Mixed Messages

by Tina Wells

  I’ll have to share everything even more.

  The house will be noisy.

  I’ll have to babysit.

  Ways My Life Is Going to Be the Same

  Ally, Chloe, and Jasper will always be my best friends.

  I’ll be a Brookdale student.

  * * *

  Zee studied the uneven columns on her list. There was so much in her life that was going to be different.

  * * *

  Did my parents even think about how it would affect other people when they decided to have another baby (or two)?

  Zee

  * * *

  Chapter 5

  Bluetopia Live!

  While Zee worked on her math homework in her bedroom after school, Ally sat next to her on the bed. She was typing an email to Jacques, her boyfriend in France, on Zee’s laptop.

  Ding! went the computer.

  “It’s an email from Jasper!” Ally announced. “Bluetopia is online!”

  Happy to take a break, Zee dropped her pencil and read the message that Jasper had also sent to Chloe and all his friends in England.

  Bluetopia has officially launched! Register and log on to let everyone know what you’re doing and to find out what your buds are up to.

  “Hey, look!” Zee said, pointing at the screen. “He took my suggestion.”

  “Which one?” Ally asked.

  “He wanted to call your friends who join ‘mates,’ but I told him ‘mates’ was too stuffy and he should use ‘buds’ instead.”

  Ally clicked on the link at the bottom of the email.

  The home page was a swirl of bold reds, oranges, and blues. An animated flower opened and closed, and a soccer player kicked a ball into a goal.

  “Cool beans!” Zee exclaimed. “It looks even better than I expected.”

  Ally clicked on the “Register” link. “I can’t wait to make you, Chloe, and Jasper my friends,” Ally said as she typed.

  “Don’t you mean buds?” Zee asked and giggled.

  “This is going to be awesome!” Ally finished registering then slid the computer to Zee. “Your turn.”

  Zee began to type in her name, then paused. “Maybe Jasper, you, Chloe, and I should test Bluetopia before it goes all the way across the ocean to London. What if there are glitches in the program?”

  “But he sent the email to everyone,” Ally pointed out.

  “They’re probably all asleep because of the time difference between here and there. Jasper could send another email telling them to wait a few days.”

  As the girls talked, Zee got an IM.

  BRITCHAP: Did u get my email?

  E-ZEE: Yes, A already registered.

  I m going 2 now.

  Zee told him about her idea to test the site with the Brookdale group first.

  BRITCHAP: We need more people 4 a real test. Anyway there aren’t ever going 2 b many people. I can fix the probs in a jiff and get everything back and running fast.

  E-ZEE: U r right. I probably worry 2 much.

  BRITCHAP: C u in Bluetopia!

  At that moment, Zee’s mother walked into the room with a tape measure.

  “What’s that for?” Zee asked.

  “I was wondering if you might want to move to the guest room at the end of the hall.”

  Zee looked around at her peach walls decorated with an autographed Jonas Brothers poster, her cozy, overstuffed chair, and her white four-poster bed. “Why?”

  “This room is so much closer to the master bedroom,” Mrs. Carmichael pointed out. “So when the babies cry in the middle of the night, we’ll be able to get in here faster to take care of them.”

  Zee thought about her mother’s explanation and had to admit it made sense.

  “That would be so awesome! The guest room is huge, and you’ll be able to decorate it however you want,” Ally chimed in. She looked around. “This is like your kid room, and your new room will be your teenager room.”

  Zee knew Ally was right. It could be a lot of fun to start over completely. Still, Zee had been in her bedroom since she was a baby—and she wasn’t ready to give it up.

  “Umm . . . I’ll think about it.”

  “Thanks!” her mother said, taking the tape measure with her as she walked out.

  Zee went back onto Bluetopia. By now, Chloe had logged on and sent Zee a pedicure. Zee began to search through the fashion application, looking for the perfect outfit to send her friend.

  But Zee was having trouble focusing on the choices. She couldn’t get her conversation with her mother out of her head. Are Mom and Dad going to kick me out of my room? she wondered.

