Chapter Two
"Gross! What the hell is this granola doing in here?!" Ryan demanded the second she opened the fridge.
Ryan's assistant, Grace Anne, looked up from her newspaper and grinned.
"Thought you might like some fresh granola. It's my favorite."
Ryan made a face. "Get real, Grace Anne. I can't eat this. It looks like shit."
Grace Anne shrugged, but I could tell she looked a little hurt. "I didn't know you didn't like granola."
Ryan threw the granola in the trash. "What do I have to do to get some fucking breakfast in this house? You had better not have eaten up all the bagels, Verranos! I'll kill you if you do!"
Nikki rolled her eyes. "She is such a diva. So fucking demanding." she whispered to me. I nodded in agreement.
"I didn't eat the bagels, Ryan. Chill out, okay?" Jim replied.
Ryan snatched the bag from Jim and marched into the kitchen.
"Is anyone ready for tomorrow?" Justin asked cheerfully, as if he hadn't heard Ryan's threats and rants throughout the morning.
"Yup. Been ready. I was born ready." Christina boasted, tossing her ebony dark hair to one side.
"Me, too. I can't wait." R.J Helton replied.
"So, no one's worried they'll get booted off if the judges don't like one of us?" A.J asked worridly.
Justin dug into his omelet. "Why should we worry? I mean, it's not like the judges don't like us, but they're just being honest with us. If they don't like me, then I'll find something else to do with my life."
I looked at Justin with some respect. For someone who was a jerk, he sure sounded pretty wise.
Tamyra frowned. "And Simon sounds kind of harsh with the contestants, don't you think?"
"That's just the way he is. Up-front and honest. I like people like that. It tells me they know where they're coming from." I remarked.
"Yeah, well, he doesn't have to sound so mean." Christina remarked, playing with her food.
"What about Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson? They seem nicer." Nikki replied.
"I don't know, but I hate girls who are so nicey-nice and_" Ryan began.
"What do you mean, they know where they're coming from?" Justin asked me, interrupting Ryan.
"You interrupted me." Ryan said to him.
Justin didn't hear her. He was still looking at me.
"Well, my mom was telling that folks who are always honest with what they think, like Simon, are people who are smart and intelligent."
"You seem very smart." Justin remarked.
I blushed. (Why did I keep doing that?)
Ryan looked at me with distain. "I'm smart, too. Ten times smarter than Clarkson. I know a lot about sociology. Did I tell anyone I was planning on studying sociology at UCLA?"
"Nobody gives a damn, neither." Nikki muttered, but Ryan hadn't heard her (Luckily).
"That's nice, but I'm having a conversation over here with Kelly. I want to listen to what she has to say."?Justin replied.
Ryan made a face at me behind Justin's back.
But before I could open my mouth, a girl with a clipboard approached us.
"Hey, everyone! I'm Katydid Marshall, the coordinator. You all have rehearsal today."
Groans all around.
"Today? We just got here. Can't we at least have a vacation?" Tamyra asked.
Katydid shook her head. "No way. Simon wants all of you out of this house and down to the Kodak Theater in an hour. And don't be late."
After Katydid left, we were forced to get dressed, pack up our sports bags, and hit the road.
"Whoever wants to come with me, I can choose!" Ryan announced.
We all stared at her. Who the hell did she think she was, anyway?
"I want Christina, Tamyra, R.J, and Justin in here with me! The rest of you can ride with Nikki!" Ryan declared.
Justin stared wistfully at Nikki's car as Ryan pulled his arm towards her black and red Mercedes Benz. "C'mon, Justin. I know you'll just love the interior of my car as opposed to McKibbin's." She made a face as she mentioned Nikki. Nikki was about ready to clobber Ryan on the spot, but I grabbed her just in time.
"Don't make me hurt that bitch, because I will." she whispered to me. I squeezed her arm gently to calm her.
