Keeping it Real Read Online Free PDF Page A

of Park Hall Community High School had gradually faded from my memories until it had started to seem like one of those sunny vibey schools in hip-hop videos.
    The initial stampede soon slowed, but there was still no sign of my friends. I was baffled. It was Friday! No one hung about on Fridays if they had a choice.
    Miss Rowntree must have given them a detention. Better go in and find them, I thought.
    Helix seemed uneasy. “I think you should wait out here.”
    “I’m not freezing my booty off for another hour! It’s just a school, Helix! What’s going to happen?”
    I marched in through the gates. It made me feel really sick, like I was pushing my way through some kind of force field. I put it down to local vibes and cinched up my light levels another couple of notches
    The school doors had already been locked so I shimmered into the foyer.
    “Yes, I know it’s a dump, OK,” I snapped, before Helix could get a word in. “It’s a depressed area, what do you expect?”
    Dump was not the word. Every single pot plant was wilting, if not technically dead. The fish tank only contained slimy pebbles. A vandalised display case had been sloppily mended with tape. Tired posters advertised a forthcoming production of GREASE, or, as one defaced poster now read, GROSS.
    In the hall the drama group was in the process of murdering “Summer Lovin’”. Mr Lupton had been trying to get a production together ever since I could remember.
    I started off down the corridor.
    “Aren’t you going to check the hall first?” Helix asked in surprise.
    I shook my head. “My mates aren’t the drama group type!”
    I’d tried to persuade them to audition once, coincidentally, for the same production - and no, it wasn’t only because cute Kelsey Hickman was in the starring role! I happened to think we’d make pretty good Pink Ladies. I could totally picture us in those cute college-girl jackets. But my mates flatly refused. They said it would ruin our reputation. Jax and Sky thought all school clubs were tragically uncool.
    “I mean, PINK Ladies,” Jax had snorted. “How mushy and girly is that?”
    “Aha!” I’d teased. “So if it was the Shocking Pink Ladies, I suppose you’d do it!”
    My friends had stared at me as if they’d seen a vision.
    “What? What did I say?”
    Sky started jumping up and down and squealing. “Mel, you’re a star! The Shocking Pinks is the PERFECT name for our posse!”
    I could hear their voices clearly in my head. Any minute now I’d be seeing them for real. As I hurried along the echoing corridors, I was so excited I had to remind myself to breathe.
    Finally I’d reached my old classroom. I jumped up to peer in the window, half giggling with nerves, absolutely knowing I’d see three fed-up girls and a grim Miss Rowntree doing her marking.
    The room was empty.
    They must be in the science lab , I thought. After Miss Rowntree, Mr Krishnamurti was the most keen on giving detentions. I started the long trek towards the science block.
    I should be wearing our colour , I thought suddenly.
    After Sky’s epiphany about the Shocking Pink Ladies we’d gone rushing off to Claire’s Accessories to hunt out the exact shocking pink items for our group makeover. We pinned shocking pink badges to our bags and re-covered our school exercise books in shocking pink paper; we totally went for it! Being a Pink gradually crept into every area of our lives. If you were feeling down for any reason, one of us would firmly remind you to “Think Pink” - Shocking Pink code for staying positive and hanging on to your dreams.
    When you lived in a depressed urban area that was one hundred percent grey, being a Shocking Pink was like a major statement: “We’re young, we’re vibey and we’re here!”
    Sadly, like all Mr Lupton’s previous productions, the cheesy musical that inspired this exciting transformation never came off. Kelsey’s mum got picked up for shoplifting two days before the opening night.