Read Online Center Stage! (Center Stage! #1) by Caitlyn Duffy - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Caitlyn Duffy
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Michelle had never even met her since she’d gone to a different public school system than the rest of us before her parents had switched her into Pacific Valley.
“She has much more important things to do these days,” I quickly said.
That night, after all of my friends’ parents picked them up and Nicole gave Michelle a lift home, I read the biography that Kaela had authored for me on my new website. “Allison Marie Burch was born on February 19 th , 1997 in Los Angeles, California. She lives in West Hollywood with her mom, dad, and sometimes cat Buster who primarily lives with the neighbors when they leave food for him outside. Her older brother, Todd, is studying International Relations at the University of Connecticut. Allison has always wanted to be a professional singer, and it’s her greatest dream to sing at the Hollywood Bowl. In addition to singing, she enjoys shopping, swimming, driving—î
I appreciated Kaela’s subtle jab at my parents for denying me a car.
“And she is a killer Scattergories player.”
I heard a knock on my door frame and turned to see my mom lingering in the doorway in her pajamas. “Hi, Mom. Thanks for being cool about my friends coming over today.”
“It was great to have everyone over. It’s been years since I’ve seen all of those kids in one place,” my mom said. “I think that kid Lee has a crush on you.”
“Absolutely not. He has a crush on Nicole.”
My mom smiled knowingly. “Yeah, well, I don’t know about that. Don’t forget, you and your dad have a game tomorrow.”
Not a single cloud flawed the periwinkle sky the next day as my dad and I sat in our blue upper-level seats at Dodger Stadium. It was a hot day, one of the last truly sweltering days we’d have before the weather eased up for the fall. As he always did whenever we went to a baseball game together, Dad ordered an enormous icy cold beer the moment we took our seats, and throughout the game we loaded up on peanuts and popcorn. At the end of the third inning, the Dodgers were behind by two. Dad sent me to the food kiosk to fetch hot dogs, real hot dogs, not the fake meat kind we ate at home, and nachos. Sometimes I wondered if my father genuinely liked the game of baseball, or if he just loved sitting outside on hot summer days, eating garbage my mom would never permit in the house.
“You’re sure you’re ready for all of this showbiz stuff, tiger?” Dad asked me after he wiped the last of the mustard from his hot dog off of his face.
“I’m sure,” I told him, even though as the start date of production grew closer, I was becoming more freaked out.
“You know, when I first met your mom, she was studying to be an actress.”
I almost dropped my giant 40 oz. diet soda in my lap. “Get out.”
“It’s one hundred percent true. I had just started the graduate program at UCLA in aerospace engineering, and your mom was a senior in the undergraduate Communications program. She was studying to get a job working in news media to make her parents happy. But she was taking a theater class at Santa Monica Community College at night, and was cutting classes all the time to audition for commercials and soap operas.” My dad’s eyes never left the baseball field as he reminisced. The Cardinals were at bat at the top of the fourth, and they had a man on first.
“What? I didn’t know Mom wanted to be an actress! Or work for a news company. Why didn’t she ever tell me any of this?” I asked.
“Ah, it’s all ancient history, Allison. And she probably wouldn’t be too happy that I’m telling you about it now. She did one or two commercials and got her hopes up, and then just couldn’t land another gig. That’s just how the business works; it’s not stable. There’s never any guarantee that you’re making progress toward anything.” He reached beneath his sunglasses with one finger to rub his eye. “Anyhow, after a few months without getting any call-backs, your mom just
“She has much more important things to do these days,” I quickly said.
That night, after all of my friends’ parents picked them up and Nicole gave Michelle a lift home, I read the biography that Kaela had authored for me on my new website. “Allison Marie Burch was born on February 19 th , 1997 in Los Angeles, California. She lives in West Hollywood with her mom, dad, and sometimes cat Buster who primarily lives with the neighbors when they leave food for him outside. Her older brother, Todd, is studying International Relations at the University of Connecticut. Allison has always wanted to be a professional singer, and it’s her greatest dream to sing at the Hollywood Bowl. In addition to singing, she enjoys shopping, swimming, driving—î
I appreciated Kaela’s subtle jab at my parents for denying me a car.
“And she is a killer Scattergories player.”
I heard a knock on my door frame and turned to see my mom lingering in the doorway in her pajamas. “Hi, Mom. Thanks for being cool about my friends coming over today.”
“It was great to have everyone over. It’s been years since I’ve seen all of those kids in one place,” my mom said. “I think that kid Lee has a crush on you.”
“Absolutely not. He has a crush on Nicole.”
My mom smiled knowingly. “Yeah, well, I don’t know about that. Don’t forget, you and your dad have a game tomorrow.”
Not a single cloud flawed the periwinkle sky the next day as my dad and I sat in our blue upper-level seats at Dodger Stadium. It was a hot day, one of the last truly sweltering days we’d have before the weather eased up for the fall. As he always did whenever we went to a baseball game together, Dad ordered an enormous icy cold beer the moment we took our seats, and throughout the game we loaded up on peanuts and popcorn. At the end of the third inning, the Dodgers were behind by two. Dad sent me to the food kiosk to fetch hot dogs, real hot dogs, not the fake meat kind we ate at home, and nachos. Sometimes I wondered if my father genuinely liked the game of baseball, or if he just loved sitting outside on hot summer days, eating garbage my mom would never permit in the house.
“You’re sure you’re ready for all of this showbiz stuff, tiger?” Dad asked me after he wiped the last of the mustard from his hot dog off of his face.
“I’m sure,” I told him, even though as the start date of production grew closer, I was becoming more freaked out.
“You know, when I first met your mom, she was studying to be an actress.”
I almost dropped my giant 40 oz. diet soda in my lap. “Get out.”
“It’s one hundred percent true. I had just started the graduate program at UCLA in aerospace engineering, and your mom was a senior in the undergraduate Communications program. She was studying to get a job working in news media to make her parents happy. But she was taking a theater class at Santa Monica Community College at night, and was cutting classes all the time to audition for commercials and soap operas.” My dad’s eyes never left the baseball field as he reminisced. The Cardinals were at bat at the top of the fourth, and they had a man on first.
“What? I didn’t know Mom wanted to be an actress! Or work for a news company. Why didn’t she ever tell me any of this?” I asked.
“Ah, it’s all ancient history, Allison. And she probably wouldn’t be too happy that I’m telling you about it now. She did one or two commercials and got her hopes up, and then just couldn’t land another gig. That’s just how the business works; it’s not stable. There’s never any guarantee that you’re making progress toward anything.” He reached beneath his sunglasses with one finger to rub his eye. “Anyhow, after a few months without getting any call-backs, your mom just
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