Dorinda's Secret Read online

  I laugh, and put my arm around her shoulder. “I promise,” I say. “I’ll call you tomorrow, and we’ll make a time to meet.” We give each other a little kiss and a hug, and then I shake hands with her parents, promising to come over for dinner sometime.

  When we get into Mr. Garibaldi’s van, Galleria says, “Chanel is sneaky deaky, but Do’ Re Mi, I’ve got to give it up to you—you sure do keep a lot of secrets!”

  “I know,” I admit. “But I only found out about Tiffany a week ago—and I didn’t know how you’d all take it about her being white—and about me being half white.”

  Galleria smiles. “Just like me!” she says, giving me five. “Hey, it’s a rainbow nation, girlita!”

  All of a sudden, Galleria starts humming, “‘Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T./Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L./ That ain’t swell./ Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T./ Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L./ Why won’t you tell?’”

  “Hey! Now that’s a song,” coos Chanel.

  “For once, Chuchie, you are right,” Bubbles says with a giggle. “Once more, I have come up with a master jammy whammy!”

  I burst out laughing, ’cuz everything just seems so crazy! “Well—at least we got a song outta this situation!” I say. “And some money, too.”

  “And you got a new sister, too, looks like,” Angie says.

  “I like her,” Chanel says, nodding slowly. “When you gonna bring her around sometime?”

  “Pretty soon,” I promise. “I thought you two might hit it off.”

  The car pulls into traffic. Aqua looks out the window and yells, “Good-bye Apollo—and the next time we come back, you’re gonna have to pay us!”

  I put my head on Chanel’s shoulder and start us harmonizing on Galleria’s new song: “‘Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T. Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.’” I can’t stop nodding to the beat. “It’s definitely a whammy jammy,” I tell Galleria.

  The rest of the way home, I’m quiet. What a night! But I have to admit, the best part of it was Tiffany showing up like that—like she really cares about me.

  I can’t believe it—I have a real sister!

  Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T.

  This is Galleria and this is Chanel

  We are coming to you live

  From Cheetah Girls Central

  Where we process the data that matters

  And even mad chatter

  But today we’re here to tell you

  About our friend, Do’ Re Mi

  (That’s Miss Dorinda to you)

  Kats and Kittys, the drama

  Has gotten so radikkio

  Just when we thought we knew our crew

  Bam! The scandal was told!

  There’s a new girl in town

  That’s Miss Dorinda to you,

  She bounced into our lives

  But now she’s part of our crew

  Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T.

  Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.

  (That ain’t swell)

  Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T.

  Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.

  (Why won’t you tell?)

  Dorinda’s got a secret

  And it’s cutting off her flow

  (Is that right, girlita?)

  According to our sources,

  She thought we didn’t know

  (Kats and Kittys, you’d better take notes)

  Today for the first time (the very first time)

  Do’ Re Mi found out she’s not alone

  (What are you saying?)

  She found out she got a sister

  And it’s making her moan and groan!

  There’s a new girl in town

  That’s Miss Dorinda to you,

  She bounced into our lives

  But now she’s part of our crew

  Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T.

  Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.

  (That ain’t swell)

  Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T.

  Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.

  (Why won’t you tell?)

  But we peeped you!

  And now we beeped you!

  So what you know about that, huh?

  Let’s tell Miss Dorinda

  That she’s got all the flavor

  And when she keeps things to herself

  It’s Do’ Re Mi that we savor

  Don’t turn quiet on us

  Like you got nothing to say

  We found out you got a sister

  So why can’t she come out and play?

  Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T.

  Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.

  (That ain’t swell)

  Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T.

  Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.

  (Why won’t you tell, tell, tell!)

  We said Do’ Re Mi’s on the Q.T.

  (That’s the sneak tip)

  Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.

  (That’s the down, down low)

  Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T.

  Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.

  Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T.

  Who you trying to be?

  Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.

  That’s right, you know that’s fowl

  like a nearsighted owl

  Do’ Re Mi on the Q.T.

  Why you got secrets

  that make us growl?

