Taffy Sinclair 011 - Nobody Likes Taffy Sinclair (8 page)

Tears streamed down Cory
'
s face as he begged her to stay. Taffy fought back her own tears as she got to her feet.

"
I must go, but I will always love you. And if there is a way for me to come back to you, I will. I promise with all my heart.
"
Kissing the tip of a finger, she brushed it across his cheek, then turned and fled down the path.

There was not a sound in the room as Taffy pulled herself back to reality. Fear shot through her. Had she been that bad? Glancing quickly around, she saw to her amazement that there was hardly a dry eye in the class. Suddenly applause thundered from everywhere.

"
Oh, Taffy. That was wonderful!
"
shrieked Mrs. Sinclair, rushing forward and smothering her with a gigantic hug.

Taffy turned. Channing Cranda
ll was beaming at her.

"
That was wonderful, Taffy, and it should prove to everyone here why you, and only you, will play Tiffany Stafford if the movie becomes a series,
"
he said in an authoritative voice.

Taffy nodded and went back to her seat. She didn
'
t look at Summer or Cynthia. She didn
'
t have to. She had ended any chance either of them had to take her role away from her—and she had done it by improvising saying good-bye to Cory.

"
But can I do the scene as well if I have to say goodbye for real?
"
she whispered
.

M
onday was Clash Day, and Taffy went through her closet looking for the worst possible combination she could find. As she held up one piece of clothing after another in front of the mirror, she couldn
'
t help remembering that it
had been exactly one month ago—
on Pajama Day—that she had returned from Hollywood to Wakeman Junior High. She winced as she remembered how awful it had been to be practically the only girl in school wearing regular clothes.

"
I stuck out like a sore thumb,
"
she told her reflection.
"
But not today.
"

A lot had happened in that month, she thought. She still missed Hollywood as much as she had at first, but
at least she was starting to feel like she belonged at Wacko. Still, that could all change again if
Nobody Likes Tiffany Stafford
becomes a television series, she reminded herself.

Taffy finally settled on a bright orange pullover sweater that she seldom wore because it made her complexion look a sick shade of green. Next she put on a fuchsia miniskirt, and completed the outfit with flame red tights and black high-top shoes.

"
That ought to do it,
"
she giggled, dabbing on pink lipstick.

She was humming to herself as she gathered her books and jacket and hurried down to breakfast. Mr. Sinclair had already left for work, but her mother was sitting at the table sipping coffee and working the crossword puzzle in the morning newspaper.

"
Morning, Mother,
"
said Taffy.

"
Morning, dear,
"
replied Mrs. Sinclair. Then she glanced up. Her mouth dropped open, her eyes got enormous, and she nearly dropped her coffee cup.
"
Taffy! What
'
s wrong with you? And why are you wearing that outfit? You look
ghastly
!
"

Taffy twirled around to give her mother the full effect of her outrageous clothes. Then she laughed and said,
"
Don
'
t worry. Today is Clash Day. Everybody will be dressed like this.
"

"
I don
'
t care if it
'
s Insanity Day, you
'
re not leaving the house like that!
"
her mother stormed.
"
What if someone
saw
you in that get-up? Someone
important
?
"

"
If you mean Channing Crandall, I
'
m sure he
'
s gone back to Hollywood by now,
"
Taffy assured her.
"
Like I said, everybody at school will be wearing horrible outfits. I
'
ll just blend into the scenery.
"

"
Taffy, I
'
m serious,
"
warned her mother.
"
You are not leaving this house dressed that way. Now, go upstairs immediately and change into something presentable.
"

"
You don
'
t understand! I have to wear this. It
'
s important! I want to be like everybody else.
"

"
You are not like everybody else, dear. You are special.
"

"
Mo-
the
r!
"
Taffy cried.

Mrs. Sinclair rose from her chair like an erupting volcano.
"
Taffy!
"
she roared.
"
Did you hear me?
"

Tears spilled from Taffy
'
s eyes. She dropped her books on the table with a thud and stomped back upstairs. Why does she always have to be so paranoid? Taffy sobbed to herself as she flung open her closet door and stared at the row of perfectly matched outfits inside. But there was no use arguing. Her mother always got her way. Always!

When Taffy neared school a little later, she debated leaving her jacket on, thinking maybe kids wouldn
'
t notice that the whi
te denim skirt and the red-and-
white knit top she wore under the jacket looked great together.

"
Hey, Taffy. Let
'
s see what you
'
re wearing,
"
Shawnie called from behind her.

Taffy turned around to see her friend racing up the sidewalk in a wacky combination of brightly colored prints and stripes.

"
Isn
'
t this fun?
"
Shawnie asked breathlessly. Then she stopped and looked at Taffy in disbelief.
"
Hey, today
'
s Clash Day. Don
'
t you want to fit in?
"

Taffy fought to keep Shawnie from seeing the tears of embarrassment forming behind her eyes as she told Shawnie about the scene with her mother.

"
Gosh, I
'
m sorry,
"
murmured Shawnie, and the girls walked the rest of the way to school in silence.

