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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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Chapter 12 - The Pop Star, the Consultant, and the Wardrobe

“Can I come?” I knew that would be Emily’s first question. I also knew that the answer was going to devastate her.

“I’m afraid not,” came the response. Surprisingly, it was Julia who had said it. “I need S...Megan alone.”

Julia had talked to my dad, apparently. She at least knew that I was trying to keep Sarah a secret.

Emily slumped immediately, along with my mood. I hated keeping secrets from her. I nearly broke the big secret then and there. If my dad hadn’t been glaring at me, I would have.

“I’m sorry, Em,” I told her instead. She looked at me, and when she saw how upset I was, her mood brightened. At least she was aware that I wanted her to be there.

“It’s okay,” she said dejectedly. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

I gave her a comforting hug before she walked back out the front door.

“I can’t do this, Daddy!” I turned on him. “She’s my best friend!”

I was surprised when I noticed I was crying. Dad wrapped me in the same comforting hug I had just given Emily.

“I know, Princess,” he comforted. “But we need to establish your career before telling her.”

“Why?” I moaned into his chest. It wasn’t fair to Emily.

“You’re going to have to trust me on this, Megan.”

He held me for a few minutes, and let me calm my emotions.

“Get dressed,” he finally said when I released him. “We need to get Sarah’s wardrobe taken care of. You’ve got some important events coming up, and she needs something to wear.”

“Like what?” I asked him.

“Well,” he started, but then hesitated.

“Tell her, Don,” Mom said. I started to worry then.

“Tomorrow you have a photo shoot for the press kit Max mentioned yesterday,” my dad said. He hesitated before continuing.

“Tell her, Don,” Mom repeated. “She has a right to know what you did.”

I glanced at my mom. She did not look happy.

“Saturday night is the Tween Awards,” he finally said. “I’ve got another client who has been nominated for Best Male Artist.”

“And?” I asked, when I realized there was something going on I didn’t want to know about.

“He needs a date.”

“What?!” I screamed!

“Honey,” Dad said. His face looked pained. “This is good publicity! For both of you!”

“You could have asked first!” I yelled back. “I don’t know if I’m ready for that yet!”

“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “It came out before I thought about what I was doing. I told him about a new up and coming singer, and he was delighted to have you as his date.”

I didn’t know what to say! I was still learning how to be a girl! I didn’t think I was ready to go on a date! Especially on a date that was going to be so public!

“Who is it?” I finally asked.

“Josh Holliday,” my dad replied. I started to hyperventilate before the blackness encompassed me.

*  *  *

I came to on a couch I’d never sat on before, in a room I had never seen before.

“Oh good, you’re awake,” I heard Julia say. She sounded annoyed. “Come on, get dressed and we’ll get going.”

“Where am I?” I asked. I looked around the room. It looked a lot like the spare bedroom, but it had been decorated.

“Sarah’s room,” my mom replied. “Your dad had it furnished while you were at school today.”

I looked around again. He’d managed to furnish it exactly like he said he would. It was a small sitting room/dressing room combined into one. There was a flat screen TV on one wall, a large vanity on another, and the entire theme seemed to emulate the style that they had thrown at me the day before. The room was simple but glamorous, and definitely feminine. It seemed to scream teenage pop princess.

“Wow!” I exclaimed! I was truly impressed!

“Be nice to him, honey,” Mom said. “He was only trying to do what is best for your career.”

I thought about her words before I responded. “I know, Mom, but it surprised me. I mean, Josh Holliday!”

My mom chuckled. Josh Holliday was currently one of the most desired teen heartthrobs by girls 12-18. He’d topped the charts more than once in the last year. Going out with him on my first date did not seem like the easiest way to start dating.

“You’ll be fine,” Mom said. “It’s only for publicity. Nothing else has to come from it.”

I nodded and she kissed my forehead. “Now get dressed; you’re wasting Julia’s time.”

“Oh my gosh!” I’d almost forgotten about shopping. “I’m so sorry, Julia!”

“It’s alright,” she said with a friendly smile. “I brought you some clothes to wear.”

She handed me a package, and I opened it up to find another set of clothes. I started undressing my boy’s clothes immediately.

It wasn’t until I saw the shocked look on Mom’s face that I realized I was changing in front of two women. But I think she was more shocked to learn that I had been wearing panties to school!

