Caught Up in the Drama (19 page)

“Hey, Juan,” Angel said.

“What's up, girl?”

“Are you sure you're okay with me bailing?” Marcus asked Angel.

“Naw, you're good. You've been here all day and you did pay for the party.” I know Angel was happy about that. Up until a few months ago, she couldn't even get Marcus to acknowledge that Angelica was his.

“Cool, we have tickets to the VIP section of Jay-Z's party, and you know everybody's going to be there,” Marcus said.

“Hey,” Juan said, cocking his head and looking at me. “Aren't you Camille Simone? That singer from Sisco's video?”

Even though I didn't say anything, Marcus nodded. “Yeah, that's her.”

Juan smiled widely. “Dang, girl, you're tight. You oughta roll with us. I got an extra ticket.” He started bouncing on his toes. “Beyoncé might be there, and my brother works on her security team. I can get you back to meet her. You never know. She might be able to help you with your singing career.”

Meeting Beyoncé! Oh, that would be so off the chain. The thought was enticing, but I glanced over at my friends, who were all looking like they were waiting to see what I would do.

“You got four extra tickets?” I finally asked. “I mean, five,” I said, noticing Tyeesha. She smiled.

“Five?” Juan said, drawing back. “These tickets are one hundred and fifty dollars a pop.”

“Then I think I'm going to pass.”

“What?” he said, looking at Marcus. “Did you hear me say Beyoncé might be there? And even if she isn't, you can meet some pretty important people to help with your singing career.”

“Naw, not really feeling the singing thing.”

“There's bank to be made,” he said, shaking his head like I was the craziest person he'd ever met.

I glanced around at my girls again. The expressions on all of their faces told me they were proud of me. But even more so, I was proud of myself.

“Maybe so,” I told him. “But what I have here, that's priceless.”

“Awwww,” Angel said, coming over to hug me. My other friends joined her as I heard Juan mumble something about me being “crazy for throwing away a singing career over some broads.”

I didn't care what he was talking about. As I stood there in a big group hug, I knew friendship was more important than fame. I'd learned that the hard way. And now that I'd been given a second chance, no way was I going to mess it up.

Caught Up in the Drama

ReShonda Tate Billingsley

Camille enters a talent show to showcase her amazing voice at the urging of her boyfriend, Xavier, which surprises her three best friends. She blows the crowd away, and then gets a surprise herself: not only does she win the contest (and the prize money), but she also snags the lead role in superstar Sisco's new music video. Fame hits Camille like a tidal wave, and soon she is swept up in the chaos and drama that comes with being a celebrity, drifting further and further from her friends and her boyfriend. One friend in particular, Alexis, really needs her help: her parents' fighting has escalated and they're heading toward divorce, but Camille is too caught up with her new friends and extracurriculars to pay attention. At her wit's end and trying to save her parents' marriage, Alexis comes up with a plan to unite her parents in a family “tragedy” by running away. When her friends come together again to bring Alexis home, they finally confront Camille about her betrayal of both the group and herself.

1. Camille's newfound fame goes straight to her head, and fast. Why do you think this is? How can Camille be so quick to accept this new lifestyle and leave her friends behind? How do you think you would act if you were in her shoes?

2. Alexis's parents are fighting more and more, and things at home are becoming very stressful. How does Alexis cope? Have you or your friends had to deal with a divorce? How did you handle it, or help your friends do so?

3. How do the girls respond to Camille's new attitude, and how does Camille react to the girls? How do you think that reflects each girl's personality and her individual friendship with Camille?

4. Camille's boyfriend, Xavier, breaks up with Camille after seeing her kiss Sisco while taping the video. Do you think he was justified in doing so? How did Camille and Xavier each mishandle their argument? Discuss how communicating and being more honest with each other might have affected their relationship.

5. Camille knowingly gets into trouble with her mother because of the outfits the producer makes her wear, and especially because of Sisco's aggressive sexual behavior. How could Camille have been more assertive in protecting herself? Could she have done so without jeopardizing her role in the video? What choice would you have made in Camille's place?

