《Evolve》11 - Feeling Blue
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We go to spy on Logan, with us all hiding behind one of the bushes while Zoey searches for him with a pair of binoculars.
"Do you see Logan?" Dana asks her.
"Yeah, there he is." We can see him from a distance, sat in his directors chair and shouting orders at his crew through a megaphone.
"Why do you have binoculars?" I ask, curious what Zoey would use them for. She's not Nicole, she wouldn't spy on boys with them, and she's not Quinn who would use them for science. I try not to think about what Dana would use binoculars for.
"Don't worry about it," she tells me, and I feel myself blanch.
"How's his commercial look?" Dana asks.
"Impressive."
Nicole asks, "how does Jeff Garrett look?" I push her lightly, reaching around Zoey.
"More impressive."
"Ooh, give me those," Nicole says, grabbing at the binoculars and putting them up to her own eyes.
"What's happening, now?" I ask, while Logan and Jeff walk off. "Is that Chase?" I ask, seeing the bushy hair, "and Michael?" They look like our friends, but they kinda small.
"Yeah," Nicole says, unimpressed now that the celebrity is gone.
"Come on, let's shoot our own commercial," Zoey directs us, and I quickly change into my 'cool' outfit.
I walk over to the girls and do a twirl, to show off the look, and they clap supportively. It's nothing too fancy, or expensive, it's just some blue jeans, a brown tee with some design on it, and a pair of high tops. It's paired with cute sunglasses and a ton of butterfly clips in my hair, all of which are blue to match the Jet X I will be riding.
We get into position to film. Dana is standing with a clipboard, and Quinn is next to her with the camera. "And, rolling," she says.
"Action!" Dana calls, and Zoey rides into frame on her pink Jet X.
She stops near us, and Nicole calls to her, "wow, is that a motorcycle?" Quinn pans over to her, to show her sitting and pretending to study on a bench.
"No," Zoey tells her.
"Is it a scooter?"
"No, it's a Jet X!"
"A Jet X?" Nicole puts her things down and stands up.
"Right!" They lean towards each other and say, "Jet X!" They keep smiling at the camera.
"And cut, did you get that?" Dana asks, and Quinn nods.
"I think so!" Quinn looks over the camera in confusion. "Hey, how do you turn this camera off? It's different than mine."
"How should I know?" Dana says, unhelpfully. "You're the geek."
Ignoring this, I walk over to the girls, since I won't be messing up the shot, "that was great!"
"Thanks," Zoey says, as Dana comes over. "How'd it look?"
"Come on," the tough girl says, "do you guys really think that this is gonna beat Logan's commercial?"
"Well what else can we do?" I ask.
"Why do you hate my script so much?" Nicole asks her.
"Because, it doesn't tell you what the Jet X is really about," Dana explains.
I frown, "that's a good point."
"Yeah it does!" Zoey denies, "the Jet X represents freedom and independence, you know, being able to go wherever, whenever."
"Well, to me, the Jet X is all about being cool and getting noticed!" Nicole says.
I laugh, "I think it's about having more time for the important stuff! Why waste fifteen minutes walking to the pool when it'll take five with the Jet X?"
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"Trying to get noticed, is uncool," Dana says, "and your reasons are stupid, too."
"Okay, then, Miss Cool," Zoey rebukes, "why don't you tell us what the commercial should be?"
"Well, I think the Jet X is all about speed!"
"Speed?" Nicole asks, and I scoff.
"Yeah, like, 'I'm in a hurry, so get out of my way'," she says.
"That's a worse version of what I said!" I tell her.
"So, the Jet X is all about being rude?" Nicole asks her.
"No, it's about being in control!"
"You're just jealous cause my dad owns a juice company!" Nicole shouts.
"That isn't helpful," I say to her, getting annoyed by their bickering, which I stupidly took part in. I'm also not sure why she brought it up.
The other girls are also confused by this, and Zoey and Dana both ask her, "what?"
"Well, I don't know what to say!"
"Not that," I mumble.
"I know!" Dana snaps at her, "I read your script!" She throws the script at Nicole.
"Dana, stop it," Zoey tries, hoping to calm things down.
"Maybe I should just make my own commercial!" She suggests, and I groan.
"Oh, I'd love to see that," Zoey says, getting annoyed with her, as well.
"I don't even think we're allowed to do that," I point out, hoping the group can just get back to filming.
"You will! On TV! See ya," she says, storming off.
"Why'd you have to go and tick off our director?" Zoey accuses Nicole, and I laugh.
"You just encouraged her to make her own commercial!" I say, gesturing where Dana went. Zoey glares at me.
"Yeah," Nicole says. "Why do you always have to take her side." And even I know this isn't true.
