"Full House - Sisters 03 - And the Winner Is... - Nina Alexander" - читать интересную книгу автора (Alexander Nina)

"I can't believe it," Stephanie moaned. "D.J. missed the cutoff age by one year. And I really wanted to be in that fashion show. Now I don't even have a chance to hang out with Fiona and Felicia Miarra! Of all the rotten luck. I mean I—"
"Uh, Steph," Allie interrupted. "D.J. isn't your only sister, you know."
"Yeah," Darcy added. "What about Michelle?"
Stephanie gasped. "I didn't even think of Michelle for the modeling contest. I mean, she fits all the requirements. She's under eighteen, and she is my sister . . . and I bet she'd love to do it, too!"
She looked at the other girls clustered around the sign. Most of them were much older than Michelle. But who cares? Stephanie thought. Michelle and I will make awesome models. Besides, it would be fun to do something like this together.
"So is Michelle in?" Allie asked.
"Michelle's in," Stephanie replied.
"What are you guys going to wear?" Darcy asked.
"Good question." Stephanie glanced around at the stores surrounding them. "Luckily, we're in the perfect place to find the answer. Let's shop!"
Before long, she and her friends were flipping through racks of shimmery shirts and dresses.
"I can't believe you're going to be a model, Steph," Allie said. "In a real fashion show, in front of real, professional fashion designers. Aren't you nervous?"
"No way," Stephanie said, trying to sound serious. "I was born to model. I'll probably be discovered at the contest and whisked away to Paris for a fabulous new life as a supermodel." She tried to hold a straight face, but burst out laughing instead.
"Well, I hope you get discovered," Darcy said with a giggle. "Then you can take us along as you jet all over the world." She reached out and flipped Stephanie's long blond hair to the side. "Yes, you will definitely need your own personal fashion consultant."
"Two," Allie chimed in. She flipped Stephanie's hair to the other side.
"Okay, you're both hired!" Stephanie grinned. "So, fashion consultants"—she pulled a pale pink top off the rack and held it up to her face—"do you think this color works for me?"
"Totally," Allie told her.
Then Darcy switched into reporter mode. "Stephanie Tanner, the look for spring!" She pretended to hold a microphone out to Stephanie. "Miss Tanner, how does it feel to have the whole world staring at you?"
Stephanie pushed away Darcy's hand. "No, no," she said in a haughty voice. "No last names for me. Just call me Stephanie. You know, like Naomi or Cindy or Madonna."
Allie laughed. "Good one, Steph," she said. "Hey, wait. Madonna's not a supermodel."
Darcy grinned. "But she's famous. Almost as famous as Supermodel Stephanie."
Stephanie smiled and took one last glance at the sale rack, then she turned and headed for the exit. "Come on, there's nothing that's really great here. Let's keep shopping. If I want to wow the judges next week, I have to make sure Michelle and I are oozing style."
They stepped out into the mall. "Hey, look." Allie pointed to a store just ahead. "I didn't know there was a Zoom store in this mall. I love their clothes."
"Me, too," Stephanie said eagerly. She bought a lot of her clothes at the Zoom in downtown San Francisco. They had the hottest fashions. ,
The three friends hurried into the store. Stephanie gazed around at the tables stacked with multicolored T-shirts and sweaters. "This could be the place," she said. "I'm sure I'll find something great to wear here."
Darcy nodded. "Zoom definitely has the Stephanie Tanner—I mean just Stephanie—sense of style."
Stephanie laughed. Then she let her eyes roam around the store. "Let's see. Do I want to go totally California casual? Or more dressy and elegant?"
"What do you think of this?" Darcy held up a green cotton T-shirt dress with purple trim around the collar and sleeves. "Pretty cute, huh? And it's on sale."
"Hmm." Stephanie looked over the dress. "That would go perfectly with these." She pointed to her clunky purple sneakers.
Allie nodded, her eyes sparkling. "Try it on!"
"Okay," Stephanie agreed. She took the dress from Darcy and went to the fitting room. Moments later, Stephanie came out with the dress on. She spun around to show off the outfit.
Darcy clapped her hands. "It's awesome!"
"Definitely perfect for you," Allie agreed. "It's just what you need for the contest."
Stephanie gazed in a mirror. She twisted back and forth, watching the short skirt flare up around her legs. "I guess we're going for the sporty look," she said, taking one last look in the mirror. "I love it! Now I need one just like it for Michelle."
Darcy flipped through the kids' racks. She held up a purple T-shirt dress with green trim. "This isn't exactly the same style, but it's close."
Stephanie examined the label. ""It's Michelle's size," she said. Then she glanced down at the price tags on the dresses. She felt her hopes sink. Even though the prices were slashed, the two dresses were more than she could afford. "Forget it," she said. "I can't get them. I don't have enough money."
"What?" Darcy gasped. "But you have to get them. They're perfect!" She dug into her pocket and pulled out a handful of crumpled bills and a few coins. "Here, I have, um, nine dollars and twenty-seven cents. You can borrow that."
Allie checked her own pockets. "I've got a ten," she said, offering the money to Stephanie.
Stephanie smiled at her friends. They were always there for her. "Thanks, guys," she said, taking the money. "I really owe you one."
"Actually, you owe us nineteen dollars and twenty-seven cents," Allie pointed out with a grin.
Stephanie checked her own wallet and grinned back. "I think I have just enough now." She changed back into her own clothes and paid for the two dresses. Then she and her friends left the store.
"I guess we should go home," Allie said. "No cash, no flash."
"Just because we're out of money doesn't mean we can't check out the rest of the mall," Stephanie pointed out.
Darcy nodded. "Let's go."
Stephanie, Allie, and Darcy wandered down a wide aisle, looking into each store they passed. A large group of girls crossed to the other side of the concourse, each one holding a shopping bag from Zoom.
Stephanie shifted her own bag from one hand to the other as a horrible thought popped into her head. "I hope no one else decides to wear the same dress in the contest next Saturday," she said to her friends. "I mean, lots of people shop at Zoom. What if these dresses aren't original enough?"
"Don't worry," Allie assured her. "No one else will look as good in them as you and Michelle."
"I hope that's what the judges think," Stephanie replied.
The girls paused to admire a dress in the window of an expensive-looking boutique called Verve. As they did, Stephanie saw a familiar face inside the shop.
"Hey, look," she said. "That girl Rianne is in there."
Allie peered in. "Her sister, too," she said. "See? She just came out of the dressing room. She's the one wearing that sparkly silver dress."