by Alesha Dixon
“Hang on, are you talking about that girl who interrupted our brunch at the Ritz last week? The one for whom I paid that taxi fare?”
“Oh yeah, but don’t hold that against her, she wasn’t herself at the time.”
“This school talent show isn’t in your schedule,” Sam points out, looking panicked as he scrolls through his beloved iPad.
“We’re going off schedule tonight, Sam. It’s important that we’re in the audience for this.”
“But why?”
“Because she’s my friend and she needs me,” I say firmly, typing out a text. “I want to be there for her.”
“Then we’ll make sure you’re there,” Mum says, giving Kelly a nod. “How do you know this Ruby person?”
I look up from my phone and shoot her a grin. “It’s a long story.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Someone is shaking me awake.
“Ruby? Ruby! Wake up!”
I rub my eyes, disorientated, and open them to see Beth staring at me.
“Beth?” I whisper, my mouth dry. “BETH!”
I scream at the top of my lungs and jump to my feet to give her the biggest hug in the world.
“It’s you! It’s really you! Am I me? AM I?”
“Um . . . what are you talking about, you weirdo?” she laughs, squiggling out of my tight grip. “Did you have a nightmare or something? How did you fall asleep so quickly?”
“It is so good to see you! Wait, I need a mirror! Do you have one?”
“Sure, hang on.”
She wanders over to her backpack, tucked under one of the desks in the classroom we’re in, and gets out a small compact mirror, holding it up for me. I scream when I look at my reflection, before pulling her in for another gigantic hug, jumping up and down excitedly as I do.
“What is going on?” she asks, giggling.
“I’m so happy to see you,” I gush, pulling away and looking at her. “You are the best, most brilliant friend in the whole world. Did you know that? And I am so lucky to have you in my life. Thank you for always being there for me.”
“Uh, you’re welcome?” She gives me a strange look. “What’s brought this all on? Is this some form of stage fright or pre-show nerves?”
“Ha! Why would I have stage fright or pre-show nerves? I’m RUBY! I’m me!” I dance around the classroom excitedly. “I can’t believe it! I’m home!”
“You see school as home?” She wrinkles her nose. “That’s weird.”
“Hang on.” I stop dancing. “Why are we at school? Isn’t it Friday night?”
“Is this a joke? Are you joking right now?” Beth puts her hands on her hips. “We don’t really have time for this, Ruby. Ali has finished her performance and that magician guy has just come off stage. The string quartet or whatever are on now, and we’re going on stage after them. So, come on, let’s get backstage.”
“Backstage?” I repeat slowly, checking her mirror again that it is me and I’m not still Naomi Starr. “That doesn’t make any sense. Why would I need to go backstage?”
“In order to walk on stage for the talent show final.”
Wait. Did she say . . . the talent show final?
“I just need to check my phone,” I croak, scanning the room for my bag and finding it under a chair.
There are a slew of texts waiting for me.
IT WORKED! THE MAGIC WORKED!
I’M NAOMI AGAIN! YOU’RE RUBY
AGAIN! WE SWAPPED BACK!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
HOW CRAZY IS THIS?! I wonder why
it suddenly worked?
Oh, by the way, any second now
you’re about to go on stage in the
school talent show final
Probably should have mentioned
that earlier
“I’m in the school talent show final,” I say, reading her messages with horror.
“That’s right, keep saying it!” Beth says cheerily. “Now, let’s go backstage and get ready!”
Before I can kick my brain into action, Beth has grabbed my arm and is leading me out of the classroom and towards the stage doors of the school theatre. I begin to panic. I have no idea what I’m doing. There’s no way I can go out on stage and perform as me. I don’t know whether I can do this! This is all WAY too overwhelming!
My phone vibrates in my hand.
You’re singing two of my songs as
a mash-up. Don’t worry, you’ll know
when to switch because the music
changes up. The songs are ‘Attention
Please’ and ‘My Own Way’. I’ve seen
you perform both of those in the past
week so I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT.
