Fabulous Five 014 - The Seventh-Grade Menace (3 page)

BOOK: Fabulous Five 014 - The Seventh-Grade Menace
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CHAPTER 5

"Can you
believe
that Geena McNatt!" Katie
cried angrily as she held her shirt away from her body so the chocolate milk
would dry. "My top is
ruined
."

"It was probably just an accident," said Christie.
"Why would she want to spill milk on you?"

"I don't know, but that's exactly what she did."

"You two haven't had an argument, have you?" asked
Melanie.

"No, we haven't had an argument," answered Katie. "I've
never even talked to her. There's no reason for her to be mad at me."

Jana looked at her friend's shirt. Chocolate stain ran all
the way down from her left shoulder to her waist. "You'd better go to the
girls' room and soak it or else it will never come out. I've got a clean
T-shirt from gym in my locker. I'll get it and bring it to you."

"While you two do that, we'll clean up the petitions,"
volunteered Christie. "They may be a mess, but I think Miss Simone will
accept them."

As Jana hurried down the hallway to her locker, she thought
again about the look in Geena's eyes. No matter what she said, she didn't
seem
sorry about the accident. But Katie had said she hadn't had any problems with
Geena. What other reason could there have been? Maybe it really was an
accident. Jana felt sorry for Katie. It would be embarrassing wearing the gym
shirt all afternoon.

"I hear you and Randy are running for Mr. and Miss
Seventh Grade," said Marcie Bee, whose locker was next to Jana's. She was
taking out some books for her next class.

"Yes, we are," Jana replied as she dialed the
number on her combination. She hoped that Miss Simone, the principal's
secretary, would accept the messed-up petitions. It would be a pain to have to
ask all those kids for their signatures again.

"Yeek!" Jana gasped, and felt a shock wave at what
she saw when she opened the door.

"What's wrong?" Marcie asked as she yanked Jana's
locker door farther open so she could see.

Jana couldn't get out a single word. All she could do was
point. Inside her locker the clothes hanging from the hooks were covered with a
red mess that was dripping down on her gym shoes. The books and notebooks lying
at the bottom of the locker looked even worse. They were drenched in the thick
red substance.

Gingerly Jana picked the sleeve of her jacket up with two
fingers and examined it closely. It looked too thick to be blood. She sniffed
it. It smelled like tomato.
It was catsup.

"Oh, no, not you too," exclaimed Marcie. "I
just saw Mona Vaughn and Whitney Larkin. Someone had squirted that icky red
stuff into their lockers, too. It was all over their clothes and books. Who
could have done such a thing?"

"I'm not sure," Jana murmured. Angrily, she pushed
aside the jacket to check the white gym-suit shirt she had promised Katie.
There was a small smear of catsup on the tail. It could be washed and the damp
spot wouldn't show when it was tucked in, but that wouldn't make Katie feel any
better. She was mad enough already at having the chocolate milk spilt on her.
Jana's shoes and the two books she had tossed in the bottom of the locker were worse
off. They were drenched in the icky red stuff.

Jana leaned against the door of her locker with the soiled
shirt in her hand. Why had someone squirted catsup all over her things? Whoever
it was must have taken one of the squeeze-type catsup bottles from the
cafeteria to do it. The pointy spout would fit perfectly through the louvers in
the locker doors. That meant it had been planned.

The thought shocked Jana, and a sinking feeling settled in
the pit of her stomach. She had been feeling so happy. Everyone was saying she
and Randy were so well-liked that they would be a cinch to win the Mr. and Miss
Seventh Grade contests. Someone certainly doesn't like me, she thought. I don't
know for sure that it was Geena, but who else could it be?

She took the gym shirt from its hook and hurried to the
girls' room to give it to Katie.

Katie was still fuming when Jana got there, and the catsup
on the shirt didn't help her temper. She was so angry when Jana explained what
had happened that her face turned almost as red as her hair.

"That girl is a bully," Katie snarled as she
patted the wet spot where the catsup had been with a paper towel.

"I don't know for sure that she did it," said
Jana, trying to sound reasonable even though her emotions kept telling her the
sneak catsup squirter had been Geena.

Katie stopped patting the wet spot and looked up at her. "Can
you think of
anyone
else who might have done it?"

"No, I can't. But remember, you're the one who is
always saying we have to be fair, and until we have proof, we can't convict
her."

Katie sighed and tucked the still-moist shirttail into her
pants. "There are some times when it's harder to be fair than others."

"There's one thing I haven't told you," said Jana.

Katie raised her eyebrows questioningly.