So, I rode with Nikki, EJ, A.J, and Nikki's son, Tristen. On the freeway, I asked Nikki about Ryan.
"That girl is such a bitch. I've disliked her from the beginning. She teased me on my first day of auditions. And I hate her so-called ways of getting guys to like her. That thing she did yesterday! She pulled that shirt so hard below her bustline, I thought her boobs would come out through that shirt. Could Justin not notice?"
"Maybe he was being polite. Maybe he didn't want to hurt Ryan's feelings." I suggested.
Nikki scoffed. "As far as I'm concerned, Ryan Starr doesn't have any feelings. She doesn't care about anyone but herself. Maybe Justin thinks she's as a whore, just like I do."
Don't say that, Nikki. Maybe Ryan doesn't mean to act like that, I thought.
Then Nikki said something I wasn't expecting. "I think you should hook up with him, instead of Ryan."
A.J laughed. "Ryan's okay, but she's not the type of girl I'd want to date."
"Me, neither. And she must like Justin as opposed to me, because she didn't want me in her car." Ejay piped up.
"Oh, who cares about her car? The world doesn't revolve around her, you know! If Ryan thinks she can just whisk any man she wants, she's wrong. I don't even think Justin's interested in her, anyway." Nikki replied.
"Nik's right, Kelly. You should be with Justin. If Ryan can, I don't see why you can't." A.J replied.
"I would, but I'm not interested in him. He's a jerk." I said stubbornly.
"Why? Because he commented you on your sunscreen gear? He didn't mean to be insensative." Nikki said.
I shook my head stubbornly. But I was blushing again (Why, oh why?).
"Kelly, you really should stop all that blushing. It's beginning to look silly." Nikki replied.
"Yeah, Kelly. Why'd you keep blushing for?" A.J asked.
I shrugged. But the subject of Ryan and Justin left when Nikki pulled up in front of the Kodak Theater.
We checked in with the guard and went to find places to park.
There were guys in black suits who were waiting for us as we clambered out of the cars.
"Men in Black? Or just Secret Service?" Nikki asked jokingly.
I giggled.
"The American Idol contestants have arrived." One of the men said into his walkie-talkie.
The men began to walk away. As a sign, we followed the men in black suits.
As we walked, I had asked Nikki where she thought we were going. "I don't know. How big do you think the Kodak Theater is?"
Meanwhile, Ryan was still flirting with Justin. "Oooh! I love these curls! Are they natural?" she said breathlessly. Justin looked like he was ready to barf. And I didn't blame him. A day with Ryan was like a day at a roller coaster.
I rolled my eyes. I glanced at Christina, Tamyra, and R.J. They looked bored. I made faces, which made Christina, Tamyra, R.J, and Justin laugh. I didn't think Justin would laugh at me. Ryan didn't think it was so funny. But I kept making goofy and funny faces. This time, Justin cracked up. Ryan glared at me. Without a word, she steered Justin away and they walked ahead of all of us.
"What's wrong with her? Did she get all of her panties in a bunch?" Nikki asked, watching Ryan and Justin go.
But I didn't hear her. I too busy thinking about what I had just done.
"Hey, you guys! How are you!" Paula Abdul exclaimed.
Ryan automatically went into Paula's arms for a hug, but she still had Justin's hand clamped to hers.
Paula noticed, for she asked Ryan, "What are you doing with Justin? He's your man, Ryan?"
Ryan let out a laugh that could have been considered the fakest of all fake.
"Of course. We met at the audition."
Paula put her arms around both of them. "Well, I'm happy for you."
Ryan was busy beaming while Justin looked ready to bolt. His eyes had that Get Me Out of Here look in them. I just had to help him.
I walked over to them and stood next to them.
"What are you doing here, Clarkson? Don't you have something better to do than to stand here?" Ryan asked after Paula had left.
"I was wondering if I could chat with Justin. He really hasn't met the rest of the contestants and I'm sure he would want to."
