One Week
Chapter Two
�Really?� Cammy�s mother asked the next day. She had just heard the story of how Cammy ran into Matt at the mall.
�Yeah,� Cammy answered. �He�s on vacation or something and he gave me the address to his hotel.� She checked her watch. �I�m going over there in a few minutes.�
�All right. You need a ride?�
Cammy smiled. �Mom, you keep forgetting I have a license.�
Mrs. James laughed. �How could I forget you have a license?� she asked her daughter. �I bought you that car, didn�t I?� She smiled. �Besides, I miss driving my little girl around to places.�
Cammy rolled her green eyes. �Mom, please.� She checked her watch again and picked up her car keys. �I�m heading over there now.�
�Be home by eight-thirty, Camryn,� her mother warned her.
�Yes, Mom,� Cammy shouted over her shoulder, walking out of her house and towards her blue Volkswagen Beetle.
When Cammy arrived at the hotel, she saw a lot of people in the main lobby. Correction: she saw a lot of teenage girls in the main lobby. �What is going on lately?� she said out loud, walking into the hotel.
Every single girl there seemed to be screaming at the top of her lungs. Two security guards stood in front of the crowd, making sure no one got past them. �Geez, who�s staying here? The Queen of England?� Cammy shouted.
�No, Dream Street!!� a girl next to her shouted back.
Cammy blinked. �Sorry, who?�
The girl rolled her eyes, as if Cammy were an idiot for not knowing who. �Dream Street,� she repeated, shoving a picture in Cammy�s face.
Cammy�s face wore a look of shock as she took the picture from the girl�s hands. Looking back at her, broad smiles on their faces, were five guys identical to the ones Cammy and her friends had encountered the day before. Two Italians, one spiky-haired kid, and two blondes. One of the blondes being Matt Ballinger himself. He really has changed, Cammy thought.
�Oh,� Cammy said to the girl, giving her back the picture. �Thanks for the info�I guess�� She headed to the front, and was able to get past the security guards. She ran up three flights of stairs, and when she got to the hotel room, she knocked twice.
�Who is it?� a woman�s voice answered on the other side.
�It�s Cammy�Matt invited me over?� Cammy said tentatively.
The door opened, and Matt stood on the other side. �Hey Cam. Sorry about that, you know, asking who it was,� Matt said to Cammy.
�Don�t worry, it�s okay,� Cammy told him. She smirked. �I can see why you�d need the security, Mr. Dream Street.�
Matt raised his eyebrows. �Oh�so you know.�
Cammy laughed. �Your fans aren�t too easy to miss, you know,� she said, walking into the room. �I�m guessing this �vacation� is a tour.� She looked around at the other four guys. �And you�re all part of Dream Street. We really haven�t been formally introduced, so can I have your names?�
�I�m Jesse,� the other blonde said.
�Chris,� the spiky haired boy offered.
�My name�s Frankie,� one of the Italian boys told her.
�And I�m Greg,� the last one said. �That�s my mom, Maryann Raposo,� he added, indicating the woman who had answered the door.
�Nice to meet you,� Cammy said. �I�m Cammy James.�
�Hmm,� Matt said. �I see you�re not going by Cam anymore.� He grinned at Cammy.
She shrugged. �You can call me Cam if you want to. I don�t care.�
Matt shrugged back. �I�ll call you Cammy, if that�s what everyone calls you.�
Cammy shrugged for the last time, and said, �So, have you guys had dinner?� Five shaking heads answered her. �Are you hungry?� The shakes turned into nods. �All right, I have the perfect place in mind.�
�Um, Cammy?� Mrs. Raposo had stood up. �I�m sure you mean well by inviting the guys out to dinner, but there are certain security measures that we have to take. It wouldn�t be safe for the boys to walk out of the hotel with all the fans out there.�
Cammy smiled. �It�s all right, Mrs. Raposo. I have an alternative exit in mind.� She walked over to one of the windows and pulled it open. �As long as none of you are afraid of heights, the fire escape will serve as a fine back way out of the hotel.� Cammy turned and grinned at the five guys. �Well? What do you think?�
�I�m in!� Chris shouted, and was closely followed by the others. Cammy followed them out the window and led them to The Hangout.
