Making it Count
Yes, the title’s not fooling you, folks! It is the first book of the last series, ‘The Jr. Pop Diaries: Year 3’! Hope you like it, ‘cause there are going to be crazy things comin’ up!
1. Legacies
Hey, hey, hey! It’s Trevor, back again for our third year! This was the most important year of our lives because it was the last year for us JPKs. We also had so many secrets unraveled. But, I won’t bore you with a summary. Let’s jump right in!
2. New JPKs—And A Surprising Addition
“Can’t believe it’s our last year,” Tana said to me.
“I know, right?” I couldn’t believe it, either. I felt that the end was far away. But it was soon.
“What are we gonna do after this?” She asked.
I shrugged. “Dunno. But we’ll figure it out.” I put an arm around her shoulders.
She smiled at me. “I know.” But then, she frowned. “Hey, where’s your guitar?”
“Hey, I’m in the backyard of your house. I didn’t very well get mine.” I made that action as if to say, duh.
She giggled. “Okay. I have mine, but I’m not so good at playing it.” She ran inside her home and came out minutes later, with a guitar studded with stickers all over. Handing it to me, she asked if I could play something.
“Sure.” So, I strummed the tunes to Tana’s favourite, ‘Seventeen’. She sang to the beat.
“Oh ohh ohh ohh ohh ohh, ohh ohh ohh ohh
Oh ohh ohh ohh ohh ohh, ohh ohh ohh ohh—
”My daddy says that life comes at you fast
We are like blades of grass
We come to prime and in time we just wither away
And it all changes
My view with a looking glass won't catch the past
Only photographs remind us of the passing of days
Oh, nothing stays the same from yesteryears
See, I recall being afraid of the dark
And holding on to teddy bears
I’d wrap myself in blankets just to cover me from fears
That was then and now I'm here—“
”And the night is mine—
So hear me—”
My phone beeped. I checked it. It was a text from Elijah, and he said that the new JPKs have arrived, and we needed to head to YT Studios. I showed the message to Tana.
She nodded. “Let’s go, then!”
When we reached YouTube Studios, we saw that Mr. B was only present, along with our close friends Wylie and Elijah.
“What happened to the new JPKs?” I asked.
“Oh, yeah, they’re coming.” Mr. B checked his watch, then looked at the door, grinning. “Ah, here they are!”
I saw three girls and a boy walk out the front door. The boy introduced himself as Isaiah. A girl with brown curly hair said that she was Ahnya. Another girl which looked a lot like Tana, especially the signature black bangs, was named Julianna.
But the last girl was what made me fly off the ground.
“Angie?”
My sister waved to me. “Hey, bro.”
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“Um… I’m one of the new Jr. Pop Kids…” she murmured.
“Okay, fair point… or not.” I looked at Mr. Bowers. Did he have anything to do with it?
Or did I?
3. A New Friend
Narrative Continued by Angela
I couldn’t believe I had made it to Jr. Pop. I mean, I thought that I’ll probably get in someday because it was Trevor’s dream, and it was more solid than mine. But I actually made it, and just in time, as Mr. B had said. Apparently, the previous JPKs’ contracts were expiring next year, new kids were going to have to carry on the line of ‘sung for kids by kids’ music. I was excited to be a part of that line.
I met the other new kids: Julianna, Ahnya and Isaiah. They were all super-friendly and nice. Julianna was from Ohio, Ahnya’s home was Pennsylvania, and Isaiah was born in Washington, D.C., but he moved to New York City with his father.
We talked about general stuff, but I didn’t participate much. I felt more at ease without talking. Suddenly, I felt a hand touch my shoulder. I looked up and stared at the soulful brown eyes of Isaiah.
“Really wanna blow this joint, huh?” He asked.
“I guess. I mean, I don’t know if I’ll fit in.” I shrugged.
“Hey, it’s gonna be fine. For all I know, everyone likes you. Call me crazy if I ask this, but is Trevor Sanders your brother?”
“He is!” I nodded.
“So cool. Why wouldn’t anyone like you?”