I shrugged at her unasked question, and then turned to the clothes Julia had brought.

I quickly slipped on the snug white jeans. They were tighter than anything I’d worn before, but oddly comfortable at the same time. I then slipped into the bra and the tight yellow tee that was with it.

“You look excellent,” Mom told me and gave me a hug. “I’m glad you’re being more girly, honey.”

I blushed, but smiled back.

“I’m going to teach you how to dress, Sarah,” Julia interrupted our moment. I turned to pay attention. “The idea is to be simple glam.”

She waved her hand up and down my body. “For instance, this jean and tee set is very simple.”

She opened another box. “But with a few extra pieces, we can glam it up.”

She pulled a white vest out of the box. It looked very expensive. “Put this on.”

She handed me the vest, and I slipped it on. It too was quite snug, but it was light-weight. The vest was similar to the one she had given me to wear yesterday. It was cut slightly different, and the material had a different feel to it. It looked more casual than the other one. It had some blue striping to help highlight the vest, and seemed to work well together over the yellow top.

“One or two glam pieces, no more,” Julia said sternly. “That is rule #1.

“For this outfit, we’re using the vest, much like we did yesterday.” She reached back into the box and pulled out a pair of white strappy sandals with a slight heel. “These shoes are your second piece.”

I nodded and slipped them on my feet.

“See how easy it is to go from Megan to Sarah?” Julia asked. I nodded my understanding of the concept. “Take off the vest, and you have Megan again. Remember that if you need to make a quick change for some reason.”

I walked over to the mirror and took a look at myself. Megan looked fantastic. I always thought that Sarah looked much better, but I was beginning to realize that wasn’t the case. The blonde hair made me look more exotic, but my beauty was not diminished in any way without it.

I smiled.

“I’m guessing you wear a wig for the hair?” Julia asked. I nodded again and turned towards the table where we had been keeping the wigs. They weren’t there!

“Mom?” I questioned, looking at her for an explanation.

She smiled while rising from the couch. “The wigs are your most vital piece of the disguise, Megan. Your dad and I felt it would be a good idea to keep them hidden to prevent people from seeing them.”

I guess that made sense. She walked over to an armoire that was standing against one of the walls. I followed her. There was a keypad on the door.

“The code is 4357,” she said, entering the numbers. I heard a click and one of the doors opened slightly. She pulled it open and inside was the collection of wigs we had purchased, safe from the prying eyes of any visitors to the room.

“Wow,” Julia commented when she saw the collection. “You guys are really serious about this Hannah Montana thing.” Mom and I could only nod.

“Which one should I wear?” I asked Julia.

She thought over the options on display, before pointing at the one I had worn yesterday. “I think we better use this one until your image has been established. Once everyone can recognize you, we can start playing with the other styles.”

A few minutes later my hair had been pinned up, the wig was on, and we were on our way to the shops.

*  *  *

“I like this one,” I commented while picking up another “glam” piece. Julia nodded.

“You’re catching on quickly,” Julia replied.

Julia had driven us to a shopping area I had never been to before. It wasn’t Rodeo Drive, but all of the shops were upscale. There were a lot of designer shops and prominent names in every direction.

We’d started with the simple: tops, jeans, some dresses. She’d been adamant that a girl my age didn’t need to be showing off lingerie though. I was grateful to skip that piece of shopping.

Then we had moved on to the glam pieces. They were about as expensive as I thought they would be. I was glad that I didn’t have to front the cash for them, because my dad had done that. I was upset to learn he was going to take the money from my earnings until he was repaid, but as he told me, “That’s business”.

We’d even picked up a beautiful little black dress for the awards show Saturday. Thoughts about going on a date were still upsetting my stomach slightly, but I was excited to wear the dress.

“Thanks, Julia,” I told her when the trip seemed to be coming to an end. “I couldn’t have done this without you.”

“That’s what I get paid for,” she said with a smile. I frowned at the reminder.

“Look,” she said when she saw my disappointment. “You’re a very beautiful girl. If your singing is anywhere near as good as you look, your face is going to be all over the place in the next few weeks. I’m just happy for the opportunity to work with the next big teen sensation.”

I blushed, and noticed that a number of people around us had turned to look at me.

Julia noticed too. She seemed to enjoy marketing me about as much as Dad did.

“Sarah Carerra,” she made sure everyone around us heard my name. “You’re going to be famous.”

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