'Oh, er . . .' Holly could think of nothing she'd rather do, but she had been about to have lunch with her friends. How would they feel if she dumped them to go off with Ethan?
'Of course she does.' Cat gave Holly a little shove. 'See you later, Hols.'
'Have fun!' Belle waved.
Seems they don't mind too much! Holly thought happily.
Café Roma, on the other side of Kingsgrove Square, was a regular haunt for Garrick students. The owner, Luigi, greeted them warmly and argued about football with Ethan as he brought them their menus.
Then there was a moment of awkward silence.
But it was only a moment. Suddenly they were chatting – about dancing and acting and friends and football and singing and pizza . . .
They ordered the special. To share.
Holly started to relax. This was fun!
Then they talked about front crawl and backstroke. Not the most romantic of topics, Holly realized, but they were both keen swimmers. 'I'm going to enter the regional qualifiers again,' Ethan said, 'but I need to work on my breathing—'
'But your breathing's perfect,' Holly objected. Then she caught his eye and they both laughed. 'No, really, I love your breathing!' she teased. I love your breathing was one of the first things Ethan had ever said to Holly. He'd been talking about her swimming then too.
Ethan grinned. 'Don't kiss me – I'm alive!' he quoted – the very first words Holly had said to him when he'd literally knocked her off her feet in the courtyard.
'Don't!' Holly giggled. 'That's the most embarrassing thing I've ever said in my entire life!'
But suddenly it wasn't embarrassing any more. It was funny. And Holly realized that what she liked more than anything about Ethan was not the sea-green eyes, or the perfect square jaw; it was the way he made her feel special when they were together.
Then they talked about Macbeth. Ethan had got the part of Banquo he'd auditioned for. Holly wanted to know why he'd not gone for a bigger role – he was one of the school's most talented actors. Ethan looked serious when she asked.
'Well, I played the lead in Othello last year. But it all got too much. All the rehearsals, on top of football and swimming and regular lessons as well. I nearly lost the plot! In the end I had to go and have a word with Mr Fortune. He was great. He arranged it so I could drop some of my classes for the term and make them up later. But I don't want to go down that road again – and anyway . . . I want to have some time to spend with you too . . .' Ethan looked down, as if embarrassed about sounding too cheesy. But he did that fantastic smiling thing with the corners of his eyes, and Holly thought her heart would melt.
He could be as cheesy as he wanted!
A few moments later, Holly looked up from a fork-fight for the last olive on the plate to see Bianca and Mayu coming into the café. She couldn't help smiling at their expressions when they saw her with Ethan Unbelievably-cool-and-incredibly-popular Reed. Bianca looked as if she'd just swallowed a live tarantula.
'I hope you weren't planning on keeping it quiet,' Holly said a few minutes later, as she and Ethan hurried back across the square in the biting east wind.
'Keeping what quiet?' Ethan asked.
'You and me. Because now Bianca's eyeballed us, the whole school will know by tea time. She may even take out an advert in the national press!'
'Why would I want to keep it quiet?' Ethan laughed, putting his arm round her as a gust of wind threatened to blow her into the street.
Holly felt a stupid smile spreading across her face. Is it possible to burst with happiness? she wondered.
As they arrived back in the entrance hall, they were greeted by Ethan's best friend, Felix Baddeley, hobbling towards them on crutches, his dreadlocks bobbing frenetically.
Felix had broken his ankle in a football match before half-term. The Ankle of Destiny, Holly called it. If Ethan hadn't had to rush off to hospital with Felix, he wouldn't have arrived late at the gala showcase party, and he might never have rushed in with roses and apologized and kissed her . . .
'Watch out for The Chairminator!' Ethan shouted, grimacing as Felix narrowly avoided a head-on collision with Mrs Butterworth, who was skidding across the hall. 'He's going to be out of the football team all term,' Ethan sighed. 'And we haven't got another decent striker, so we're going to get thrashed in the Cup—'
'Holly!' Felix called as he drew near. 'Just the girl I was after.' He grinned, realizing what he'd said. 'Sorry, mate, not stepping on your toes or anything,' he added, winking at Ethan. 'I mean your band. Nobody's Angels. I saw you at the talent show. You were wicked! The deal is, I'm in a band too, and we've got this wedding reception gig coming up. We need some female vocals. Would you be interested?'
