Taffy Sinclair 011 - Nobody Likes Taffy Sinclair by Betsy Haynes

school buses, and standing beside it, just as Shawnie had said, was Mrs. Sinclair, waving frantically in Taffy ' s direction.
    " Oh, my gosh, " Taffy murmured.
    " Taffy! Guess what? " shouted her mother. " Channing Crandall is back in town. He sent this limo to get you and take you to The Merry Chase Acting Studio to see him. Oh, Taffy. I know it can only mean one thing. Hurry, dear. We can ' t keep Mr. Crandall waiting. "
    Taffy nodded and turned to Shawnie, but she couldn ' t look at her right away. Her mother was probably right. There was only one thing this could mean. She was going back to Hollywood. But for herself and Shawnie it would mean saying good-bye again. How could she be so excited and so sad at the same time?
    " I guess I ' d better go, " said Taffy.
    Shawnie nodded and cleared her throat. " Right, " she said softly. " And, Taffy . . . good luck. "
    Taffy got into the backseat of the limousine and pretended to stare out the window so that her mother couldn ' t see the tears streaming down her face.
     
    " Well, if it isn ' t the brightest new star in Hollywod, " said Channing Crandall when Taffy and her mother stepped into the studio. He strode forward, grinning broadly, and clasped her small hand in his large one. Merry Chase was beaming beside him.
    " Congratulations, love, " she said in her deep, throaty voice.
    " The ratings are in from last night ' s broadcast of Nobody Likes Tiffany Stafford ," Mr. Crandall went on, " and I ' m pleased to tell you that they were spectacular. That ' s all the producers were waiting for. Good ratings mean that we ' re going to turn the movie into a series, and . . ." The casting director paused to build suspense. " And we ' d like to have the same cast, which means that you have the starring role of Tiffany Stafford again if you want it. What do you say? Will you do it? "
    Taffy couldn ' t answer right away, although she could see her mother twisting her hands nervously.
    " We have the first three scripts completed already, so we ' d like to start filming next week, " the casting director added.
    Taffy stared at Channing Crandall. This was it. If she said yes, her life would change forever. She would have to leave Wakeman Junior High for six long months. She would have to leave her best friend and her steady boyfriend. She would never be a normal teenager again.
    She closed her eyes. No, she thought as a smile spread slowly across her face. I ' ll never be normal again, but I ' ll be a star .

CHAPTER FIFTEEN
    " Nothing ' s definite yet, " Taffy said when Shawnie called her later in the evening after the interview with Marge Whitworth had been broadcast. She knew she was lying to her best friend, but she still didn ' t know how to break the news.
    " When will you know? " Shawnie asked.
    " Pretty soon, " replied Taffy, wondering if her voice was giving her away. " If I do go back to Hollywood, " she added slowly, " you ' ll have Kimm to be friends with, won ' t you? "
    There was a long pause. " Sure, " said Shawnie, " but believe me, it won ' t be the same. "
    Taffy bit her lip to keep from crying. It won't be the same for me , either , she wanted to say. Instead she went on, " But you were telling me how much fun it is to go to her house, and how interesting she is. "
    " Yeah, I know, " said Shawnie, sounding more and more dejected, " and I meant it, but. . . . Let ' s change the subject, okay? "
    After they hung up, Taffy stared at the phone for a while. Finally she looked up Kimm ' s number and dialed it.
    " Hi, Kimm, " she said when the girl answered. " This is Taffy. Can you talk a minute? "
    " Sure, " Kimm replied. " I watched your interview on TV a few minutes ago, and it was great. What ' s up? "
    Taffy chose her words carefully. " When I first got home from Hollywood, I was pretty jealous of how much time you and Shawnie had spent together while I was gone. "
    " I know you guys are best friends, " Kimm interjected. " I wasn ' t trying to wreck your friendship.