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than anyone in the auditorium.
    “Look,” Aimee said to Madison and Fiona. “I feel so bad for her. Does she know how dumb she looks?”
    Fiona giggled. “It’s her pants.”
    Being a mediocre dancer was no reason to be made a laughingstock, was it? Madison couldn’t do a pirouette or a jazz turn, either.
    “Her clothes are so lame,” Aimee said. “And she’s kinda klutzy. She should not be in a dance number. Definitely not.”
    Fiona nodded in agreement. “I see what you mean about the way she dresses. I wonder if that’s why she’s always alone….”
    “What are you guys talking about?” Madison asked. “She has a great voice. Why do you have to say stuff like—”
    “It’s not like we think she’s a bad person or anything, Maddie,” Aimee said. “She can sing, I admit it. It’s just that she’s different, right, Fiona?”
    Madison knew what Aimee really meant. And it made her just a little sad.
    The next afternoon, during Thursday’s practice, Mr. Gibbons split the cast into smaller groups so characters could rehearse different scenes simultaneously. He sent the chorus members to the music room with Mr. Montefiore, other main characters stayed in the auditorium, and the crew stayed behind to tape the stage, label props, and do other backstage tasks.
    Real-life cousins Hart and Drew joined members of the ninth-grade tech club to organize lighting and sound effects. They tested different-colored gels over the spotlights during Hart’s solo “So You Wanted to Meet The Wizard.” Green was the coolest-looking gel because when light shone through it, the green gel made the whole stage look like a rain forest. It reflected an eerie glow off Hart’s face.
    Madison thought he made a perfect wizard. Perfect.
    One of Madison’s key responsibilities for the day was to prompt lines for kids who forgot. Egg missed all his cues, but no one said anything. Even drama king Kwong spaced on a few bars of his song. Not one peep.
    But when Lindsay forgot a few of her lines, everyone ribbed her. During the “Ease on Down the Road” number, Dan the Lion called her “Blimpie.”
    Madison was uncomfortable when she heard that, but Lindsay wasn’t fazed. She didn’t seem to care about anything people said behind her back or to her face. She sang her solo as beautifully as ever. Other people looked right through Lindsay like she was plastic wrap, but Madison was starting to see all of the things Lindsay had inside. She might be a different kind of friend, but something about her was special.
    Mariah arrived in the auditorium at four o’clock. She and Madison went into a room together backstage to work with the home and careers teacher, Mrs. Perez. A group of kids was assembling some of the costumes.
    “Excuse me.” Mrs. Montefiore poked her head into the room where they were working. She needed to use the old practice piano in the corner so the three witches could run through their solo numbers.
    Mrs. Perez moved her fabric, sequins, and other assorted garments into the corner. “Okay, we’ll finish over here.”
    With everything that was going on in practice, it became difficult for Madison to focus on clothes. How can you help glue sequins on shirts when your best friend and worst enemy are singing scales ten feet away from you?
    The only clothes Madison could seem to pay attention to were the ones on Ivy and Aimee. They were both wearing platform sneakers, canvas pants, and multicolored power bead bracelets. Aimee’s blond ponytail perfectly matched Ivy’s red one.
    “Maddie!” Aimee called from the piano. “You’re gonna love this. Listen up.”
    Madison waved over as if to say, “Yeah, sure, whatever.”
    “Maddie?” Aimee was raising her voice like she always did when she talked way too fast. “Didn’t you hear what I—”
    “Aimee, we ALL heard what you said,” Ivy quipped. “Uh … could you talk a little louder?” They were semi-snotty words, but she didn’t say them in an obnoxious