"Sammy, phone for you," Ben yelled to me.
"Got it," I called back. "Hello?"
"Is this Samantha McCaffery?" a male voice asked.
"The one and only," I replied.
"Hi. This is Ken Baxter from Jive Records," the man said.
"Hello Mr. Baxter," I said nervously.
"Your manager asked me to call and tell you that you are Jive's newest artist," Mr. Baxter told me.
"For real?!" I exclaimed. "Oh, man! Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me!"
"With your voice, it was my pleasure. I scheduled a meeting with you and your manager for tomorrow morning at nine. You need to sign the contract we gave you. We also have to get you started recording ASAP," Mr. Baxter explained.
"Ok," I replied. "I'll see you tomorrow at nine. Good-bye."
"Good-bye," he hung out.
I placed the phone into the cradle and stared at it. I had to be dreaming. There was no way I really just got that phone call. No chance in the world. I pinched myself, just to make sure. "Ow!" I muttered.
Thus was real. I screamed at the top of my lungs. Ben, Julie, and my mom came running.
Oops...I did it again! I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Samantha McCaffery (which you'd know if you were paying attention to the phone conversation). I'm fifteen years old and I live in New York. On Long Island to be exact. Ben is my older brother; Julie is my older sister. The phone call I just got is going to change my life.
"I got a recording contract with Jive Records!" I yelled.
There was a slight pause. It was almost as though time had stopped. Then everyone rushed in to hug me.
"Mr. Baxter will see you now," the receptionist said.
I tried to stifle a laugh. 'She should work in a doctor's office,' I thought.
The receptionist led my manager and me to a conference room down the hall from where we had been waiting. There were important-looking people sitting around the huge table. It was very intimidating. The scariest part by far was that I recognized one of the people. 'Oh my God,' I thought. 'I'm working with Max Martin? The man's a musical genius!'
"Hello Samantha," Mr. Baxter greeted me. "Have a seat."
I sat down in the nearest empty chair, "Hi. You can call me Sam."
"Well, Sam, take a look around you. These are people that you will be working with for the next five years. They are songwriters, producers, instrumentalists, photographers, public relations people, and so on and so forth. Your choreographer couldn't make it today. Her name is Fatima," Mr. Baxter explained.
'Fatima? That woman is a dancing God!' I thought. 'My routines are going to be off the hook.'
"Are you ready to sign the contract?" asked Mr. Baxter, handing me a copy of the contract and a pen.
My hand shook slightly as I put the pen to the paper and signed my name. 'I have a recording contract,' I thought.
After all the people around the table were introduced to me, they left, leaving Mr. Baxter, my manager, and myself.
"Will I be going on tour soon?" I asked.
"Yes. In two months, we have you penciled in as an opening act," Mr. Baxter told me.
"Who am I opening for?" I questioned.
"The Backstreet Boys."
Chapter Three Is Coming Soon to a Computer Near You
Copyright Kentucky Girl 2001