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Editor Note: The images used for this story were purchased and used under royalty-free license* from iStockphoto.com . ~Sephrena
Author Note: Please email me at AngelJediGirl (at) gmail (dot) com before posting this story to any other site. Posting to a pay site is prohibited.

Comments and suggestions are also welcome at the above email address.

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Sarah Carerra Book 3: Concerto in A-

Chapter 3.32 - Repercussions

"Did you have to kiss George?" was the first thing Austin said to me as I exited my room Monday morning.

"What?" I asked, confused. I hadn't kissed anyone.

"Yesterday," he explained. "As you were going to the awards show. You kissed George. He won't shut up about it now."

"Oh," I replied, remembering the kiss I gave him as I passed. I tried to stifle the giggle that came with the memory because of the look on Austin's face, but I was unsuccessful.

"It's not funny!" he complained immediately. "He's telling everyone he knows! It's annoying."

"I'm sorry," I told Austin and moved toward the kitchen for breakfast. "I was just having a bit of fun. I didn't mean anything by it."

"Well you shouldn't have done it," he said seriously as I grabbed a bowl and started pouring some cereal. "I'm going to have to listen to him tell the story for weeks now!"

I was laughing again, which didn't help.

"Stop laughing!" he complained again. I tried to stop, honestly I did, but it just didn't seem like that big of a deal to me.

Eventually I stood up, and without saying anything I walked into Sarah's room and pulled a couple of pictures out of one of my albums before returning to the kitchen. I placed the pictures on the table next to him before sitting back down.

"That should take him down a peg or two," I told Austin.

He picked up the pictures and looked through them for a minute. Then an evil grin spread across his face that had me laughing again.

"I didn't know you had these!" he finally exclaimed, pointing to the pictures of Sarah and him on the midway at the Indiana State Fair. We had spent the whole afternoon together. At the time I had been sad that I had to wear the wig as we rode the rides, but now it seemed advantageous. The one I knew would really help was the one where I was hugging him. It wasn't a kiss, but the two of us were sitting in a roller coaster car while we waited for the ride to start. I hadn't been able to help myself and posed for the picture that either Cole or Mason had taken. They might be my bodyguards, but they certainly came in handy when I needed a picture taken.

"Does that make up for the kiss?" I asked.

The gleam in his eye was the perfect answer.

* * *

I was in the school cafeteria with Emily as lunch period was ending. The rest of my friends had already left to get ready for their next classes. I was absently finishing my lunch while we talked, but most of my attention was focused on my phone. I was looking at the current top selling singles, and like most of the morning, 'Your Time Will Come' was sitting at the top of the list!

The song was only my fourth single, but it had taken just 37 minutes from the time it was released this morning until it hit the top of the list! I knew that debuting the song in front of millions of viewers like I had yesterday would likely increase its sales, but I wasn't prepared for such a response!

I wasn't the only one who had debuted a song last night, but it was apparent that I had already won the post-show sales contest. Each of the other three debut songs were trailing my own.

"Have you seen this?" Emily asked, breaking my concentration on my phone.

"Seen what?" I asked while glancing over at her.

"This," she unhelpfully added while pointing to her phone. Then she handed me the phone, which helped me to understand what she was asking about.

I stared at the screen for a moment in shock! I couldn't understand how anyone could say such a thing! It didn't make any sense!

"Don't tell Ethan," escaped my mouth eventually.

"He's going to find out eventually," Emily replied. "It's all over the news."

"How?" I asked. "How on earth could they think that Sarah and Xander are a couple?"

"Well it says right here," Emily responded while taking her phone back. She scrolled through the page for a bit before reading. "Both Sarah and her long-time friend Xander Dailey were seen giving lovey-dovey looks at each other last night. They were also seen holding hands on a number of occasions."

"Yes, we held hands!" I exclaimed, but trying to keep quiet so nobody around us would hear the conversation. "But it didn't mean anything, and I never, ever gave him a 'lovey-dovey' look!"

