Harker seemed genuinely disappointed.
Olivia sighed. It just wasn’t meant to be, she thought.
‘Well, we’re not going to force Ivy into doing something she doesn’t want to do,’ said Mr Vega. ‘Come on, girls.’ He started walking to the door.
‘Nobody’s forcing anyone –’ Harker replied and Olivia felt the tension rise.
‘Wait a minute,’ Ivy said, stopping everyone. ‘Let’s get together!’
‘Huh?’ said Harker.
‘What do you mean, Ivy?’ asked Lillian softly.
‘I mean, that song from The Parent Trap!’ Ivy said. ‘The actress in that movie wasn’t a twin. She acted both sisters’ parts.’
Olivia wasn’t sure what Ivy was getting at.
‘Why can’t Olivia play both parts?’ Ivy said to Harker. ‘You’ve already seen her do goth in The Groves, and everyone knows that she’s perfect for Carmina. Think what a great selling point that will be! One actress, two roles!’
Harker narrowed his eyes and looked at Olivia. ‘Can you be a green-screen queen?’
‘What does that mean?’ Mr Vega asked.
‘She’d have to act with herself,’ Lillian explained, ‘filming half of the conversations in front of a green screen, so they could edit it to look like she was talking to herself.’
‘I really want to try,’ Olivia said, feeling a flash of hope.
‘Dude,’ said Harker. ‘This could work. It could be my new promotional twist. All those rumours about a second actress . . . we’d trip them out!’
Ivy made her fish do a little happy dance and Olivia wanted to join in.
‘We’ll set up some test screenings for tomorrow,’ Harker said. ‘But I’m jazzed, baby!’
He shook Mr Vega’s hand, and then Ivy’s. Then he pointed at Olivia. ‘You go and be a star tonight at the awards. Did I tell you? You’re up for the Bright New Star of this year. You just concentrate on that. We’ll seal the deal tomorrow.’
Then it hit her – not only had she not lost the part, she’d won a second part, and she only had four hours to get ready for the biggest night of her life!
Ivy was seeing stars. She was sitting in a luxurious green room filled with celebrities.
‘I can’t believe it!’ she whispered to Olivia.
She was less than ten feet away from James, Joe and John from the Killer Bees. Joe was twirling his drumsticks in the air and John had a tiny button on his t-shirt that said, ‘Buzz off’. It was almost impossible to keep her cool. She’d been texting brags to Brendan ever since the band had walked in.
Today had ended up being a really good day, against all odds.
First, when they’d arrived, Ivy managed to convince Olivia that she really didn’t need to walk down the red carpet with her. Jackson had arrived at the show early to prepare for hosting, so Olivia had walked down the red carpet – the skirt of her gorgeous, full-length turquoise dress intact – with Mr Vega and Lillian.
Ivy had snuck behind the crowds to a roped-off area by the entrance. This was for people who didn’t want to face the cameras. She flashed her badge and was let into the building, with just enough time to glance down the carpet to Olivia. Her twin had been turning in her silver heels, looking just like a model. She’d had her hair pinned up in an elegant bun with chandelier earrings and all the photographers had been desperate to get her picture.
By contrast, people could easily have mistaken Ivy for backstage crew. She was wearing a black T-shirt that said Black Hole and black cargo pants.
After they’d met in the lobby, Ivy and Olivia had been shown to the backstage area while the adults headed for the audience. They’d passed a dozen B-list celebs, including the tanned guy from Shop Hopping and the dog-training lady from Barking Mad.
Now, in the green room, Ivy was perched next to her sister on a black leather sofa with snacks and drinks spread out all over the glass coffee table in front of them. Ivy couldn’t stop watching her favourite band.
James looked up and smiled at her.
‘Oh, my goodness. James just looked at me!’ Ivy scrunched her toes up in excitement. ‘Was that a smile? Did he just smile at me?’
‘Calm down!’ Olivia whispered. ‘What happened to unimpressed, goth Ivy?’
‘Well,’ Ivy replied, ‘she’s staring at the most goth-tastic band alive. It would only be right and proper to get a little weak at the knees.’
Then a group of VIP fans came in, waving autograph books, blocking her view.
‘Would it be unprofessional if I throw things at them until they move?’ Ivy asked innocently.
‘Don’t you dare,’ Olivia replied. ‘I’m nervous enough as it is!’
There were three awards before Olivia was supposed to be ready in case she won the Bright New Star award.
‘Whether or not I win, I have to make sure I keep smiling because the cameras will all be on me,’ Olivia said. ‘And then if I win, I have to make a speech and introduce the winner of the Brightest Star award!’
‘You’ll do great . . . especially with Jackson right up there next to you.’
Olivia smiled.
‘Olivia Abbott?’ called an officious-looking woman with a clipboard.
Olivia took a deep breath and stood up.
The woman nodded. ‘We need you in the wings by camera six until it’s almost time for the nominations to be announced.’
Ivy gave Olivia a hug. ‘You are the brightest new star, no matter what. Don’t forget, you’ve got something they don’t have.’