  Do’ Re Mi on the D.D.L.

  (Is that really true her sister is—Ahhhh!

  Yes, mamacita …)

  (Fade with growl sounds)

  The Cheetah Girls Glossary

  Ad-lipping: Talking nonsense. Blabbing with an attitude.

  Amped: Excited. As in, “What are you so amped about?”

  Angle for a dangle: Cheesing or manipulating a situation so you can get a chomp on the carrot dangling in your face. Kinda like angling for an “op,” but more cheesing is involved.

  Audi 5000: Gone like the Road Runner. To do a fast getaway.

  Beaucoup swelly: Supa cool.

  Beef jerky: Static. When you have a beef with someone.

  Big Willy: Someone who is really important. Something that is really dope.

  Blab your trap: Talk too much. Blow up: Become really really successful.

  Bozo: A boy who thinks he’s all that but he isn’t.

  Coming out of the box: All of a sudden. Out of the blue but not true blue—not for real.

  D.D.L.: On the down, down low. For example: you just got your report card and you got a C in biology. When you get home, you run to your room and stay on the D.D.L. from your mom until dinnertime.

  Emphatically: On the serious tip.

  Enuf with the powder puff: Dress rehearsal is over. It’s show time, baby.

  Feels like a “Magilla Gorilla”: Feels too heavy.

  Fib-eronis: Teeny weeny fibs. Purple lies and alibis!

  Flex and floss: Do your thing. Make things happen faster than Minute Rice.

  Hoax-arama: Something that isn’t true.

  Hunky chunky: Cool, fine, as in: “Everything is fine” (even if it isn’t).

  Jammy whammy: A dope song. As in, “That’s a master jammy whammy!”

  Joint: Supa chili. As in, “That song is the joint.”

  Jumpstreet: The place where you get to the point, as in, “You shoulda just asked me that from jumpstreet.”

  Muslin: Plain white fabric used for draping and making a pattern for clothes.

  Piggly-wiggly giggle: An oinky-sounding laugh.

  Posse: Crew. The peeps you hang with.

  Put in check: Straightening out someone who is dissing you. Letting them know, it’s not like that, okay?

  Q.T.: On the hush, hush, sneak, sneaky or the quick tip.

  Radikkio: Ridiculous. As in, “Don’t be radikkio!”

  Rigor mortis: Temporary stiffening of muscles in a corpse.

  Spastic-on-the-elastic tip: Someone who doesn’t know how to go with the flow.

  The big bulb from above: The mysterious source of all Big Willy ideas.

  The spookies: The “willies.”

  Thinking without blinking: When you reall
y know something is true.

  To hype up: Support. Represent to the max.

  Toodles: Bye. See you later.

  Toodly: Fine, okay. Like when someone asks you, “How are you?” You respond, “I’m toodly.”

  Twizzling: Twisting something into pretzel shapes or just messing around with it.

  Acknowledgments

  I have to give it up to the Jump at the Sun peeps here—Andrea Pinkney, Lisa Holton, and Ken Geist—for letting the Cheetah Girls run wild. Also, Anath Garber, the one person who helped me find my Cheetah Girl powers. And, Lita Richardson, the one person who now has my back in the jiggy jungle. Primo thanks to the cover girl Cheetahs: Arike, Brandi, Imani, Jeni, and Mia. And to all the Cheetah Girls around the globe: Get diggity with the growl power, baby!

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Deborah Gregory earned her growl power as a diva-about-town contributing writer for Essence, Vibe, and More magazines. She has showed her spots on several talk shows, including Oprah, Ricki Lake, and Maury Povich. She lives in New York City with her pooch, Cappuccino, who is featured as the Cheetah Girls’ mascot, Toto.

  All rights reserved, including without limitation the right to reproduce this ebook or any portion thereof in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2000 by Deborah Gregory

  ISBN 978-1-4976-7720-3

  This edition published in 2014 by Open Road Integrated Media, Inc.

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  New York, NY 10014

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