All day long Taffy felt out of place. All the other kids seemed to be having a ball in their crazy outfits
, and she was sure some of them
were whispering about her as she went from class to class. They probably think I
'
m too conceited to wear anything that clashes, she thought. Shawnie
'
s words played over and over in her mind.
Don't you want to fit in?
Of course I do, she thought miserably, but how can I
?

When Taffy got home from school that afternoon, she found another letter with a Hollywood postmark. But this one wasn
'
t from Paige. Taffy sucked in her breath and stared at the return address. It was from Raven! She snatched it from the stack of letters in the mailbox and hurried to her room before her mother could spot it and demand to know what it said.

Dear Taffy,

I'
m sorry I haven't written sooner. I got your address from Paige a long time ago and started about a dozen letters to you, but I tore them all up. The trouble was, none of them sounded quite right. I guess what I really want to say is that I miss you a lot and want you to come back to Hollyw
ood. I was sincere when I said I'
d like to take you out.

We should be hearing soon about the TV series. We're all crossing our fingers.

Well, that's all for now. Write soon, and don't forget your friends in Hollywood!

Love,
Raven

Taffy read the letter at least a hundred times. Then she stretched out on her bed and closed her eyes. She could see the palm trees swaying on the boulevards in Hollywood and hear the waves lapping against the shore at Venice Beach. She could see Paige Kramer
'
s bright red hair and flashing smile, and tiny Tess, who looked six or seven but was really fifteen. Paige and Tess were terrific friends, and so was KJ, who was always wise-cracking and making jokes on the set. But most of all she could see gorgeous Raven Blaine, smiling at her, saying that he wanted to take her out.

She sighed, thinking about how much she missed Raven and all her Hollywood friends, and how she missed studying her lines and being in front of the cameras. She missed being a
professional
!
She giggled to herself, remembering the Media Club
'
s set and the tiny camcorder Jon Smith had used to film the program. There was nothing professional about that.

I could never stand being a member of Media Club, even for Shawnie, she admitted to herself. How could I ever have thought I belonged there? How could I ever have believed I belong at Wakeman Junior High, where everyone is jealous of me and whispers behind my back? No! The truth is, I want to go back to Hollywood. That
'
s where I really fit in.

Taffy had trouble sleeping that night. There was no doubt now. She had made up her mind. If the movie became a television series, she would return to Hollywood. It was the only choice, now that she thought about it. She would never fit in at Wakeman Junior High, no matter how hard she tried.

But what about Cory? she thought. How can I possibly keep going steady with him if I go back to Hollywood? And what if Raven asks me out? I can
'
t go, she told herself sadly. But I can
'
t break up with Cory, either. He
'
ll be so hurt.

And what about Shawnie? she asked herself. She
'
s my best friend. How can I just desert her? Of course, she does have Kimm, Taffy reasoned. A tiny flame of jealousy flared at the thought of Kimm. First she tries
to steal my best friend, and now she
'
s after my boyfriend. How can I just go off and let Kimm get away with that?

Taffy flopped over onto her stomach and buried her face in her pillow. I
'
ll just have to face it when and
if
the time comes, she decided
.

Ta
ffy waited until dinner was over and her parents were settled in the family room, watching a news program on TV. Then she excused herself and went quietly to the phone in the upstairs hall to call Shawnie without being overheard. She was bursting to tell someone about her letter from Raven, and Shawnie was the only one she could tell.

The phone had scarcely rung once when Shawnie
'
s mother answered.

"
Hi, Mrs. Pendergast, this is Taffy Sinclair. May I please speak to Shawnie?
"

"
I
'
m sorry, Taffy, but Shawnie is doing her homework. You
'
ll have to speak to her at school in the morning,
"
Mrs. Pendergast said curtly.

Taffy sighed. She had forgotten how strict Shawnie
'
s parents were. They controlled her time and her activities more than any other parents Taffy could think of.
"
Thanks,
"
she murmured dejectedly and hung up.

Taffy tried to begin her own homework, but her eyes kept being drawn like twin magnets to the letter from Raven lying on the edge of her desk.

"
He wasn
'
t kidding when he said he liked me the night before I left Hollywood,
"
she whispered to her
self,
"
He does!
He does! HE DOES!
"

But what about Cory? asked a little voice in her mind.

Taffy sat up straight and frowned.
"
What about him?
"
she answered angrily.
"
Nobody even knows yet if I
'
m staying here or going back to Hollywood.
"

Just the same, she knew she couldn
'
t say a word about Raven to anyone who might tell Cory.

The next morning Taffy motioned wildly to Shawnie the instant she saw her across the school grounds.
"
Hurry! I
'
ve got something to show you,
"
she called.

Shawnie
'
s eyes were glowing with excitement when she reached Taffy.
"
What is it? Did you hear some news about the TV series?
"

Taffy shook her head and grinned.
"
Better than that,
"
she said.
"
Guess.
"

"
I can
'
t. Oh, Taffy, don
'
t keep me in suspense,
"
begged Shawnie.
"
What is it?
"

Taffy reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out Raven
'
s letter with a dramatic flourish.
"
Feast your eyes,
"
she commanded.