  As Zee clicked around the site, the word blog jumped off the screen. That’s it! she thought. Ally was right. She was going to be a teenager soon. Maybe she should welcome all the changes. I can turn my diary into a private blog. This way, there was no chance anyone would see it.

  Zee clicked on the box labeled “Private View” and began her first entry.

  * * *

  Hi, Bloggo,

  My parents are trying to get me out of the way already. My mom didn’t say I have to move down the hall, but I know that’s what she really wants. It’s weird to think about all of the changes that are going to happen now that the babies are coming. Is Missy right? Am I going to have to work twice as hard to get my parents’ attention? And if I don’t, are they going to forget about me?

  Zee

  * * *

  “What are you doing?” Ally asked.

  Zee quickly closed the screen. “I was trying to find an outfit from the fashion application to send to Chloe.”

  “We should start a Fashionista Club and invite her to join it,” Ally said.

  “Cool beans!” Zee agreed. “We can talk about the clothes or jewelry we just bought or made.”

  “And let everyone know about any awesome sales,” Ally suggested.

  “And post pictures of what celebrities are wearing, and everyone can rate them,” Zee added. She’d rather talk about fashion with Ally than think about all of her problems.

  Zee sent an invitation to Chloe to join the club, and doodled a message in the club notebook. “For girls who love—and live—fashion. Spot the hottest trends and post about them here.”

  “Bluetopia’s going to be even better than I thought,” Ally said.

  The girls began sending gifts, messages, bunnies, gems, and jokes to one another and their friends. They made doodles in each other’s notebooks as well as in Chloe’s and Jasper’s.

  Then Ally clicked on the “Invite a Bud” link.

  “Who are you inviting?” Zee asked.

  “Missy,” Ally answered without looking up from the screen. “Remember? I promised.”

  “Oh yeah,” Zee said, a little worried. Then she realized that having Missy on Bluetopia might not be such a bad idea. It would be nice to have a bud who understood what it was like to be the older sister of twins—the good and the bad parts.

  “Girls!” Mr. Carmichael called up the stairs. “Dinner is in five minutes. Please come down and set the table.”

  “Just a second,” Zee called back. Then she said to Ally, “I’m just going to send Jasper a thank-you gift for making Bluetopia.”

  “I’ll start setting the table,” Ally said.

  As Ally headed to the door, Zee sent Jasper a red rose. Almost immediately, he sent one back. And her heart began to pound—just like it used to when Landon was near her. But this was her good friend Jasper! Zee was confused.

  It was time for another blog entry.

  * * *

  Hi, Bloggoni,

  Did you miss me? JK.

  Can I have a crush on my friend? I’ve always thought of Jasper as my boy friend, not my boyfriend. Now something feels totally different. I mean, from the time I met him, I thought he was great. He’s super-talented and he really cares about the environment. He’s also funny (even though I don’t think he’s always trying to be). And he has an awesome accent. But all that stuff describes Chlo
e, too. So what’s the difference? It all started with Bluetopia. But Bluetopia is not real. Sort of. I mean, it’s a virtual world. Gifts aren’t real. Money isn’t real. I’m worried that I just like him because he created this really cool website. Maybe it’s not a real crush, either.

  Zee

  * * *

  “Zee!” Ally called from downstairs. “Dinner!”

  “Coming!” Zee shouted back. She shut down her computer and hurried out of her room.

  Chapter 6

  Bluetopia Blowup!

  Look!” Zee shouted as she and Ally got out of Adam’s red subcompact before school on Tuesday morning. “There are Chloe and Jasper.” She pointed across the Brookdale Academy parking lot.

  “Hey! Wait for us!” Ally called out to their best friends, then hurried over.

  “Did you get the hug I sent you this morning?” Zee asked Chloe.

  “Yes!” Chloe told her, then pointed to Zee’s black skateboarding Converse with the bright purple laces. “I knew you were going to wear those sneakers.”

  “How?” Zee asked.

  “You posted a photo in the Fashionista Club.”

  Zee giggled. “I forgot.”