Justin smiled gratefully at me. I smiled back. But Ryan happened to see it and she tightened her grip on Justin's hand. Justin pryed Ryan's five-inch nails out of his wrist.
"I'll be back. I just want to talk to Kelly and everybody else." Justin assured her. Ryan looked evil and sulkly as she watched him walk away with me.
"Thanks a million for saving me. I appreciate that." Justin said to me when Ryan was out of earshot.
I laughed. "Was there a problem?" I asked.
"You could say that. She wouldn't stop talking about herself. I was wondering and hoping she'd shut up. Ever since I met her, all she wants to talk about most of the time is herself. I mean, doesn't she ever get tired of talking about herself all the time?"
"Maybe she thinks the world revolves around her, is all." I said.
Justin looked at me. "As long as we're talking and you're not mad at me about what I said yesterday, I just want to apologize. I was insenstive to you. I shouldn't have laughed at you."
"It's okay. It was partly my fault, anyway. I should learn to lighten up a little more. I mean, I can be a total goof, but sometimes I'm as ungoofy as...An ungoofy goof!"
Justin laughed. I laughed, too.
"An ungoofy goof?" he asked.
I shrugged. "I made it up."
Justin smiled. "But seriously, I'm sorry. You aren't still mad at me, are you?"
I shook my head. "No way. I don't stay mad for very long. I've already forgotten it."
"Well, in that case, since the bygones have become bygones, I was wondering if you'd like to eat lunch with me after rehearsal."
I looked at Justin in astonishment. Was he asking me out?
"That is, if you don't want to. But if you want to, you can bring your friends. I met Christina, R.J, and Tamrya. But not your other friends. The ones that Ryan doesn't like. Do you want to come?"
Hmmm...I thought about what Nikki was telling me earlier. ' You should hook up with Justin, Kelly.'
But I really wasn't interested in getting a boyfriend just yet. I was mainly focused on getting my career on the ground and completing the first step in my career after I left Burleson as a cocktail waitress. But was Nikki right? Should I? But as my mom always said, 'You should cross that bridge when you get to it.' Right now, I was desiding on going to lunch with Justin.
I hemmed and hawed some before I gave in. As Christina had said, how could anyone say anything bad to a guy like Justin Guarini? Turning him down would be horrible. Even I had more sense than that. So I agreed. And that was that.
How did I feel after I accepted? Not excited. Not giddy. Not even regretful. Just nothing. It was lunch with a friend I had just met and nothing more.
"No...no! NO!" Ryan shouted. "This is not what I wanted! Why the hell did you insist on bringing a Britney Spears album to my rehearsal? I wanted Madonna, not Britney! What is wrong with you people! Can't you understand English or do I have to buy everybody dictionaries?"
That was the sixth time Ryan has shouted at somebody in the past three hours of rehearsals. She yelled at Jim for stepping on her small toe. She and Nikki almost got into a fight over something. And a lot of stuff I couldn't really catch. But I didn't care. All I wanted to do was sing.
"Kelly, you're up now." Christina whispered to me after she was finished singing all of her three songs.
I nodded. I had planned to sing 'Because You Loved Me' by Celine Dion, and 'I Will Always Love You' by Whitney Houston and 'Unforgetable' by Natalie Cole.
I got up on that stage and did the best I could. After I was done, the room was quiet. No one said anything. But people did clap at the end. What did Simon say to me afterwards? He said to me later that I was very special.
And believe me, he couldn't have been more right.
As we were getting ready to leave the theater, I was in the mirror of the bathroom, brushing my hair.
"Hey, awesome job! I'm so proud of you!" Nikki squealed, giving me a hug.
"Thanks, Niks. You were just as awesome as me." I replied.
"You were wonderful. You sang your ass off!"
I smiled. "You up for having lunch?"
"Are you kidding? I'm hungrier than the average Texan."
