by Disney Books
My mom was sitting on the couch waiting for me when I went inside after talking to Ricky in the car. I knew she had a ton of questions about the night, but I wanted to get up to my room. I didn’t want to go into all the details of why I’d come home in a different guy’s car. I told her I would tell her more in the morning and raced upstairs. I peeled off my dress and threw on an old Annie cast T-shirt. I crawled under my covers and checked my phone again. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting to see. It wasn’t as if Nini would comment on the post with E.J. and me.
I lingered over Carlos’s last post from the homecoming dance. He was next to Seb and Ashlyn and a bunch of other kids from the cast. They were all grinning in a big group selfie. We’re all in this together was the caption, with some red hearts and a basketball. I laughed. Maybe there was a chance for me to fit in at East High—and just maybe make some real friends.
That was a part I would gladly take.
I sat in my car, parked in my driveway. I didn’t want to walk into my house just yet. Home-coming had been a disaster. I should have known better than to trust a sophomore. We both thought Miss Jenn had made a mistake not casting us as the leads, but we weren’t sure how to right her wrong. Gina definitely hadn’t thought this night through.
I guess I hadn’t, either.
I wished I had gone to homecoming with Nini. I thought about that night at drama camp over the summer when Nini and I were hanging out in the lake gazebo. We had been a solid couple for most of camp and we were reading the casting notes for The Music Man. I was playing Harold Hill, and Nini was the mayor’s wife, but she was also the understudy for Marian the librarian.
“‘Harold Hill should have charisma and charm,’” she read. “‘He should be a great actor and singer.’” She smiled at me. “That sounds like you!”
“Thanks, Nini,” I said. I leaned over and kissed her. I swiped the packet from her and turned the page. “Ah, Marian,” I said.
Nini blushed. “I’m not Marian!” she said, waving her hand. “I’m the mayor’s wife. I’m just Marian’s understudy.”
“Oh, come on, just listen,” I said. “‘Marian needs to have a strong voice, be an excellent actor, and be able to dance well. She must also have an air of confidence.’”
Nini rolled her eyes. “That doesn’t sound like me,” she said.
“You could play my Marian!” I exclaimed.
“Your Marian?” Her eyes widened.
“Yes,” I said. “You know, you never know if something might happen and you’ll have to go on as Marian. I’ve been coming to this camp every summer since I was ten years old, and I’ve seen the understudy go on for the lead many times.”
“Well, I don’t think Emily Pratt would be so happy about that,” she said, glancing over at Emily, who was giggling with her friends by the lake shoreline. Then Nini sat up a little straighter. “I am going to be the best understudy. Don’t worry about me. I know the part, and I’ll be ready…in the wings.”
I smiled at Nini. She was so good. At every rehearsal, Nini took notes and shadowed Emily. She knew all the blocking and lines and had memorized the dances and lyrics. Nini was the most dedicated understudy I had ever seen.
Hours before the opening-night curtain, I took a deviled egg from the salad bar and put it in a napkin. I knew that what I was thinking about doing wasn’t right, but sometimes you do the wrong things for the right reasons. Emily didn’t even really care about playing Marian. She was more excited about going to some fancy acting boarding school in the fall.
“Hey, Emily,” I said, waving her over. “Do you want to go over scene five before the show tonight?” I gave her one of my most charming smiles.
“Sure,” Emily replied. She grabbed her script and we headed outside to the gazebo.
“Want a deviled egg?” I asked. “I’m kind of full. I don’t think I can finish this one.”
“Sure,” she said, grabbing the egg from my hand. “Thanks, I love deviled eggs.”
“No problem,” I said. I watched her gulp it down.
Later that night, I waited backstage, peering out into the barn theater. It would soon be full. I saw Mrs. Darlene, our acting teacher and the show’s director, pacing back and forth. “Where is Emily?” she said.
“She’s in the health center,” some girl said. “She has a really bad stomachache.”
Mrs. Darlene whipped her head around. “Nini!” she called. “You are going on tonight!”
I saw Nini start to shake.
“You want me to go on?” she asked with a vague British accent.
Mrs. Darlene looked at her with her eyes wide. “Yes, I want you to be the amazing understudy that you are and be Marian…only lose the British accent!”
Nini turned to me. I gave her a hug and kissed the top of her head. “This is your moment to shine,” I said. “With me!”
“I am going to be Marian!” she said. She covered her mouth with her hand. “Oh my gosh,” she said. “I can’t stop speaking in a British accent! I do that when I’m nervous sometimes.”
“You are adorable,” I said. I put my hands on her shoulders. “And everyone is going to love you. You can do this.”
“You are the best boyfriend,” Nini told me. She had lost the British accent, and I gave her a tight squeeze.
We were both amazing that night. Sure, I did feel bad that Emily wound up in the health center, but she was fine after a couple hours. My heart was in the right place. Nini needed a chance to prove to herself—and everyone in the audience—that she was leading lady material.
As we took our final bows that night, I soaked in the applause and grinned at Nini. This was definitely more than a summer show-mance. We were both going to start the new school year at East High. And I had a really good feeling that we would both get the leads in the fall musical. It was going to be the start of a perfect senior year. Or so I had thought.
I finally got out of my car after a disastrous homecoming night and walked up the driveway to my house. I couldn’t help feeling sad. I guess my big plans for senior year were going to have to change. I had to stop feeling sorry for myself and start playing to win.
After all, I was E. J. Caswell, and I was no wonderstudy.