  “Did you see that all my mates from London are on, too?” Jasper asked.

  “I was talking soccer with most of them during breakfast this morning,” Chloe told him.

  “Someone named Colin even joined the Fashionista Club!” Ally added.

  “Colin is quite a smart dresser,” Jasper said. Then he got a serious look on his face. “I was surprised to see Missy on Bluetopia. Who invited her?”

  “I did,” Ally explained. “She heard us talking about it, and I didn’t want to be rude and leave her out.”

  When Jasper frowned, Zee was glad she had followed his rules. She didn’t want him to be upset with her. Still, she had to admit she hadn’t tried very hard to stop Ally.

  “Ally didn’t think it would be a problem,” Zee defended her friend. “And Missy is so nice and cool.”

  Jasper’s expression softened.

  “I’m sorry, Jasper,” Ally apologized, then spotted Missy passing one of the rain barrels that surrounded the school. “I’ll tell her not to invite any more people.”

  Missy gave the group a big wave, then hurried to them. “I started a Pets Club and invited all you guys to join,” she announced.

  “Um . . . that’s great,” Ally said. “But just be sure to keep Bluetopia private with us. There can’t be any more members.”

  “Oh no!” Missy’s bright smile disappeared. “I didn’t know I wasn’t supposed to invite other people.”

  “Who did you invite?” Jasper asked.

  “Just Conrad and Marcus,” Missy quickly explained.

  “Okay,” Jasper said. “But that’s it.” He looked at each of the girls.

  “Definitely,” Missy assured him and then everyone else nodded.

  Brrrrng! The bell rang overhead.

  “We’d better go,” Zee said. “First period’s going to start.” They headed into the building and down the main hallway.

  When the group entered the music classroom, Zee noticed Landon punching the buttons on his telephone keyboard. This is my chance, she thought. She was determined to have a normal conversation with him without feeling completely weird.

  “Hi,” Zee said.

  “Oh, hey!” Landon said, looking up.

  “What are you doing?” Zee asked.

  “I’m talking to some English dude on Bluetopia.”

  “You know about Bluetopia?”

  “Yeah. Marcus invited me.”

  Jasper overheard the conversation as he passed by to get to his seat. “It wasn’t really intended for surfer dudes,” he mumbled to himself.

  Kathi and Jen walked into the room just as the late bell rang.

  “Hey!” Landon called to them. “Did you get my invitation for Bluetopia?”

  Please say no. Please say no, Zee silently pleaded.

  “Yeah!” Kathi said. “Thanks!”

  Zee’s heart dropped right into her Converse. How could Landon do this to her? Bluetopia was supposed to be for just a few close friends. It should have been a place where she wouldn’t have to worry about Kathi. But she’d found her way in.

  “All right, students!” Ms. Vardolis called out. “Take your seats and we will begin.”

  Zee turned to Jasper and gave a weak smile. Things were not working out the way they had planned.

  Chapter 7

  The Assistant’s Assistant

  Mr. P is in a meeting with the head of school, Dr. Harrison, so I will be diving right in,” Ms. Vardolis announced after The Beans had settled into their seats. Zee couldn’t help but notice how Ms. Vardolis’s smooth voice seemed to match her silk clothes.

  “We have a lot to accomplish before Saturday,” the assistant teacher continued. “You’ll be performing a couple of new songs as well as a few you’ve been practicing already.”

  “New songs?” Conrad blurted out, surprised.

  “Oh, fab,” Kathi mumbled sarcastically. Then she looked at Ms. Vardolis. “I mean, no prob,” she said louder. Was Kathi actually following Jen’s advice and trying to impress her cousin?

  Ohmylanta, Zee groaned to herself as her heart began to beat a little faster. It wouldn’t be easy to learn all the new music in less than a week.

  “Mr. P and I know that you won’t have any problem with the new material,” Ms. Vardolis assured the class. Her vote of confidence immediately calmed Zee’s pounding heart. “In fact, one of you probably knows a couple of the songs quite well,” she said as she began handing out the band’s playlist for Brookdale Day.

