The goths passed by her without a second look . . . and Olivia smiled, relaxing into her anonymity. Jackson was right. This could be a whole lot worse.
Honestly, it was going to be weird enough to alternate between weeks of normal high school and weeks of Hollywood filming across the next several months. But if she wanted to stay grounded through it all – and keep herself from becoming a nightmarish diva like Jessica Phelps – this was exactly what she needed to keep her steady. She had Hollywood ceremonies and film sets to make her feel special . . . and school to keep her normal and anonymous.
This feels right, she decided. Now all I have to do is get Operation Famelia moving again!
Olivia nibbled at her lower lip. She’d barely slept last night for wondering what she should do next to help Finn and Amelia get together. This morning, though, she was pretty sure she had the perfect plan.
All she needed was a box of chocolates and a yellow umbrella, and she’d . . .
Oh, no. Trouble ahead!
Just ahead of Olivia, Amelia was stepping backwards from her locker – and she was obviously completely unaware that another student had set a big, bulky bag just behind her. The Queen of Goth was about to take a nasty fall.
‘Look out!’ Olivia yelled.
But Amelia’s boot had already landed askew on the bulky bag. She started to fall, her arms pinwheeling . . .
. . . and from out of nowhere, Finn zoomed down the hall on his skateboard. Moving so swiftly it almost looked like he was flying, he sped towards Amelia and caught her in mid-air before she could hit the ground.
Amelia gasped, grabbing on to him and clinging to his shoulders as his board screeched to a stop. Finn’s arms locked around her waist. As Olivia watched, open-mouthed, his head lowered towards Amelia. The Goth-Queen’s eyes drifted closed as her head tipped back, obviously waiting for his kiss . . .
And Mr Russell’s voice snapped through the air.
‘That’s it!’ Looking triumphant, the English teacher marched down the hall. ‘It’s detention for you this time, Mr Jorgensen. You’ve been told before about skateboarding inside the school!’
Not now! Olivia pleaded silently. But it was too late.
Groaning, Finn let go of Amelia. She stepped back hastily, brushing herself down and not meeting his gaze. Without a word of protest, Finn scooped up his skateboard and followed after Mr Russell, all the way to Principal Carson’s office.
Olivia shook her head despairingly as she watched him disappear behind the closed door. Then she looked back at Amelia . . . and began to smile.
The Goth-Queen was still gazing after Finn as if no one else in the world existed.
Talk about a perfect ‘Meet Cute’ moment! Olivia bit her lip to hold back a burst of delighted laughter as she sidled up to Amelia. ‘That was quite heroic, wasn’t it?’ she murmured. ‘The way he saved you . . .’
‘Sorry?’ Amelia seemed to snap out of a daydream. Her face tightened, as if she were preparing some sharp remark . . . but then she sagged. ‘Yeah,’ she said softly. Her eyes turned back to the closed door of Principal Carson’s office. ‘I guess it was.’
Yes! Olivia wanted to do a high-jump of triumph. Instead, she opened her mouth, already preparing her next move. She knew exactly what to say next: No other boy would have done what Finn did!
But Principal Carson’s office door opened before she could say a word.
‘This is outrageous!’ Mr Russell burst out, red-faced, and stalked down the hallway, scattering students in his wake.
Behind him, Finn and the principal stepped out together . . . and they were both smiling!
What on earth is going on? Olivia wondered, freezing halfway to her locker.
As she watched, Finn and Principal Carson shook hands. Then Finn started walking . . . straight towards Amelia.
The whole hallway went silent as everyone gathered around, eyes wide.
Amelia waited in front of her locker, and for once, the Goth-Queen looked anything but cool. One hand fluttered up to touch her hair. Her other hand closed around her locker door. Olivia could see Amelia’s chest rising and falling, as if she were breathing quickly.
Finn came to a halt in front of her, grinning, his blond hair falling over his shoulders and his blue eyes intent. ‘So,’ he said. ‘I just agreed on a new plan with Principal Carson. You know how I’ve been doing some volunteering with kids, teaching them how to skateboard?’
‘Um . . . yeah?’ Amelia raised her eyebrows, obviously trying to look bored. It didn’t work. Her fingers visibly tightened on the door of her locker.
Finn’s grin widened. ‘Well, Carson says I can do something like that here, too. I’ll be giving lunchtime lessons in the skatepark to any students who are interested. And the thing is . . .’ He paused, running one hand through his hair and starting to look nervous for the first time. ‘The thing is, I need someone to manage the programme, and, well, I’ve seen you hanging out at the skatepark a lot. So . . .’ He spread out his hands questioningly. ‘Would you be interested in joining me?’
Eek! This is perfect! Olivia could barely stop from hugging herself in delight. Asking her to help him with his skateboarding? He might as well be asking her on a date!
She wanted to shout ‘YES!’ on Amelia’s behalf. It took everything in her to firmly button up her lip. No more meddling, remember? Just please, please let her make the right decision! She will make the right decision . . . won’t she?
The whole hallway was silent, waiting, as Amelia looked down at the linoleum squares on the floor, a crease forming in her forehead. Finn’s smile wavered. Olivia panicked.
Uh-oh. She surely can’t say no . . .
As she watched, Amelia chewed on her black-lipsticked lip, frowning harder. Finn’s smile disappeared. He started to step back.
Then Amelia looked up, let go of her locker, and held out her hand. ‘Shake on it,’ she said. ‘I’m in!’
‘Yes!’ Finn’s face broke into the biggest smile Olivia had ever seen as he grabbed Amelia’s hand . . . but not to shake it. Instead, he yanked her forwards into a hug.
And Amelia threw her arms around him to hug him back!
Gasps sounded all around them. Goths, skaters and bunnies all stared in shock. A small smattering of applause broke out – then quickly died.
Uh-oh. Olivia snuck a covert look around . . . then started grinning. No one seemed to be really offended by ‘Famelia’ after all – they were just completely baffled by the concept!