Surprises, Take Your Places!
1. Surprises Are Pretty Much Everywhere!
I think every year for me has surprises. They may be small, and they may be big. And my second year at Jr. Pop was no different.
Hop in!
2. Spy Secrets = Amazing/Troublesome
“Is it me, or has Mr. B made a mistake?” Wylie asked.
“No. It’s the final thing,” said Tana.
The sheet of songs that Tana swiped from Mr. B’s office stared back at us. I expected some forty singles to cover, but there were more, apparently.
“Does the kind sir want us working around the clock?” Elijah’s formality shook. He was nervous, and I couldn’t blame him.
“What’s the first song?” Alana asked, to calm everyone’s fears down.
“‘Permission to Dance’ by BTS,” Tana read out.
We all grinned, as we’re ARMYs for life.
“I think I’m gonna enjoy soloing for this song!” I said.
“What about Tana?” Cooper nudged me.
Immediately, my cheeks reddened. It was happening more and more often, and even Tana blushed when she was around me. Reciprocation was obvious.
“Well, yeah, Tana’s gonna do well, no doubt, she’s gonna solo too, I hope,” I stammered.
Everyone shook their heads. Growing up was crazily cool that time. And feelings mixed in made it even more eventful.
3. ‘I Like Me’…or You?
After our schedule, we normally liked to spend a couple of more hours at YT Studios. That was a chance to play one of our many games, and that day’s was a weekly special: concert.
Okay, we actually performed at our concerts, so we know how to handle it. But this ‘concert’ was different. We’d pick our own song, and we’d have to make up dance routines and sing along on the spot. I didn’t know who was the best, but it could most likely be anyone. We all had studied different dance styles, so it was kind of hard to tell. And it was my turn that time.
I had actually gone through some good songs. I needed something to get people happy. The last ‘performance’ by Alana, ‘Anyone’, had us all crying. I didn’t exactly want that. I wanted fun. And fortunately, ‘I Like Me Better’ checked all of the boxes, so I downloaded the karaoke. It was also for you-know-who.
This game took place in the common room. The couch and beanbags were the ‘audience seats’, and the ‘performer’ had to do their thing in the middle of the room. It was like our real concerts. We also had our own karaoke machine.
Before I started, I had plugged the cord in and triple-checked the sound. Everything was perfect. I stretched my arms and rolled my feet a little as well, until the others started coming in.
“Dude, you had set everything up?” Cooper asked, amused.
I shrugged. “I like to be prepared.”
After the gang settled down, I bopped the start button and the music came on. I went out with some basic moves, like pops and swirls. I winked at Tana as I went by, and the gang wooed. She covered her face in embarrassment, but I could tell she was going to like it. I grabbed the mic as soon as the verse came in.
“To be young and in love in New York City
To not know who I am but still know that I'm good long as you're here with me
To be young and in love in New York City
We go into morning coffee, burning through the hours talking, yeah.”
At the chorus, things were getting good. Everyone was clapping to the beat. I had taken a good pick.
“I like me better when I'm with you
I like me better when I'm with you.”
I pointed at Tana when I sang this part,
“I knew from the first time, I'd stay for a long time, 'cause
I like me better when, I like me better when I'm with you.”
When there was plain music, I danced my best, but I loosened up a little and let myself have some fun. But the real fun came when Tana got up and grabbed a second mic connected to the karaoke machine. I looked at her questioningly. She gave me a small smile, and launched into the second verse.
“I don't know what it is but I got that feeling
Hanging out on the couch next to you swear the room, yeah, it got no ceiling
If we stay, let the day just pass us by
I might get to too much talking, I might have to tell you something, yeah.”
After that line, she blew me a kiss. I felt like my feet lifted off the floor, and I was grinning big-time. My heart was beating like crazy. What was happening?
And the chorus got everyone feeling the same way too.
