Chapter 14

Transcript for Chapter 14A

Opens in the makeup room, where the girls are being worked on en masse by a group of cosmetologists and beauticians. Crammed into the space are also photographers and other girls who are waiting their turns. Amy and Hannah are at a couple of shampoo sinks. Their eyes are squeezed shut and they look like they're in pain. Shampoo suds are on their faces. Ilsa and another woman shampoo them while they complain, and a photographer leans in to get the shot.

Hannah: My hair!

Amy: My eyes!

A tired-looking cosmetologist leads another one of the girls, LEXIE, away from the shampoo station.

Lexie: But what are you going to do to it?

Cosmetologist: Probably curl it.

Lexie: My mom already curled it! I slept in curlers last night!

Cosmetologist: Cool. Maybe your mom can move to L.A. and do that cocker spaniel thing to everybody.

Jade watches the exchange nervously from her chair in front of a sink. She hasn't been shampooed, yet, but she's got a towel around her neck and she's waiting. Suddenly, she senses that someone is standing close to her.

Jade looks up to see WERNER watching her. He's a beautician with black, slicked-back hair and a tight black t-shirt. He has heavy eyelids and refined cheekbones.

Werner: I'm Werner.

Jade: Verner?

Werner: Werner.

The room is bustling with people.

Jade: Oh- -kay.

Werner: I do you all of final round.

Jade grins a little, embarrassed, like she can't believe she's being set up like this.

Jade: Won't that get in the way of dancing?

Werner doesn't react to her joke.

Werner: You're a tough girl. You like tough.

Jade watches him warily from her chair.

Jade: I guess...

Werner becomes very serious.

Werner: We go pretty.

Jade shrieks as Werner pushes her down into the sink. Her feet shoot up and hair tools begin to fly around.

Afterward, Jade seems stunned. But her hair is pretty. It's parted assymetrically. The lighter side is braided against her head and away from her face in several small braids. The heavy side falls in front of her ear, gently wavy. She reaches up to touch it, nervously, and there's so much product in it that it crunches between her fingers.

Werner thrusts a bag toward her; it's on of the reuseable "Bouquet" logo bags.

Werner: Put this on. Careful with the head.

Transcript for Chapter 14B

Fresh from her makeover, Jade leaves the main area of the makeup room and enters the other half. This side is darker and mostly empty; it's the same place where she was standing with Justice when she got dressed earlier that morning. She can hear a conversation coming from this side.

Voice 1: Who do you want as your mentor?

Voice 2: I think Cherry and Sophia are the best.

Jade peeks in and sees two girls, AMY and SARAH, getting dressed. Amy is a spunky girl with a dark blonde ponytail and fringy bangs. Braids have been added into her ponytail here and there, giving it a bit of a tropical or beachy feel. She's wearing a dark undershirt and holding her Bouquet shirt. Sarah is a sweetly elegant brunette with her hair pulled into a braid on one side with a cute flower clip above one ear. Her undershirt is white. Both Amy and Sarah are gazing toward Jade as though their conversation has been interrupted. Jade looks suspicious.

Jade: Is it safe to get changed back here?

Sarah smiles.

Sarah: Uh-huh. No cameras allowed on this side.

Jade walks into the room, still looking a little inconvenienced.

Jade: Good.

She puts her Bouquet bag down on the counter facing one of the large mirrors. Something gets her attention and she looks surprised.

Jade's shirt, the one she slept in last night and that she'd worn when she came to the studio early that morning, is lying across the counter. It's in the same place that she left it when she took it off, which means she's standing in the exact same place as before.

Jade: [This is so bizarre. I've only been wearing these clothes for forty-five minutes.]

The other girls' conversation continues in the background.

Amy: Here goes nothing!

Sarah: Oh, you're putting it on, now?

Sarah admires the shirt Amy is wearing now: it's her Bouquet audition shirt. It's a light-colored tank and has a flower logo with the number 9 inexplicably in the middle of it. Sarah's pulling the bottom of the shirt out so she can see the logo herself.

