Will the Real Abi Sanders Please Stand Up? by Sara Hantz Read Free Book Online

expression on her face. “H-h-h-h-h-hiii.” She smirks.
    I go cold. It’s like stepping back in time to elementary school. Being older doesn’t make the teasing any easier to deal with, especially since Liv isn’t here to stand up for me.
    “Tilly, behave,” Zac warns narrowing his eyes.
    Except it’s all for show since he then winks at her. Just because I stutter doesn’t make me stupid. I know what they’re thinking.
    “Whatever,” Tilly says rolling her eyes toward the ceiling. “Remember, you’re here to make me look good,” she adds.
    “I-I-I do. I mean I-I-I know. I will. S-s-sorry.”
    If the earth would open up and swallow me whole right now, it wouldn’t be a moment too soon.
    “I want you to spend some time with Tilly this afternoon,” Zac says.
    “W-w-what about the run through?” I ask, remembering he wants us back in half an hour.
    “We’ll manage without you. For now, stick with Tilly. Watch how she moves, how she stands. Anything you think might help.”
    Tilly directs a carefully blank look in my direction. Somehow, that’s even worse than the irritation she showed before. “You need to get it right. You’re supposed to be a professional .” She turns and walks away.
    Well, I could have told them that offering me this job was the craziest thing ever. But I’d hoped the fact they actually wanted me meant I had something to offer. That maybe, just maybe, I was special.
    Ha! Right now I feel like a hopeless, unprofessional failure.
    I clench my teeth to try and stop the tears that are so close to falling. Then give myself a mental slap. I can’t give up at the first hurdle. Yes, Tilly was being insensitive. But I’ve had worse throughout my life. I’m going to ignore what she said and prove to her that I can do a good job.
    …
    “Tilly, are you in here?” I call, opening the bathroom door.
    I’ve been searching everywhere, but it seems that she’s nowhere to be found. I’d give up except for Zac’s instructions. I don’t want to get on his bad side. Vince figures Tilly’s giving me the run around on purpose. I don’t know why, not if she wants me to make her look good.
    “Can’t a girl pee in peace?” Tilly snaps, her voice coming from one of the cubicles on the left.
    Ah ha. I’ve found her.
    “S-s-sorry. I’ll wait outside for you.”
    Tilly mutters something that I can’t really hear as I’m leaving the bathroom. Not that I want to know what she’s saying, since it’s probably not going to be nice. Outside, I lean against the wall in the corridor and wait for her.
    Finally, after nearly ten minutes, the bathroom door opens, and she walks out.
    “Come on,” she says, tossing a glance in my direction before turning and striding off.
    I have to run to catch up to her, and we walk in silence. The entire time I’m trying to watch the way her arms swing, turning in slightly, and the way she holds her head, her neck stretched. It’s like she’s had lessons in walking correctly.
    “Stop staring at me.” Tilly comes to an abrupt halt and glares at me.
    I take a step backward and focus on the floor.
    “S-s-s-orry. Z-zac said…”
    “I don’t care what Zac said. Just give it a rest. I’m not the main attraction in a circus.” She frowns. “Despite what the media would have you believe,” she adds, her voice sounding flat.
    I glance up and see a strange, almost despondent, expression on her face, which hardens as soon as she notices me looking.
    “Sorry,” I repeat. “What do you want to do?”
    “I need to go over some moves. The last girl was next to useless.”
    That surprises me, seeing as the original stunt double was a professional. The producers wouldn’t have taken her on if she couldn’t do the job. Unless it’s just Tilly being Tilly. Whatever. It’s sort of a relief, because her having been awesome in Tilly’s mind would have added even more pressure.
    “Okay,” I say, following her.
    We take the stairs to the next level, to a part of