14 Flipping Out - My Sister the Vampire by Sienna Mercer Read Free Book Online Page B

the cereal bowl to one side. ‘Here’s the real point. You’ve been at high school for just
one day
, and you already have a bunch
of homework. Do you really want to add to your boatload of stress by trying to match-make two people you’ve only just met?’
    Olivia sat back. ‘Why not? If it’ll make life better for everyone –’
    ‘Trust me,’ said Camilla, ‘every time people meddle in romance in the movies, it
always
goes wrong and creates chaos.’
    ‘But I really think I’m on to something here!’ Olivia held up her two spoons to make a point, ignoring the milk and potato salad dripping from them. ‘See, this is Finn
and this is Amelia.’ She wobbled the two spoons meaningfully. ‘They want to move forwards, but they can’t. The social divisions in the school are too defined. Without some help,
they’re going to be stuck in Act One forever.’
    Narrowing her eyes, she spoke in the secret language guaranteed to get Camilla on board: ‘They need an
inciting incident
to propel them into Act Two . . . and we are just the
directors to make it happen!’
    ‘Hmm.’ Camilla’s own eyes narrowed. Then her lips curved into a beaming grin. ‘But of course. How could I refuse when you begged me in film-speak?’
    ‘I knew it.’ Olivia beamed. ‘I’m getting good at Camilla-ese, aren’t I?’
    ‘You’re definitely learning. And maybe . . . maybe we
could
rewrite the script.’ Camilla’s eyes narrowed and her jaw pushed outwards into her
all-business
look as her fingers started tapping rapidly on the table. Olivia waited patiently as the wheels turned. Suddenly, Camilla’s face lit up.
    ‘Of course!’ Camilla shook her head. ‘How could I have been so blind? What the soon-to-be “Famelia” need is a good, old-fashioned “meet
cute”!’
    ‘I beg your pardon?’ Olivia gave her friend a stern look. ‘If you’re going to be involved in this project, ma’am, our producers insist that you break up the
Camilla-ese with a little bit of English from time to time!’
    ‘I’ll try.’ Camilla giggled. ‘But it’s so perfect! Can’t you see? Movie romances almost always start by having the couple meet in a wacky way. It has to be a
funny story they can tell their friends about later on – and then when things get rough in the second half of Act Two, one of them can always lament the
twist of fate
that brought
them together. You know, “If only I hadn’t walked into that police station . . .”’
    ‘Have you gone a little bit wacky yourself   ?’ Olivia stared at her, setting down her spoons. ‘First of all, I do not see Finn and Amelia
ever
ending up in a police station. And secondly . . .’ She shook her head. ‘Why do things have to get rough?’
    Camilla shrugged. ‘Every romance needs a narrative obstacle, right?’
    ‘No!’ Olivia protested. ‘Trust me. Jackson and I have had
more
than our fair share of those over the last year-and-a-bit, and they were
not
fun! I
wouldn’t wish them on anybody.’
    She shuddered at the memories . . . especially of that long, bleak period when they had actually broken up.
I never want to feel that way again!
She hung on to the memory of their
latest phone call like a talisman.
Thank goodness we’re back together.
    ‘Yeah, but you’re reunited now, right?’ Camilla raised her eyebrows. ‘So it was all worth it, wasn’t it?’
    Olivia nodded. ‘Totally.’ As she finished her cereal, though, she thought hard. ‘There’s just one problem with your meet-cute plan,’ she said. ‘Finn and
Amelia have
already
met . . . and no matter how that went down, it can’t have been
that
adorable or wacky, because now they barely speak to each other. They don’t even
want anyone else to notice when they make eye contact!’ Pushing aside her empty cereal bowl, she gave her friend a challenging look. ‘What does Hollywood teach us about
this
situation?’
    Camilla’s eyes narrowed in concentration. ‘What they need is to be
forced
into