Chapter Two - Julie and The Phantoms

No Distractions

The warning bell rang just as Julie made her way into the school hallway. She was immediately met with high fives from people she had never spoken to.

"Hey, Julie! Your show was awesome!"

"Julie, I can't believe you opened for PANIC! At The Disco. That's insane!"

"When are you performing again?"

"Thanks guys, but I'm gonna be late for class," she smiled and maneuvered her way through the crowd to her locker where Flynn stood with her arms crossed.

"So....?" Flynn looked hopefully at Julie.

"So...?" Julie repeated.

Flynn threw her hands down like she was about to throw a tantrum. "You know exactly what I'm talking about. Why didn't you text me last night? What happened? Are they gone?"

Julie looked around, making eye contact with several people and laughing nervously. "No, they aren't," she said under her breath, "you're never gonna believe what happened."

Flynn looked at her expectantly but Julie's face switched almost instantly because trouble was headed right toward her.

"Hey, Julie," Carrie stopped right in front of them. "Flynn."

Flynn gave her a sarcastic smile, almost mocking her and turned to leave. "Julie?" She called when she realized Julie didn't look like she was going to follow her.

"Actually, Julie, can I talk to you for a sec?" Carrie asked.

"Uhh, yeah, sure." She nodded at Flynn who was hovering like she was some kind of bodyguard and signaled her to leave. "Is this about Nick?"

A rush of guilt came over Julie suddenly when she remembered the flowers he had given her after her performance. She knew Carrie liked Nick a lot and they had a history. Then again, they broke up and Julie and her were not friends anymore.

"No, why would this be about Nick?" Carrie looked genuinely confused.

Julie laughed nervously. "N-no reason. What's up?"

"I actually wanted to apologize. You were really good last night. Me and my dad saw your performance."

Julie couldn't believe her ears. Carrie was praising her? And it wasn't a joke?

"You deserve it, Julie. I wish Dirty Candy was half as good as you and those cute boys," she let out a small chuckle.

"Wow, Carrie. I uh... I don't know what to say," Julie was stunned. "Thank you. That means- wait you said your dad was at the show?"

"Yeah, he got us last minute tickets. He saw your performance on YouTube and went all crazy making calls. It was bizarre."

"Ha ha," Julie laughed awkwardly. "That's funny." She tried to act cool. But Bobby had come to the show. He acted weird because he saw Luke, Alex and Reggie play with Julie. She had to tell the guys. "Well, I'm gonna.." she pointed in the direction of class and started scooting toward it.

"Oh, right. See ya," Carrie smiled and walked in the opposite direction. What a conversation.

Walking into class, Julie was met with Nick who seemed to be waiting for her at the door.

"Oh, my gosh, Nick!" Julie gasped, almost running into him just as the bell rang.

"Hey," he smiled. But his smile wasn't his normal smile. It was mischievous. Like he was keeping a secret.

"Alright," Julie laughed it off and took her seat. She couldn't help but notice throughout the entire class that Nick couldn't keep his eyes off of her.