her from the sixth row of the center aisle.
As she began to make her way toward her friend, Willow was almost knocked over by a student wearing a polar bear costume and couldn’t tell whether it was a male or female under the bulky mask. She was grateful to finally reach her seat.
“Hey, Taren. Thanks for saving the seats. This place is almost full already.”
“I know,” replied a euphoric Taren, “and these seats are perfect, aren’t they?”
“They’re great. What’s Brent up to?”
___________________________________
Page 66
“He’s backstage for one final warm-up. I just saw his act in the gym and it’s totally original.”
“I can’t wait to see it,” said Willow. “I’ll just place my bag on this seat between us to save it for Raz.”
“Good idea; we wouldn’t want anyone taking - ”
Willow could see Taren’s eyes shift their gaze and knew something, or someone, had distracted her. Willow turned around to find herself face to face with Snella Burinbine, flanked by Carmen and Fusia, all holding digital cameras.
“Sorry, ladies,” said Snella, “but this section is reserved for the yearbook committee. Not that we wouldn’t rather be home doing anything else, but since we need to cover this pathetic snooze-fest, we will need you to vacate the area.”
“I don’t see any signs,” said Willow.
“I don’t have time to hang up signs, Krimble! Now move it along unless you want to have another …” Snella took turns smirking at her associates, “… accident. You tend to get very clumsy in this auditorium … don’t you?”
Willow gave Snella a heated stare before grabbing her bag and leaving the area, Taren walking silently at her heels.
It took some searching, but Willow and Taren finally found three seats together in the second-to-last row in the right aisle.
“This isn’t so bad,” said Taren, fully aware of Willow’s frustration. “At least it’s across from the main entrance. We can spot Razzel as soon as she comes in.”
“Yeah, but will she see us, all the way back here?”
“It’ll be fine,” said Taren, taking her seat. “I wonder where Shayla is tonight.”
“Who cares?” replied Willow. “I’m more concerned with where Razzel is. The show starts in 10 minutes.”
Just as Willow slumped down into her seat, Taren stood up again.
“There she is,” she said, waving both hands in the air for Razzel to notice her.
Razzel ran down the aisle, knocking into several parents, not pausing to apologize. Her anxious expression alarmed Willow; it was very uncharacteristic of Razzel to look worried.
“Will … thank God … I found you!" said Razzel, panting to catch her breath.
"What is it, Raz? What's wrong?"
"Your mom … called my mom … on her cell. It's ... "
"What?"
"It's your grandmother. She's ... in the hospital."
Willow's heart sank.
"Wha - what are you talking about?"
"I don’t know the details, but it sounds ... Let's just go! My mom's in the lot waiting to take us to the hospital."
Willow stood up, put on her coat and hat and flung her backpack over her shoulders. Taren wished Willow luck as she and Razzel darted for the exit. They ran through the halls, dodging students, parents and teachers along their path. Just as they reached the rear-building exit, Willow paused.
"Wait!” she said to Razzel, stopping short. “This means a lot to Brent."
Razzel was bewildered.
___________________________________
Page 67
"So what are you saying? You don't wanna - "
"Of course I'm going to the hospital, but you should stay. No sense in both of us missing his big debut."
"Are you sure? What if you need - "
"I'll be fine. Go. And tell Brent I’m sorry."
Razzel contemplated Willow's proposal for a moment.
"Alright, but tell my mom you made me stay. She’s parked by the giant red oak in the south lot, you know, where the graffiti - "
"I got it. I'll call you later, and thanks a lot, Raz."
"Get out of here,” Razzel ordered, “you're wasting time.”
Willow exited the building, passing a group of grandparents, making her all-the-more anxious to get to the hospital.
Just as she was rounding the corner of the school building to the rear lot, Willow heard the sound of screeching tires, followed by a scream, then a car speeding away. She sprinted around the corner of the building and, to her horror, she could see a figure lying on the ground in the middle of the crosswalk. No one else was around. Everyone was already inside getting ready for the show.
Willow ran to the lifeless body and was shaken to see a familiar face staring up at her, in a state of shock.
"Shayla!" Willow cried out as she knelt down alongside the victim. The only blood Willow could see was on Shayla's mouth and chin. Based on her mother’s accounts from the hospital, Willow surmised that Shayla must have internal-bleeding.
Shayla looked up at Willow and tried to speak. The moment she opened her mouth, she let out a cry of pain as she spat up blood.
"Ssshhh. Don't try to talk, Shayla. Just relax."
Shayla didn’t listen. She tried to mouth something to Willow, but Willow couldn’t make it out.
"Don't speak, Shayla and try not to move."
Again, Shayla insisted on trying to get her message to Willow. She gestured with her right hand for Willow to come closer. Willow put her ear a few inches from Shayla's mouth. She just barely made out the one word Shayla had been trying to say … "Ssscaared."
"Don't be afraid, Shayla. I'm here. It's okay."
Shayla's hand motioned for Willow to come closer once more. Willow put her ear to Shayla's mouth and listened as hard as she could to try and decipher the next message… "Ssss - "
"I know your scared, Shayla but - "
Shayla shook her head and motioned for Willow to come back. Willow listened intently to hear what Shayla was trying to say… "Ssssorrreee."
Willow stared at Shayla for a moment.
"Don’t you dare do this to me, Shayla. You think you could just apologize, and then leave me? No way! We’re starting over. We'll pick up where we left off by my tree-house before you got your precious red silk dress all dirty."
Shayla looked up at Willow and Willow saw her do something she hadn't seen in years: Shayla smiled. But then the pain became too much for her and she let out a huge gasp, spitting up more blood.
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Page 68
"Alright, Shayla, let's start over." Willow placed one hand on Shayla's forehead, the other on her stomach, and peered directly into Shayla’s eyes. "Come on, Shayla, you'll be okay … you'll be alright." Shayla coughed up more blood. Willow struggled to hide the fear in her own eyes as she continued.
"Come on, Shayla…” Willow forced a smile past the dread coursing through her, “… time to get up now…."
Shayla gave Willow one final desperate expression before she closed her eyes and went completely limp.
"NO! SHAYLA! PLEASE! SHAYLAAAAA!
Akin to waking from a nightmare, Shayla bolted upright and inhaled a swift gulp of oxygen as if she had just been submerged in water. She looked at Willow completely mystified. She clutched her stomach with her right hand, dabbing the blood on her lower lip with her left.
"Willow ... what did you - "
"You scared the hell out of me, Shayla."
"But … you ... How?"
"Did you see the car that hit you?" said Willow, disregarding Shayla’s disorientation.
Shayla shook her head, her eyes transfixed on her redeemer.
"Shayla, I've got to go right now, but please, promise me you won't say anything about this to anyone."
Shayla didn’t answer. She continued to stare at Willow, speechless, now both hands on her stomach, where the pain had completely subsided.
"Shayla!" Willow raised her voice, startling Shayla out of her trance. “Promise me!"
Shayla gave a single, slow nod.
"Great! Look, I really do need to go. We’ll talk about this tomorrow."
Willow stood up and made her way to the large red oak tree, where Mrs. Fiora was waiting for her, leaving Shayla seated on the crosswalk, incredulously grasping her stomach.
Next Chapter