Caught Up in the Drama Read online

  The lights dimmed and the video started playing. There was a lot of oohing and ahhing and clapping. I got a little nervous as the video neared the end. Yeah, Xavier wasn’t here, but his boys were, and I had no doubt they’d be giving him a play-by-play account of what happened. And I’m sure they’d give him a hard time about the kiss as well.

  I tensed up when it got to the part where Sisco leaned in to kiss me. The girls in the room went wild. I could see Dee and her crew looking at me with pure jealousy. They weren’t hating too much, seeing as how they were here. I knew Dee was hoping I sucked, so it would give her something to talk about. I heard she’d been talking about how she should’ve been the one in the video with Sisco.

  Alexis, Jasmine, Angel and even Tyeesha giggled excitedly. I couldn’t help but smile—until I looked at the screen and saw Sisco lifting my leg and feeling on my behind. The part that he’d told me would be cut out hadn’t been cut at all!

  Both the director and Taraji were beaming because the crowd was going crazy. Although Alexis, Jasmine, Tyeesha and Angel were still excited, they were looking at me in shock.

  “Dang, you a video vixen for real,” Jasmine leaned over and whispered.

  I wanted to say something, but I heard a voice behind me hiss, “Camille Simone Harris, have you lost your mind?”

  I looked up to see my mom with her eyes wide in horror, her hand clutched to her chest.

  “Mama! What are you doing here?” I asked.

  She looked around nervously like she was ashamed to be seen with me. “I came to surprise you and share in your special moment.” She looked up at the screen as the credits rolled across. “I had no idea I’d be the one surprised.”

  I was so hoping my mom didn’t make a scene. People had already started gathering around me. Even though she was all religious, she kept a level head—most of the time, anyway. Something like this, though, would definitely push her over the edge.

  I lowered my voice. “Mom, that was supposed to be cut out.”

  She glared at me, and I could see the anger and disappointment in her eyes. “If I had known they were going to turn you into some little hoochie, I would’ve never agreed to this.” She eyed the people excitedly waiting to talk to me. “But we’ll talk about it when you get home.”

  She spun around and walked off.

  I didn’t even have time to be relieved before I heard a loud crash.

  “Boy, you know better than running around this place like you ain’t got no home training!”

  Jasmine groaned, and I immediately recognized her mother’s voice.

  “Is that your mom?” Alexis asked, peering toward the commotion.

  “Yes,” Jasmine moaned. The expression on her face said she was about to die of embarrassment. Jasmine’s little brother Jalen was getting loudly chastised by his mother. They had been running by the buffet table and had knocked over the trays on the end. A couple of waiters were now hurriedly trying to clean up the mess.

  “Man, why did they have to come?” Jasmine groaned. “It’s bad enough my mom is working as a waitress here.”

  When we’d arrived at Dave & Buster’s—with Jasmine’s two little brothers in tow—Jasmine had nearly had a heart attack when she’d realized the restaurant was the same place her mom worked her second job.

  “Where’s your grandmother?” Angel asked.

  “She had to visit a sick friend at the hospital tonight. So if my brothers didn’t come, I couldn’t come. Maybe I should’ve just stayed at home.”

  If I hadn’t been so worried about the video, I would’ve been just as upset as Jasmine. It was bad enough we’d had to bring her brothers along, but now people were looking at her whole family with disgust, especially when her mother started yelling, “Jasmine, get over here and mind these boys! You’re supposed to be watching them!”

  “Oh, my God, I’m going to die for real,” Jasmine said, trying to hide her face, which wasn’t easy, since she was so tall. Jasmine didn’t usually get too bothered about what people thought about her, but anyone in their right mind would be embarrassed at the scene that was unfolding here.

  “Jasmine!” Ms. Jones called when Jasmine didn’t move fast enough. Several people started snickering as Jasmine scurried toward her mother.

  “Just ridiculous,” Taraji hissed. I didn’t even realize she had walked over to me. Before I could come to Jasmine’s defense, she broke out in a big fake smile and pointed at the two people next to her.