“I don’t know. Probably because my mom works a lot, we don’t have a dad, and Trevor’s off with J-Pop, so my friends’ mothers had to babysit us, and they didn’t like doing it.”
Isaiah blinked, then snorted. “Dumb reason for them to say ‘no’. My dad and I are all we are. But rather than babysitting, I help him out in the garage.”
“Garage?”
“He’s a mechanist. I know how to work machines, too. I’ve been trying to design metal fight gloves so that I can protect myself.”
“Cool!”
Before we could talk more, though, Mr. B called for us, and when we presented ourselves in front of the current JPKs, I could see Trevor’s surprise. And suspicion.
Gulp.
4. Ocean Eyes—Literally
Narrative Continued by Elijah
My friends Trevor, Wylie, Tana, and I were excited to meet the new Jr. Pop Kids. And after finding out Angela, Trevor’s little sister, was a new JPK, boy, Trevor wasn’t so happy. I wondered why. He adored his sister beyond measure, and being the ‘only man in the house’, he looked out for her so much. And to see him get mad over such a thing was—weird.
“If there’s anything my family hates, it’s special treatment,” he said after the introduction, when we were outside sipping hot chocolate at a nearby café. “I think Mr. B just put Angie on the bar because he was desperate, and I’m her brother.”
“That is a derogatory accusation!” I declared.
“Calm down, Elijah,” Tana cautioned. She turned to Trevor and squeezed his hand. “Hey, I’m sure Dad didn’t have that in mind. Angie is good for JPK, whether you’re her brother or not. I know it, Trev.”
Trevor looked at her, then sighed. “I guess you’re right. After you came back, miraculously, I can’t imagine Mr. Bowers doing something like that.” He looked down at his cup. “Sorry, Tana.”
She kissed his cheek. “No harm done.”
I changed the subject. “I’m so excited to work with them, though. I have a feeling that our last year will be rocking!” I pumped my fist in the air.
Everybody stared at me. I sheepishly grinned and lowered my hand.
“You know, ‘rocking’ doesn’t suit you, Eli.” Wylie smacked my arm, but gently. “But I like it.”
I smiled back. “Thank you. And wait—was that a Toph move?”
“Mm-hm.” She nodded.
“What does the punch have to do with Toph?” Tana asked.
“In Avatar, Toph punches someone in the arm to express affection.” I rubbed my arm.
Trevor and Tana raised an eyebrow.
“Oh, come off it!” Wylie said, putting an arm around me. “Elijah and I are just best friends. Nothing else. This was just a friendly sock in the arm.”
“Yeah,” I mumbled. “Nothing else.” But I didn’t agree with Wylie then. I suddenly began to notice things I never even bothered to look. Her hair was looking shiny, and a scent of aloe vera shampoo drifted from her strands. And her face glistened brightly, too. But what was most striking were her eyes. I never even bothered to notice that! And then, I did. Her eyes were blue, like the ocean. Ocean blue eyes.
Ocean eyes.
5. The Alumni
Narrative Continued by Trevor
We got back to YouTube Studios on an urgent call from Mr. B. Apparently, he wanted to talk to us about something important.
“Look, as you kids know, it’s your last year at Jr. Pop, right?” He asked.
We nodded.
“So, there are some new things I wanted to try out for this year—with you guys.”
“Count us in, Dad,” Tana prompted.
“Thanks, sweetie. So, one of the new plans is that while you’ll still work with the new JPKs from time to time—“
I raised an eyebrow. Time to time?
“—you will be doing videos, just the four of you.”
It took us a minute for that to sink in. We were still going to be Jr. Pop Kids, but we were going to be singing and doing videos as an older, more mature quartet. I’d never heard of such a thing, and it was clear that the others hadn’t, either.
“Yeah, I know that’s a lot to spring on you. But there’s more, and this time, you’ll be on your own with this one.” Mr. B clasped his hands.
“What is it?” We pressed.
“You should start thinking ahead, of what you want to do after Jr. Pop. I suggest you guys become a band, of course. You’ve been through so much, and you’re tight, plus you’ve got talent. But to the part where I can’t help you: I obviously can’t give you the JP recording studio, and I don’t have a label, either. You’re gonna have to hunt for these things.”
