Fabulous Five 010 - Playing the Part (5 page)

Beth saw Christie and Keith walking in the halls holding
hands four times that morning. Once she even had to duck into a classroom so
she wouldn't have to confront them. "Oops! Excuse me," said Beth as
she stepped back into the hall and ran into Heather Clark and Sara Sawyer.

"Heather and I were just talking about you," said
Sara.

"Oh?" Her curiosity aroused, Beth fell in step
with them.

"Well, about you and Christie really," said
Heather. "You guys are really cool, the way Christie quit going with Jon
Smith and now she's dating Keith, and it doesn't even seem to bother you."

"How do you do it?" asked Sara. "I'd be so
jealous."

Beth shrugged her shoulders, suddenly wishing she were
somewhere else. She couldn't let them know she was just acting as if Christie
and Keith's dating didn't bother her. It was the hardest acting job she had
ever done, and she didn't even want the part.

"I bet they had it planned all along," Heather
said to Sara.

"That's it!" she said turning back to Beth. "You
did, didn't you? I bet you're going to date Jon and Christie is going to date
Keith. Gosh, you guys are cool."

"No, I'm not going to date Jon," answered Beth. "I
haven't even seen Jon for a while."

"Oh." Heather seemed deflated that she hadn't
guessed right. "Well, I still think you guys are cool. I couldn't stand it
if my best friend dated the guy I had been going with. I mean, even if I didn't
like him anymore. It would seem as if my privacy had been invaded or something."

Beth made a quick right at an intersection in the hallway
and left them standing looking after her.

If she hadn't felt so bad, she would have laughed at what
Heather and Sara had said. They thought she was cool, that she didn't care that
Christie and Keith were dating. What a joke! she thought. It just proves how
good an actress I really am.

Beth took longer than usual in the girls' room washing her
hands for lunch. She wanted to miss the rush of kids entering the cafeteria
right at noon. She wasn't sure she could have another conversation like the one
with Heather and Sara without crying. She would die if she broke down in front
of people.

She took a deep breath and forced a smile as she entered the
cafeteria. No one seemed to notice her as she picked up a tray and utensils.
She hung back to leave space between herself and Curtis Trowbridge and Whitney
Larkin so she wouldn't have to talk to them. She didn't want to take any
chances on someone's starting a conversation about Keith and Christie and how
cool
she was for not caring. She'd probably break down and start blubbering right
there in front of the whole cafeteria.

Jana, Katie, Christie, and Melanie were sitting at The
Fabulous Five's regular table when she came through the line. They scooted over
to make room for her.

"Hi, Julie," said Melanie.

Beth smiled and said, "Hi."

"Is Tony going before the Teen Court this week?"
Christie asked Katie.

Katie blushed. "No, not this week. At least not that I
know of."

"Give him a chance. He'll think of a way to get there,"
said Jana.

"Hey, look," Katie protested. "Tony's not
bad. He's just misunderstood. He helped organize the march for the hungry, didn't
he?"

"We know he did," said Jana. "We were just
teasing you."

"I wonder if he would have done it if Katie hadn't been
his partner." Melanie kidded.

"Did you all see how everyone looked at us Friday night
when we were wearing our T-shirts?" asked Katie. "I think they went
over really big."

"I'll say," said Christie. "Melinda Thaler
came up to me today and told me how great she thought we looked."

"Maybe we ought to go to the movie together again this
Friday night and wear them then," suggested Katie.

"I already told Randy I'd go with him," said Jana.

"And I'm going with Scott," said Melanie.

"Oh, I didn't think before I suggested it," said
Katie. "Tony asked me to go with him, too. I guess that shoots that idea."

"It was a good idea," said Christie. "Maybe
we should pick one day out of the week and wear our T-shirts to school."
They all agreed.

Christie looked at Beth as the others went on talking. "Do
you have a date for the movies on Friday?" she asked, a look of concern on
her face.

The question caught Beth by surprise, and she shook her head
no. She was afraid to speak because her voice might quiver.

"If you don't get a date, why don't you go with Keith
and me?" Christie asked. "You know Keith won't mind, and I hate to
see you not go."

Beth braced herself before she answered. She knew that
Christie was trying to be nice, but how could she go with her and Keith? It
would be like sticking a knife in her own heart.

She fought to keep the smile on her face and the tears out
of her eyes. She remembered one of the rules of acting: concentrate on your
lines. That's exactly what she did.

