Wow. Thank you all for so many reviews! It really had me inspired. :3 This chapter is a little slow, but trust me, it's necessary. I've already written the next chapter, but there's still one more after that. (Don't worry, they're pretty short.)
Thanks to all who reviewed, read, followed, PM-ed and favorited, and I hope you like it! Love you all.
...
Eva's father paced in front of her; her mother was perched on a chair.
"Eva," her father sighed, exasperated, "You can't just go places without telling us!"
Her mom interjected, "You are so irresponsible!"
Eva followed the pattern in the carpet with her eyes, trying not to scream.
Her dad calmly stated, "Eva, from now on you will tell us exactly where you're going, why you're going, and exactly when you'll be back. Okay?"
"Fine." Eva mumbled, knowing any other reply would only lead to more conversation.
Satisfied, he picked up the day's paper and settled into an armchair, while her mom gave him an incredulous glance. She cleared her throat, signaling for her easily distracted husband to continue.
He didn't however, so she spoke up, "Paul?"
He recognized the annoyance in his wife's voice, and snapped the paper down, "Yes, dear?"
She twisted her face towards Eva, "Isn't there something else you'd like to mention?"
Paul scratched his chin, trying to recall. A swift kick in the shin from his loving wife sent his memory off. Grunting, he addressed his daughter, "Eva, we need to talk about your grades. Why are you getting a 'C' in trigonometry?"
Eva rolled her eyes, "I don't know."
He sighed, disappointed, "Eva, you're smart. You just need to apply yourself! There's only a couple more weeks left in school, and we'd better see some improvement. Okay, let's go over the homework rules again."
After sitting through a stony lecture, Eva retreated to her bedroom.
You will never be good enough! Eva's thoughts screamed at her, her blood began to boil. Needing an immediate outlet for her anger, she dropped to the floor and began doing pushups. While she was down there, Eva noticed her decimated mp3 was still on the floor.
She crawled over to the mess, examining the parts.
Damn.
The fragile electronic was broken beyond repair; Eva would have to live without music for a while. She sighed, thinking about how many music players she could buy with one hundred thousand dollars!
Only a few more weeks, and she'd be on the set of Total Drama Island. The thought sent her head spinning. She climbed into her bed and drifted to sleep, thinking about her life after winning the money.
...
Terrance called early the next morning, saying he and Gavin had the whole thing planned out. Since it was a Saturday, the school gym was open for students to use, and they decided to film it there.
The school's dingy gym was perfect. The basketball nets were torn, and a new coat of paint wouldn't have hurt. "It'll show that you go to a shit school, and could really use some money!" Terrance declared, dramatically framing different shots in between his hands. She and Gavin just rolled their eyes.
The only others who occupied the space were a few little girls with jump ropes, and a small group of eighth graders playing a heated match of basketball.
Gavin struggled under the weight of all their equipment, "Terrance! I require some assistance!"
Eva was nervous. She straightened her crisp, navy blue shorts for the fifth time, and tightened her slick, black ponytail that never had a hair out of place.
As Terrance adjusted some unknown camera setting, Gavin walked Eva through their vision.
"Okay Eva, first we need a few shots of you performing brute strength. Pull-ups, push-ups, whatever. We need to accentuate your best qualities."
Terrance giggled, "Gavin! This is it! This is our big break!"
Gavin squealed, "I know! Just think if they actually air ours on TV!"
Eva was beginning to feel like they cared more about the technicalities of the audition than her actual chance of being accepted.
She interrupted their gushing, "Guys? Remember me?"
Terrance ran over and handed her a card.
"What's this?" Eva turned it over.
Terrance rolled his eyes, "It's what you're going to say, you Neanderthal. Tell me you can read!"
Gavin chuckled, "We took the liberty of writing you a little speech."
Eva didn't object; she needed all the help she could get.
They spent the next few hours filming Eva lifting weights, doing crunches, and practicing her lines.
"This is the one. Make us proud!" Gavin grinned.
Eva growled. She was sore, and tired, and apparently those two idiots couldn't film 'what they wanted'. She complied, however, and began her pull-ups.
"...Fifty-seven... Fifty-eight... Fifty-nine... Sixty!"
Eva dropped down from the pull-up bar, "You see that?" her voice had an edge. Gavin and Terrance excitedly shared a proud look.
"I'm the only girl in school who can do more than ten pull-ups. So whatever you can throw at me, I can handle it."
Eva smirked confidently for the camera, "Bring it!"
Just then, an ironic stray ball from the eight grader's game smashed into Eva's head. Clenching her fists, she whipped around to see a terrified grade-schooler attempting to retrieve the rubber ball.
"Hey! You're dead! Do you hear me!?"
Gavin and Terrance sighed, and then went on a coffee break as Eva chased the unlucky pre-teen out of the gym.
By the end of the day, the two amateur filmmakers assured Eva that they had enough footage.
"I promise, they'll be begging you to join!" Terrance winked.
Gavin gave her a thumbs up as the duo skipped off to their car.
Eva felt her stomach flip. Everything was riding on those two! But she shook it off and smiled.
She trusted them completely.