Sarah: This year's shirt is so cute.

Amy: I know, I can't believe I'm wearing it.

Sarah: They didn't change your hair much, did they?

Jade is now dressed in her audition clothes. Instead of a tank, her shirt is a loose tee that tends to hang off one shoulder. It's a darker color than Amy's tank, but it has the same logo in the middle. She's wearing short black athletic shorts and is holding a pair of stylish sneakers.

Amy: No, she said a ponytail works for me.

Amy directs her talk in Jade's direction, who is in the process of putting on one of the shoes.

Amy: Hey, Amber, why did they dye your hair?

Jade looks back over her shoulder at Amy and Sarah, curious. She realizes they are actually talking to her.

Jade: I'm not Amber, I'm Jade.

Amy doesn't seem put off by this.

Amy: That's weird. You look just like her.

Jade exhales, kind of annoyed. She continues to tie her shoe. Up close, we can see that the shoe actually has the Bouquet logo printed along the side.

Jade: [It's been a long time since I got mistaken for Amber. I think it was back when Mom used to buy clothes for both of us.]

Amy points at Jade.

Amy: So, wait, are you guys twins?

Jade's shoes are on, so she stands up.

Jade: Yeah.

Amy and Sarah look at each other in alarm.

Amy: I didn't know there were twins. Have there ever been twins before?

Jade gazes on without amusement while they talk about her like she's not even there.

Sarah: Not in the Final Round.

Amy: Are you sure?

Sarah: Yes, definitely. I watched every audition right before I came to L.A.

Amy is upset by this information.

Amy: You think we should be worried? Twins in an audition with two winners?

Sarah lifts her hands and shrugs. She's clueless about it, too.

Sarah: I don't know.

A female employee wearing a headset leans into the room and points at her watch.

Employee: Hurry up and finish dressing, girls. Five minutes to dance.

Transcript for Chapter 14C

Amy hurries away, and from this angle we can see that her feet are bare.

Amy: Gotta grab my shoes.

Sarah sits on one of the rolling stools and reaches down for her own shoes.

Sarah: 'Kay.

Jade gazes at Sarah thoughtfully. She notices an empty stool and she seats herself on it, and then she carefully scoots herself closer to Sarah. It looks like she has something on her mind.

Jade: So, you said you watched all the auditions?

Sarah holds one of the sneakers.

Sarah: Yeah. Lots of times. I was trying to learn exactly what kind of girl Harrison is trying to find.

Jade raises an eyebrow.

Jade: [Huh. I need to know that, too.]

Jade looks at her side-long. There's strategy in her eyes.

Jade: What did you figure out?

Sarah smiles cutely.

Sarah: That he's a lot smarter than I am.

Jade: What do you mean?

Sarah pulls on her other shoe.

Sarah: Even when I already know who the winner is going to be, until they actually debut I still can't see what makes them any better than anyone else in the Final Round.

Sarah is still bent over, putting on her shoe, but she lifts her face and looks up.

Sarah: To be honest, I'm not even sure why the ten of us are here.

Jade's eyes widen, excited.

Jade: I know! I can't figure it out, either! You're all cute, don't get me wrong, but so were the girls he sent home.

Sarah sits up and plays with her braid, thoughtful.

Sarah: There's got to be more to it than just being cute. Something I can't see. But whatever he's looking for in a girl...

Sarah glances at Jade and smiles. Her fingers are still on her braid and the gentle hope in her eyes makes her look ethereally beautiful.

Sarah: I sure hope I have it.

Jade is so surprised by Sarah's sudden charm that her eyes fly open and she pulls away, blushing like crazy.

Jade: [I- -I see it! Holy crap, I see it! I see whatever that thing was that Harrison must have seen!]

Jade gets up from the stool and backs away, smiling, trying to pretend that everything is normal.

Jade: Okay, good talk!

As soon as she turns away from Sarah, though, she puts her hands down on the counter and leans forward, distressed.