"Maybe," she answered smiling. "I might still
get a date before then, though."

It's like a part in a play, she told herself. If I decide
that this character, named Beth, is not in love with this other character named
Keith Masterson, and it doesn't bother her to talk about him, I can do it. I
can do it if I can just remember I'm acting a part in a play.

"All right, everyone," said Mr. Levine. "Let's
call it a day. You all did very well. Remember, we're doing the scene next
where Ronnie's parents come to Julie's house. Beth, may I speak to you a
minute?"

Beth gathered her books from the chair and followed him off
the stage. She knew she had blown a couple of her lines, but she was tired and
had lost her concentration. And with Keith and Christie on her mind, she had
had a terrible time remembering to be Julie. She hoped she hadn't done so badly
that he would chew her out. She didn't realize that acting could be such hard
work.

"I've got to tell you, Beth, that you're doing a fine job;
I'm amazed that you've learned your lines so quickly, and you seem to
understand the part of Julie very well. I normally wouldn't expect someone in
the seventh grade to do as well as you are."

His words were wonderful to hear. They were the best thing
that had happened to her in the last several days.

"Do you really mean it?" she asked, afraid he
would say no, that he was just kidding.

"I certainly do. You remember Mr. Stapleton who was
here last week at the tryouts, don't you?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Well, there's a strong possibility that he'll be
coming back for our opening night. I'd like for him to see you after we've had
a chance to practice. He might have some suggestions for you."

Beth felt as if she were floating on air as she left the
auditorium. Mr. Levine had said she was a
good
actress. He hadn't said
great, but that would come if she worked hard enough.

She had always felt she could be an actress, but Mr. Levine's
compliment made it seem much more real. It was like getting a stamp of
approval. Like making an A on a test you thought you had failed. It was even
better than having your friends and family tell you how good you were. They
nearly always told you that, even if they didn't mean it a whole lot.

Beth put her books away after she had finished studying that
night. She had worked particularly hard on social studies to make up for not
having studied as hard as she should have before the test.

She picked up her script and opened it to the scene they
would be working on Wednesday. It was kind of ironic. Now that she had the role
of Julie, she still had to study the script, but it didn't seem as hard. She
had more time than she had thought she would have.

I don't really have so much to do that I couldn't study with
Keith sometimes, she thought. But it doesn't look as if that makes much
difference now. If she had only known when they were talking about it before.

She hadn't talked to him since she saw him in line at
Bumpers. He could have called, but he hadn't.

Beth fell onto the bed and thumbed through the script. It
was sad that the one thing she had always wanted to do was costing her the boy
she liked best.

Would it have made a difference if she had told Keith she
wouldn't go out for the play? She had thought about it before, and she wondered
again if he had just been looking for an excuse to break up with her.

Keith had been complaining to her about not having enough
time together ever since Christie broke up with Jon. Had Keith wanted to date
Christie all along?

She thought hack to their days at Mark Twain Elementary and tried
to remember any clues she might have missed. Were there times when Keith seemed
to hang around Christie a lot? She couldn't remember any, but that didn't mean
there hadn't been.

She sighed. Keith obviously liked Christie or he wouldn't be
dating her and spending so much time with her at school. Did he think she was
prettier than Beth? She is smarter. There's no doubt about that. But I'm no
dummy, she thought angrily. She rubbed the moisture from her eyes with the
corner of her pillow slip.

It was getting harder and harder to talk to Christie. It
seemed as if all she ever wanted to talk about anymore was Keith and what music
he liked and what pizza he liked and how much fun he was. I can't talk about
him all the time. It hurts too much.

Deep down Christie must know how much Beth still liked him.
How could she not? Why couldn't she see that her going with Keith was tearing
up Beth?

Because I'm such a good actress, thought Beth. I told her it
would be all right if she dated Keith.
I
told her I was thinking of
breaking up with him the way she had with Jon. But why did she have to believe
me?

Beth took her time getting ready for school the next
morning. She changed clothes three times trying to decide what to wear and
actually managed to eat breakfast, even though Alicia was talking the entire
time and Agatha was begging for the empty cereal bowl to lick.

She slowed her pace as she neared the school grounds and
timed her entrance perfectly. The school bell was ringing just as she turned
onto the walk that led to the door. She waved at her friends, who were standing
at their regular place, and went on into the building. It would be easier if
she didn't have to talk to them.

