Finding Fame

Before Dustin had hung up, he had told me to "lay low for a little bit" while he found the perfect tutor. I hope his plan worked. Mom definitely cared about my school work, but what worried her most was me going away. Once, when I was ten, I had asked to go to summer camp. I've had this weird obsession with summer camp for as long as I could remember, and I thought 10 would be the perfect age to try it. Mom said no quite quickly. "I'd miss you too much," she had said at the time. "Besides, you'll never know what creeps you'll find there." I was so angry. This was summer camp, not Mexico! We had argued briefly for a few minutes, but it was no use. I was never going to summer camp.
While I was "laying low" I had to go to school. So next Thursday morning, I was showered, dressed, fed, and ready to walk to the corner bus stop by 7:50 A.M. When I saw Erin, I smiled. She was wearing her crazy cheetah headband. "Erin!" I shouted out.
She looked around, finally settling her eyes on me. "Hey Kira. Hear any news about Dustin?" she asked excitedly. "Shh!" I said. "Dustin said to keep it on the down low." She nodded. I felt bad, because I didn't know any details about the tour. Except for the fact that it lasted 2 months. 2 months with Dustin Drake? I could DIE.
When we shuffled onto the bus, I threw a quick glance at my long-time crush, James. He was laughing with his friends, totally oblivious that I was staring at him. I sighed. Was I really that invisible? Actually, not to Dustin. That made me smile, and kept me going through Algebra, English, and Science. Spanish, on the other hand, was a different story. I couldn't help but day dream and doodle. Finally, my teacher, Senora Castillo, tapped me on the shoulder. "Senorita Kyra, escuchen*." I nodded and pretended to listen for the rest of class.
Finally, after Music and Literature, it was time for lunch. I sat at my round lunch table, containing my best friends: Katlin, Hayley, Kara, Erin, Kellie, and Maddie. We talked about the new Dustin Drake CD, which came out next month, and talked about our hard Algebra quiz. Eventually, we broke off into our own groups. Erin, Kellie, and I talked about music and volleyball, while Hayley and Kaitlin talked about Boys Like Girls, while Maddie and Kara talked about this advanced art class they were taking this semester. I looked around, trying to take it all in so I would't forget it when I went on tour.
Suddenly, a bunch of girls started screaming. "What's going on?!" asked Kellie, alarmed. "Ew, there better not be any spiders in the milk again!" shrieked Kaitlin. I stopped Hanna, a bubbly blonde, on her way to the crowd. "Hanna, what's going on?" I asked. "It's Dustin Drake!" she screamed, running toward the crowd. I nearly had a heart attack. What was he doing here?
A teacher finally stopped him. "What are you doing here?" The teacher asked. "I'm here to see Kira," Dustin replied. The teacher shrugged, and brought me over. "Your mom said yes! You're going on tour!" yelled Dustin. I went numb. "Oh my god!" Dustin hugs me, and I nearly faint. He offers to take me home, and I nod. I don't think about the uneaten food I am about to leave behind. I don't think about the screaming girls, trying to grab at Dustin. I don't even think about how much trouble I would get in for ditching class. Mostly, I just think about the months that lay ahead.