We looked at each other, thinking of some way to fill that part. We all liked the band idea immediately, no doubt, but Mr. B couldn’t help us like he did.
“Maybe Tom can help us out,” Tana said. That worked. Tom was manager for many kids who were in the performing gig, so he could be our manager too and scope out labels.
“Or we can record under Egan, too,” Elijah said. “He’s helped us in a pinch many times.”
“I’ll leave this to you,” Mr. B said. “Tana, you get anything, text me. I’ll try a little harder too, but as far as I know, it’s out of my reach.” He smiled. “Good luck.”
“Let’s go through our options.” Tana pulled out her sketchbook to take notes.
“Well, we’ve got two,” I said. “One: Tom, or two: Egan.”
Elijah squeezed into the beanbag chair. “Well, I have my hopes up about both.”
“You’re forgetting something, guys.” Wylie, sharing the same beanbag with Elijah, sat up. “We need a name.”
“EliTreLie… Na?” I tried.
Elijah, ever the wordsmith, commented, “That is the most farcical name on Earth.”
“T-E-W-T?” Wylie tried.
“Doesn’t work,” Tana said.
I lay back into my beanbag chair, whacked. “This is pointless. We’re getting nowhere.”
Tana was also on the same beanbag as I was. “We should have something that signifies who we are.”
“Well, we’re Jr. Pop.” I threw a hand over my eyes.
“Or were, but that’s taken.” Wylie tapped her cheeks.
“Aren’t we graduating from Jr. Pop?” Elijah asked.
“Yeah, like we’re all alumni.” I imagined myself getting a karaoke mike for a Jr. Pop degree, and grinned.
“That’s it!” Tana yelled, with such force, I was propped back up.
“What’s it?” We asked.
“Our name.” Her eyes were shining in happiness. “We got our name!”
“What is it?” I pressed.
She smiled. “The Alumni.”
6. The Hunt
Armed with our band name, we headed to find Tom. We happened to walk in on him releasing from a kiss with Tam.
“I’m gonna pretend I didn’t see that.” Wylie stuck out her tongue, disgusted.
Tom laughed. “No problem. I thought you’d get used to it after these guys.” Tana and I blushed.
“An occasional one like them or in Avatar, fine. Not every second…” She covered her eyes. “If I have a boyfriend, I’m gonna make sure we don’t do that all the time.”
Elijah noticeably blushed when she said that, but recovered and spoke. “We need a favour, kind sir.”
“Name it.”
“It’s our last year in Jr. Pop, Thomas,” Tana said, “and we were thinking of continuing as a band afterwards, but we’re looking for labels. We’re talking to Egan after this, but we need to know if you can look for recording studios too, even if it’s just in YouTube Studios.”
“Wait, you want to go directly on recording? What about small gigs or performances at birthdays or bar mitzvahs or something like that?” Tam asked.
“We think we’re good enough to skip that,” I replied.
“If so, then you guys should start making videos first, or like, have a few covers ready.” Tom turned to us. “That’s gonna be like your portfolio. If I get a few guys, you have to present that portfolio, and then they’ll decide to take you on.”
“We can handle that.” Wylie was confident.
“Great. While you guys prepare your portfolio, I’ll start looking. If Egan agrees to sign you on, I’ll be your manager, and Tam will prepare your costumes. Sounds good?”
I nodded. “Sounds good.”
Tana, ever the planner, already mapped out a schematic for an approach in her sketchbook while we were on our way to EganB Studios. She said that she was going to handle social media and our YouTube Channel, Elijah was our lyricist, Wylie was our choreographer, and I was in charge of music.
“What about you? Don’t you wanna try something like our things?” I asked.
“It’s fine, Trev. I’ll be our chief organiser. And maybe marketer, too, though I think Tom will be better at it than me. I’ll just be checking you all up on everything.” Tana has the habit of shouldering a lot of weight all the time, even things that adults need to shoulder, but during her time with us, I think she almost always feels guilty that she puts us in danger every time. To make up for it, she helps out, maybe more than we need, but I guess she wants to apologise for the trouble, despite us telling her it’s not her fault, and it never will be. But she’s used to it.
