Maeve on the Red Carpet by Annie Bryant

camp nobody.
    “No thanks. I’m a thinker not a laborer,” I replied in my sweetest voice.
    “A thinker not a laborer?” Apollo dropped the couch and folded his arms. “Dude, what’s up with that? What’re you, some kind of Maddie-clone?”
    “I—I—I … That’s not a very nice thing to say!” I finally exclaimed.
    “He’s kind of right, Maeve. It seems like ever since you and Maddie started hanging out, all you do is copy everything she does. I mean … you even dress like her,” Sam pointed out.
    “I do NOT!” I protested, even though it didn’t take a genius to figure out that we
were
both wearing jeans with a black top.
    Apollo looked at Sam and the two of them burst out laughing. “No offense, little dude, but I think your sister is morphing into Madeline Von Krupcake Part Two. Hey I just got a good idea for a sci-fi movie …”
    Sam giggled. “I gotta get my tape!” He tore off the stage to rummage through his equipment.
    I huffily got up and marched right over to the end of the couch that Sam had not-very-expertly been trying to carry. “Look, I’m just trying to be taken seriously around here … as an ack-
tour
.”
    Apollo lifted the arm of his couch with a loud, “Mmph!”
    “And just because I’m becoming more mature …” (I pronounced mature like ma-
tour
) “… doesn’t mean I’m turning into Maddie!”
    “Maeve, just because you act the way you
think
a movie star would act
doesn’t
make it right.”
    “Easy for you to say,” I griped. “You don’t need to worry about how to act,
’
cause you’re already a movie star.”
    “Yeah right,” Apollo mumbled. “Ex–movie star. Ex. That stuff is so not for me.”
    “Well that stuff IS for me, and excuse me if I want to try as hard as I can to become a movie star.” I was getting really fired-up now. I couldn’t believe that Apollo was saying this to me when he had no idea how serious I was about my dream.
    “All I mean is, you can be a movie star and NOT be a clone of Maddie.”
    “I’m NOT a clone!” I insisted.
    “I know!” Apollo exclaimed. “Because if you
were
a clone, you wouldn’t have helped me carry this couch across the entire stage.”
    “Huh?” We stood—out of breath—on the other side of the stage. I’d been so wound up that I’d lifted the couch and hadn’t even realized I was doing it. Weird. Maybe helping out was one of those things that just came naturally to me.
    Right at that moment, Maddie pranced back into the theater and slammed her cell phone shut. “Maeve, darling, I have the most fabulous news. Daddy says you can sleep over our house tonight, and we won’t take no for an answer.”
    I didn’t think I could take no for an answer either! Maddie’s house wasn’t just a house—it was a mansion. I’d heard Dad go on and on about it after his meetings with Mr. Von Krupcake. “Well, I guess …” I began.
    “Good, it’s settled.”
    “I was going to say, I need to ask my parents first.”
    Maddie laughed. “As if they’d say no. This is a big opportunity for you, Maeve.” Maddie squeezed my hand and giggled. “Trust me. We’re going to have so much fun!”
    I felt myself burst into a smile. After that invitation, there was no doubt about it. Madeline Von Krupcake really liked me. Madeline Von Krupcake was my friend.

CHAPTER
8
Living La Dolce Vita
    I showered and packed up with lightning speed. Once the water hit my head, it was curly Maeve all over again. But Maddie had promised that I didn’t need to worry about looking glamorous or anything. “The theme of the night is comfy and casual,” she assured me before we left camp.
    The drive to Maddie’s was positively torturous! I couldn’t wait to see her house, but Mom was in turtle driving mode. She kept slowing down and gushing, “Wow, Maeve, look at this house! Isn’t it spectacular? I forgot how much I love Beacon Hill.”
    I had to admit, I loved Beacon Hill too. It was one of Boston’s loveliest and oldest