I was up so late working on my new song that I decided to sleep in this morning. I'm so excited about how well the song turned out, maybe this will be just the push needed to get the others excited too! I head into the living room to find the girls. Aqua and Dorinda are there, but before I can even open my mouth to tell them about the song, Aqua hands me some new costume designs. I glance at them quickly. They look great and I make sure to tell Aqua that, but then I try to draw the focus back to the music. That's when my mom comes in to ask Aqua if she wants to sketch with her. Aqua runs out while Dorinda answers a call on her cell phone. From the look on her face, I'm sure it must be Joaquin calling. A few minutes later she hangs up with a big grin. She tells me that he invited her to go out to lunch. I try to calmly point out that rehearsing should be a higher priority right now, but she doesn't seem to care. Obviously this conversation is going nowhere…. I'm wondering where Chanel is, because usually she's around to back me up. I haven't seen her yet this morning so I ask Doe where she is. Doe tells me vaguely that Chanel might be outside before hurriedly running off to meet Joaquin. All I can do is shake my head and hope that Chanel is taking the contest more seriously than Aqua and Doe seem to be.

As I make my way out to the courtyard, I hear giggling. I turn the corner and see Chanel sitting on a lounge chair next to Marisol. They are singing and talking to one another in Spanish, interspersed with more giggling. My heart gives a sudden lurch as I notice how close they have become in such a short time. I feel a little sick as I approach them.

"Well, at least someone's rehearsing." I don't even try to hide the bitter edge to my voice. Chanel can't rehearse with the Cheetah Girls but somehow she's found time to sing with Marisol?!

"Hi, Galleria," Marisol greets me with a smile and a wave.

I force myself to say hello back, before turning to Chanel for an explanation. "This is actually one of Marisol's songs. She's just teaching me the words, you know, foolin' around. Two minutes?"

"Two minutes can turn into two weeks real quick. Don't you think?" I look pointedly at Chanel, then toward Marisol. "Marisol, look. I don't mean to sound harsh or anything (okay, yeah, maybe I do) but we're the ones who need to rehearse."

"Galleria, I was invited here. I didn't just drop by."

Chanel stands up and adds, "Yeah. And when do you tell my friends when they can hang out with me and when they can't? Obviously you need to go back to bed and, you know, wake up again. And give me my space."

"Space?! Chanel, we're in this space because of you." I can't believe what I'm hearing and my heart drops more with each word she says. I take Chanel's arm and pull her aside to continue the conversation with slightly more privacy. "Maybe you need to explain to me what's going on here 'cause obviously I'm not understanding. Are you choosing her over the Cheetah Girls?" Over me?

"Wow."

"Wow? Maybe you forgot the promise that we made. I'm only doing this for you." And you didn't answer my question. You didn't say no.

"Here we go again, always trying to control everything. Do you hear yourself? Look, you just need to chill. I'll talk to you later. Come on Marisol." Chanel grabs Marisol's hand and all I can do is watch as they walk away still holding hands. Apparently she IS choosing Marisol over me. My heart breaks wide open at this thought. I rush quietly to my room and burst into tears the moment the door shuts behind me.

I spend most of the day locked in my room. I cry until I feel like I can't possibly cry anymore, and then I make a decision. I need to leave Barcelona as soon as I can. I call my dad to make some travel arrangements, then I venture out of my room to find my mom. She's still out on the terrace sketching. I see her put a few final touches on a wedding dress design just as I walk up. I compliment her on the design and ask her about it. She tells me that she finally has a real chance to pursue her dream of becoming a big-time fashion designer. I am really proud of her, and I feel a little guilty that I'm about to bring her mood down with my news.

"Good for you mom! And I have something to share with you: I'm going home."

"You're what?"

"Yeah. Chanel has found a friend in Marisol. She has. They both speak Spanish, Marisol lives here, and I think she's gonna help her through the situation better than I can. I have to back off, Mom. I think if I, if I push her too hard I might lose her as a friend. And she's more important than any competition." I practically spit out the last word, thinking about how much I love Chanel and how unimportant the New Voices Competition seems in comparison.

Mom looks at me knowingly, and my insides squirm. Does she know? Nah, how could she… But she was giving me the same look on the airplane. Should I-

Before my thoughts could get carried away, Mom steered the conversation in a different direction. "Do you believe you can win this competition?"

"No ma'am. We're not prepared, we never rehearse, the girls' heads aren't in it. And I'm not going on stage and embarrassing myself." I am sad about the competition, because music is such a huge part of my life. Part of me wonders if my musical dreams will ever come true now that the Cheetahs seem to be falling apart for good. But the bigger part of me is worried about my friendship with Chuchi. I know that if things are ever going to be fixed between us, we both need time to think. It's best for me to leave now, and we'll try to work things out when she gets back to New York next month. I wonder if this fight has ruined any small chance there ever was that she and I could be more than just best friends. Can I still tell her how I feel? What if she doesn't feel the same way? It would break my heart even worse than it is right now. I don't think I could bear it. Maybe it's better for her to never find out, and I'll have to be content with just being her friend. IF we can work this out, that is.

I shake my head a tiny bit to clear it, then tell my mom about the travel arrangements I made. We talk a bit longer, but I am drained and she can tell. She gives me a comforting smile and says proudly, "I raised a strong girl." The declaration makes me giggle a bit and makes my heart feel the tiniest bit better. I give her a big hug and tell her that I love her. Now I guess it's time to go pack up my things.