Jade: [Are you kidding me, Justice? How the hell am I supposed to compete with that?]

She looks up at herself in the mirror.

Jade: [Could I make myself look all adorably hopeful like that? I have to try.]

She tries to match Sarah's face, but it's not cute at all. The strain of trying to pull off this artless level of cute makes her eyebrows furrow and sweat bead up on her head, and that's even worse.

Jade: [This...is not good.]

Amy catches Jade off-guard by appearing behind her in the mirror. Jade's still wearing the weird expression.

Amy: What are you doing with your face?

Transcript for Chapter 14D

Jade is still straining to replicate Sarah's cute face in the mirror.

Jade: I'm trying something.

Amy watches her through the mirror, smiling obliviously.

Amy: Are you planning to use it for the cameras?

Jade's face falls as she realizes she's trying to accomplish the impossible.

Jade: No.

Amy: That's too bad. I think you should do it.

Surprised, Jade looks back at Amy.

Jade: You do? Why?

Amy laughs, and her whole face seems to light up.

Amy: 'Cause that'll be one less girl I have to worry about.

Jade recoils in silent shock.

Jade: [Are all the girls like this? So charming you want to die? Because if that's what it takes to make it in Bouquet, I'm in trouble.]

Jade cringes.

Jade: [I've never pulled off charming in my entire life.]

She remembers a picture of herself when she was about two years old. She's playing with a rock-a-stack and the effort of concentration makes her frown.

Jade: [Even my baby pictures make me look all grumpy.]

The picture slides to the right and we see that Amber is also in it, standing next to Jade. She's holding a book and smiling happily.

Jade: [Amber, though. Amber's got it.]

Jade remembers Amber at her current age, and she's wearing the same happy smile.

Jade: [It doesn't matter if she's happy or grumpy or sad. "Charming just sparkles all over her face."]

In the background, we see Amber leaning into the room.

Amber: Hey, guys.

Jade doesn't notice her and smiles, relieved.

Jade: [So between the two of us, we will indeed possess the power of the charm. I just have to make sure not to trump it with the power of the grump.]

Amber is standing in the doorway, silhouetted a bit by the light behind her. Her hair is parted on one side and the heavier side is held back by a pair of barrettes. She's wearing her Bouquet shirt; it's the same off-the-shoulder style that Jade has, but in a lighter color.

Amber: It's time to go. They're taking us to the dance room.

Amy gets excited.

Amy: Ooh, look! It's the other twin!

Amy grabs Amber, who looks surprised. She drags Amber over to the mirror and then pulls Jade over, too. Jade, rather than being surprised, is annoyed. Amy stares at the two of the in the mirror, her eyes wide.

Amy: I can't believe I missed it before!

Jade exhales, exasperated. But then she looks at the mirror as well and her eyes widen.

Amber and Jade stand next to each other and, other than their hair, they look like mirror images of each other. Amy is in the background, still pointing and rambling about the twins.

Amy: It's so obvious when they're side-by-side like this!

Jade: [Jeez, look at me.]

Jade is in profile, still looking at the mirror, thinking.

Jade: [I'm so "pretty" I can barely tell the difference between us anymore.]

Jade looks at Amber.

Jade: [Wait, that's not right. It's not me that's changed.]

Amber gazes on with no specific energy.

Jade: [It's her. That sparkly Amber thing is gone, and now she looks like me.]

Jade is guilty.

Jade: [This is definitely my fault, but...I don't know what I can do to fix it except say I'm sorry a hundred more times.]

Amber begins to walk away.

Amber: Come on, guys. We'd better hurry if we don't wanna get yelled at by Katrina.

Amber looks back over her shoulder and smiles, but there's no joy in her eyes. Then she slips out.

Jade crosses her arms, resolved.

Jade: [Alright, that's enough stupid guilt. Guilt isn't going to help Amber. I'm going to help Amber. Because I did this to her. And if I can't bring back Amber's sparkle, we're both in trouble.]