Stink and the Incredible Super-Galactic Jawbreaker (5 page)

“Stink, you look like a walking menu. No, a night-light! No, an electric eel!” said Judy. “How will you ever get to sleep?”

“It’s better than the I
TRUCKS ones I got last year,” said Stink. “Besides, the glow-in-the-dark part is kool-with-a-
k
!” All of a sudden, Stink started to squirm. He scratched his arm. He scratched his neck. He pulled at the tag in back.

“What’s wrong?” asked Judy. “Your new PJs have cooties?”

“These pajamas itch,” said Stink.

“Here, I’ll cut off the tags and soften them up in the washer for tomorrow,” said Mom. “You get ready for bed now, Stink. You too, Judy.”

“Good night! Don’t let the bedbugs bite!” Dad called from the kitchen.

“But can’t I stay up until my new PJs are done?” asked Stink.

“You mean until your homework’s done?” Judy laughed. “Stink loves homework so much he wants to wear it!”

The next morning, Stink woke up on the sunny-side-up side of bed. He did not even count his jawbreakers or play with his microbots. Today was the day he got to wear glow-in-the-dark pajamas to school! Double kool-with-a-
k
!

He ran downstairs. He looked under Mouse. He looked in the laundry-pile jumble on the couch. He looked on top of the washing machine. Where were his glow-in-the-dark pajamas?

That’s when he saw it.

A great big ball of lint. Not just any old mousy gray lint. A super-galactic, neon-bright, glow-in-the-dark ball of not-gray lint.

UH-OH! If this was what he thought it was, Stink was going to be mad as a hornet! He ran to find Mom.

“Stink, honey,” she told him, “I’m sorry to tell you that there was a problem with the new pajamas.”

Problem pajamas? Pajamas should not have problems. Math tests should have problems. Brainteasers should have problems. Inventors should have problems.

“This?” Stink held out the super-galactic planet-size lint ball.

“I’m afraid so,” said Mom. “One wash and all the glow stuff rubbed off.”

Just then, Judy rushed into the room. “Look at me! My brand-new Bonjour Bunny shirt. It turned alien green. I look like a lime lollipop!”

“You mean my glow-in-the-dark stuff rubbed off on her?”

“Huh?” asked Judy.

Mom held up the pajamas. The bacon was just black wavy lines. And the sunny-side-up eggs were sunny-side-down brown mud pies.

“No way can I wear those!” said Stink.

“Think of it as scrambled eggs, Stink,” said Judy.

“I could try sending them back to Grandma Lou,” said Mom. “Maybe she can take them back. But you won’t have any new pajamas to wear today. Your choice.”

Pajama Day was going to be a big fat flop. Instead of way-cool glow-in-the-dark PJs, all Stink had to wear was a lousy lint ball.

“Send them back,” said Stink. “Those bacon and eggs are toast.”

Mom still made him write a thank-you letter to Grandma Lou, to send back with the pajamas.

While Stink was writing his letter, Judy took the pajamas upstairs. She was up there all during breakfast. When she came back down, she announced, “Stink, I solved your pajama problem!”

“Huh?” asked Stink.

Judy dragged Stink by the arm into the coat closet and shut the door. Hey! Something glowed! Like a night-light! Like a thousand and one fireflies!

“My pajamas!” said Stink. “What did you . . . ? How did you . . . ?”

“I painted them with glow-in-the-dark paint!” said Judy. “So you don’t have to send them back. The eggs are jellyfish now, and the bacon strips are electric eels!”

“Jumping jawbreakers!” said Stink. “Thanks!” He hugged his sister. “This is the way-coolest ever! Now I won’t be the only kid in the whole second grade without cool pajamas. And I’ll be the only one who glows!”

“Does this mean I can have a free candy bar now?” asked Judy.

“We’ll see,” said Stink.

When Stink got to class 2D, his teacher was wearing a fuzzy THINK PINK bathrobe! She also had bunny slippers and a pillow and a real-live dog with bad breath named Pickles.

Stink forgot all about sunny-side-down eggs. He forgot about giant lint balls. What in the world could be better than wearing not-itchy, glow-in-the-dark pajamas to school and reading all day!

Stink plopped his sleeping bag next to his super-best-friend, Webster. “Are those your pajamas?” he asked.