“I like me better when I'm with you
I like me better when I'm with you
I knew from the first time, I'd stay for a long time, 'cause
I like me better when, I like me better when I'm with you.”
I sang,
“Stay awhile, stay awhile
Stay here with me
Stay awhile, stay awhile, oh.”
We both reached out to hold hands, and we sang and danced the rest of the song. Everyone joined in, and we were having so much fun. After the whole thing ended, Liv pulled out her phone.
“This is going on my Insta,” she said, clicking a selfie, and tagging it #ilikemebetter. This was probably getting lots of attention.
And I couldn’t help but stare at the part in the selfie where Tana was smiling, but her eyes weren’t. They were sadder than they could’ve ever been.
4. Angela Sanders?
I call her by her full name if she’s somewhere she isn’t supposed to be. This happened rarely, and that time was probably one of those times, when Angie came inside YouTube studios, when she apparently had to be somewhere else: her friend’s home.
“Big bro, don’t start launching into a lecture. My friends unfriended me. In real life. Now, I’m going to stay at YT until your practice time’s up. There. Happy?”
It sounded like she’d snapped at me. I knew this stage.
“She’s crankier than Constance Contraire,” Elijah mused.
Angie shot him a look. Boy, she was mad.
“Angie.” I knelt down to look at her. “It’s okay, you can stay. I know that your friends aren’t exactly welcoming to babysit you when Mom and I are out for work.”
“How cruel,” Tana said as she walked in to see the commotion.
Angie nodded, then hugged me and buried her face in my shoulder. I knew what it was like.
After she left, I realised that was going to be a long-term surprise. I had to handle it well.
5. Recording Session
Reader, remember when I told you about how we shoot our MVs, but not our recording sessions? Well, you’re in for a treat. We’re describing our recording sessions today!
The song was ‘Permission to Dance’ by BTS. They’re awesome. All of the girls love BTS, for sure. Tana even carries BT21 stationery around (and I wouldn’t say I didn’t give her those).
So, I got a part of the solo. And here’s how it went that day: each of us walked in the recording cubicle, recorded our part, and then went out to let the other kid in. Then, Mr. Bowers and the sound guys edit the whole track, and voila, you’ve got a JPK song.
I went in recording first, with the first part.
“It's the thought of being young
When your heart's just like a drum
Beating louder with no way to guard it.”
I wore headphones, so that the sound guys told me what to do. After that line, they hummed the part which I’m not supposed to sing. After humming the rest of the verse and a little bit of the bridge, they told me to start from there:
“Just dream about that moment
When you look yourself right in the eye, eye, eye
Then you say—”
Chorus time!
“I wanna dance, the music's got me going
Ain't nothing that can stop how we move, yeah
Let's break our plans and live just like we're golden
And roll in like we're dancing fools
We don't need to worry
’Cause when we fall, we know how to land
Don't need to talk the talk, just walk the walk tonight
’Cause we don't need permission to dance!”
Then, I stopped, and let the sound guys hum the part I shouldn’t sing. That went for the second verse and bridge. I repeated the chorus again, and then there was more:
“Da-na-na-na-na-na-na, da-na-na-na-na-na-na
Da-na-na-na-na-na-na
No, we don't need permission to dance
Da-na-na-na-na-na-na, da-na-na-na-na-na-na
Da-na-na-na-na-na-na...”
And then I stopped for two more lines, sound guys hummed it over.
“’Cause it's not over
Till it's over, say it one more time, say!”
Chorus again, but without any riffs. You see, riffs are edited into the song in post-production, before we shoot the music video. Those happen in the last, like that time. After I was done, it was Tana’s turn. We wished her luck.
We could hear our recording from outside the cubicle. Not totally clear, but enough. I could very much hear Tana’s, and her singing voice is quite different from what Jr. Pop was normally like. While we had peppy voices, hers was smooth, flowing like a river. It was like velvet, maybe even added a bit of jazz to even the most pop. That was one of the things I liked about her. She was singing some of my missing parts, as well as the chorus, too.