When we reached Egan, we saw Ashlynn folding costumes and putting them in a box. Seeing us, she waved. “Hi, guys!”
“Good to see you too, Ash.” Wylie high-fived her.
When she saw Tana and I reach out and hold hands, she winked at me. “Didn’t I tell you?”
I laughed, thinking about the conversation we had in the laundromat, shooting ‘Little Bit’ two years ago. “I remember.”
“Is Egan around?” Elijah asked.
She nodded toward a side door. “He’s in there.”
We went in and saw Egan with his dad, Mr. Boristeps, A.K.A. Mr. B #2. We told them about our plan, and they intently listened. After a brief discussion with his father, Egan shook his head.
“I can’t, guys, I’m sorry. We’re getting tight these days. But we can back you up once we’re back on, if Tom hasn’t found another label yet.” He tapped his phone, and I heard the sound of a message sending through. “I’ve sent a list to him, though. These are some studios I know best. And they know who you all are, so there’s no way they won’t consider your portfolio. And you guys are going to get there.” He smiled encouragingly. “Trust me.”
7. Our First Cover
We started preparing our first cover for our portfolio, and after a lot of song-searching and debating discussion, we settled upon ‘Heartbreak Anthem’. Tana downloaded the karaoke for our reference, and we assigned parts for each of us. Mr. B also sprung upon the new first ‘Fantastic Four’ JPK song, ‘Yummy’.
“Okay guys, let’s start practicing,” Tana said, pulling out her phone to play the music.
Orchestral strings started, and then Elijah sang:
“Hello, it's me your ex…”
Wylie:
“I called to say not sorry, but I wish you the best…”
Tana:
“And I don't hold no grudges, promise this ain't a test…”
Me:
“We okay, we okay…”
Then all of us:
“Sometimes it works out but sometimes it don't
Maybe we'll fix this or maybe we won't
Sometimes a heart can sink like a stone
Until you find home…”
“This ain't a heartbreak anthem
I don't care what happened
But I ain't got no time to dwell on it
Don't wanna throw a tantrum
You did what you had to
No, I ain't got no time to dwell on it
And I don't wanna feel, I don't wanna feel hollow
Chasin' you and me, chasin' all of these shadows
This ain't a heartbreak anthem
I don't care what happened
But I ain't got no time to dwell on it—”
And the musical part of the chorus:
“This ain't a heartbreak anthem (Ooh)
This ain't a heartbreak, this ain't a heartbreak
This ain't a heartbreak anthem
A heartbreak anthem, a heartbreak anthem
(Ain't a heartbreak)…”
“And, cut!” Tana stopped the music. She looked at each of us in turn. “Sounded good. I think this will definitely work for our portfolio.”
Wylie drank some water. “Well, I’m bored. Let’s check on the new JPKs, see how they’re doing.”
We packed up and headed to the JPK side of YT Studios, and I saw the new Jr. Pop Kids practicing a dance session.
“Hey guys!” Ms. Gwen grinned when she saw us, and the kids turned to look at us. I waved.
“You better get some tips from them, they’ll help you out.” She gently coaxed them, but they were too eager.
“What’s the song you guys are practicing?” I asked them.
“‘Positions’!” They answered in a chorus.
“Oh, wow, that is such a good song.” Wylie hummed the lyrics.
“We’ll help you with the routine, y’know,” I said, getting ready to dance.
“We’ve got this. I know the number one rule—“ Angie rolled her eyes. “—have fun!”
I laughed as we were leaving. “See you guys!”
When we were out in the open corridor, Tana looked back in the room. “Angela sure is enjoying herself.”
I smiled faintly. “I guess she is.”
She turned to me. “I know you want her to be safe, but… you gotta let her live sometime. Let her have a life.”
I looked down, guilty. Maybe Tana was right. As much as I wanted my sister to be safe and happy, I had to let her go and allow her to forge her path.
And she had found the first steps already.
8. ‘Positions’
Narrative Continued by Angela
Our first song… I couldn’t believe it. ‘Positions’ was great. I had fun practicing with my new friends, the new JPKs. Ahnya, Julianna and Isaiah were super nice. I liked them all, and the four of us soon grew tight.
