“Shay, you have to take opportunities when they appear,” he says, the grin dropping off his face. “If you don’t really want the scholarship, I understand, but—”

“No, I want it,” I say hurriedly.

“Great,” he says, as if the question is settled. He turns on his heel and heads toward the door. “We’d better get to rehearsal,” he calls over his shoulder. “Can’t wait to see your application. Send it to me tonight.”

Of course, we’re late getting back to the auditorium for the group rehearsal. We’re so late that all the eyes in the room flick questioningly to us as we walk down the aisle. I scurry to where I left my backpack and pretend to search for something in the front pouch. I can feel Brittany glaring at me murderously from across the room.

“Sorry, sorry,” Mr. B exclaims, striding past me. He pauses, claps his hands together, and bows his head apologetically. “Time management. Just can’t get it down. I promise I didn’t forget about you guys.”

“Suuuuure,” Ed calls from where he lounges on the stage. He gives Mr. B a skeptical look, his eyes flattening into slits as he raises his eyebrows. A ripple of laughter passes through the cast.

Ana squats next to me. I focus on rummaging through the potion bottles in my backpack. “What did Mr. B want you for?”

“He wanted to work on ‘My Soft Place to Land’ with me,” I say, my voice sounding high and fake in my ears. It’s not technically a lie. Anyway, I don’t know how to wrap my head around everything that just happened, let alone explain it to Ana. What would I tell her? That she’s right, that I am Mr. B’s new favorite? That I have to take special favors from him so I don’t lose everything I’ve worked for? That I’m going to do whatever it takes to win, even if she deserves it just as much as me?

“You okay?” she asks.

I zip up my backpack, abandoning my fake search. “Yeah.” I force a laugh. “You haven’t gotten any better at figuring out how I feel, huh?” I leave her crouched in the aisle and walk away to join everyone onstage.

Chapter 27

Many teens are not fully aware of the consequences of sharing magic. It can seem exciting to share magic because of the positive side effects. It is true that sharing magic gives the recipient of extra magic an energy boost, higher stamina, and an increased ability to manipulate magic. Remember, all of these effects are short-term and will last for less than forty-eight hours.

—Your Magical Body: A Health Textbook for the Magical Teen