Read Online Princess at Silver Spires by Ann Bryant - Free Book Online

there, you’re on your own. So let’s watch Kelsey one more time, everyone, particularly the way she walks. See how she strides out and also notice that she’s got a very natural swing to her hips, but she’s placing her feet one directly in front of the other, as though she’s walking along a line that’s been painted on the floor. I also want you to notice how Tasha and she overlap. Sarah, you can carry straight on after Tasha and so on… Okay, everybody clear?”
    I swallowed. I thought I was clear about what I was supposed to do, but I had no idea whether I could do it. Also, I was scared stiff that I was going to look rubbish and be the only one kept back at the end for not getting it right.
    The music started again and every part of my body tensed up. I was almost the last one on Miss Owen’s list, and as girl after girl swanned up and down the catwalk, I grew so nervous I felt sick. Not everyone got the counts totally right, but all the girls looked incredibly grown-up, the way they pushed their hips forwards and wore pouty looks on their faces. Katy and the others were obviously just being kind when they said I was good. I didn’t look anything like this when I walked.
    My heart was in my throat by the time Petra set off. Then I stepped forward, like I’d seen the others doing, as soon as Emily set off, and finally, I don’t know how my shaky legs allowed me to take a single step, but somehow I found myself on the catwalk. I remembered Katy telling me to hold my head up, but apart from thinking about that, my whole brain was taken up with getting the counts right. I managed to turn smoothly, but felt like dying when Miss Pritchard stopped counting after my first eight steps and just stared at me. She’d been counting non-stop up till that point. How embarrassing. I was definitely going to have to stay behind. And no wonder. It would completely spoil the fashion show to have someone so much younger amongst all the older girls. She was probably going to order Elise to choose a different model from Year Ten or Eleven.
    â€œWell done!” Elise whispered, when I came back into the models’ waiting area. But she was hardly looking at me, so I knew she didn’t really mean it. “Now pretend you’re getting changed,” she went on. I felt stupid miming taking off a jacket, but that’s what everyone was doing all around me, so I just got on with it. I kept telling myself that it didn’t matter if Miss Pritchard or Miss Owen chucked me off the show. Although it would be embarrassing, they’d be doing me a big favour because I wouldn’t have to worry and get nervous any more.
    The music went on and on until all thirty models had had a turn on the catwalk. Then it faded and stopped, and finally the place erupted in excited chatter, but Miss Owen soon put a stop to that.
    â€œPretty good for a first go, girls. Well done! Now on the night, there’ll be a pause of about five minutes here, and then we’ll plunge straight on with the next category, which will have different music but exactly the same counts. Some of you went wrong with the counts last time, but I think most of you realized when you’d made a mistake, so let’s try it once more for practice, pretending we’ve moved on to the ‘Dress to Impress for Less’ category.”
    Miss Pritchard took over then, and said that most people had managed the actual style of the walk quite well, and it was largely a question of confidence. “Let yourselves go! You have to show off, girls, and make people want to look at you.” My heart sped up a bit because I was dreading her mentioning the names of the people who hadn’t got it right and needed to stay behind. “On the other hand,” she went on, “several of you over did it, and looked awkward and false.” She paused and her eyes ran over us all. “Naomi…”
    My stomach clenched