"Someone squirted catsup in Mona's and Whitney's
lockers, too."

Katie waved her finger in the air. "What did I tell
you? Who else would have done a thing like that to the three of you? You're on
her list."

"Well, if we're on her list, why would she want to
spill chocolate milk on you? You said you hadn't even talked to her."

"I
don't
think she intended to spill the milk on
me," responded Katie.

Jana stared at her friend. "Well, if you think it was
an accident, why are you so mad? That's not like you."

"I didn't say I thought it was an accident. I said, I
didn't think she intended to spill it on me. What I think is, she wanted to
spill the milk on your petitions. I think she's after you, and that's what
makes me mad."

Jana's jaw dropped open. "
Me?
Why me? Just
because I might have seen her take the folder from Whitney Larkin? That doesn't
make sense. Whitney hasn't turned her in. She can't prove Geena took her
homework."

"I don't know what her reasons are," said Katie. "But
I think you had better watch out for her."

Jana stared at her friend. It didn't make sense. Was Geena
really
doing these terrible things on purpose? Neither Jana nor Whitney had done
anything to make Geena mad at them. There had to be an explanation. But try as
hard as she could, Jana couldn't think of one.

CHAPTER 6

Jana flattened her petitions on the office counter as well
as she could as she and Randy waited for Miss Simone to finish her telephone
conversation. Christie, Beth, and Melanie had wiped most of the chocolate stain
off of them while she was getting the gym shirt for Katie, but the papers were
badly wrinkled and some of the names that were written in ink were smeared.

"What can I do for you two?" asked Miss Simone,
hanging up the telephone and coming to the counter.

"We'd like to file these petitions for
The Wigwam
Mr.
and Miss Seventh Grade contest, if they're not too messed up," answered
Jana. She was tempted to explain why they were so wrinkled, but she didn't. There
wasn't any use stirring up things any more than they already were.

Miss Simone took the papers, and Jana could see a smile
dancing at the corners of her mouth as she counted the names. "All the
signatures are still legible, but we'll need to check them for duplicates.
However, I think these will be just fine. I'll let you know if there are any
problems."

"Thanks!" Jana and Randy said in unison.

"Uh, Miss Simone. Has anyone else turned in a petition
for the seventh-grade contests?" asked Jana.

"Let me see. No, not yet."

"Thanks again," said Jana, giving her a big smile.

"Just think!" Jana said to Randy when they were
out in the hall. "What if no one else runs? Then they wouldn't have to
have an election for the seventh grade."

"Yeah," Randy agreed. "But if no one else
runs, what does it prove? It certainly wouldn't mean we're the most popular boy
and girl in the seventh grade. Besides, I'm not sure I want to know how popular
I am. Being popular doesn't mean you're the
best
person."

Jana looked up at him. He was serious. "I agree,"
she said, nodding. "If we win, it would just mean we have a lot of
friends. I know a lot of people that I think are at least as good as me. Katie
is so fair and honest; Christie is brainy and popular; Beth is always taking up
causes to help people, like the American Indians; and Melanie is so sweet, and
she's the one who wanted to save the animals at the shelter." Jana looked
into Randy's eyes. "And then there's you. You've got to be the kindest,
sincerest person I know."

Randy's face turned a light shade of pink, and Jana giggled.
"You're blushing," she said.

"It's nice that you think so," he said, looking
embarrassed, "but I don't think I can live up to that kind of publicity."
Then his eyes softened, and he said, "It's great that you think so."

Jana floated down the hall on her way to her next class. Randy
was fantastic. She felt Iucky to be going with him.

As she turned a corner, she slammed into Geena McNatt. Both
girls' books scattered across the floor, and Jana grabbed at the wall to keep
from falling.

"You did it again
!"
shouted Geena. "Don't
you
ever
look where you're going?"

"Me?"
Jana was shouting back. "I was
just walking like any normal human being."

"Are you saying I'm not normal?"

Jana had never seen such anger in a person's eyes. She
struggled to regain control of herself. She wasn't going to let Geena drag her
into a fight. That wasn't the way people solved problems. "Look," she
said. "It was just an accident. Let's forget it."

"It's easy for you to forget,
Miss Popularity,
"
Geena shot back. "Just because you and your friends think you run the school
doesn't mean you can run over people in the hall."

Jana stared at Geena in shocked disbelief. "What are
you talking about? I don't think that my friends and I run the school."

"Yes you do!"

Jana drew in a deep breath and looked at the angry girl
standing in front of her. She was taller than Jana by a couple of inches, and
she was dressed in the same oversized red sweats she always seemed to be
wearing. Jana wasn't afraid of her, but she couldn't understand her at all. It
was as if she were a volcano waiting to blow.