6. A new girl, Tyeesha, becomes part of the Good Girlz when Camille is absent. How do the other girls immediately judge her, and why? How does she prove herself in their eyes? Have you ever judged someone based on appearance, only to discover that they are different than you expected? Explain.

7. Alexis thinks that her parents' divorce is her fault, and that she can fix it. Do you think that her solution to the problem made sense? Do you think she would have made such a rash decision if Camille had answered her phone call? When Alexis runs away, we see her interact with her old friends for the first time in this book. How is their friendship dramatically different than the one she has with the Good Girlz?

8. Camille lies to the Good Girlz when she falls in with a new group of friends, even when Alexis is in obvious need of her shoulder to cry on and her best friend to talk to. Why do you think Camille is influenced by these new girls, even though they use her? Why does she trust them more than the Good Girlz?

9. What causes Camille to finally realize that she has abandoned her friends? Why do you think it takes her so long to change her ways? Do you think she has really learned her lesson this time? How does she prove that to her friends?

10. Alexis, Angel, and Jasmine have a difficult time accepting Camille's apology. Have you ever found it hard to forgive a friend? How can they move past what has happened among the four of them?

11. The girls have known each other for a very long time, and yet Camille's fame still threatens their friendship. At the end of the book, how has each character matured, and do you believe their friendship has become stronger?

1. Many women featured in music videos today are ignored or disrespected. How do you think these videos influence the perception of women? Discuss with your group what you can do to empower yourself as girls and women. Discuss your favorite videos, songs, and singers that recognize women as strong and intelligent.

2. The book kicks off with a talent show in which Camille shocks her friends with her talent—they knew she could dance, but they had no idea she could sing! Arrange a talent show with your friends and show off your secret talents.

3.
Caught Up in the Drama
is the sixth book in the Good Girlz series. If you haven't already, read several of the others and discuss the series and the characters as a whole. How does each girl develop and grow? How does reading more of the books help you to understand the characters and their actions more thoroughly?

Don't miss the next Good Girlz adventure

Drama Queens

Coming Fall 2010

Turn the page for a sneak preview of
Drama Queens . . . 

Angel

C
ollege life was off the chain! At least that's the way it seemed as I looked out across the courtyard of Prairie View A&M University. There were people everywhere, laughing, talking and just hanging out. Most of the people were watching the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity do an impromptu step show.

Our recruiting guide said it was called “Hump Day on the Hill,” a time when all the students come together, dance, listen to music and just socialize. They even had a deejay showcasing his newest music.

“It's Wednesday and we like to celebrate to help get through the week,” our guide, a petite, pretty brown-skinned girl named Lauren said. She was leading us and about twenty
other students. “We do it every week, except finals and dead week.” The girl turned to smile at Miss Rachel, the sponsor of the Good Girlz, our community service organization. Miss Rachel had arranged this campus tour after me and the other four Good Girlz, Camille, Alexis, Jasmine and Tyeesha, expressed interest in visiting again. We'd come about two months ago and I think all of us were sold on coming to this college after we graduated in a few months. “And don't worry, it's not all fun and games,” Lauren said. “We wrap up Hump Day on the Hill with a prayer or a spiritual song.”

Miss Rachel nodded her approval. Personally, the prayer was all-good, but right about now, just seeing the groups of people mingling was enough to make me know I'd made the right decision—Prairie View was where I wanted to be. We had all applied after our first visit, when we'd come to the campus for a Girls, Inc. conference. So far, none of us had received acceptance letters, but I knew after today we all wanted to go here now more than ever.

“Girls, you all enjoy the show, I'm going to run inside to the restroom,” Miss Rachel told us.

We waved as she walked off, before turning our attention to a fraternity called the Que Dogs, who were stepping in gold boots and had dog collars around their necks. It was all pretty entertaining, then, out of nowhere, we heard, “So, you ladies enjoying the tour?”

