Chapter 127

“Amazing, right?” Mrs. Quintero asked.

“Yes,” I said anyway, just as I witnessed Carrie’s costar push Carrie’s hand away when it came near hers.

“We’re going to stop here for the night,” the director announced. “Before you all rush off, I think Mr. Tucker, here, deserves a standing ovation for the fabric, plywood, and paint he’s arranged for us.”

I wanted to crawl under one of the seats in front of me, despite the questionable state of the carpeting in the room and the fact I would have to fold myself down to about the size of a bed pillow to do so.

“No big deal.” I could feel my face getting red. “Don’t forget to email me with specifics, so we can get you what will be the most useful,” I told Mrs. Q, as most of the kids called her.

Fortunately, twenty teenagers buzzed around her then, like I imagined Patrick’s bees doing with their queen. This offered me a chance to duck out into the lobby, where I hoped I might find him. Carrie joined me.