Free Curtain Up by Lisa Fiedler

person was, but I’m sure it was someone with major status.”
    I was speechless. Becky had been invited to Daria’s party. And she hadn’t told me. She’d texted me about her swim meet and the one-hundred-meter butterfly, but Daria’s name had never even come up.
    I had no idea how to feel about that, so I pushed the thought out of my head and gave Sophia a smile (which I was sure looked more like a snarl). “Have fun,” I said. “Be back here tomorrow for rehearsal.”
    Her expression told me she’d show up whenever she was good and ready. Then she gave Austin a bright smile and flounced out of the clubhouse.
    I whirled to face him. “Seriously?”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œYou promised her a big part without even making her audition for it.”
    He motioned around at the vast space of the clubhouse. “We wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for her. What if she ran back to her father and told him to change his mind about this place?”
    â€œHe wouldn’t do that!” But the truth was I didn’t know Dr. Ciancio well enough to say what he would or wouldn’t do in that situation. Maybe the thought of Sophia whining and pouting all summer would be enough to make him go back on his word. So Austin had a good point, but still . . . he had no right to make that decision without asking me. If he’d given me a chance, maybe I could have talked Sophia into auditioning. I told him this in a curt tone.
    â€œShe wouldn’t have agreed to hang around that long,” he said. “Daria’s party starts at eleven thirty.”
    I was about to ask him how he knew that when Susan came bounding over.
    â€œLet’s get moving,” she said. “The thespians are getting restless.”
    â€œWhere were we?” I asked with a heavy sigh.
    â€œPairing up for scenes,” Austin reminded me. “But with Sophia gone, we’re left with an odd number of actors.”
    Great. An odd number wasn’t going to work for partnering.
    Reluctantly, I found myself turning to Austin. I was still a little miffed over his giving in to Sophia, but sulking about it wouldn’t get us anywhere. “Do you mind . . .?” I began lamely.
    â€œI’ll be the wild card,” he said, grabbing an extraquestionnaire, tearing off a corner, and writing his name on it.
    Sam offered his baseball cap to use for the drawing.
    As we shook up the names, Mia asked, “What about the singing auditions?”
    â€œWe’ve chosen a few songs,” I said. “You can pick whichever one best fits your voice.”
    â€œMia can sing anything,” said Eddie.
    I smiled at him. “It’s nice that you’re so proud and supportive of your big sister.”
    â€œI’m not being proud or supportive,” said Eddie with a roll of his eyes. “I just wanted to say it before she did.”
    â€œWell, it’s true,” said Mia in a matter-of-fact tone. “I’m not bragging, honest. I’m just saying it doesn’t matter which song I sing, which might make things easier.”
    â€œThanks, Mia,” I said. “It’s good to know you’re flexible.”
    â€œBut I guess I am sorta proud,” Eddie mumbled.
    Austin tore seven more little paper rectangles. The actors quickly scribbled their names on these and dropped them into the hat.
    â€œOkay,” I said. “I’ll draw out two names at a time, and those people will be partners for the audition scene.”
    This was fine with everybody. I reached into the hat and grabbed two scraps of paper. “Mia and Travis,” I announced.
    Travis gave Mia a shy smile. Mia beamed.
    I dipped into the cap again. “Sam and Eddie.”
    â€œLet me pick this time,” said Susan. She made a grand gesture of reaching into the hat and drew out two more names with a flourish. “Gracie and Jane.”
    The girls high-fived each other.
    The