  “Camille, sweetie, I need you. These reporters want to talk to you. I told you you were gonna be a star!” she exclaimed. “This is Erin from the Defender and Isiah from one of Houston’s most popular blog websites and the Insite Entertainment magazine.”

  All my excitement had waned with all the drama that was unfolding around me, but I tried my best to fake the funk as I talked with the reporters. My friends backed away to give me the limelight.

  They asked me a bunch of questions, which were all easy stuff like “how did I feel about this opportunity?” But the last question threw me for a loop.

  “So, tell us,” Erin said, a mischievous grin across her face, “what’s really going on with you and Sisco?”

  “Huh?” I said, looking at Taraji. She had a big, goofy grin on her face.

  “Come on, give me an exclusive for the magazine,” Isiah urged.

  “There’s nothing to give,” I said in confusion. “I’m just in his video.”

  Erin turned up her lips. “Umm-hmmm. The way you two were heating up the screen, I know there’s something going on. How does it feel to be Sisco’s new girl?”

  “But I’m n—”

  “Okay, that’s enough,” Taraji said, stepping in and cutting me off. “We have to go. She has to talk with some more people. Thank you guys so much.” She eased me away.

  Part of me wanted to protest some more, but the other was grateful that Taraji had saved me. I was beginning to feel more and more like maybe I wasn’t cut out for this lifestyle at all. I looked around for my girls, but they were gone. I couldn’t even go look for them, because I was surrounded by all my new fans. I knew I was definitely going to hear about this later.

  16

  Camille

  After the crowd died down, I tried to talk to the director about why he kept the scene with Sisco feeling on me. He’d looked at me like he’d no idea what I’d been talking about. I knew right then that Sisco hadn’t said a word to him.

  “Camille, you know I am not happy,” my mother said. I was so lost in thought that I hadn’t even heard her come into my bedroom. She was on the phone when I’d gotten home. I was about to knock on her door, but then I’d heard her say into the phone, “I know, I am just so ashamed. Did Christi tell you everything?”

  I had eased away from her door. She’d been talking to her friend Mrs. Judy from church. Of course, Judy’s bigmouthed, messy daughter Christi had run home and told her mom everything.

  My mother was dressed in a yellow flowered housecoat. Half her hair was adorned with pink hair rollers, like she’d started rolling her hair and gotten sidetracked by the phone conversation. I was hoping she would just finish rolling her hair and go on to bed. Of course, I had no such luck.

  “Mom, it’s no big deal,” I said.

  She stood with her hands planted firmly on her hips. “If you were someone else’s child, maybe it wouldn’t be. Do you know I barely got in the door before Judy was calling to talk about that horrible video my child was in? I know she’s called half the folks in the church by now.”

  “That’s all you care about, how you look to your church members,” I mumbled as I stepped into my lounging pajamas.

  “Okay, you’re about to get smacked in the mouth,” my mother said. Despite always threatening to, she had never actually hit me in the mouth. Still, I had no doubt that she would.

  “I’m sorry,” I muttered, looking up at her. “It’s just that this was supposed to be the best day of my life. Now you’re mad, Xavier is mad. It’s just a
disaster.” I plopped down on my bed.

  My mother sat down on the edge of my mattress. She hesitated a few moments before saying, “Camille, why do you think I’m upset about that video?” Her voice was remarkably calm.

  I shrugged. “Because I’m kissing a boy?”

  She nodded sadly. “Yes, but most of all because you’re better than that. It’s bad enough that they have you looking like a hooker in those clothes, but then you allow that boy to feel all over you in a video that’s going to play all over the country. That is just disrespectful.”

  “Mom, I was acting,” I protested. She was making it seem like I was just out on the street letting some guy do me any old kind of way.