Nikki and I laughed. Then we left the locker room. Nikki grabbed Tristen and then we were off to meet Tamyra, Christina, R.J, Justin, and the rest of the gang for lunch (Ryan, of course, refused).
While we were waiting to be served, Justin picked up his spoon and tried to balance it on the tip of his nose.
"That's gross!" Christina exclaimed.
"No, it's not!" Nikki replied.
We all burst out laughing.
In the spirit of being goofy, I grabbed my spoon and held up like a microphone and spoke in an exaggerating TV announcer's voice, "How does it feel to star in America's favorite reality show?"
Everyone stared at me like I was crazy. Justin took my lead, but he actually starting singing.
Everyone cracked up. People in the pizza place started to look at us. As a joke, Tamyra suggesting to all start singing together.
"Wait, we sound pretty good together. Let's harmonize." Ejay suggested.
That was a good idea. So we did.
I almost forgot we were still in the pizza place until after we finished singing a piece of 'This I Promise You'.
Customers clapped their hands. We stood up and took a bow.
"That was amazing! Did you see their faces?" Tamyra asked.
"Do you think we should create our own group?" I asked, even though that wasn't what I really wanted.
Christina smiled. "It's a start."
Our menus came at that time, so we couldn't carry on our conversation just then. But when we finished reading and selecting, we finished our conversation.
"I didn't know you wanted to be in a group, Kelly." R.J pointed out.
"I don't. But we sounded so damn good, didn't we?" I said.
"If we do, we shouldn't let Ryan in it." Nikki said.
Justin laughed. "You don't like Ryan?"
Nikki rolled her eyes. "I hate the bitch. She thinks the world revolves around her. And she thinks she the best singer in the world. And she's_"
Before Nikki could finish ranting on and on about Ryan, Christina put in hastily, "She comes on strong, doesn't she?"
"She's a great girl, but she can be possesive, demanding, and jealous. But other than that, she's a okay girl. But she's not the type of girl I'd want to chase after." Justin said.
"What are you looking for in a girl?" Tamyra asked.
"Well, I want a girl who's funny. A girl who knows what she wants and where's she coming from, even though she knows she has a long way to go. A girl who can get dirty and not care, because she can always put her clothes in the washer..." He trailed off, when he noticed we were all staring at him. He blushed.
"That was so beautiful." Christina replied.
I stared at the table. Justin was so thoughful.He knows what he wants. That kind of sounds like me, I thought. I had never had people like that in my life. Most of the people I met in Burleson were so immature, it wasn't even funny. I guess after I had dealt with having been homeless and living a life as a cocktail waitress, I wasn't going to put up with people's bullshit. I mean, you have to get ready in the world. The world won't wait for you, as my mother always said. And she was right.
When the food finally came, we all dug into it. I was starving. The pasta salad and meatball sub were delicious.
Justin stared glumly at his food. "I hate tomatoes. I always pluck whatever I don't want with my fingers. It's convient."
We all ate our food. Lunch went okay up until the point when I made a complete and total fool out of myself.
R.J was showing us how to stick French fries up noses. I tried it, but I also had drank some soda. R.J looked so funny with the French fries wedged all the way up his nose,?I couldn't help but laugh. I choked and the mouthful of soda splattered all over the place, but most of it splattered on Justin's clothes. The fries shot right out of my nose into Tamyra's plate of grilled chicken.
"Oh, nasty! Kelly, gross!" Christina exclaimed.
Tamyra grimaced and threw her food away.
But I heard some familiar laughter. It was Justin. He was clapping his hands and whistling. He didn't even mind the orange soda stain on his white shirt.
"Give it up for Kelly Clarkson, the human cannon. She can shoot French fries out of her nose a mile away and spit soda out of her mouth faster than you can say 'American Idol' She's amazing!"
R.J, Christina, Nikki,Ejay, Tamyra, and Justin began to laugh. At first I felt humilated. But then I figured it was a little funny. So I laughed right along with everybody else.
I had never known when I'd had so much fun.
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