  “Hey, Zee!” Chloe shouted. “You wrote two of these songs.”

  “Really?” Zee asked, looking at the sheet of paper. Two of her songs—“Solve It” and “My Heart”—jumped off the page. “Cool beans!” she said.

  Kathi snorted.

  Ms. Vardolis looked at Zee. “I couldn’t believe it when Mr. P told me that a seventh grader had written these songs. We both agreed that the world should hear them.”

  The world? Zee repeated silently. Her face felt warm, and she was sure her cheeks were bright red from embarrassment.

  “Why don’t we start by practicing Mackenzie’s songs first?” Ms. Vardolis passed out the sheet music for “Solve It.” “Because we have so little time to prepare, I arranged the songs myself,” she said, looking at Zee. “I hope that’s okay.”

  Zee wanted to say, “It’s more than okay. It’s incredible that you would want to arrange my songs.” But she was too tongue-tied to say anything besides, “Uh . . . that’s . . . fine.”

  “I can’t believe it! There’s a marimba solo,” Jen enthused. She smiled at Zee.

  “And a drum solo,” Landon added.

  Kathi’s hand shot up in the air. “You arranged this for me to sing backup, but I can sing lead, too.”

  “That’s very nice of you, Kathi,” her cousin told her. “But I think it makes more sense for Mackenzie to sing lead since she already knows the words. That’s less you need to learn.” Kathi slumped in her chair and frowned as Ms. Vardolis turned to Zee. “And since you know the songs so well, Mackenzie, how would you like to be the assistant teacher’s assistant?”

  “Cool beans!” Zee blurted out. It would be amazing to work alongside someone who had so much professional experience.

  Ms. Vardolis flicked her hand. “Come up to the front of the room, then, and we’ll get started.” The rest of The Beans got ready to begin playing music.

  Ms. Vardolis directed the group, and Zee played along with the others. Then the teacher stopped the band and turned to Zee. “Do you think we should have less bass there?”

  Zee pointed to herself. “Are you asking me?” she said.

  Ms. Vardolis smiled. “Yes, I am.”

  “I don’t think so,” Zee said, then added, “but maybe the piano could play harmony.”

  “You’re right! That would give this pa
rt a much richer sound. I’ll fix the arrangement,” Ms. Vardolis said. “Please start at the beginning.”

  “Uhh . . . what should I do while you fix my part?” Marcus asked. He was the band’s pianist.

  Ms. Vardolis turned to Zee. “What do you think?”

  “Um . . . why don’t you play the major chords when you get to that part?” Zee suggested.

  “Good idea.” Ms. Vardolis smiled. As she stepped toward her desk, Zee counted out the beat, and The Beans began to play again.

  The rest of the rehearsal went very well. The Beans worked hard to get their parts right. Kathi was cooperating, too, which was a huge surprise. Even though Kathi had said she was going to try to impress her cousin, Zee couldn’t help but wonder if Kathi might be secretly plotting revenge—against her.

  “It is so unbelievably cool that I am going to be in The Beans’ first big concert!” Ally said excitedly as she, Zee, Jasper, Chloe, and Missy walked to the Carmichaels’ house after school. “When The Beans become an international success, I can play with you when you’re in France.”

  “We’ll be a worldwide sensation by Saturday afternoon,” Jasper commented.

  “We will?” Missy asked.

  “As soon as we post a video of the show on Bluetopia, Jasper’s friends in London will see us,” Zee explained.

  “You read my mind!” Jasper told her.

  “Great minds think alike!” Zee put in, giving Jasper a nudge with her elbow. She quickly pulled it away. Why did I do that? she asked herself. She and Jasper had kidded around with jabs and jokes since they’d met. Why was this time different?

  “Jasper, you should create a Bluetopia page for The Beans.” Chloe interrupted Zee’s thoughts. “We can have all of The Beans join.”

  “Brilliant!” Jasper agreed. “We can post updates and stuff about Brookdale Day. That will keep the planning very organized.”