“When it all seems like it's wrong
Just sing along to Jr. Pop
And to that feeling, we're just getting started—”
Bridge.
“When the nights get colder
And the rhythms got you falling behind...”
Pause. I guessed they were my lines she had to hold for.
“Then you say—”
I liked this girl more than I cared to admit. She launched into the chorus like a snap of the fingers.
“I wanna dance, the music's got me going
Ain't nothing that can stop how we move, yeah
Let's break our plans and live just like we're golden
And roll in like we're dancing fools
We don't need to worry
’Cause when we fall, we know how to land
Don't need to talk the talk, just walk the walk tonight
’Cause we don't need permission to dance!”
That went for the rest, and for the rest of the JPKs. Afterwards, the soloists had to add riffs. When that was done, the sound team edited the recordings, and made the JPK song. And then, a few days later, we shot the music video.
This, reader, is a typical recording session in a studio. A JPK studio.
6. My Little Secret
Narrative Continued by Tana
I had secrets, of course. Maybe all of them dissolved when I joined Jr. Pop. Not one. That secret, however—well, it didn’t exactly contain matters of life and death, but after Dad’s decision to move away, it might as well could.
Nobody tried prying it out of me, thankfully, until Angela came along. Don’t get me wrong, she’s nice, but she’s Trevor’s sister. That sometimes got me nervous, ‘cause those two don’t even hide secrets. If I told her mine, would she tell him?
“Tana,” she said one day, plopping down next to me. We were in the dance room, where no one else was. ”What’s up with you?”
“Nothing,” I said. But she could see through me.
“Tana, do you like my brother?”
She just asked it, straight out. I didn’t want to tell, so I kept quiet.
“I won’t tell anyone,” she promised.
“How do I know that?”
“Cross my heart and hope to die?”
That answered it, but I had a condition.
“Angela, I’ll tell. I do like him, a lot. But, before you go, you have to tell me something.”
“What?”
“What about Trevor?”
She smiled, as if she wanted to say it for a long time. “He won’t stop talking about you. When we ask him about recording, he’ll just quickly say good and go on and on about how you did.”
I blushed. I was the talk of the table?
“Also, he likes you too. Maybe more than he cares to admit. I see him scrolling through your shots with him. Sometimes, he’ll run his fingers along your hair and look sad.”
“Do you know why?”
“Of course I do. I know you’re moving away.”
Her face grew solemn. “Tana, I used to think my brother had the biggest heart a person could have. But when you came into his life, you made it grow even more. I’m wishing on all of the stars that before you go, his heart gets too big it bursts and he spills to you all of his feelings. We’ve never seen him madly in love like this. You are making it happen.”
I would’ve felt nice, but instead, tears came to my eyes. I think back to sixth grade, in the cafeteria. Where would I be if I hadn’t introduced myself to them? Maybe I’d still be slaving away by living with my aunt and uncle. I wiped my eyes.
“Angela, you can tell him, actually. About how I feel.”
“No.” Angela shook her head defiantly. “If it’s coming from me, it’s not gonna work. You have to tell him yourself.”
“Can you give him a hint? Please?”
She rolled her eyes. “I suppose you’re also madly in love. Don’t worry, I won’t hold it against you. And tell your dad he’s a fine guy. I would know it myself.”
I shoved at her, but accepted what she said. And I hope she’d do it.
I needed her to.
7. You’re Back?
Narrative Resumed by Trevor
I couldn’t believe who I saw when I looked at the entrance door to YT Studios.
“Tom?”
I rushed to hug him. He squeezed back, like a total bro.
“What are you doing here?” I asked him.
“I have a business.” He grinned.
“Dude, you’re twelve.”
“I’m gonna be thirteen in a few months.”
“What I meant to say is, twelve-year-olds don’t have businesses.”