Holly felt a rush of Christmas-morning excitement.
She was extremely interested.
And she was sure Cat and Belle would be too.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Cat: The Loathsome Worm-being
After shooing Ethan and Holly out on their lunch date, Cat and Belle sat down with their pasta and salad in the dining room.
Cat pulled her books out of her bag, pushed her plate to one side, and started scribbling frantically. She had to get this play review in by the end of the lunch break. Mr Grampian had taken a group of students in his advanced acting classes to the Barbican Centre on Saturday to see a new production of Hamlet, and had asked them all to write a short review. Cat loved the play – she'd spent the entire coach journey back to school discussing it with Duncan Gillespie; the production had given them both lots of ideas that could be adapted for Macbeth (not that Cat knew she had the Lady Macbeth part then, of course, but she didn't let a minor detail like that stop her!). It was so much fun! She pictured herself flying on a plane to New York to star in an award-winning Broadway production, poring over her scripts and deliberating over a difficult line with her director . . .
'. . . band rehearsal tonight . . .'
Cat was vaguely aware that Belle was saying something to her. 'Yeah, mmm,' she muttered back.
'I've booked a rehearsal room for six o'clock . . .'
'Mmm, OK . . .'
'Cat, can you hear me?!' Belle shouted, waving a hand in front of Cat's book.
Cat dragged herself back from her plane, midway across the Atlantic. 'Oh, sorry. What?'
'Band rehearsal tonight,' Belle repeated.
'Oh, no, I can't make it,' Cat groaned. 'The Fish has given me extra science homework. You heard her: Next stop Mr Fortune's office! So I can't skip it.'
Belle looked crestfallen. 'Maybe you could get up early tomorrow morning and do it?' she suggested.
Cat shuddered. 'Eu-urgh! You know I hate getting up early!'
'Well, you managed to get up to check the cast list at six a.m. this morning,' Belle replied in a tight voice.
Cat ground her teeth. She could feel rage rising up in her chest like bubbles in a can of Coke that's been shaken . . . and shaken . . . and is ready to explode! It's all right for Belle, she fumed to herself. Top of every class . . . leaps out of bed at the crack of dawn, as fresh as a daisy . . . and—
'. . . you just need to organize your time more efficiently,' Belle was saying.
'And you,' Cat snapped, unable to contain her annoyance any longer, 'just need to stop being so . . . perfect all the time and leave me alone!'
A hurt expression clouded Belle's face. Cat steeled herself against feeling sorry for her. Belle shouldn't be such a . . . control freak—
'Hey! I've got some amazing news . . .'
Cat and Belle both looked up to see Holly flying towards them, radiating Deep Joy as if she'd just won the lottery. On a rollover week. It must have been a good date.
Holly faltered as she reached the table. 'What's up with you two?'
'Er, nothing,' Cat muttered, knowing how much Holly hated arguments of any kind. 'What's this amazing news then?' she asked, feeling the seething bubbles subside as quickly as they had flared up.
Holly sat down. Belle g
rabbed the salad dressing out of the Elbow Hazard Zone just in time.
'Felix said—' Holly began.
'Felix?' Cat asked with a grin. 'We don't want to hear about Felix. We want to know about Ethan! Details, girl, details!'
To Cat's relief, Belle laughed. Cat hadn't meant to start a quarrel; her temper just had a life of its own sometimes.
'I'll tell you about that later,' Holly said shyly. 'But you know Felix has that really great band, The Undertow, with Mason Lee and Ben Stein . . . ?'
'Yeah . . . and . . . ?' Belle and Cat chorused in matching where-are-you-going-with-this? voices.
'Well, he's only asked if we want to do a gig with them. It's a big wedding reception. They have to do loads of dance music and old stuff as well as their own music. They want Nobody's Angels to join them!'
'Awesome!' Belle screamed, hugging Holly across the table.
'But' – Belle slumped back into her chair and gazed mournfully at Cat – 'we'd need extra band practice. I don't think Cat will have time . . .'