"Well, whatever it was, the rumor is out there," Emily replied, and she had an odd look on her face. I was sure she felt as distraught as I did about this news. I didn't know how Ethan would take it. I knew he didn't have any feelings for me. He had made that clear earlier in the summer. I thought he was a great friend, and I'd had a lot of fun with him last night, but I wasn't in love with him!

"This sucks," I told her. "I don't want rumors about Sarah to ruin my friendship with him! Last night was so much fun, and I don't want it spoiled!"

"It won’t ruin your friendship," Emily told me. "I promise. Ethan is better than that."

"I hope so," I said. "I really do."

* * *

There was nobody in front of the Olympic Records building when I pulled into the parking lot after school. I smiled at the small reprieve, and quickly parked, grabbed my guitar case, and headed inside before my luck changed. I had previously thought that I would have this week off to enjoy Thanksgiving with my family before I would start work on the Christmas concert, but I was too much in demand for that.

Today I was going to be working with my band to finish and record the song I was writing for the movie. I had initially named the song 'Fly Away', referencing the wife's point of view when her husband goes off to work.

When I entered the large recording studio that had been set aside for my use, I smiled immediately at all of the friendly faces that greeted me. It had been about a month since my concert at my school, and I had only seen my band members a couple of times at meetings about the Christmas concert since then. This would be the first real work we would do together since the end of the concert tour.

"Hi guys!" I quickly greeted them excitedly.

"Hi, Sarah," Sophie replied immediately and even gave me a friendly hug. I had missed working with them, but I was starting to get excited once more at the prospect. The other band members greeted me similarly, and I turned my attention to the other two individuals in the room with us.

"I know I'm in good hands when you’re behind the board," I told Scott, who smiled back happily. "And Jennifer, it's nice to have you with us today," I greeted Jennifer Rainier, the sound editor from the movie.

"I'm thrilled to be here," Jennifer replied. "I'm guessing that not many people get to see you recording. I think it will be a nice experience."

"Sarah, show us what you've got," Scott said. It was just like him to get us straight to business. After all, we had a lot of work to do.

"Okay," I said and placed my guitar case down and retrieved Sparkle from inside. I pulled the strap over my head and then took a seat on the couch. I saw Scott flip a few switches on the control panel, and I knew he was recording this. "This song is about a superhero who leaves his wife and heads out to save the world every day," I told the assembled crowd. "I call it 'Fly Away'."

I started strumming my guitar immediately; playing the short chord that had enamored Jennifer at our first meeting. I then repeated it a few times with slight variations before I started singing the first verse. I sang about how the wife felt when she watched her husband leave each morning. It talked about the pride she felt for him, and how even if she didn't know what he really did, she still believed he was saving the world.

When I started the chorus I sang about how the wife had fallen in love with him the first time he left for work. But most importantly, it talked about how she would always be waiting for him to return.

I was really proud of the song. It hadn't been written in my normal manner, because the idea had been given to me by the movie producers instead of coming from my own experiences. But I had still managed to create a piece that accomplished everything I wanted it to. It was distinctly my song, but hopefully it would give the movie producers what they wanted.

"That is fabulous!" Jennifer stated with glee when the song was over. "I knew this was a good idea!"

"Thank you," I said while chuckling at her enthusiasm. The band was also smiling with amusement.

"Although," Jennifer stated, and I instantly prepared myself for all the revisions that she wanted. "Could we change the second verse slightly? If we did I think we can get it to tie into the movie better."

"What did you have in mind?" I asked.

The next half hour was spent tweaking the song to her liking. I managed to give her what she wanted without changing the song too much. In the end we were both happy with the final product.

Jennifer remained as I worked with the band to add the other instruments into the song. She was surprised at how much input I accepted from the band during this process, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Each of the members in my band was a specialist in instruments I didn't know how to play, and they were instrumental in helping me create the sound I wanted. Sometimes that meant changing my ideas of what I wanted out of my songs to accommodate them and their ideas, but it always led to something better.

After we had finished and Jennifer had left, we were still talking and catching up with each other.