“Who says so? I was in Jr. Pop, wasn’t I? Now, I’m manager for many kid performers around here. Help them get gigs and everything. And, if you were wondering, no, it’s not for the money. Just because of their age, they can’t do what they want to. I’m helping them fulfil their dream.”
“That’s amazing!” I slapped him on the back.
“Oh, and I’ve got more news. Tam’s working with me!”
“Wow, really? She’s part of your firm?”
“Yeah. She’s handling makeup and costumes, the presentation part, mainly. What’s more, we also have good terms with Egan, so more and more kids are accepting. More dreams are coming true!”
“Wow!”
“Yeah, and that’s just not the only news. We, are, uh...”
There, Thomas’ face turned red. The same way mine used to.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Tamira—Tammy—and I...we’re dating.”
I was stunned. I had been worrying about how to tell Tana about my feelings, but on the other hand, Tom and Tam had everything said. It actually hurt a little.
“That’s cool, buddy. How long?”
“Oh, ever since we retired became former JPKs. After filing paperwork, Tammy took me out and told me some things that lifted my heart so high, it could’ve reached space. I knew then that I had found someone who’s gonna stick by my side, no matter what.” He smiled at the ground.
But I had felt glum. I wished me and Tana had been in place of those two. Not that I hated them for it—I wouldn’t do that. They were my friends. But it just made me think that I had to stop being chicken and do what I should.
Tom noticed how I felt. “Dude, you okay?”
I shook my head.
“I know about you and Tana, and about her moving away. Apparently, Tammy talked over the phone with her, and she then told me. I shouldn’t have said that stuff. I knew it would only make you feel worse.” He felt bad about that.
“Dude, I can handle it just fine,” I said, although that wasn’t true.
He shook his head, looking at the floor. “I still can’t believe it.” Then, he looked up at me, and I could see tears in his eyes. “Tana’s gonna leave New York.”
I swallowed hard, my eyes watering too. “Me neither.”
8. Tammy Comes In
Tom and I roamed the studio, talking about all sorts of things when we saw a brown-haired girl walk out of one of the sets, saying, “We’ll hold the jacket for you, Mandy, no problem. Makeup kit will be procured ASAP!”
“Tammy!” Tom called her.
She looked in our direction, and runs toward us, grinning. “Hey, boys! Trevor, how’s it going?”
I fist-bump her. “Going good.”
“I’m guessing Mandy Reese wanted to book one of your amazing dresses you made?” Tom asked.
She rolled her eyes. “Boy, aren’t you so flattering. But yes, it was a complete pant-and-shirt set in purple, makeup included.”
He took her hand. “Well, your costumes are always worth the trouble.”
“I’ll go and get the girls,” I said. “We’ve got a couple of new Jr. Pop Kids, and I bet they’ll be excited to see you.”
“Count me in!”
I went upstairs to our common room to get Tana, Wylie, Alana, Indigo and Liv. When I found them, I told them about Tam and Tom.
“Wow, that’s great! Are they downstairs?” Liv asked.
“Yeah, they are.” I nodded. “Have fun!”
When they went down, I stayed in the common room, and then, I saw a sheet of lyrics for a song. I picked it up and read the title. Man, I needed that sheet. I definitely needed it.
9. Girls’ Days Out
Narrative Continued by Wylie
When we met Tam, I felt really excited to see one of my friends turn into a young makeup artist and costume designer, and all of that on the label ’Kids 4 Kids’.
The next day after we met Tam, we stopped at her house. It was the first time Alana, Liv and Indigo met her, so we decided to take us girls out for a day on a lovely Saturday. Actually, it was more of Alana’s idea. I hadn’t gone on a girls’ day out, not even before my mom died. I guess I wasn’t the kind of girl to fuss about her clothes or her hair or anything. I’d rather be more concerned if I didn’t know my fight sequence. Yeah, that’s me.
But Alana was determined to make me look good. She’s a cool girl, and knows who I am in a persona kind of view. But sometimes, she suggests what I consider very drastic measures.
