One Month Later
"Is her speaker on?" Zoe yelled as everyone dashed and sprinted around backstage. She pressed on her earpiece. "Yes, that's fine," she said into it, and then she looked down at a girl holding up a light.
"No!" she yelled at the girl. "Not red. I told you that I wanted a strobe light!" She shook her head in disgust as the girl scurried off, ducking her head.
"And WHERE is Callie?" Zoe bellowed, looking around.
"She's in her dressing room, ma'am," a lady holding a clipboard called.
"Of course she is," Zoe muttered. "SOMEONE GET CALLIE SOME WATER!" she bellowed.
Then she hurried off to her daughter's dressing room. Taking a deep breath, she plastered a smile onto her face before pushing the door open.
Callie was perched on a stool in front of the mirror and was holding a lock of hair in her hand and frowning.
The ends were turning chocolate brown…
"Oh!" Zoe gasped without thinking.
Callie turned around, her purple eyes wide with panic. "Zoe," she wailed. "My hair!"
"I know, sweetie, I know," Zoe gasped. She fumbled for her purse. "I'm so sorry, Callie, I thought you weren't due for another shot until tomorrow!"
"Zoe, please hurry," Callie begged. "My hair always starts to turn brown when the venom is spreading!"
"I know, pumpkin. Quick, hold out your leg."
Callie stuck her leg out.
Zoe pulled a syringe out of her purse with a liquid inside. Callie thought that it was an antidote to the venom that was constantly in her system. Zoe had told her that there was no way to get it out, so she had to take a shot once a month. Zoe lied and told her that the venom was spreading because her hair was turning brown, but she panicked every time because it was really just Callie changing back to Jeanette.
Really, the liquid was spider venom. She injected it into Callie once a month, and Callie stayed Callie and didn't become Jeanette again.
"Hurry," Callie begged.
Zoe gently took one of her legs and injected the needle into it. She pushed down on the plunger.
There was a WHOOSH, and her hair instantly grew itself back out and turned back to the brilliant deep red that she knew. Callie sighed in relief, feeling better already.
"Here's your water," a small, chirpy voice said.
They both whirled and saw a tall chipmunk standing at the door and holding a water bottle. He dropped it in surprise.
"What is THAT?" he asked, gesturing to the needle that Zoe had just pulled out of Callie's leg.
"None of your business, that's what it is," Zoe snapped at him. "You weren't hired to ask questions, Adam, you were hired to do what you're told. Now quick, give me the water and get out of here."
"Zoe, it's okay," Callie said quietly. She looked at the chipmunk. Adam.
"Thank you," she murmured, hopping off the table to get the water bottle. She was already in her outfit for the concert, a strapless turquoise dress covered in sequins. Her hair was pulled up into a low ponytail, and there was a small, sparkling, silver tiara in it.
Adam blinked once, and then again. He stared at her, his mouth hanging wide open.
She giggled softly and tugged the water out of his grasp.
Then the moment was ruined as Zoe screeched, "Baby, you're on in two minutes!"
"Oh!" Callie gasped. She quickly gulped down the water and ran back to the table to re-apply her lipstick. Then she jumped off the table and scampered out of the room. "Nice to meet you, Adam!" she called over her shoulder as she ran off with Zoe close behind.
Adam stared after her, pushing a lock of his hair out of his eyes.
"Yeah," he said softly. "Good to meet you, too."
Callie finished her song by striking a pose as the onstage fireworks exploded around her, and the audience leapt to their feet. They were whistling, whooping, cheering, screaming…for her!
She laughed with exultation, and then laughed again. She took a bow, and then another. They still stood, clapping and cheering. She got a standing ovation!
Finally, the curtain went down, and she sprinted backstage, only to be embraced by Zoe.
"You NAILED it!" Zoe screamed. "Oh, honey. Your first concert EVER, and you couldn't have done better! Now hurry, we have to go meet your fans."
After the concert, Callie went outside. Immediately, cameras began flashing and the reporters began shouting. Fans were screaming, and a big spotlight shone right on Callie.
Everyone cheered for her.
Callie signed autographs, shook hands with fans, answered questions from reporters, and posed for pictures for hours. Finally, Zoe stepped forward and took the microphone from Callie, who had been answering a question from a reporter.
"Callie, say goodnight, we have to get home," Zoe whispered.
Callie nodded, a bit relieved. She was exhausted.
"Can I borrow this microphone?" she asked the reporter. He nodded, and she stepped back up to the doors, where the spotlight shone directly on her again.