Calmly, Jana began to pick up her books. Two other kids who
had stopped to watch the argument handed her a notebook and two social studies
books. One of them was Geena's, and Jana held it out to her. Geena snatched it
from her hand.

Jana brushed off her skirt and turned to leave. As she
walked away, she could feel Geena's eyes burning into her back.

CHAPTER 7

Melanie stood in the middle of the Edwardses' family room
and banged a pen against her soda glass. "Okay, everybody. It's time to
put the puppies back in their box so that we can start our meeting."

Groans filled the air.

"Oh, come on, Mel," said Jana. Melanie's family
had adopted a dog named Rainbow from the local animal shelter. A few days
later, Rainbow had had eight puppies. Now Jana was cuddling two tiny puppies
under her chin. "We can talk and hold puppies at the same time."

"Oh, yeah? That's what you think. We wouldn't get a
thing done," she countered. "This is important. Put the puppies back."

Reluctantly, Jana placed the puppies close to Rainbow, who
had been stretched out in the box quietly watching The Fabulous Five play with
her babies. In fact, Jana had been sure that she had been smiling. One by one
the others replaced the little dogs, who began climbing all over Rainbow. One fat
little puppy who was exactly the same mixture of colors as his mother began
tugging on one of her ears.

Melanie looked down into the box and then back at her
friends. "Okay. Who's hiding one? There are only seven here."

"Not me," said Jana. "You all saw me. I was
the first one to put mine back."

"Me, neither," said Randy, holding his arms wide
in a gesture of surrender.

Everyone else shrugged and glanced around, looking innocent,
until Christie put her hands on her hips and said, "Okay, Calcaterra. Why
is that lump in your shirt moving?"

"Who? Me?" he said. Then he grinned sheepishly. "Oh,
yeah. It is moving, isn't it? Must have been something I ate."

"Don't tell me that Mr. Macho is really just an old
softie," quipped Katie.

Everyone laughed at that, and Tony unbuttoned his shirt and
drew out a brown bundle of fur, which he deposited in the box with the others.

Melanie clanged her glass again. "Before the meeting
starts, we have something special to do," she said.

Randy, Shane, Scott, Keith, Tony, and Jon looked at each
other questioningly as Jana and Christie dug behind one of the couches and
brought out the paper bags The Fabulous Five had hidden there earlier. Jana and
the other girls each reached in and pulled out small bows made from yellow
ribbon and gave one to each of the boys. Then Melanie passed around a small tin
box that contained safety pins to the girls.

"These ribbons are to show our concern for Igor,"
said Jana as she pinned one on Randy's shirt and then her own. "And you're
supposed to wear them to school every day until he's well."

"They're kind of like the ones the kids wore for Randy
when he was in the hospital," observed Jon.

"There is a resemblance between Randy and Igor,"
kidded Keith. "In fact, they could be related."

Randy threw a crushed potato-chip bag at him.

"And that's not all," said Beth. "We also
have get-well cards for Igor." The girls pulled cards from their notebooks
and purses and handed them to Shane.

"Tell Igor we care," said Katie.

For a minute Shane just looked around the room without
saying a word. Jana could tell from the look in his eyes that he was moved by
his friends' concern.

"I know Igor will appreciate it," he said finally.
"You won't mind if he doesn't send you thank-you cards until he gets over
whatever he has, do you? I don't think he's up to it yet."

"How's he doing?" asked Jon.

Shane shook his head. "Not good. I still can't get him
to eat, and I don't think he has moved two inches since last week."

"What about asking Mr. Dracovitch to look at him?"
asked Randy. "He knows a lot of things about biology."

Jana wished she had suggested the same thing to Shane when
she was at his house on Monday. Mr. Dracovitch was a biology teacher at Wakeman
and he acted pretty weird sometimes. He wore a black wig that made him look
like a vampire, but he only did it to interest kids in taking his science
classes.

"That's a good idea," answered Shane. "My dad
and I've asked everyone else we can think of."

"Now to get on with our business," said Melanie,
taking the center of the room again. "We're here to officially start the
Jana Morgan and Randy Kirwan campaigns for Mr. and Miss Seventh Grade, and you've
all been chosen to serve on the campaign committee."

"Not another campaign," said Scott, putting both
hands over his eyes.

"How much is it going to cost us this time?" asked
Tony.

"Only some of your time and talent, which isn't worth
much to begin with," said Katie, laughing.