  “No, you were allowing someone to disrespect you. It’s about having standards that say, ‘I’m not going to let you degrade me or my body’—even in the name of music.” She sighed like she couldn’t understand why I wasn’t getting it. “You know, think about the young girls you mentor at that elementary school—what is it?”

  “Kennedy,” I said, wondering where this life lesson was going.

  “What type of message do you think those young girls will walk away with if they see you up on that screen like that?”

  I thought about it. They’d understand that it was just a video. I mean, I didn’t really like it but I figured Sisco’s fans would understand.

  “But videos are images. And images shape perceptions—how people see you.”

  My mom must’ve known I still wasn’t getting it, because she continued, “Why do you think I hate most rap music?”

  I frowned. “All parents hate rap music.”

  She exhaled in frustration. “No. I hate music that disrespects and degrades our women. That’s what that video did. I’m working hard to raise you into a smart young woman who respects herself enough to demand respect from others. And if you don’t respect yourself, how can you expect anyone else to do it?”

  “Sisco respects me,” I said. This conversation was really getting on my nerves. “Shoot, I didn’t even like him feeling me up, but what was I supposed to do?”

  “You should have voiced your disapproval. Your silence told him it was okay.”

  “I asked him to have that part taken out,” I protested. “It’s not my fault he didn’t. Besides, what’s the big deal anyway? Most people just listen to the beat.”

  My mother stood up, tired of arguing with me. “That’s the problem. You young girls want to just blame it on the music and say, ‘Oh, no one is listening to the words’ while the rapper calls you all kinds of disrespectful names. Then you wonder why you can’t get young men to show you respect.”

  She shook her head in pity, like she felt sorry for my generation.

  “Just think about what I’m saying,” my mother said as she headed toward my door. She stopped right before she stepped into the hallway. “And oh, yeah, I will be calling that video director tomorrow. You might not have enough respect for yourself to see something is wrong with that video, but I do.”

  I fell back on my bed. Being in this video was supposed to have been the best thing that had ever happened to me. So why was it turning into such a nightmare?

  17

  Camille

  I got the text, and all it said was Meet me by the gym lockers as soon as you get here!! Jasmine.

  Since Jasmine didn’t have a cell phone, she must have borrowed someone else’s to send me the text. That meant I couldn’t text her back to find out what was up. But judging by the exclamation points at the end, it was major.

  I was speed-walking toward the gym. When I rounded the corner and saw Jasmine, Tyeesha, Angel and Alexis huddled together, I knew something was going on.

  “What’s up?” I asked as I approached them.

  They slowly broke up their circle. “Have you seen the paper?” Angel asked.

  “What paper? The school newspaper? It doesn’t come out until Friday.” I wondered why they were asking me that. Everyone knew when our school paper came out.

  “No, the Insite, that tabloid newspaper,” Alexis said.

  “No, I haven’t seen it.” I broke out in a huge smile when I noticed the paper in Jasmine’s hand. “Oh wow, do they have something in there about me? Let me see it.”

  “Oh, it has something in here about you, all right,” Jasmine said, handing the paper to me.

  As I took it, the smile immediately left my face. On the front page was a photo of me and Sisco, kissing, his hand positioned on my behind. It was a still photo taken from the video shoot. The caption read, “Sisco’s New Freak of the Week?” I read the article out loud. “‘Sources say mega rapper Sisco has a new love in his life, the new girl from his video, Camille Simone, and this time she’s more than just his freak . . . ’ What?” I said, looking up dumbfounded. “What is this?”

  Everybody raised their eyebrows, but nobody said anything.

  “Where’d you get this from?” I asked.

  “Dee had it this morning,” Angel said. “She had a bunch of copies and she was passing them out to people.”

  I groaned in horror. Of course Dee would do that. “Who are the sources?” I asked, quickly scanning the article again. “It says I dumped Xavier after spending some private time in Sisco’s dressing room.” I looked up in shock. “Oh, my God! That didn’t happen! Why would they print this?”

  “I don’t know, but if Dee had it this morning, you can rest assured that it was just a matter of time before Xavier gets it,” Jasmine said.