"All right, everyone!" she yelled into the microphone, and everyone instantly quieted down. There were lots of photographs. "Thank you all so much for your support, guys and girls. This was my first concert ever, and I've had a ton of fun. You guys are all so amazing, and I'm so thankful to you! Goodnight, everyone!"
She handed the microphone back to the reporter, who tried to ask her one more question, but she ignored him and stepped back into the stage.
"All right, let's get home," Zoe whispered to Callie. Callie nodded.
They opened the side door and made their way through the crowds, reporters, cameras, and fans to get to the limo. Callie squeezed in, grateful for the tinted windows, and Zoe stepped in after her.
Then the limo took off.
They finally reached their quiet home and went inside. Callie was grateful for the soothing darkness and quiet on the way home.
"The life of a star is glamorous," she said to herself with a sigh, "but it can be tiring, too." She shrugged. "I'd better get used to it, anyway."
She scampered inside with Zoe. They talked for a while, about how much fun it had been, how tired they were, how wonderful Callie had been, and what things they could do better next time. Then Callie scampered upstairs. She rubbed all of the makeup off her face and removed the tiara and dress. She got into her pajamas and crawled into bed.
She tossed and turned, but she found that she was too hyped up to sleep.
She sighed. She didn't know what the problem was. She had her first concert, and she had enjoyed it immensely. So what was this aching, hollow feeling inside her middle?
Then she thought of Adam, and she realized what it was.
She was lonely.
Callie didn't have a single friend. She had Zoe, sure, but Zoe wasn't always around. Zoe was just like a mom to her. Callie wanted a friend, a real friend her own age, a chipmunk friend or a human friend. She wanted someone to talk to.
She sighed and clambered out of bed. She changed into one of her favorite dresses. It was a light turquoise color, like the sea. It was strapless, and the folds of the fabric were softer than silk. She pulled it on and scampered quietly outside.
Outside, she climbed up her favorite maple tree and rested on a branch, looking out into the starry night.
She sighed and began to softly sing to herself.
She didn't know, however, that Adam the chipmunk lived with his guardian right next door, and he had been lying awake thinking of her.
She was so beautiful, he thought to himself. I'll probably never see her again. I'm…I'm lonely. I want someone to talk to. I want a friend…I want to love her. But I'll never see her again. I don't know who she is or where she lives.
A single tear rolled down his cheek as he remembered the chipmunk. He hopped out of bed and scampered outside.
He was just walking around his bed when he heard someone singing.
The voice was high, sweet, and clear, and it carried softly over the night out to him. It seemed to be coming from the tree next door.
He quietly scampered across his yard into the next one and climbed up the tree without making a noise. He perched on a branch beneath the voice, and then slowly looked up to see who it was.
It was her!
She was sitting on the branch, her back legs dangling down over it. The dress seemed to hug her body, softly flowing over the curves and angles and making her look absolutely gorgeous. A slight breeze ruffled her hair, which hung swinging and glorious down to her waist. Her purple eyes seemed to twinkle and sparkle as she leaned back to look at the moon as she sang.
She was utterly, heartbreakingly gorgeous.
Then he heard her singing softly.
Na na na na,
Na na na na, yeah.
You are the music in me…
You know the words 'once upon a time,'
Make you listen,
There's a reason.
When you dream, there's a chance you'll find,
A little laughter,
Or happy ever after…
She sang so beautifully, and it was so full of emotion, that Adam suddenly realized the truth—this gorgeous chipmunk was just as lonely as he was.
He had never told anyone, but he was really very good at singing, too. And as her music filled him up to the brim with pure happiness, he couldn't help but sing along with her.
"Your harmony," he joined in, and she let out a gasp and jumped as he crept slowly onto her branch. He kept singing. "To the melody, is echoing inside my head…"
She began to sing again, uncertainly at first and then stronger as they both gained confidence together.
Callie: A single voice, above the noise.
Both: Like a common thread…
Adam: Mm, you're pullin' me.
Callie: When I hear my favorite song, I know that we belong.
Adam: Oh, you are the music in me. Yeah, it's living in all of us.
Callie: And it's brought us here because,
Both: Because you are the music in me!
Na na na na,
Na na na na, yeah.
You are the music in me!
They were both singing on the branch together now, their voices carrying out into the darkness with expressions of happiness and bliss.
Zoe stepped outside and listened hard.
She smiled.
"I think that we've found a way to solve your loneliness problem, Callie," she whispered to herself, "and get you more famous at the same time."
She knew that her daughter had been feeling lonely. She felt like she knew Callie more than Callie did sometimes. And she truly cared for Callie, in ways that she had never cared for Jeanette. She wanted Callie to be happy.
And now she knew how to do it.