"I always take your side!" Zoey says, as I was thinking.
"You didn't defend my script!" Nicole fires back, already running out of arguments.
"Cause it's lame!"
"Fine, I'll just make my own commercial!"
"Fine, I will too!"
"Good luck!" Nicole leaves and I hear a click, realising that Quinn has only just managed to stop recording.
"Look, I found the off button, see?" She shows us, and I roll my eyes. "I'll walk away," she says, seeing us both staring at her.
"What am I meant to do?" I ask Zoey.
"I don't know, Harper, whatever you want," she says, leaving. I scoff and run after Quinn, determined that at least one of us can finish a decent commercial.
I have Quinn film me riding on the Jet X for a while, looking all happy and carefree. When I get enough of that, I struggle to think of something else, and tell her to take five. I go back to the dorm to figure out what my commercial should be.
I wonder if it would be cool to show me riding it to the beach, where I could show off it's use as a way of accessing fun. I call Quinn to help me, but it doesn't work out so well, with there being no waves for me to surf on, and with the sun being too bright for the camera.
I go back to PCA, thanking Quinn but feeling lost. I see Logan walking back to his dorm and catch up to him.
"Hey," I say, "how's your thing going?"
"So good," he laughs, and I smile.
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"Good." I watch him closely, "are you not going to ask me?"
"Why? You're not going to win," he says, like it's a fact.
"You don't know that," I defend, crossing my arms. "Just because you have money doesn't mean your ideas are better than ours!"
"I have Jeff Garrett on my team," he says, "I'll be winning."
"Yeah, you and Chase and Michael," I remind him, and he waves me away. "They're on your team, Logan."
"I don't need them!" He tells me, and I groan.
"You sound like Dana, and not in a good way." I leave him, tired of people not wanting to be a team, today. I see Zoey in the lounge and walk straight past her, not wanting a confrontation.
I enter my dorm and close the door, not paying much attention. "Hello, Sister." I jump and find my brother sitting on my bed.
"Okay, you can let Logan in, but why him?" I ask, and Jen shrugs her shoulders, going back to painting her nails.
"I wanted to talk to you," he tells me. "I heard about the scooter contest.
"Jet X," I correct. "And what's it to you?"
He stares at me as if I'm stupid, "if you win one I can use it! And then I won't get caught!"
"I told you not to get into trouble, but I clearly meant not to do bad things," I tell him, ruffling his hair.
"Well, you should've said that," he says, straightening his hair back out. "Can I please use your scooter?"
"No! You're too young," I tell him. "Now get out! Curfew isn't that long away." He gets up, sullenly, and heads to the door.
He turns back to me, eyes wide and mouth turned down. "I love you, Harper."
"I love you, now get out." He growls and slams the door behind him.
"Cute kid," Lil says, and I laugh.
"Please, he stopped being cute when he was four and he melted crayons into my hair."
They both look stunned. "How?" Jen asks, and I shrug, while they look at each other for help.
"Anyway, the contest is a bust, I'm sure Logan is going to win," I tell them.
"Isn't that good?" Lil asks. "I mean, you like Logan, him winning would be..." She can't seem to make herself say 'good', and I grin.
"I know you don't like him, I know you think him having a Jet X would be terrible," I laugh, saving her. "But it's worse to have him show it off after you lose to him." I point out, and they grimace.
"Logan Reese beating you, that would suck," Jen confirms. I hear a knock at our door and go to answer it.
"We want to work together, again," Zoey says, while Nicole and Dana stand either side of her.
"Thank god!" I shout, and we run to the computer to edit all of our footage. The idea is great. We've all been working to make full length commercials, by ourselves, it would make sense that there would be enough good footage to make one commercial.
There isn't.
"Okay, our commercial could not be suckier," Zoey says, after we watch the final cut.
"We worked all night for nothing," Nicole agrees.
"Are you sure we looked at everything we shot?" Dana asks the blonde, who looks back over the footage.
"Yeah, I think."
"Then, we're doomed," I tell them, throwing my coffee cup into the trash. "That's the best thing I've made all day," I scoff, when it lands in the trash perfectly.
"What's this?" Zoey asks, while footage begins playing that we haven't seen.
We realise that it's what Quinn recorded while struggling to turn the camera off, it's us fighting. "Why is this on tape?" Nicole asks.
"Quinn couldn't figure out how to turn off the camera, remember?" Zoey reminds her.
"Guess it never got deleted," I shrug.
Dana shakes her head, "I can't watch this. And it's already after seven."
"We'd better go take a shower and get ready for class," Nicole says.
"See you in there," I say, smiling.
"You coming, Zo?" Nicole asks, and we watch as Zoey stays seated.
"Nah, I'll catch up later."