"Are you guys doing anything fun for Thanksgiving?" I asked them.

"Just spending it with my family," Holly said, and the others voiced similar plans.

"Well, I hope you all have a good time," I told them truthfully. "I'm excited to get back into the studio and then prepare for another concert. But I want you all to rest and relax this week."

"Oh, we will," Stacy stated before looking at the other guys in the band. They all started laughing at some inside joke, or some plan that they had. They didn't seem to want to share, though.

"I'll see you guys on Monday," I told the girls.

"It should be interesting," Holly stated, referring to the fact that we would be in a recording studio with the entire Chorus from my school. I had to agree with her. I had never been in a recording studio with that many people, and I hoped that we could easily record the songs we'd be singing. The band would be recording the music beforehand, leaving only the girls and I to weather the chaos that Monday would likely bring.

"Oh!" I said remembering the other thing I wanted to talk to them about. "What about the other thing we discussed?" I asked the two girls.

"I'm not opposed to it," Sophie said, and Holly nodded her head in agreement. The two of them had begun practicing with the members of Chorus, and that gave them a good idea of what the future would hold.

"Okay," I said. "She'll be here when we record. We can talk about it then."

"Alright, Sarah," Sophie replied. "Have a Happy Thanksgiving!"

"You too!" I replied, and then I waved as I left the studio, smiling.

* * *

I was nearly home when I passed a house I had never noticed before, but the girl sitting out front caught my eye. I knew that Amber Hartfield lived somewhere near me, but I didn't realize that she was basically down the street. She was sitting on her porch, and I couldn't tell for sure, but it looked like she had been crying.

Before I even realized what I was doing I had pulled my car over to the curb. She looked up quizzically, and when she recognized me as I stepped out of my car she looked almost like she was about to die. As I approached I could see that she had been crying, and I knew that meeting Sarah under those circumstances was not what she wanted to do.

"Amber, right?" I asked as I approached. "Amber Hartfield?"

"Yeah," she said, sniffling and trying to look like she hadn't been crying.

"Are you okay?" I asked her. She didn't look okay.

"No," she said and I could see the strain on her face that came with her attempt to keep herself from bursting into tears again.

I nodded, and then I sat down next to her on the porch.

"Want to tell me about it?" I asked her next. "Perhaps I can help."

She turned and stared at me for a moment. I knew that she couldn't figure out why I was there. She was at one of her lowest moments, and Sarah Carerra had just pulled up to her house and sat down beside her!

"It's just," she started, but the dam broke and she started sobbing. I placed my hand comfortingly on her arm, and that just caused her to sob more. I let her continue. I allowed her to work out the emotions she had been trying to hold in. I had been trying to figure out why Amber had such hatred toward me at school when I had never done anything to her. I suspected that it was more than just me that led to her behavior.

"It's okay," I told her a moment later. "I know how you feel. I've been in some pretty bad places before. But whatever it is, things will get better. I promise."

"When?!" she nearly screamed in frustration. "I can't take this anymore! My whole life is falling apart!"

I sighed, not knowing how to help her. She had accused me, Megan, of ruining her life at the Autumn Ball. I still didn't know how or why she thought that.

"My mom and dad are getting a divorce!" she blurted out before I could say anything. "It just isn't fair!"

"I'm sorry," I said. I couldn't imagine what I would be feeling if my parents decided to get a divorce. The thought was almost inconceivable to me. But I had to guess that I would probably be sitting on my porch crying too. I placed my hand on her back and rubbed for a moment. The act seemed to soothe her a bit, but she continued to cry.

"My boyfriend broke up with me," she continued a moment later. "He thinks he has a chance with Megan Campbell of all people!" she complained. "She's not even a real girl! How could he be in love with her?!"

I couldn't help but notice that as she claimed I wasn't a real girl that she continued to use feminine pronouns to describe me. That gave me hope that the changes I'd gone through weren't at the core of why she hated me; they were just the excuse she used to pick on me.

"Don't get mad at me for saying this," I told Amber. "But Megan is a real girl."

