"Replica03 - Another Amy - Kaye, Marilyn" - читать интересную книгу автора (Kaye Marilyn)

"Not everyone," Jeanine replied. "Just my friends." And with a look that added, "Of which you are not one," she sauntered out of the rest room.
Amy felt unbelievably small and stupid. She counted to five, to give Jeanine time to get farther away from the rest room, and then tore out and headed back to the cafeteria. She knew better than to go directly to where Eric was sitting. A seventh-grade girl didn't march over to a table where half a dozen ninth-grade boys were grouped together. Eric would just be embarrassed, and his friends would tease him mercilessly.
Since there were only a few minutes left in the lunch period, she waited in the hall and waved to Eric as he emerged. She wasn't at all surprised when he seemed less than thrilled to see her.
"What's the matter now?" he asked.
Amy was appropriately humble. "I owe you an apology. I was wrong. It wasn't you who let everyone know about the movie."
"That's what I told you," Eric said. "But you didn't believe me."
"I'm really, really sorry," Amy said.
"Yeah, whatever." Abruptly he turned away and stalked off.
"What was that all about?"
Amy turned to find Tasha behind her. "It was Jeanine who spread the rumor about the movie, not Eric. So I apologized, but I think he's pretty mad at me."
Tasha shrugged. "He'll get over it. Eric thinksЧ"
A shout from the end of the hall cut her off. Amy didn't need superior hearing to find out what was going on.
"They're here!" someone shrieked. "The movie people!"
At least a dozen kids, Amy and Tasha among them, raced to the windows. Two stretch limousines, three trucks, and four huge mobile homes pulled into the school parking lot.
The sound of three bells indicated that a message was about to come through the intercom. "Boys and girls, please go to your next-period class immediately. Do not linger in the halls."
"They must have spies out here," Tasha grumbled as she took one last peek out the window before starting toward the stairs. "Amy, I've got to meet those movie people."
"Why?" Amy asked.
"For the Journal! This could be my chance to write something really different. What it's like when movie stars invade an ordinary school. And maybe I could interview the director and the stars. I could get a whole series out of this! What do you think?"
"Could be pretty awesome," Amy admitted. "But how are you going to get near the filming? I'm sure they'll have guards all over the place keeping us mere students far away."
"I've got press credentials," Tasha said importantly. "Look." She took a card from her wallet that stated that Tasha Morgan was a legitimate representative of The Parkside Journal.
To Amy's eyes, it didn't look very official. "It doesn't even have a photo."
"It's a temporary card, until I have a chance to go to the newspaper office and have a picture taken. Hey, you want to come with me? I could say you're my assistant or something."
Amy seriously doubted that any guard would accept the notion that a middle-school student would have an assistant, but it wouldn't hurt to try, and it could be fun to see how a movie got made. "Yeah, okay."
"Meet me at my locker after the last bell," Tasha said, and the girls separated to go to their classes.

Tasha was nervous.
"I'm so glad you're coming with me," she said as Amy joined her by her locker that afternoon. They headed toward the exit. "Like, what if they start yelling at me to get out of there or something?"
"You're a journalist," Amy pointed out. "Journalists have to go to a lot of places where they're not welcome."
But once outside, even Amy felt a little uneasy. The largest mobile home was parked just in front of the school, and there were three big men hovering around it. Several students were hanging around, trying to peek into the windows, and the guards ordered them away.
"Get out your press card," Amy told her, and Tasha did. Together they approached the man who was standing guard in front of the door.
"What should I ask him?" Tasha whispered in a panic.
Amy recalled watching a reporter on the TV news. "Don't ask, just show him the press card and tell him you need to see whoever is in charge."
Tasha's hand trembled as she held up the card. She started to speak, but her voice squeaked. "IЧI need to say, I mean I need to seeЧ"
The guard wasn't even paying attention to her. He was looking directly at Amy. "I see you've got a new hairstyle," he said with a smile. "Very nice. Is this your friend?" He opened the door of the mobile home and ushered them in.


4

Amy had never been inside a mobile home before, t she suspected that ordinary mobile homes didn't look anything like this one. The vehicle she and Tasha entered looked like the kind of room you'd expect to find in a luxury resort hotel. It was all white and yellow and green, with pale wood furniture covered in soft, light green cushions. Gauzy curtains floated over the windows. The wallpaper was printed with yellow roses, and there were real yellow roses in white ceramic vases on every surface. Small potted palm trees were positioned around the room, and the general atmosphere made it feel like they were walking into a garden.
Along one wall was an elaborate electronic system, which included a TV, VCR, stereo, computer, fax machine, and telephone. All the equipment was pale yellow, to blend in with the general color scheme.
Only the sound of angry voices disturbed the tranquil environment.
"What's your problem?" A male voice came from behind a curtain that divided this room from the rest of the trailer.
The young, female voice that responded was vaguely familiar. "I don't want to be here."
"You don't want to be in the movie?"
"That's not what I said. I just don't feel like traipsing around this crummy school."
"Well, this crummy school just happens to be the setting for the movie I am about to direct. We're going to be filming a lot of scenes here, and you need to familiarize yourself with the place. I want you to get the feel of it, absorb the ambianceЧ"
"I'm the star of this movie!" the girl yelled. "Get someone else to absorb the stupid ambiance."
Tasha didn't need any kind of super-hearing to pick up on this. "I don't think Parkside's that crummy," she whispered.
"Shhh!" Amy hissed. The two girls jumped back against the wall as the curtain was pushed aside and a gray-haired man stormed out. He didn't even see Amy and Tasha as he strode out of the trailer, slamming the door behind him.
"Yikes!" Tasha whispered.