The choreography is exactly the same,
and you have a team on stage with
you. They’re awesome, go with it.
Good luck!!
I am going to kill her.
My phone goes again.
P.S. I invited your whole family to
watch.
Hope you don’t mind.
NOW I’M REALLY GOING TO KILL HER.
“My family is here,” I squeak, a lump building in my throat.
“Yeah, all of them. I saw them in the audience when I peered through the curtains earlier,” Beth tells me happily. “Your parents, all your brothers and even Isabella. They’re so proud of you. Roman and Reggie spent lunch break making you a banner.”
“They . . . they did?”
“Yeah. To be honest with you, they’re not the most artistic. There’s glitter everywhere and they’ve drawn a load of stick people around the “Go Ruby”, and I think the stick people are supposed to be smiling, but their faces look super creepy. It looks like a toddler has done it. Still, it’s sweet that they tried.”
“Yeah, it is,” I reply, stunned that they have made so much effort for me.
“OK,” Beth says, grabbing my shoulders. “I have to go out to the audience to take photos for the paper. Everyone else is waiting backstage.”
There’s an eruption of applause from the theatre as the string quartet comes to a finish and Beth gives me a quick hug, before pulling away and checking her camera.
“That’s my cue! I’ll see you on the other side!”
“B-but. . .”
“Go, Starr Squad!”
She sprints down the corridor and round a corner, leaving me standing alone by the stage door. My whole body feels numb, while my brain goes into overdrive imagining all the things that might happen if I take the steps to go backstage. I might fall on my face in front of the WHOLE SCHOOL. I might sing out of tune, forget the words, ruin the whole show for everyone. And this time I can’t hide behind Naomi Starr. This time, I’m me, Ruby.
“I don’t think I can do this,” I whisper into the empty corridor.
My phone vibrates. It’s Naomi again.
I imagine you’re freaking out about
now. But we both know that it’s time
for you to shine in your own right. Isn’t
that what the book has been telling
you all along?
I read her message through three times. I really wish she wasn’t making any sense, but she is. Because as well as feeling sick with nerves right now, I also feel a rush of excitement to have the chance to be on stage singing and dancing in front of an audience again.
I remember Riley Starr telling me to pretend I’m messing about, dancing around my bedroom, doing what I love.
“Ah, Ruby, you’re here,” Mrs Jennings says, opening the stage door to find me right in front of her. “Come on, you’re next. I’m about to announce you. Are you ready?”
I take a deep breath.
“Yes.” I nod, following her into the wings. “I’m ready.”
A group of my classmates are waiting for me backstage and as I approach them, their faces light up with excitement. This must be the rest of my group. One of them passes me a microphone, telling me not to turn it on until we’re
in our starting position on stage.
“Remind me what the starting position is again?” I ask innocently.
“Good one,” she whispers, giggling.
Oh well. It was worth a try. Let’s just hope it’s obvious.
The crowd erupts into applause and cheers when Mrs Jennings announces my name as the next act. She walks off stage, wishes us luck and then we are ushered on as the lights go down. Remembering that Naomi said the first song of the mash up was “Attention Please”, I stand in the middle of the stage with my head down, microphone at the ready, just as Naomi does in all her performances of that one. Just as I’ve done for the past two weeks.
The other dancers take their places around me and don’t say anything, so it looks like I’ve done the right thing. Phew.
The crowd falls silent. A spotlight shines down.
The intro of the song begins. I lift my head, hold up the microphone and I start to sing, launching into the first steps of the dance.
I really thought that nothing could beat that feeling of being Naomi Starr, performing to all her fans. But I was wrong. As I dance around the stage, singing two of my favourite songs, watching the crowd get to their feet and start dancing and clapping along, I have never been happier. I forget that everyone is watching. I forget to be nervous and scared of what they might think.
I’m just doing what I love.