We get cleaned up and changed, with me making it to class in time, but tired. We begin watching commercials, until it's Logan, Chase, and Michael's turn.
"Okay, Logan, why don't you go ahead and start your commercial?" Bender asks.
Logan puts the disk into the player, "yes, sir."
"A commercial, by Logan Reese," his commercial says, and I frown at him, Chase and Michael aren't even mentioned by name.
"You wanna look cool?" Logan's voice asks, while footage of the Jet X is displayed. "Be like a movie star? Then you need a hot ride! You need a Jet X! With over 95 horsepower, the Jet X will get you where you wanna be!"
"Where's Zoey?" Dana whispers to us, and I pull a face, not having a clue.
"I don't know," Nicole whispers back.
"Where the cool is. You need-" Logan's voice finishes.
Jeff Garrett, on the tape, then says, "The Jet X, get one!"
Everyone except for Dana and Nicole clap, with my clapping being unenthusiastic.
"Excellent! Excellent!" Jake Savage tells us, "you boys did a kick-butt job!"
"Thank you, Jake!" Logan says, and I roll my eyes.
Mr Bender walks to the front of the class, "well, we have one more commercial to view."
"Well, hurry. Let's see it before I pop like a zit' come on," Jake says, and we aren't sure what to do, since Zoey has our commercial, and she isn't here.
"Uh, Dana, Nicole, Harper?" Bender asks, looking at us. "Where's Zoey?"
"Um, actually," Nicole says, standing up. Zoey runs in, not looking that different from this morning and clearly in a rush.
"Hey, sorry I'm late," she tells Bender, dumping her bag at her desk.
"Alright, girls, I ain't got time to fluff around, so pop that sucker in and hit play!"
"Yes, sir," she says, and runs over to put the dvd in.
"What'd you do?" Nicole asks her when she sits back down, while the machine loads up.
"Watch," Zoey says, simply.
Our commercial begins playing, and it's instantly different to what we saw last.
The music in the background is light and reminiscent of happy times. "The Jet X is all about being cool and getting noticed!" Nicole says, on screen.
"Jet X!" Zoey and Nicole shout together.
"I think the Jet X is all about speed!" Dana says.
"Jet X!"
"It's about having more time for the important stuff," I see myself say, and then a clip of me spinning the keys around.
"Jet X!"
"The Jet X represents freedom and independence," Zoey says.
"Jet X!"
There's a clip of Nicole riding the Jet X, shrieking, and some clips of us all riding our Jet X's. There's a shot of me tripping over on the beach, and laughing it off.
"You know, being able to go wherever, whenever."
"Jet X!"
"Wow!" Nicole says, and then a clip of her goofing off shows.
"It's about being in control!" Dana says, and it cuts to us all riding next to each other. We honk our horns and I smile while watching. My smile grows when I see Zoey's Jet X being carried off by balloons on the video.
Nicole's voice asks, "is it a motorcycle? Is it a scooter?"
Zoey's clip is cut in, "no! It's a..."
"Jet X!"
Some more footage plays as the song comes to an end. "Did you get that?" I hear Dana ask, and we all look at Zoey in amazement, while she looks sheepish.
"Well, butter my rump and call me toast," Jake says.
"Huh?" Zoey asks.
"What?" Nicole adds.
"Excuse me?" I raise my eyebrow.
"Brilliant!" He claps, and we're all a bit stunned. "Brill-iant! You see? Now, that's what I'm looking for!"
"You liked that?" Logan asks, and I sneer at him, with him scrunching his nose at me.
"Son, your commercial was entertaining, but too Hollywood," Jake tells him. "I'm sorry, at least you have nice arms." I look back at Logan in concern, to see him awkwardly covering his arms. "Congratulations, girls! Your commercial's going on TV!"
We all cheer and stand up, and I thank Zoey, who won it for us. "So, we each get a scooter?" Nicole asks.
"No," he says, and we all briefly get sad. "You each get a Jet X!" We cheer again.
I wake up late the next morning, and find myself running into the other girls as I leave the dorm. We're all glad to have our Jet X's, since we would otherwise be late for class.
I spot Logan running to catch up as we drive, "hey! I'm late! Can I have a ride?" He asks. The other girls are thrilled by this.
"Nope!" Zoey shouts back.
I sigh, I can't help it, I turn back and pat the space behind me. "Get on and be grateful!"
"Thanks, Harp," he sighs, and I grin as I speed up as fast as the Jet X can go, making him panic as he scrambles to hold on. "Harper!"
"I'm sorry, I can't hear you! The wind's too loud!" I shout back, and laugh as I drive us to class, the sun looking as at home where it is reflecting on my blue Jet X, as it does in the sky.
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