The Hangout was one of the best places in town. Cammy and her friends had been going there since they were in fifth grade. It had burgers, pizza, ice cream, and music. The six teens sat around a circular table after they had gotten their food, and Cammy and Matt quickly caught up on each other�s lives. Cammy found that beneath the �famous� exterior that surrounded her best friend, Matt was still the same kid she�d known in New York.
�Do you still have that monster?� Cammy asked Matt as she dipped an onion ring into her sauce.
Matt laughed. �Juno�s a Maltese! How can you be scared of a Maltese?�
�That thing bit me once!� Cammy shouted. �I still have the scar, look.� She showed off the thin scar on her left arm to the guys. �And it barked too much. And it could jump higher than me.� She took a sip of her ginger ale and decided, �I guess I�m just a cat person.�
�Dogs rule,� Matt disagreed, taking a bite out of his burger.
Cammy rolled her eyes, and continued with her questions. �So, when did you get involved with this whole Dream Street thing?� she asked.
�Well, I started singing and dancing when I was nine,� Matt began. �I was on Broadway a couple of times, I played Kurt in the Sound of Music when I was thirteen. I did a couple of commercial voiceovers, like for AT&T, Dannon Yogurt, Blue�s Clues--�
�Whoa, hold it,� Cammy cut in, trying to hold in giggles. �Blue�s Clues?�
�Hey, it�s not the worst outta all of us,� Matt protested. He pointed to Frankie. �He was the singing voice for Christopher Robin in two Winnie the Pooh videos.�
At that Cammy cracked up. �Frankie, I know I shouldn�t be laughing, but�Winnie the Pooh?!?� she laughed. The other guys had begun to laugh too. Frankie turned red, then in retaliation flung a french fry, which he had dipped in ketchup, at Cammy. She shrieked and jumped up.
�Okay, fine, I deserved that,� she said, gasping for breath. She looked at the red stain on her new Abercrombie & Fitch shirt. �I hope this comes out,� Cammy muttered.
�I�m sorry,� Frankie apologized. �I shouldn�t have done that.�
�Naah, it�s okay, I�ll just get some napkins.� Cammy walked over to the counter and pulled some napkins out of the dispenser. As she dabbed at her shirt, she looked up and saw a familiar face walking towards the door. �Shawn!� Cammy called out, trying to catch her boyfriend�s attention.
Shawn turned and saw Cammy waving him down. �Hey Cammy,� he greeted her. �What happened to your shirt?� Shawn asked, looking at the ketchup stain.
�Oh, I had a little accident,� Cammy told him, wiping all she could off her shirt. She threw away the napkin, and asked, �So what happened yesterday?� After receiving a confused look from Shawn, she said, �You know, you said you�d call me�you never did.�
�Oh, right, well see I got caught up with all this stuff and I guess it slipped my mind�I�m really sorry Cammy,� Shawn told his girlfriend, kissing her on the forehead.
�It�s�it�s okay,� Cammy lied. Deep down she thought it had been one too many times that things had slipped Shawn�s mind. �You�re here now, and that�s what counts.� Shawn smiled, and kissed Cammy on the lips. Cammy smiled back. �Oh, hey, there�s someone I want you to meet.� She took her boyfriend�s hand and led him to the table.
The guys had been laughing and joking around, but ceased as Cammy drew near. �Guys, this is my boyfriend, Shawn. Shawn, this is--�
�Hey, aren�t you Dream Street?� Shawn interrupted.
Cammy stared. �How do you know about Dream Street?� she asked, raising her eyebrows.
Shawn shrugged. �My sister has their CD. She really likes you guys. She�s not gonna believe me when I tell her I met you. Hey, you wouldn�t mind giving me like your autographs, would you?� he asked. �Like, for proof?�
�Sure, no prob,� Greg said. Cammy waited while her best friend turned into The Matt Ballinger of Dream Street, signing a napkin and passing it along for the other guys to autograph.