I get to the end of the song and strike the finishing pose on the last beat, throwing my head back and punching the air. The theatre explodes with noise. It’s an overwhelming reaction. Everyone is clapping and cheering, and we get a standing ovation. I feel in a daze as the other dancers on stage pounce on me, huddling together to jump up and down, screaming, “We did it! We did it!”
They then form a line with me in the middle so that we can bow together.
The lights have come up over the audience and I can see my family taking up the majority of the first row. Mum and Dad are both crying tears of joy, Isabella is blowing me kisses and the boys are going bonkers, whooping and chanting, “RUBY TO WIN! RUBY TO WIN!”
We take a second bow and I smile at Beth, who is standing amongst the audience taking pictures. She lowers her camera for a moment to grin back at me.
Just before I walk off stage, the applause from the audience still going strong, I notice someone standing right at the back, hiding in the shadows. She’s wearing designer sunglasses and is standing with a tall woman who is on her phone, a man who is nervously typing something on a tablet, and a stern-looking security guy, who is checking his earpiece.
Catching my eye, she gives me a small nod before whispering something to her bodyguard.
He pushes open the door behind her and, just like that, she’s gone.
EPILOGUE
A WEEK LATER
I spot her sitting on a bench behind the library.
She’s holding Daisy’s lead as she strains to chase a pigeon hopping about nearby. I chuckle to myself as I walk towards them, enjoying the freedom of no security and no paparazzi.
“Hey,” I say, sitting down next to her on the bench.
“Hey!” she replies, brightening. “You made it.”
Daisy jumps up at me and I burst out laughing as she slobbers all over my face, Ruby desperately trying to pull her back.
“I’ve missed you, you big scruffball,” I say, giving her a good scratch behind the ears. “Do you think she recognizes me at all? Or does she greet everyone like this?”
“I think she knows,” Ruby says, getting a treat out of her bag so she’ll leave me alone. “Dogs can sense stuff.”
She attempts to make her sit before giving her the treat, but Daisy snatches it from her hand and munches it happily.
“How did you get here without the paparazzi noticing?” she asks, holding on to Daisy tightly as she gets back to focusing on the pigeon.
“I tweeted that I was on my way to go shopping in Westfield, then asked Kelly to drive there and back in my car. Hopefully, that will fool the press for long enough.”
“Nicely played.” She leans back on the bench. “You returned the book, then?”
“Yeah. You?”
She nods. “It felt weird handing it back. Like nothing had ever happened and it was a normal book, nothing special about it.”
“I know what you mean. When you suggested we return our copies today, part of me wanted to say no and hold on to it for ever,” I admit. “I think I could have got away with it, too. The librarian was genuinely shocked to see me again. I don’t know why, since thanks to you, I’m now an official member and I’ve pledged a lot of money to this place.”
“It’s a great cause.” She laughs. “I’ve never seen Rose happier than when I said that.”
“Yeah, well, this library means a lot to me, anyway. Do you think Rose has any idea of what those books can do? Do you think she knows about their . . . magic?”
“No, I don’t. I hinted around that and it went straight over her head. She talked about how it helped her when she had to do a presentation for a librarian conference and was nervous about public speaking. She didn’t seem too upset that you might not return that other copy either. I think she has no idea just how special those books are.”
“Probably a good thing.”
“Probably.”
Daisy paws at Ruby’s leg and she gives her another treat. She gobbles it up, keeping an eye on the pigeon at all times.
“So,” I nudge her arm, “how’s life after winning the school talent show? Are you mobbed by fans in the corridors?”
She bursts out laughing. “Not exactly. But I don’t feel so invisible any more, which is scary sometimes but also a good thing, I think. The day after the talent show, Mum and Dad put together a list of all these prestigious music holiday camps around the country. They want me to apply to all of them! They’re being so encouraging and supportive. I don’t know why I didn’t tell them about my singing and dancing sooner.”