Now Holly was gazing at Cat too, adding her big brown starving-puppy eyes to Belle's big blue orphaned-kitten eyes. Cat felt terrible. She felt like the most loathsome worm-being in existence. She couldn't let Belle and Holly down. Look at their little faces! And it would be amazing to play a wedding gig.
'Who said I don't have time?' Cat heard herself saying. 'I'll find the time!'
Belle and Holly grinned and high-fived.
'And, Belle, I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier,' Cat went on. 'I don't really think you're perfect. Well, I do, of course. Nice-perfect, though, not annoying-perfect! It's just that I'm really tired and grumpy at the moment. I, erm . . . got up too early this morning,' she added, grinning. 'And then Mum was on the phone nagging me about my "career" again. I thought she'd be really pleased when I texted to say I got Lady Macbeth, but she was just banging on about doing professional auditions again. When's she going to get that I'm not interested in Joseph and the Stupid Technicolor Dreamcoat?'
'I'm sorry too.' Belle smiled. 'And I'll help with that science homework.'
'No, that's my job,' Nathan said as he and Nick stopped by the girls' table on their way out of the dining room. 'Let's meet after singing class. It'll only take half an hour.'
'Cheers, Nate,' Cat replied. 'If it wasn't for you I'd have been thrown out of Mrs Salmon's class ages ago. In fact . . . I don't know why I'm thanking you. It's all your fault!'
Nick laughed. 'Yeah, I thought The Fish was going to feed you to the killer whales when you turned up late this morning!' he joked as they all walked out together.
'Me too!' Cat said, grimacing at the memory. 'Now, to the library! I've got ten minutes to finish this Hamlet review.'
She turned and trudged up the stairs. She felt exhausted just thinking about all the work that lay ahead of her.
'Ooh, watch out, it's Lady Macbeth!' Cat looked up to see Mayu and Bianca coming out of the library. 'Overslept this morning, did we?' Bianca sneered.
Cat was about to retaliate – but she just didn't have the time.
This is how bad it's got, she thought. I don't even have time to argue with Bianca any more!
CHAPTER NINE
Holly: Monsters of Rock and Top Scorers
'And it's a legendary moment in rock music history!' Felix proclaimed as he unlocked the rehearsal room the following Saturday afternoon. 'The first ever combined rehearsal of teenage rock legend, The Undertow, and the hottest new girl band in town, Nobody's Angels . . .'
'Just open the door, will you?' laughed Ben, the bass guitarist. 'We're getting old waiting around here for you.'
Felix pointed at his ankle, still in its plaster cast. 'Excuse me, I'm mobility-challenged here, you know!'
'Mentally challenged, more like,' quipped Mason, the drummer.
Holly exchanged smiles with Cat and Belle. After their initial excitement, they'd all been feeling a little nervous about the first practice with the boys' band: would they all get on OK? Would their musical styles clash horribly? And would the boys try to boss them around? Although, with Cat's fiery temper and Belle's control-thing, the boys would be venturing into very hazardous waters if they attempted that! Holly thought.
But she needn't have worried. Felix's laid-back jokey style soon put them all at their ease. And they knew Mason already, of course – he was in Year Eight and hung out with Nick, Zak and Frankie; he'd only recently joined The Undertow to replace their original drummer, a Year Eleven boy who'd left to join a world tour with one of London's top youth orchestras. That only left Ben Stein, a tall, gangly Year Ten boy in camouflage trousers and ripped Arctic Monkeys T-shirt. At first Holly found Ben's mean-and-moody scowl a little intimidating, but she soon relaxed when she heard him goofing around with the others.
Holly, Cat and Belle followed the boys into the rehearsal room. Mason adjusted the drum kit, while Ben plugged his bass guitar into the amplifier. Felix settled into a chair with his electric guitar and a microphone, the Ankle of Destiny propped up on his guitar case.
There was an ear-splitting squeal from the amp as Ben tuned up his bass.
Belle clapped her hands over her ears.
'OK, we get the message!' Cat laughed. 'You guys are Monsters of Rock!'
'Yeah, Deaf Monsters if you keep the levels up that high,' Belle commented, turning the dial down several notches.
Holly cringed. The boys were really going to love being told to keep the noise down! She waited for trouble to break out, but Felix just grinned and made a face. 'Girls! Such sensitive creatures!'
