Caught in the Web (13 page)

Madison said good-bye and logged off TweenBlurt.com. She was a teeny bit disappointed that she hadn’t won any of the costume prizes from the dance, but neither had Ivy. That was some consolation. Besides, what mattered most of all now was that she (1) had spent half the night with her crush (and her heart was happy), (2) spent major time with her BFFs, and (3)
finally
admitted the truth to Aimee about Bigwheels’s existence.

Although it was very late after the chat, Madison still didn’t feel tired. She stayed online and decided to write Bigwheels an e-mail.

She owed her one. So much had happened.

From: MadFinn


To: Bigwheels


Subject: Dances and Other News


Date: Fri 27 Oct 10:36 PM


Long time, no write.


Just got back fm. my school dance & I am blissed out.


I danced w/him. Yes, THE him I have been talking about since school started. He came dressed as a wizard. I had on this dumb costume. I went as a goddess.


Anyway, how r u? How r ur parents doing these days? I think about you whenever I see my mom & dad together. This is because my parents (u know this) are divorced. I think about your family.


How was your school dance? Write back real soon.


XOXOXO Yours till the pumpkin pies,


MadFinn


P.S. Did you ever enter that contest on TweenBlurt? I think they will be sending winners soon. I ended up liking my story. Did you ever write that poem?


After Madison sent the e-mail to her online friend, she finally changed into pajamas. After crawling out of Aphrodite’s caftan, Madison combed the curls out of her hair, too. They were tangled where Mom had spritzed too much hair spray. She washed the blush off her face.

But she still wasn’t so sleepy. Madison turned the computer back on.

Scary


This past week in English, Mr. Gibbons wrote on the board: Don’t be afraid to scare yourself. Half the class was like, “WHAT??!”


He does that a lot, writes things we may not understand. Asks us to talk. So it got me thinking about a list of the things that scare me. I thought of 8 so far.


What am I afraid of?


1. The dark


2. Failing


3. Being left out


4. Ghosts like Mrs. Martin


5. Really big zits


6. Dancing badly


7. Kissing a boy


8. Horror movies


Rude Awakening:
Sometimes you have to dance the fright away! Amazingly, I tried dancing tonight. And even though my dress was too long, it worked. I felt less self-conscious and way less scared.


Am I gonna be scared of seventh grade forever???


I’M AFRAID NOT!


Ha ha ha.


S
ATURDAY MORNING MADISON WOKE
up extra early so she could write in her files and clean up her room for real. She’d fake-cleaned it for Mom’s benefit, but now the mess was beginning to grow and multiply once again.

Sweatpants and a training bra trailed out of the hamper.

Papers, files, and notebooks poked out from under the bed.

Even Madison’s desk overflowed with magazines, schoolbooks, and two half-empty glasses of apple juice she forgot to bring back to the kitchen.

Madison checked her e-mailbox to see if she’d received any messages from TweenBlurt.com since last night. She was addicted to checking e-mails, especially when she was secretly hoping for a message back from Bigwheels
and
an update on the Caught in the Web contest. The results were supposed to have come in by now.

Her mailbox was flashing!

Madison grabbed at the edges of her desk and clicked the buttons to open her e-mailbox. Just as she’d hoped, there was a brand-new message from Bigwheels waiting there with a poem attachment.

From: Bigwheels


To: MadFinn


Subject: Re: Dances and Other News


Date: Sat 28 Oct 8:36 AM


I didn’t make it to my school’s Halloween dance, but it sounds like u had a great time. Congrats. I am sitting here after school and my mom just made me the yummiest pumpkin cake. I am so happy cuz it is my absolute favorite. Did you decide to go trick-or-treating or no? I think you said no but I can’t remember.


I wrote a poem BTW. Here you go even if it is kinda silly. It was for my class and I thought it might make u laugh.


Happy Halloween


There once was a pumpkin on a farm


Who didn’t like the other gourds.


The pumpkin reached one vine out


like an arm


And spoke a few funny words.


“Halloween isn’t fun without friends,”


the pumpkin said from his stem.


“My friends are all cut off down to the ends,”


And sure enough someone had picked them.


When you spend Halloween carving one


Remember what some pumpkins say,


Be with your friends and have fun


On a special Halloween day!!!


They haven’t posted the winners yet 4 that contest. How did you do? I bet you won it. FC!!! (That’s fingers crossed). I have this feeling. N e way, write back soon.


Yours till the wind blows,


Bigwheels


Madison was becoming more and more convinced that Bigwheels was her twin—not like Fiona and Chet—but close.

As she shut down the Bigwheels message, Madison noticed her mailbox indicator flashing again. There was another message—and this one was from the TweenBlurt.com Web site! Madison held her breath and opened the document.

She read it aloud slowly to Phinnie, even though he wasn’t paying much attention. He’d recurled up into a furry ball at her feet.

From: [email protected]


To: Members Only


Subject: Caught in the Web Contest Winners


Date: Sat 28 Oct 8:34 AM


Happy Halloween!


The big fins at TweenBlurt.com asked YOU to write us a mystery for Halloween. Your stories were FRIGHTFULLY good. We received over three hundred entries. Thanks to everyone who wrote stories!


The stories below will be posted in their entirety starting on HALLOWEEN.