We hung out a lot, mostly at YouTube Studios. It was so cool to be among many YT stars, and we met so many of them and tried out stuff in their sets.
We were supposed to shoot the music video of ‘Positions’ one day, and we quickly dressed into our new Jr. Pop motif costumes. I liked mine: denim overalls with the ends as shorts, and a white Jr. Pop T-shirt. The overalls were studded with patches that showed peace, love, music, dance, and many other things that I couldn’t tell.
Our set was huge, too. Big red and pink floors and walls, plus lights in various colours. I was gonna love this.
For the choreography of this song, Ms. Gwen combined hip-hop and a new style, popping, to emphasise beats in the song. I knew hip-hop well, but popping was a new thing for me. Ahnya was the only one of us who knew any popping. However, I loved it the first time I tried it. The feeling of pulsing with the beat, like I was the music, made popping my favourite dance style of all time.
Isaiah opened the song with a popping sequence, mimicking the strings. Julianna and I followed with our routines, then Ahnya sang:
“Heaven, sent you to me—“
Isaiah:
“I’m just hopin' I don't repeat history…”
Then, me:
“Boy, I'm tryna meet your mama on a Sunday—“
Julianna:
”Then maybe take me out on a Monday (ah-ah)—“
Ahnya:
”Never need no (no), no one else, babe
”’Cause I'll be—“
All of us:
”Switchin' the positions for you
Cleanin' in the kitchen and I'm in the bedroom
I'm in the Olympics, way I'm jumpin' through hoops
Know my love infinite, nothin' I wouldn't do
That I won't do, switchin' for you…”
And the rest of the shoot went like that. It felt so good to record my first song. It was clear from the others’ faces that they felt the same way.
And I finally finished my first step as a JPK, too.
9. The Advice
Narrative Resumed by Trevor
I was surprised to see Elijah running to me one day of practice, worried yet hyper-charged.
“Friend, I need advice,” he said, panting, even though it was only a short distance that he ran.
“What is it?” I asked, but then Wylie passed us by.
“Hey, guys,” she said, smiling. I waved back, but Elijah didn’t say anything. I turned to look at him, but he was lost, seeing Wylie. He wasn’t paying attention to me until Wylie turned the corner and was out of our sight.
“Dude, you okay?” I shook his arm gently.
Elijah snapped out of it and turned to me. “Yeah, I am. And you saw why I needed advice?”
I coughed, trying to hide a snigger.
“It’s not laughable.” Elijah’s voice was more confused than annoyed.
“Yeah, but like, last time, I came to you for advice. And now you’re coming to me. I think you and I both notice the irony.”
Elijah nodded. “Fair point. But this is different. You have a girlfriend.”
“Oh, that’s where it goes.” I scratched my chin. “See, my advice? Maybe tell her how you feel.”
He swallowed hard. “Look, it’s not my fault that I might drop dead from shyness, embarrassment, or fear. Any other way?”
“Uh… I bet you two have some sorta connection.” I played my cards carefully. “See, Tana shares her secrets with me more than anyone else, and I’m the one who’s helped her out of many jams. Maybe you and Wylie have some kind of… interdependency or common interest.”
“Maybe.” Elijah tousled his hair. “Well, I’ve got to go. I have a haircut today.”
“Haircut?”
He grinned and showed me a picture of Justin Bieber. I gaped, pointed to the screen, and looked at him.
“Yeah, I’m thinking of a scene change. I might look more handsome, anyways.”
“Maybe.” I laughed and waved. “See ya.”
After the whole convo, Tana walked over to me. “Something up?”
“Yeah, just that Elijah likes Wylie, and he’s getting a Bieber-style haircut.” I folded my arms and shrugged.
“Huh.” She folded her arms, too. “I didn’t know Elijah likes Wylie.”
“Me neither.”
“Was it obvious?”
“I don’t think so.”
Tana shrugged. “Well, I gotta go. I have to talk to Tom about the labels.”
“We’re gonna get one, right?” I uncrossed my arms and looked at her, worried.