'What are we waiting for?' Cat yelled. She grabbed a microphone and started to sing Pink's So What. She really looked the part, Holly thought, in her black mini-skirt and biker boots and a tight purple top. She'd even added red lipstick and piled her hair into an Amy Winehouse-style beehive to complete the rock-chick look. Holly jumped up and joined her, improvising some dance steps, which Cat quickly followed. Belle picked up the lead vocal, her powerful voice resonating around the room. Soon the boys joined in and they finished the song with a rebel-rousing chorus.
For the next two hours, The Undertow and Nobody's Angels worked together, practising all the old-favourite dance-floor-fillers they'd been asked to perform at the wedding. They would also have a chance to play some of their original songs, Felix explained, when the oldsters left the reception and the younger guests stayed on for an evening party. The Undertow's sound was an original fusion of indie rock and reggae, which the girls loved.
They all got on brilliantly, and laughed and joked together as they worked. The girls even gave the boys the music for one of their own songs, the lively Latin American number, Done Looking!, which Lettie Atkins had written for them. Mason knew the song already, of course, because he was in the school orchestra that played the accompaniment at the talent competition, and the other two soon picked it up and added a quirky rock sound to the mambo beat.
'Wow, that was great!' they all agreed as they eventually sank to the floor, exhausted but elated by their efforts.
'Here's to The Under-Angels!' Holly laughed, leading a toast with her bottle of water. She'd completely forgotten her earlier doubts; now she couldn't wait for the next rehearsal.
'So where's the wedding?' Belle asked.
'Walthamstow,' Felix replied. 'North London. It's my sister, Carly, and her fiancé.'
Holly gave a big smile. 'Walthamstow's where I live!' Then she had what Belle would have called an Awesome Idea. She would invite Cat and Belle to stay at her house after the wedding reception. Mum had met them at the gala showcase, and would love having them all home for the night.
'See you next week!' Holly called. She followed Cat and Belle out of the rehearsal room and straight into a three-person pile-up in the doorway as they almost crashed into a boy who was careering down the corridor after a football.
With perfect timing, Belle stretched out an elegant Jimmy-Choo-sandalled foot and stopped the ball.
But the next moment her trad
emark poise and style suddenly disappeared. 'Ooh, er . . . ' she stammered. She tried placing her hand casually on her hip, slipped and stumbled to one side.
Whatever can be causing Belle to act so . . . well, like me? Holly wondered: shy, clumsy, tongue-tied – these were not the words that usually leaped to mind when describing Belle!
Oh, that was why!
The boy chasing the football was Jack 'Pirate Boy' Thorne.
'Er, is this a football?' Belle spluttered.
'I hope so!' Jack laughed. 'I've been kicking it around the football pitch for the last hour!'
She giggled and stared at it.
Cat's eyes were round with astonishment. Yep, Holly thought. Cat's definitely noticed Belle's major coolness-malfunction too.
'Hi, I'm Holly,' she said, holding out her hand. 'This is Cat, and this is Belle.'
'Hey, good to meet you!' Jack gave a lopsided grin as he shook hands and leaned back against the wall in a leisurely slouch. 'Belle? As in Belle Madison?' he asked.
Oh, no! Holly was horrified. He's going to ask if her dad is Dirk Madison, the famous American film director, and Belle hates it when people bring up her celebrity parents.
But, 'You're the girl with the amazing voice, right?' Jack asked. 'I've heard about you . . .'
Oh, wow! This guy is good, Holly said to herself. Really good! If Belle hadn't been completely hearts-flowers smitten already, she would be now! Her greatest dream in life was to be recognized for her singing talents.
'Oh, er, erm, thanks,' Belle muttered as Jack continued to gaze at her, his hazel eyes blazing with admiration.
'So you're a keen football player then, Jack?' Cat asked – when it became obvious that the part of Belle's brain in charge of intelligent conversation hadn't kicked back in yet.
'Yeah, love it!' he said. 'I used to play a lot in Singapore.'
Holly suddenly remembered what Ethan had said about the Garrick team. 'You're not a striker by any chance, are you?' she asked. If Jack was good enough, perhaps he could take Felix's place . . .
Jack grinned mischievously. 'Top scorer last season!'
The Time of Your Life Page 4