Face the Music Read Online Free Page B

dimly lit entryway.  The muted bass coming from the club vibrated through the walls.  A second, larger door opened up to the main area.   Deafening music thumped out of enormous speakers while colored lights bounced around the room.  Tall round tables were set up around a crowded dance floor.
    Emily grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the bar.  “Come on, let’s get a drink.  What do you want?”
    “Bacardi and pineapple juice.”  She lifted her eyebrows; I wasn’t normally one to drink hard liquor.  “What? ” I said defensively, grinning .   “ You told me to loosen up and have a good time tonight, right?”
    “I did,” she said, still eying me doubtfully.  “Just don’t make me regret it.  I don’t want t o have to carry you out of here. ” 
    She ordered a wine cooler, and we walked around and searched for an open table.  “This is something, huh?”
    Her energy was contagious, and I couldn’t help but smile.  “It sure is!  I have to admit, I wasn’t too sure about this place, but this is going to be a great night.”  I tipped my glass to her, and we both giggled.  “Happy Birthday, Emily!”
    “Cheers to that!”
    We sat down at a small table in the back corner of the room.  The dance floor was packed.  Several clusters of people were dancing to the fast-paced remix, and a crowd of onlookers stood nearby.  “Wanna dance?” I asked, swallowing the rest of my drink. 
    I stood briefly but fell back onto my stool when I saw Chris Knots leaning over a large table with others from the show.  A tall blonde with legs up to her neck was pressing herself against him.  Cynthia, one of the other Superstardom contestants.  I watched in amazement as she whispered something into his ear and snaked a seductive finger down his arm.  I wondered if they were an item.
    Emily followed my stare.  “What?”
    “Nothing,” I lied, dropping my eyes to the floor.  The last thing I wanted to do was talk about Chris Knots.
    “You look like you saw a ghost.  What was it? ”  She scanned the club.  It didn’t t ake long for her to spot them.  “Oh my God!” she gasped , her eyes round .  “The Stars are here!  Allie, you have to introduce me.”
    “No.”  I shook my head.  “I actually don’t know them.”  Besides the kids, Chris was the only one I’d ever spoken to.  And it was n’t like we’d had any kind of real conversation.
    “You do work there, with them, right?  You see them every day. ”
    “I see them sometimes, but that doesn’t mean I talk to them.  I teach the younger ones, you know, who aren’t old enough to be in a place like this.”  I rattled the ice in my glass and looked back over at the Stars.  “The others all keep to themselves.”
    Emily glared at me, her lips pulled into a pout of disapproval.  “Gosh , Allie.  If I worked there, they would all know me.”
    I didn’t argue with that.  Emily had no problem talk ing to people she didn’t know- another thing that made us so different.
    “You’re too shy!” she complained.  “How do you expect to meet new people if you never talk to anyone?”
    “I talk,” I said defensively . 
    “The kids don’t count, Allie.”  She sat back down, leaned towards me, and examined my face.  “ You’re not telling me something. ”
    “ I don’t know what you’re talking about .”  I sucked in my lips, the way I always did when I wasn’t being entirely truthful.
    “Don’t hold out on me.  It’s my birthday; you have to tell.”
    I looked at her for a minute, surprised at how well she could read me.  “Okay, fine.  I talked to Chris Knots,” I admitted, looking back over at his group.  “I dropped my stuff in the hall , and he helped me pick it up.  We chatted for a minute.  No big deal.”  I took a long swallow from Emily’s wine cooler.
    “Hey!  Get your own.”  She snatched the bottle out of my hand and looked over at him .  “What was he like?”
    “Aside from