She touched my hand. “Trev, don’t worry.” Curling her fingers in mine, she smiled. “How about you teach me how to play the guitar after rehearsal today, hm?”
I smiled and squeezed her hand. “Okay.”
10. Manifestations of the Heart
“… and now try playing something,” I said, pointing to the guitar. For a while, I explained to Tana about the parts of the guitar, and I taught her a few tunes and chords. Then, I gave her time to try it out on her own.
Tana gripped the neck a little too tight, and she strummed the strings a little too fast, and the chords were a little too out-of-tune. Even she noticed it and stopped playing, dropping the guitar on the grass. Groaning, she turned to me.
“I can’t play this,” she said.
“Give yourself some time, you’ll learn,” I soothed.
She looked back down at the sticker-covered guitar, and sighed. “Maybe.”
The sky turned orange and pink, and we looked up. The sun was setting, and it was going to turn dark soon.
“The sky looks pretty,” Tana whispered.
I looked at her. “Very pretty.”
She blushed, smiling secretly at the ground. But her face grew somber.
“You okay?” I asked.
She swallowed, then looked ahead. “It’s just that… I keep thinking about whatever happened before…” She looked at me. “You know.”
“Yeah.” I knew. Nightmares of the Monites still haunted me sometimes. It was probably more harrowing for Tana, though; they were related to her by blood.
I scooted closer to her, my knee rubbing against hers. She still looked a little sad, and I saw her hand wander to her left wrist.
“Do you think they’ll come back?” She said, softly.
“I hope not.” I smiled hopefully, but even that withered. Thoughts of Tana’s past weren’t great to bear as a regular person. I wondered how Tana could handle it. She’d been physically, mentally and emotionally hurt by them, and she’d have to carry that burden around. It was proof on her wrist.
“I wish my real parents were alive, y’know.” She looked at me. “I wouldn’t’ve been in such a mess…”
“It’s okay,” I said. “It’s okay to wish.”
She gently squeezed my arm and laid her head on my shoulder, sniffling. I looked down at her, and laid my head against hers.
At first, I thought she was right, to wish for her real parents.
But looking back at it now, I realise the wish was a greater curse than the Monites. Much greater.
11. What?
“Guys!” Tom ran into the JPK section of YT Studios, grinning widely and waving a paper in his hand. “You won’t believe what just happened!”
“What?” Wylie asked.
He skidded to a stop and held out the paper. It was a contract.
“I got you a label,” he panted, smiling. “Future Music. I told them about you guys, and they agreed to meet you. You have something ready?”
“What?” We all asked this time, incredulous. Tom couldn’t get it so fast… could he?
“You’re not kidding, are you?” Tana asked.
He shook his head. “No! I even got the contract to show you.” He waved the paper in the air.
I stood, mouth open, trying to process the whole thing. There was still a future for us after Jr. Pop, and it couldn’t’ve come at a better time. I couldn’t believe it. I threw my arms around Tom and squeezed him like we were old bros meeting for a reunion. We all did, and it was a huge group hug.
“Thank you so much,” I said.
“Don’t just thank me. Thank Egan. Future Music was on the list that he texted me. I contacted those labels first.” Tom grinned. “And I am also so excited to ask you guys: do we have a deal?”
I bumped his outstretched fist. “We always had, buddy.”
Suddenly, the studio phone rang too. Tana went to pick it up, within earshot of us.
“Jr. Pop speaking!” She said excitedly. Then, she paused, listening, her expression thinning. “This is she.” I thought the folks on the other line asked if she was, well, Tana.
“No, I don’t recognise you. Seriously, I don’t.” Pause. “Uh…huh. Yeah, no, who is this?” She sounded stern that time. But her eyes widened, and she dropped to her knees. “How… how is it possible?” In the next words from the other line, her eyes slowly welled with tears, and a small smile formed on her lips. A tiny one. “Th—thank you. Good day.”
I rushed to her and squeezed her arm. “Are you okay?”
“Who was that?” Wylie asked.
Tana breathed shakily. “That—they were…” She looked up at me, eyes shining. “My biological parents.”
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