“So, what’s our first stop?” Tam asked when we told her about the girls’ day out.
“The mall! We can go and get the best clothes and accessories,” Alana replied excitedly.
“And what’s next?” Tana inquired hesitantly. She’s also like me; doesn’t worry much about her looks or anything. She was a little skeptical about the trip. “The salon?”
Alana looked surprised. “Actually, yes.”
“Then we show off to the boys?” I blurted out.
“Sheesh, you gals are good at guessing,” Alana mused.
“Maybe we should skip that last part,” Tana said. Of course. Trevor. Made sense, even though I was sure there wouldn’t be any problems. I didn’t know. Never been good at the ‘who-likes-who’ thing.
“Okay, suit yourself.” Alana shrugged, smiling.
We grabbed our bags and headed to the big mall at Times Square. Dad gave me enough money to buy stuff, but all I was thinking of was taking a look around and get a few things and that’s it. But when we reached the boutique, my plans changed. I was thinking of following what Alana was doing. Maybe it’s time I turned a little ’girly’.
We went through every section: tops, tees, pants, jeans, shoes, you name it. After we tried and selected the clothes we liked. I was particularly fond of the loose pink and black crop tops and sporty black-and-pink pants, both from Adidas. I think they became my usual style later on.
The next day, we went to the salon, wearing our new clothes. We met Alana’s usual stylist, Lindsey, who showed the rest of us around. Then, she sat us down in chairs, and asked us what hairstyle we’d each like. Alana asked for frizzy hair and ponytails, Liv choose straightening, Tana was up for braiding, Indigo wanted chin-length front cuts, and Tam liked a good hair-blower for wavy hair.
“Wylie, you should get your hair curled!” Liv prompted me.
“And a shoulder-length cut will suit you for that.” Lindsey smiled.
I shrugged and nodded.
First, my hair was roughly cut from just above my shoulder. Then, another hairstylist trimmed it to make it look a little neater. Afterwards, she used a curler and winded and unwinded my hair, so then all I had left were bouncy curls that made me look young and fun-loving.
But sometimes, a change on the outside doesn’t affect you on the inside. I was still the girl who wanted to protect herself, after losing someone who protected me.
10. Big Little Things
Narrative Resumed by Trevor
When I saw the girls step in after their girls’ day out, they were all newly formed with cool clothes and hairstyles. Wylie had gone through a major change especially, with her normally straight and long blond hair cut up and curled, making her look younger. I saw Elijah smile at her, too.
But when my eyes darted to Tana—I was lost. She was wearing tomboyish yet fashionable overalls, with a white shirt. Her hair was braided over and over again, and there were small flowers clipped in the loops. She looked beautiful. I felt like unbuttered toast next to her, so I nervously smoothed my hair, blushing.
When everyone scattered, Tana came in and sat next to me. My heart beat faster than when I was dancing, and even more when I felt her pinky curl around mine. I looked at her, and she smiled back.
The air was light. Our eyes locked. She leaned in. I closed my eyes, feeling Tana’s nose brush against mine.
Oh boy, was this happening?
But before it could, a loudspeaker announcement by Mr. B interrupted it.
“JPKs, urgent news! Fast!”
Mr. Bowers looked solemn. Mrs. Bowers was on the verge of crying. And what’s worse, it was Super Sierra who was with them.
When all of us reached, we immediately started asking what happened.
“Big little things…” Mrs. B whispered.
“The Monites and Mr. Cunningham are back,” Sierra said, pulling her hat down and holding it in her hand, a gesture of being sorry by the police. “A single thumbprint of Neil Monite was found outside the jailhouse. It was fresh, so it’s evidence that they recently escaped.”
“I’m very worried now.” Mr. B, visibly shaken, placed a hand on Tana’s shoulder. “Honey,” he said to her, “we may have to move sooner than we thought.”
Everyone was in shock. No, they couldn’t leave so soon.
Could they?
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