“Ruby, that’s great news. You should definitely apply! And hey, tell me which camp is top of your list and if you want, I can put in a good word.”
“Thanks, but that’s OK. I want to do this on my own. I think I can.”
“I know you can.” I adjust my sunglasses. “And how is my good friend, Ali Carlton, doing? When you messaged saying you’d won the talent show, I wondered how she’d taken the news.”
“Actually, she was OK with it,” Ruby says with a knowing smile. “After the show, John told her that he wanted to do a profile on all the finalists for the school paper and she cared much more about that. She even congratulated me on my performance and invited me to her party the next day.”
“You’re joking! Did you go?”
She shakes her head. “I decided I’d much rather stay in and watch a programme on polar bears with Beth. We ate way too much ice cream and she made me laugh my head off with her teacher impressions. She’s so good at them.”
“She really is.”
Daisy gets bored of pigeon-watching and trots over to me, sitting at my feet and resting her head on my lap.
“I read rumours online that you’re adding another London date. If there are any tickets going spare, maybe you could let me know,” Ruby says hopefully.
“I’ll think about it,” I tease. “It’s in a month and we’re coming up with a brand new show. Martin and I have been working all week on our vision.”
She looks confused. “You’re working together?”
“Yes, we are. I’ve shown complete dedication this week and it’s paying off; he’s involving me much more in the creative side of the process. I think he’s forgiven me for my previous skipping out on rehearsals and . . . ahem . . . claiming I was allergic to his scent.”
She grimaces. “My bad. Sorry about that. How is your mum? And Sam?”
“Sam is on holiday. I figured he could use a break.” I reach into my bag and pull out a bottle of water, unscrewing the cap and taking a sip. “And Mum is good. We chatted about my schedule issues and
came to a happy compromise. I took notes from your family actually.”
“Seriously?” She looks impressed. “Like what?”
“When we had some time off earlier this week, we played Monopoly. It was so nice to see her relax for once. I also invited Martin, Kelly, my chef and all of my dance crew to join us. It got very out of hand. We discovered that Chef is a dirty cheat and Martin can be a real diva.”
Ruby throws her head back and laughs. “That is brilliant.”
“But my biggest piece of news is that I’m launching the Starr Scholarship,” I say excitedly, unable to keep it from her any longer. “It was my idea and Mum has set up meetings to make it happen. It’s a full scholarship to a top London performing arts school for an outstanding musician. I want to give others an opportunity to see the world from my point of view. What do you think? Do you like the idea?”
“Naomi, I think it’s AMAZING!” she exclaims, beaming at me.
“Oh good. I told Mum that I needed to check it with you first.”
Her forehead creases in confusion. “Why would you need to check it with me?”
“Because when big things happen in your life, you’re supposed to tell your friends, right?”
“Right.”
We sit quietly for a moment, watching the pigeons. I stroke Daisy’s head happily.
“Hey,” Ruby says suddenly, breaking the silence, “if you’re free on Saturday, would you like to come to my house for a sleepover? Beth is coming and it would be nice for you to meet her properly, as you. She might have a minor heart attack when you walk in, but I reckon you’re used to dealing with that reaction.”
I blink at her, taken aback. “Really? You’re inviting me for a sleepover?”
“Yeah. I know you’re famous and everything, but this is a SUPER exclusive invitation. Only best friends allowed.” She flashes me a grin. “You can let me know once you’ve checked your schedule if you like.”
“For such a one-of-a-kind invitation? No need to check.” I smile back at her so widely, my jaw hurts. “I’ll be there.”
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I’m super excited to create a brand new book! I feel very lucky to be a part of such a fun project. Thank you to everyone at Scholastic for making this happen: your hard work and dedication as a company is so inspiring. Lauren Fortune, Aimee Stewart, Mary Jones, Penelope Daukes, Clare Hennessey, Kate Graham: thank you so much for everything you have done, I appreciate every single one of you.