Thanks for entering! And congratulations to the winners.


And here’s the top Winners’ list:


“
I can’t believe it!”
Madison shouted when she saw her name on the screen. “Mom! Mom! I won! Come here!”

“Rowrooooo!”
Phin awoke with a howl.
“Rowrooooo!”

Madison had been selected as a runner-up. Phinnie barked his approval and jumped up for scritches on his back. Mom, hearing the racket, came into the bedroom to see what all the fuss was about.

“You won?” she cried.

“Well, I got a runner-up prize,” Madison said, pulling Phinnie into her lap.

“Honey bear, that’s fantastic!” Mom said sweetly, and patted Madison on the head. “We have to celebrate! Right now. Oh, I’m so proud of you, Maddie.”

Madison felt all tingly inside. She was proud of herself, too. Although the Ivy drama had momentarily threatened to ruin seventh grade and the school dance for her, Madison was finding out that she could still have a very happy Halloween. Madison and Phinnie followed Mom into the kitchen, where she warmed up a special loaf of the pumpkin bread Madison loved.

“This is just turning into the best Halloween ever,” Madison said, pouring herself a bowl of Lightly Honeyed Oaty-Os, too. Phin curled up by the dishwasher.

“Why is that, Maddie?” Mom buttered the slices of pumpkin bread.

“It just is.” Madison took one bite and smiled.

Madison leaned over to feed Phin a corner of the pumpkin bread. He licked his chops for more.

“You know, I never won anything before, Mom,” she said. “And I feel so happy right now. I really can’t explain what I’m feeling.”

Mom smiled. “It won’t be the last time you win something, I promise you that.”

Madison thanked Mom and went back upstairs to get dressed. She tried calling Aimee to tell her about the contest, but the Gillespie phone lines were busy. One of Aimee’s brothers was always hogging the phone. She’d tell Aimee and everyone else about it later when they met up at the school soccer game.

Today was the
big
game everyone had been waiting for. The Rangers were up against the other most winning team in the district, the Cobras. The game was being hosted at Far Hills Junior High.

Aimee was going to the game straight from a private ballet lesson in the morning, so Madison walked to school by herself. As she crossed the parking lot and headed around back to the field, Madison glanced at purple-and-orange posters taped to the doors of the school building.

SOMETHING TO SCREAM ABOUT!

She laughed. The whole week had been a scream. A little piece of her wished she could be back at the dance again.

“Maddie!” Drew was running to the soccer field, too.

“Hey!” Madison said. “I just found out I won a writing Web contest. Well, I got runner-up.”

“Congratulations,” Drew said.

They walked over to the bleachers. Egg was sitting there, goofing around with Chet and another friend, Dan. Egg’s sister, Mariah, was sitting there, too, with some of her older friends in black, the same ones Madison had seen at the mall food court the weekend before.

The stands were filling quickly with seventh, eighth, and ninth graders. Parents held up painted signs that read GO RANGERS! Everyone had on jackets and scarves to keep the wind away. The air was crisp, and smelled like leaves.

One side of the bleachers seemed to hold mostly Cobra fans, but no one was arguing or anything about which team was better—yet. Madison felt overwhelmed by the color, noise, and feelings in the pit of her stomach.

She really belonged. This was her school.

Mr. and Mrs. Waters were sitting down in front, sipping cups of coffee. Fiona, tying her laces, had her knee up on the bottom step of the bleachers. When she turned and saw Madison come across the field, she broke into a giant grin. “Maddie! You’re here! That is so great!”

Fiona threw her arms around her friend. Madison hugged right back.

“Where’s Aimee?” Fiona asked. Then she remembered about the ballet lesson. Aimee would be coming later, close to the first whistle.

“So I gotta go,” Fiona blurted. “Thanks for coming! See you after the game!” She hugged Madison one last time and then ran over to her team’s huddle for warm-ups and pep talks.

“Hey, Maddie,” Mariah said, waving. She turned to the guy on her left and said, “This is Karl.” Karl nodded in Madison’s direction.

“Hey, howyadoing?” he said. She smiled and wondered if maybe he was cuter than she and Aimee and Fiona first thought at the mall.

“So how was the Halloween dance?” Mariah asked Madison discreetly.

“Fine. I went as Aphrodite,” Madison whispered back.

“Ooooh,” Mariah teased. “Goddess of love!” Luckily no one but Karl heard her say that. He didn’t seem to care about anything they said.

“I didn’t see you there,” Madison said.

Marian shrugged. “Nah, I blew it off. Karl and I went to the movies. But I’m glad you had a nice time. I bet you looked good.”

Madison lowered her head, a little embarrassed. She turned to watch Fiona take practice kicks out on the field.

“Where’s Hart?” Chet asked Egg. Madison turned to hear the answer.

“He is way sick,” Drew replied. Since he and Hart were cousins, their mothers had spoken that morning.

“Sick?” Madison said.

“Way
sick. Like throwing up.”

“Ewwww, gross me,” Egg said. “Maybe he ate the flies in that punch last night.”

Drew and Chet both snorted.

“So I guess he’s not coming to the game, then?” Madison asked.

“There’s Aimee!” Chet cried. “She looks like Barney!”

Aimee was running up the side of the field with a purple duffel bag. She had on a purple sweatshirt and leggings, too.