  My heart dropped. Xavier. Now I would never get back right with him.

  “Why would they do this?” I cried.

  “I don’t know,” Alexis said, “but that looks pretty bad, Camille. Even worse than it did on the screen.”

  “Who are you telling?” I said, feeling the tears welling up in my eyes. I looked so . . . cheap, with his hand all over my behind. “There’s nothing going on between us,” I mumbled, “and this picture is just so degrading.”

  “Yeah, it makes you look like a hoochie,” Jasmine said.

  Alexis elbowed her sharply. “What?” Jasmine said. “It does.” A sympathetic look crossed her face. “I’m sorry, I mean, we know you’re not a hoochie. But that picture is jacked up.”

  I was just about to say something when I noticed Xavier and his boys walking toward us.

  “Oh, snap,” I said, stuffing the newspaper in my backpack.

  Xavier was smiling and laughing with his friends, which must’ve meant he hadn’t seen the paper yet.

  “Hey,” I said when he approached us.

  “Hey,” he replied. He was still a little salty, but at least he seemed in an okay mood.

  “Wh—what are you guys doing?” I stammered.

  “Ummm, about to go to class,” his friend Joshua said. “It is the beginning of the school day. What’s wrong with you? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

  “What? Naw,” I casually said. “I just—I guess I didn’t sleep too well.”

  Jasmine cleared her throat and nodded down the hall. I turned to see where she was pointing. Dee and her crew were sashaying toward me. And from the looks on their faces, they were coming to start some mess.

  “Okay, we’ll let you guys go,” I said too brightly. “You don’t wanna be late.”

  “Are you sure you’re okay?” Xavier asked.

  “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” I said, pushing him down the hall.

  “All right,” he said. “We’re out.” They had just walked off when Dee called out to him.

  “Xavier!” she said, purring his name.

  He stopped and turned around to face her. “What’s up, Dee?”

  “Nothing much,” she said, stopping in front of him. Of course, she didn’t bother to speak to me—or anyone else, for that matter.

  “How are you?” She sounded so fake.

  “I’m straight,” Xavier said, confused. “Why?”

  She shrugged. “I was just wondering how you were holding up.”

  He looked back
at his boys. “What do you mean?”

  “I just thought you’d be a little upset,” she said. She was really enjoying herself.

  “Why would I be upset?” He glanced over at me. “Oh, you mean about the video. I’m straight.”

  “Come on, Xavier, let’s go,” I said, trying to grab his arm to pull him away. I wanted to leave before things got too bad. “I need to talk to you.”

  Dee snatched the paper from her friend and thrust it at Xavier. “Upset about this,” she said, flashing the front page of the paper. I wanted to just knock her in her jaw, but I was frozen in place. It had to happen sometime.

  “Dang!” Joshua yelled, peering at the paper over Xavier’s shoulder.

  “I know, huh?” Dee said, all innocently. “Most guys wouldn’t be all nice if their girlfriend left them for a rapper.”

  “Dee, why don’t you go on somewhere?” Jasmine finally said, coming to my defense.

  “Okay.” She pushed the paper toward Xavier. “You keep that as a little token. And my number is written at the top in case you need to call me”—she turned her nose up at me—“and vent. I’ll be your shoulder to cry on.” I know she didn’t even want Xavier. She was just trying to get under my skin.

  Dee patted his cheek, then walked off.

  Xavier continued staring at the paper, dumbfounded.

  “Xavier, I—”

  “Did you know about this?” he asked.

  “No.” I don’t know why the lie was the first thing out of my mouth, but it was.

  Just then Joshua reached down in my backpack and snatched out the newspaper I’d stuffed in there. “So then why do you have your own copy?”

  I cut my eyes at him.

  “So now you his freak?” Xavier said, not taking his eyes off the paper. “And you dumped me for him? When were you going to tell me this?”

  “No, it’s not like that at all,” I protested.