I looked up to see the cutest guy I'd ever seen in my life. He was about six feet tall, sandpaper-brown with deep dimples and a head full of curly hair.

“We are,” Camille said, immediately moving over to shake his hand. Camille Harris was the boy-crazy one of the group.
She batted her eyelashes at him and my heart sank. That meant she was about to get her flirt on so he'd be off limits to me. Not that he'd even want me anyway. I was the shy one out of the five of us. I'd been told I was cute—this one guy even said I looked like a younger version of the singer Shakira—but the fact remained, I had a two-year-old daughter. These college boys probably wouldn't want anyone with kids.

“That's nice,” the guy said to Camille. “I'm Rico. My friends call me R-Train.” He adjusted his backpack on his shoulder. His smile made my stomach flutter. He had on a PV T-shirt and some tan cargo shorts.

“And I'm Camille.” She pointed at us. “These are my friends, Jasmine, Alexis, Tyeesha and Angel.”

We all waved, except for Jasmine. She was being her usual grouchy self. She'd just gotten through complaining about how hot it was, even though I could tell she was enjoying the campus tour.

Rico reached out as if he was trying to take Camille's hand. She smiled coyly as she stepped forward.

“It's a pleasure to meet you . . .” Rico stepped around Camille and took my hand. “. . . Angel. Is that what she said it was?”

My eyes widened in shock. Jasmine and Tyesha busted out laughing. Embarrassment covered Camille's face but Rico didn't seem to notice or care.

“So where are you ladies from?” he asked, still holding my hand.

“Umm, we're from, ah, we're from Madison Hi—”

Alexis immediately cut me off. “We're from Houston. Just checking out the school.” She shot me the evil eye. I'd
forgotten our pact that we weren't going to let people know we were still in high school during our tour. Although I didn't see what the big deal was, everyone on the tour was from a high school.

“Houston?” He nodded. “So, you're right down the road?”

I couldn't do anything but nod back.

“So that means if I wanted to see you again, I would only have a forty-five minute drive.” He looked at me like we were the only two people standing in the courtyard.

“Yeah, um . . . w-we . . . ” I couldn't believe I was acting like I was a blubbering fool. He was going to think I was so lame.

Jasmine, who, thankfully, knew me very well, stepped to my aid.

“What makes you think she wants to see you again?” Jasmine said, removing his hand from mine. I was glad she was smiling so at least she wouldn't scare him off. At six feet tall, with an athletic build, it wasn't anything for Jasmine to scare someone off.

“I don't know if she does want to see me. But I'd really like to see her again,” he said, still staring at me.

I was completely speechless. And for once, so was Jasmine. I think she was waiting on him to run some type of game, but when he didn't—he just stood there looking at me with those piercing gray eyes—she didn't know what to say.

“Seriously, I think you're beautiful,” he told me. “And no, I don't know anything about you. You might be a serial killer.” He broke out in a big smile. “But I sure would like to get to know you.”

“So you know that you'd like to know her even though
you don't even know her?” Alexis asked, her hands planted firmly on her hips.

We all turned to stare at her. For all of her money (Alexis came from a filthy rich family) Alexis couldn't buy a decent line. My girl was corny as all get out.

“Actually, I do,” Rico said, not looking the least bit confused.

“Well, handle your business then,” Tyeesha said, stepping up and playfully pushing his shoulder. She was the newest one to the Good Girlz and had fit right in. Her joking kind of broke the mood and we all laughed.

“Why don't you let me give you a private tour?” Rico said, gently reaching out, taking my hand again and pulling me toward him.

Jasmine snatched me back. “I don't think so, Brother Man.
You
could be the serial killer.”

He laughed. “You're right. I wasn't thinking.” He dug in his backpack and pulled out a piece of paper. “Let me give you my cell phone number. I live here on campus, but it's nothing for me to swoop down to Houston and pick you up. So give me a call. Maybe we can get to know each other over the phone—first. Then you can let me give you that private tour.”