During the day, Beth walked through the hallways as quickly
as she could between each of her classes and pretended to study as soon as she
got into the classrooms. Between her second and third class, she caught a
glimpse of Keith and Christie talking in the hall, and she turned and went the
other way.

When lunch period came, Beth took the sandwich she had
brought from home and went out onto the school grounds with her script. She
found an isolated spot in the sun at the side of the building and made herself
comfortable.

Beth read through her part and ate her lunch, then she read
it again. By the time the bell rang ending the lunch period, she had read
through it so many times she thought she could say it backwards.

"Where have you been?" asked Jana. She and Katie
had caught up with her in the hall. "We missed you at lunch."

"I was studying my part," Beth responded, holding
up the script. "I thought it would be easier if I brought my lunch today
and went outside to read."

"How's it going?" Katie asked.

"You wouldn't believe it. Mr. Levine said he really
liked what I was doing, and Mr. Stapleton might be here for opening night. Mr.
Levine said he wants him to see me act. Can you imagine how I'd feel if he
offered to cast me in a part in a Broadway play? I get stage fright just
thinking about it."

"Great!" said Jana.

"I guess not going with Keith has given you more time
to study for your role," said Katie. "I like the way you've set your
priorities and stuck with it. More girls ought to be like you."

"I agree," said Jana. "Only I don't think I
could give up Randy the way you gave up Keith. And it's amazing how it doesn't
even seem to bother you that he's dating Christie."

Beth felt her stomach tighten. Everyone thought she was
doing such a great thing, and it was really just a mistake. If she hadn't
opened her mouth and said all those dumb things to get even with Keith, she
would still be going with him.

Beth shook her head and smiled in response to Jana's
comment. She couldn't make herself say anything.

"You really are in control of your life," said
Katie. "Because of some of the, uh, excuse me . . . not so smart things
you've done, I wouldn't have thought you could give up Keith for a career in
acting."

Beth felt like an idiot standing in front of two of her best
friends listening to them praise her for something she wished had never
happened. It took real control for her not to break down and cry right then and
there.

Beth put her pom-pons on the pile with the others and walked
onto the track leading to the stadium exit. Melanie was walking ahead of her
with Scott, and they were laughing. Cory Dillon had his arm around Taffy, and
several other girls were walking with boys.

Beth felt lonely. She and Keith had been going together so
long, and he had always been there to make things more fun, more exciting for
her. She felt there was a gigantic void in her life. Was this the way people
felt when they got divorced? If it was, she didn't want to have anything to do
with it. She walked with her head down, scuffing her shoes in the track
surface.

"Hi." Keith's voice made her turn quickly. She
tried to recover her composure and look as if she weren't as surprised as she
really was. He was smiling down at her in that special way she thought he had
reserved for her. Did he smile that way at Christie, too?

"Oh, hi," she said as casually as she could. Had her
voice cracked? Had it quivered? She would die if it had.

"How's the play going?" Keith asked.

"Fine."

What else could she say? Should she tell him what Mr. Levine
had said about how well she was doing, that he wanted Mr. Stapleton to see her
act? No. The play was the thing that had come between them in the first place.

She changed the subject instead. "How's football going?
Are you ready for the game with Jefferson this Saturday?"

"I think so." Then his face brightened. "Coach
said I've still got a chance for the rushing title, after all. He said
Georgetown has played one more game than we have, so I'm not as far behind Mike
Saharis as I thought I was. I might be able to take him this Saturday."

Beth looked at his face beaming with excitement. He loved playing
football so much. He always got excited when he talked about it. He told her
how he dreamed of making the high school team and then going to college on a
football scholarship. It had gotten so she wanted it for him almost as much as
he did.

"I'll be cheering for you," she said, touching his
arm.

"I know you will," he said softly. He opened his
mouth again as if he wanted to say something more.

She felt herself getting weaker as she looked into his eyes.
They were so intense. For a second she thought she saw tears in his eyes. Hold
on, she told herself. Don't make a fool out of yourself.

"Uh," he seemed to search for something else to
say. "Are you going to the movies Friday? Christie said she asked you to
go with us."

Beth's world came crumbling down around her. She could have
sworn that he was going to say something different, something more meaningful.
He had just casually mentioned that Christie had told him they were going to
the movies together as if it were nothing for him to have her along when he was
holding hands with Christie. She felt like crying one more time.