"I'll remember that the next time Mr. Bell sends me to
Teen Court, Your Honor," Tony responded. "See if I make it easy on
you judges by pleading guilty again." Everyone except Katie laughed that
time, but she punched him on the arm.

"Listen up!" commanded Melanie loudly. "We've
got poster boards and Magic Markers. Let's get to work or we'll be here all
night."

Shane stood up and saluted Melanie as if she were an officer
as everyone took one of the sheets of poster board and chose bright-colored
Magic Markers.

While Jana thought about what to put on her poster, she
looked around at the group of friends and thought about how hard they were
working to help her and Randy run for Mr. and Miss Seventh Grade. They were all
wearing their bright-yellow ribbons and chattering happily to each other. Geena's
accusation that Jana thought she and her friends ran the school was absolutely
false. She wouldn't have thought about running for Miss Seventh Grade if Funny
Hawthorne hadn't started the rumor that she was going to. And then the rest of
The Fabulous Five started telling her that she should run. Randy was right
though. Just because you had lots of friends who might vote for you, it didn't
make you better than anyone else. But it also didn't make you any worse. So why
did Geena think so badly of her? It made her head spin trying to figure it out.

The next morning, Jana and her friends raced through the
halls before school putting up the posters. By the time the bell rang for
homeroom, they had finished. Besides the posters for her and Randy, she had
seen posters for Kaci Davis, Marsha Reel, Chet Miller, and D. J. Doyle for ninth
grade and Daphne Alexandrou, Shelly Bramlett, and Garrett Boldt for eighth
grade. Jana was glad to see that someone had talked Garrett into running. She
would have to tell him that she wished she could be in the eighth grade for one
day so she could vote for him. There were still no posters for anyone else who
was in the seventh grade.

During the day, Jana was swamped with people wanting to tell
her that they were glad she was running, and they would vote for her. Twice, as
she talked to groups of kids, she saw Geena McNatt staring coldly at her from a
distance.

As she hurried into her social studies class that afternoon,
she spotted Shane wearing his yellow ribbon, and the kids sitting near him were
talking to him about it. Good, she thought, straightening hers a little and
sticking out her chest to show it off, maybe some others will start wearing
them, too.

Jana slid into her chair and waved to Mona Vaughn, who was
sorting through makeup and other odds and ends she had taken out of her purse.
Jana smiled at the bottle of bubble mix that was among the things spread out on
the top of her desk. Mona's family couldn't afford a pet, so she managed to
save money from her lunch allowance to buy the bubble mix, which she took to
the animal shelter some days after school. She would blow bubbles into the
cages of the dogs and cats, and they would chase and bite at them. It was Mona's
way of making the animals happy until someone came to take them home.

At that moment Geena McNatt came down the aisle. When she
reached Mona's desk, she stopped and picked up the bubble mix and shook it. "Baby
stuff," she said with a sneer and dropped it. Mona had to grab for the
bottle to keep it from rolling off onto the floor as Geena took her seat.

How could Geena be so mean? thought Jana, shaking her head.
It was no wonder no one paid any attention to her when she hung around. And she
dressed so sloppily. All the other girls wore things that made them look
attractive and most put on some makeup, but Geena wore baggy sweats that looked
terrible on her and she never seemed to comb her hair. No boy would
ever
ask
her
out.

I guess I should feel sorry for her, thought Jana, but it's
hard. The best thing probably is to ignore her. She's really just a pain, but I
can put up with it.

Mr. Broderick called the class to attention and began the
day's lesson. As the lecture droned on, Jana's attention was pulled back to
Geena. She had a ruler and was using it to slowly push the books on the corner
of Mona's desk off the edge. Mona was concentrating so hard on what Mr.
Broderick was saying that she didn't notice what was happening.

Jana watched, frozen for a few seconds. Should she warn
Mona? Before she could decide what to do, the books went crashing to the floor.

Mona nearly jumped out of her chair, and Mr. Broderick
stopped speaking as everyone turned to see what had happened.

Mona's face turned bright red, and she scrambled to pick up
her books. "Sorry," she said in a tiny voice.

The teacher cleared his throat and began again.

As the lecture continued, Jana watched Mona peek over her
shoulder at Geena, who smiled at her sweetly and waved her ruler.

Geena really is a menace, Jana thought angrily. First she
took Whitney Larkin's homework, and now she's knocked Mona's books onto the
floor. I don't mind her picking on me. I can handle her, but why does she have
to pick on people like Mona and Whitney?
Something had to be done about
Geena McNatt.

BOOK: Fabulous Five 014 - The Seventh-Grade Menace
10.93Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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