Her eyes widened as she remembered that Megan knew Sarah, and therefore that Sarah knew Megan. Then she opened her mouth to counter-argue, but I continued.

"I also know that she has no interest in your boyfriend, whoever he is," I said. I realized that I didn't know who Amber was talking about. I hadn't even known that she had a boyfriend, but I vowed right then that I would never agree to a date or anything with him if he asked. For her sake.

Amber stared at me for a moment. I could see the hatred she had for Megan in her eyes, and I knew that she was debating if the same hatred applied to me. After all, we were supposed to be good friends.

"I'm sorry," Amber finally said. "I know you and Megan are friends. But you don't know what she has done to me!"

"Then tell me," I told her.

"She..." Amber started, but then she paused to think for a moment. "She's the prettiest girl in our whole P.E. class!" she finally exclaimed. "She is like super in shape, she's always the center of attention, and everyone always loves her! It's not fair! That used to be me!"

I was shocked by the vehemence in Amber's voice and by her viewpoint of my life! I could now understand why she hated me so much, but it was all based on false assumptions.

"Amber," I started, and she pulled away at the tone of my voice. I knew that I sounded like someone who was going to argue with her, because I was. "Not everyone loves Megan."

Amber snorted, not believing me for a moment.

"I'm telling you the truth," I continued. "Ask Johnny Crawford or Mark Corbin, to name a few. I know for a fact that every single day that Megan goes to school she gets evil looks from more than one person. Some of the students don't believe that she's always been female. Some refuse to see what is right in front of them."

"You’re lying," Amber retorted. "Everyone adores her. Especially the freshmen!"

"Well the freshmen weren't there at the end of last year," I shot back at her. "They weren't there when she was beaten up by Jared Lumbart."

"She never got beat up!" Amber replied.

"Oh yes she did," I replied. "She had a bruise on her thigh for weeks from where he kicked her after he threw her to the ground. If it hadn't been for some other guy she could have been put in the hospital."

"That was last year," she said. "Now she is the queen of the school!"

I rolled my eyes. I don't know how Amber could believe that. I was far from popular.

"Look, Amber," I told her. "I also know for a fact that Megan goes to school every single day worried that somebody is going to bring up her past. She goes worried that somebody else will try to finish what Jared started. She and Jared seem to have come to a truce, but he has friends who are still mad about Jared's suspensions. Every day, Amber. EVERY day."

I said the last bit with conviction, and it appeared that Amber finally listened to me.

"I am not saying she is a saint," I continued. "Megan has her faults. But believe me when I tell you that she doesn't want to be your enemy. She isn't trying to ruin your life. No matter how you feel about her, you need to realize that she has never intentionally hurt you."

Amber opened her mouth to retort, but closed it again before saying anything. She seemed to be considering what I had said. I didn't know if it would make a difference, but at least she was thinking about it.

"I'm sorry for what you are going through," I told her again. "I couldn't imagine what it would be like if my parents decided to split, but I would probably be out here crying too. But it isn't the end of the world. I promise you that things will get better."

"How do you know?" she asked, hope in her eyes.

"I know, because I've seen it," I told her. "I wrote a whole song about it. 'Your Time Will Come' is all about how you need to look forward and find the happy things to focus on."

"But that was about your brother," she argued. "This is different."

"No," I told her. "It isn't. The song may have been inspired by some of the things my brother has gone through. But everyone I've talked to can relate to the song: I can, my friends can, Megan can. And you can, Amber. You’re beautiful, you’re smart, and you wield a lot of power at your school. Use that power for good. Find ways to be happy. Yes, what you are going through sucks, but you don't have to accept that. Use it to become stronger."

I looked into her eyes, and I could see some doubt in them. But I could also see the determination that was starting to grow. She stared back, and I knew that she would be okay. I knew that she was ready to grow.

"I have to go," I told her while standing up. "But I'll be in touch, okay?"

"Why?" she asked. "Why did you stop?"

"Because you looked like you could use a friend," I said, smiling.

She too smiled, and I walked back toward my car.

* * *

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