Instead, she pulled up all her courage. This is just like a
play, she reminded herself. I can do it! I can act as if nothing is wrong.

"I've got a date," she fibbed. And then before he
could ask her whom she was going with, she changed the subject.

"I've been wanting to see this movie," she said
with a cheerful laugh. "I hear it's funnier than
Who Framed Roger
Rabbit
."

Keith looked at her, and his eyes looked sad for a moment,
and then he laughed, too. They stood there laughing together, but Beth wasn't
laughing on the inside.

Beth followed Melanie into Bumpers. She had told Melanie
that she had to get home to study, but Melanie had insisted she come, at least
for one soda.

Christie and Jana were sitting in one of the bright red
bumper cars, talking. When they saw Beth and Melanie, they all moved to a booth
by the old Wurlitzer jukebox.

"Where's Katie?" asked Melanie.

"Teen Court," said Christie.

"I wonder if Tony's in trouble again?" Jana mused.
"I thought it was funny the way she was telling you about how she liked
the way you had set your priorities, Beth. You know, choosing a career in
acting over going with Keith. Especially the way she's fallen for Tony."

"That is a riot," said Melanie. "And she's
the one who's always on my case for liking boys."

"Beth and Christie are the ones who have it under
control," Jana said admiringly. "Christie decided she would rather
just be best friends with Jon, and Beth decided she didn't have time to go
steady, and they both did it."

Beth listened to them talking. It was as if she were
watching them on a television. It all didn't seem real. She just smiled and
didn't say a word.

"When you put it that way, I guess we are a little
special, eh, Beth?" Christie said, laughing and patting Beth's hand. "Leave
it to us to start a new trend at Wacko. Women freed of male dominance. We ought
to talk to Curtis Trowbridge about doing an article on us. Katie would love it.
She might even write the article herself."

"Keith told me you have a date for the movies,"
said Christie. "Who's it with?"

"You'll have to wait and see," Beth said, crossing
her fingers. Why had she told Keith she had a date when she didn't? Her big
mouth was getting her in deeper and deeper again.

"You're not going to tell us?" asked Melanie. "No
fair! I tell you everything about the boys I like."

"And everyone else who'll listen," said Christie.

"Are you all right, Beth?" Jana asked. "Your
eyes look kind of funny."

"Sure," Beth responded, gripping her hands tightly
under the table. "I'll be back in a minute." She got up quickly and
headed for the door marked LADIES.

"We know where you're going," teased Melanie.

"Next time don't wait so long," Beth heard
Christie say as the door closed behind her.

Beth ran into the nearest stall and put her head against the
wall. The cold metal pressed against her forehead and her shoulders shook with
sobs.

It wasn't funny. Why didn't her best friends understand?
Couldn't they tell she was hurting inside? She missed Keith something terrible,
and there wasn't anything she could do about getting him back. And now she had
told them she had a date with someone else for the movies.

What could she do? If she told everyone the truth, they
would just feel sorry for her, and she didn't want their pity. It wouldn't help
get Keith back. And Christie thought it was
so
funny. Maybe it was easy
for her to give up Jon. Maybe she hadn't cared that much about him in the first
place. But Beth had never really wanted to give up Keith. What could she do?
Beth heard the door to the ladies' room open, and she took a deep breath to
stop her crying.

"Beth. Are you all right?" It was Jana.

"Of course," she answered through the partition.

"Are you sure? Is there anything I can do? You looked
as if you were going to cry."

"Cry?" Beth faked a laugh. "That's funny. Why
would I be crying?" she said, making her voice sound happy.

There was a moment of silence before Jana said, "Okay.
You just didn't look right to me." Beth heard the door open and close.

She pulled herself together and peeked through a crack in
the stall door. Jana was gone.

She came out quickly, ran cold water in the lavatory, and
splashed it onto her face. Then she waited a few minutes while the red when out
of her eyes.

When she returned to the booth, they were chattering about
boys again. Jana gave Beth a quick look and went on talking.

"Did you hear?" asked Christie. "Keith was
telling me that Georgetown has played one more game than Wacko. That means he
still has a chance to beat that guy from Georgetown."

"Is that right?" asked Jana.

"Yes, and he's really excited about it. I told him, if
he did really well I'd give him a big hug."

Beth felt as if she were going to explode. She was going to
have to leave or break down in front of them.

"You know, Beth," Christie said. "I
understand why you went with Keith so long. He's neat. You really know how to
pick them."