The next day, it was the first night of the America Idol show and Arthur is really thrilled about it. He already knows what to sing. It was the Matina McBride and he choose to sing Broken Wing. He was with her practicing. He was the fifth person to perform.

That night, it was already his turn to perform. Ryan was with Arthur to chat with him.

“What are you going to sing tonight from Matina McBride?” asked Ryan.

“I’m going to sing Broken Wing,” replied Arthur.

“Do you think you’d do well?” asked Ryan.

“I hope so otherwise I’m very excited,” said Arthur.

“Now here’s Arthur Read singing Broken Wing by Matina McBride,” announced Ryan.

Arthur got on the stage as the song started.

“She loved him like the last man on earth. She gave him everything she ever had. He’d break her spirit down then come loving up on her. She'd tell him about her dreams- he'd just shoot'em down. Lord, he loved to make her cry. You're crazy for believing you'll ever leave the ground. He said only angels know how to fly. And with a broken wing,she still sings. She keeps an eye on the sky. With a broken wing, she carries her dreams. Man,you ought to see her fly. With a broken wing, she carries her dreams. Man, you ought to see her… fly!” sang Arthur as the song ended.

The audience applauded as Ryan came to Arthur.

“It’s time to judge. We’ll start with Randy,” said Ryan.

“That was excellent. You picked the right song for you. You’re very talented so far. Good job,” commented Randy.

“Thank you,” said Arthur happily.

“What do you think about Arthur, Paula?” asked Ryan.

“I agree with Randy. Just keep up with the good work,” replied Paula.

“Last but not least, Simon,” said Ryan.

“You have a strong singing voice and I like it,” commented Simon. “Just keep doing a great job.”

“Thank you,” replied Arthur.

“How do you feel about those comments?” asked Ryan.

“I feel happy about it,” replied Arthur who was thrilled.

“How would you feel if you make it to top nineteen?” asked Ryan.

“I’d be very excited,” smiled Arthur. “I can’t wait to see what’s going to happen.”

“The results are tomorrow night,” said Ryan.

----

The following day, they did the results in order who sang first to last.

“Arthur, please stand up,” said Ryan as he stood up. “You sang Broken Wing. All the judges agreed you did a good job. Did the voters agree with them? And they did, that means you’re safe.”

Arthur was thrilled about that as he sat down. One of the adults got voted off from the bottom three. The one who sang Indepance Day was way off key. The judges agreed that was the right move for the voters.

After the show, Arthur was still excited about being in the top ninteen.

“You must be very happy about this, honey,” smiled his mother.

“I sure am,” Arthur smiled back. “I could picture myself being the American Idol winner already.”

“Even if you didn’t, we’d still be proud of you,” said Mrs. Read.

“True, but I’d be crushed,” replied Arthur.