Girl vs. Boy Band by Harmony Jones Read Free Book Online Page A

another spoonful of pudding. “In other news, have you heard there’s going to be a school-wide talent show next month?” She pulled a flyer announcing the contest out of her backpack and slapped it onto the table. “I was thinking maybe . . .”
    She trailed off, shoveling more pudding into her mouth, but Lark knew a stalling tactic when she saw one. A feeling of dread welled up in her stomach, mingling with the gooey knot of undigested grilled cheese. “You were thinking maybe . . . 
what
?”
    â€œThat I could enter one of my music videos,” Mimi blurted. “And by that, I mean one of
your
videos.
Our
videos. I know it’s not a traditional talent show act, but filmmaking is a talent and I’d love to be recognized for what I do. Nobody at this whole school knows I’m an aspiring director. It would be nice to get some props for a change.”
    Lark was seized by a grip of panic. “I totally get that, Meems, and I hate to have to be the one to point this out, but
you
being recognized means
I
have to be recognized, too. You know how I feel about singing in public.”
    â€œI know, I know,” said Mimi. “I’ve heard the story a million times, all about poor little nine-year-old Lark Campbell, who was picked to sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the Nashville Fourth of July parade. But when she marched up to the stage in her adorable red, white, and blue sundress and opened her mouth to sing, she only got as far as ‘the dawn’s early light’ before her head started spinning and she passed out. And she hasn’t sung in public again since.”
    Automatically, Lark’s thumb went to her forehead to trace the nearly invisible scar above her left eyebrow. “It was humiliating. I needed four stitches.”
    â€œIt was three years ago!” Mimi put down the pudding cup and took both of Lark’s hands in hers. “Please, Lark. If you let me use one of my . . . your . . . 
our
videos, it wouldn’t be like singing in front of a live audience. You wouldn’t even have to be in the audience, although it would be cool if you were. Won’t you just please think about it? Please?”
    Lark looked around the lunchroom, trying to imagine what it would feel like to have her schoolmates hear her sing one of her original songs. The jocks, the cheerleaders, the cool kids, the fashionistas, the brainiacs . . . what would they think of her? Would they judge her?
    Um . . . 
yeah
, they would. This was middle school—of course they would judge her!
    But what if they actually
liked
her sound? Maybe they’d say, “Wow, we didn’t know the new girl was so talented.” Maybe Alessandra Drake—the best-dressed and most popular girl in seventh grade—would even ask where Lark got those cool, hand-tooled western boots she wore in every single video Mimi shot. Maybe Teddy Reese would think she had the sweetest voice he’d ever heard.
    Or maybe they would they all laugh and call her a bumpkin for singing country music. Sure, country-pop was more mainstream than ever before, but she was an outsider, a Southern girl from Tennessee who idolized Dolly Parton and Kenny Chesney.
    â€œI’ll think about it, Meems,” she said at last. “I swear, I’ll think about it, but I can’t make any promises, okay?”
    Mimi nodded, then gave Lark a serious look. “It’s not just for me, you know. You’re such an awesome singer. You owe it to yourself to let the whole world in on the secret.”
    â€œThanks,” said Lark, her eyes darting to where Teddy was getting up to return his lunch tray. “I’ll see what I can do.”
    When the bell rang, she told Mimi she’d see her later, in history class, then dumped the remaining ninety-five percent of her lunch into the trash and headed to the music room. It