Shawnie
'
s mouth dropped open as she clutched the envelope and read the return address.
"
Oh, my gosh!
"
she shrieked at the top of her lungs.
"
It
'
s a letter from Raven Blaine!
"

"
Shh!
"
said Taffy, but it was too late. All around them, kids stopped their own conversations to stare at Taffy and Shawnie.

"
Oh, no,
"
Taffy wailed.
"
I wanted to keep it a secret. Now everybody knows.
"

Shawnie looked mortified.
"
I
'
m sorry, Taffy,
"
she said.
"
I didn
'
t mean to. It
'
s just that . . . well
. . .
I mean, a letter from Raven Blaine! I guess I just went berserk!
"

Taffy glanced around quickly. No one was looking at them anymore. Maybe, just maybe, no one had heard Shawnie.

"
I tried to call you last night to tell you,
"
said Taffy,
"
but your mother wouldn
'
t let me talk to you.
"

Shawnie rolled her eyes.
"
It figures,
"
she said, and began reading the letter.
"
Wow. He says he missed you and wants you to come back to Hollywood. Gosh, Taffy. Raven Blaine
—the
Raven Blaine—wants to go out with you! How can you stand it? It
'
s the most exciting thing I
'
ve ever heard of! How can you even
breathe
?
"

"
I keep pinching myself to be sure I
'
m awake,
"
Taffy
admitted.
"
But you know what bothers me . . . Cory. Oh, Shawnie, I like him, too. Honest. I really do.
"
Shawnie gave Taffy a sympathetic sigh.
"
Yeah, and so does Kimm. I
'
ve been watching how she looks at him. What are you going to do?
"

"
I don
'
t know,
"
said Taffy.
"
But I
'
m sure not going to break up with Cory and let Kimm have him. That much I know.
"

Taffy was in third-period English class later that morning when a student messenger from the office entered the classroom and handed Miss Dickinson a note. The teacher read the note quickly and then said,
"
Taffy, Mr. Bell would like to see you in his office right away. You may take your books in case you
'
re not back before the bell.
"

Taffy nodded and murmured thank you to Miss Dickinson. As she hurried down the hallway, she tried to figure out what Mr. Bell could want.

I couldn
'
t be in trouble, she reasoned. I haven
'
t done anything. Yikes. I hope nothing is wrong at home.

When she got to the office, Mr. Bell motioned her to his desk, all smiles.
"
Come on in, Taffy. I have some good news, and I wanted you to hear it before I announce it to the school over the public address system.
"

Taffy blinked at the principal. Things were getting more mysterious by the minute.

"
Your mother just called,
"
Mr. Bell went on,
"
and
Nobody Likes Tiffany Stafford
is going to be shown on television at four p.m. tomorrow. Isn
'
t that wonderful news?
"

Taffy nodded eagerly.
"
Tomorrow?
"
she murmured.
"
I didn
'
t expect it to be shown quite so soon.
"
Then something else Mr. Bell had said caught her attention.
"
You
'
re going to announce it to the whole school?
"

"
Of course,
"
Mr. Bell assured her.
"
I
'
m sure everyone will want to watch. It
'
s not every day our school can boast it has its own movie star.
"

Taffy couldn
'
t suppress a smile. Now everyone would see what a good actress she was. Let
'
s see how they treat me after that, she thought smugly.

Mr. Bell made the announcement during the next period, and for the rest of the day the school buzzed with excitement. Kids even stopped Taffy in the halls to ask her about the movie.

"
They act as if they don
'
t really believe it,
"
she complained to Shawnie after school.

"
It
'
s like I told you before,
"
said Shawnie.
"
Nobody from Wacko has ever done anything like it, so it
'
s hard for some kids to imagine.
"

"
Why don
'
t you come over to my house tomorrow and watch the movie with me,
"
suggested Taffy.
"
We could even make it into a party and invite Cory and Craig.
"

"
Wow. That would be terrific,
"
replied Shawnie.
"
I
'
ll talk to Craig if you want me to.
"

"
Okay,
"
said Taffy.
"
I
'
ll ask Cory.
"

Taffy waited at Cory
'
s locker after school. She had thought up the party on the spur of the moment, and now she was a little nervous. What if her friends didn
'
t think her acting was great after all?

Of course it
'
s great, she told herself sternly. But down deep she knew that that wasn
'
t what was really bothering her. What would Cory think when he saw her on the screen with Raven? Maybe she shouldn
'
t have suggested a party. Maybe she should have planned to watch in private.

But it was too late to change her mind, and when she told Cory about the party, his face lit up.
"
Sure,
"
he said.
"
It sounds great. I can
'
t believe you
'
re really going to be in front of us on the screen.
"
Then his face clouded, and he added,
"
This doesn
'
t mean you
'
re going back to Hollywood, does it?
"

It was the question Taffy had been dreading. She took a deep breath and crossed her fingers behind her back before she answered.
"
Of course not. The producers haven
'
t made any decisions about the TV series yet. As far as I know, I
'
ll be at Wacko forever.
"