�Okay, besides being Dream Street�� Cammy pointed to Matt. �I knew Matt from back when I lived in New York. He was my best friend, actually. Lived across the street. We were practically inseparable,� she said, smiling at Matt. Matt smiled back, though Cammy noticed it was a weak smile. Matt�s smiles were almost always bright, and the only time she had ever seen him smile weakly before was when his Grandma gave him socks and underwear for his fifth birthday. Cammy wondered what was bothering him.
�That�s awesome,� Shawn said, pulling up a chair and sitting next to Cammy. �So did you know he was coming to LA?�
�Nope,� Cammy answered. �We ran into each other at the mall. Completely coincidental.�
�Interesti--� Shawn was interrupted by his pager. He checked it, and immediately stood up. �Sorry babe, I gotta go now,� he told Cammy, planting a quick kiss on her cheek.
�Who was it?� Cammy asked, not aiming to be nosy but just curious.
Shawn faltered for a moment, then said, �My parents. They�re going out tonight and need me to watch my sister.�
An amused smile crept onto Cammy�s face. �Morgan�s twelve and she still needs a babysitter?�
Shawn let out a nervous laugh. �Yeah, the �rents just want someone home to make sure she doesn�t burn the house down or anything.� He hurried to the door, shouting his daily promise: �I�ll call you later, Cammy!�
Cammy�s smile faded quickly. �Sure. Like you always do,� she whispered sarcastically, her words unheard by the five guys.
�So, wanna do something tomorrow?� Matt was walking Cammy back to her car. The other guys had decided to go straight back to the hotel. It had been a quiet walk to the Beetle, which wouldn�t have been considered normal back when they were best friends in New York.
�Yeah, sure,� Cammy said. Between Matt�s subtle sadness and her boyfriend�s non-committed ways, Cammy was lost. She didn�t know how to fix things, or whether there were even things to fix. �So what do you guys wanna do?�
�We all want to go to the beach,� Matt told her. �Jesse wants to learn how to surf, and Chris, well, he�s in it mainly for the girls.� He laughed softly. �Speaking of girls, you can invite your friends if you want.�
Cammy�s face brightened with a smile. �Of course I�ll bring them along.� She immediately began setting each of her friends up with a Dream Street guy in her head. Chris and Riley, obviously, they were both big flirts. Jesse and Haylee were the only fourteen year olds, so they were together. Greg was quiet, like Kelly, they�d make a cute couple. Frankie and Sammi were both sweethearts, they would blend nicely together. �I�ll ask them tomorrow,� Cammy told Matt.
�Alright, sounds like a plan,� Matt said. There was a pause, then he said, �You gonna invite Shawn?�
�Why bother, he�s probably busy like always,� Cammy muttered. She looked up at Matt, and said, �Oh, sorry, was that out loud?�
�Yeah, it was,� Matt said, smiling gently. �Care to share with the class?�
Cammy laughed at Matt�s corny joke, then sighed. �Okay, does it seem odd to you that a guy would ask a girl out but then like never sees her, aside from school and that rare occasion when he�s not busy?� Matt nodded, and Cammy continued. �Well, it�s been that way ever since Shawn asked me out a month ago. I try not to let him know that it bugs me so much, but it really does sometimes�� She trailed off. By then they�d reached Cammy�s car, and were standing in front of the driver�s side door.
�Well, maybe you should talk to him about it,� Matt said. They stood for a moment, then Matt said, �Well, see ya tomorrow Camaro.�
Cammy grinned at her old nickname. �See ya tomorrow, Matty,� she replied, hugging her best friend. Cammy was suddenly aware of Matt sniffing her hair. �Matt? What are you doing?�
�Breathing. Through my nose,� Matt told her, pulling away from the hug and smiling. �Is there something wrong with that?� He twirled a lock of her dirty blonde hair in his fingers.
�What�s with the sudden interest in my hair?� Cammy laughed, brushing his hand away. �Ahh, you�re still the weird kid I knew back in Westchester.�
�Thank you!� Matt said, giving her one of his signature bright grins. Cammy laughed and climbed into her Beetle. �Bye Matt!� she called out the window, driving back to her house. Cammy could see Matt waving in her rearview mirror, and watched him until he was too small to see.