Fabulous Five 032 - Class Trip Calamity (5 page)

Teachers were still able to keep some discipline in the
classrooms on Thursday, but by Friday, Wacko Junior High was a zoo. Kids were
running and pushing in the halls and talking and passing notes in the
classrooms, right under the teachers' noses. The cafeteria wasn't any better,
but fortunately, thought Jana, no one started a food fight.

"I can't believe that tomorrow is our class trip and
that next Wednesday school will be out for the summer and we won't be
seventh-graders anymore," said Melanie when The Fabulous Five were
strolling on the school ground after lunch.

"I don't know why they don't just dismiss us today and
get it over with," commented Beth.

Jana smiled. She knew what was coming next.

"You know perfectly well that the school has to get in
a certain number of class days to get money from the government," Katie
said, "and we had so many snow days during the winter that they had to
extend the school year into next week."

"Of course I know that," replied Beth, rolling her
eyes. "It's just that everybody is so hyped up that holding classes next
week will only be a waste of time."

Just then Jana had the feeling that someone was looking at
her. Turning around, she saw Funny leaning against a tree, first glancing her
way and then peeking around the other side of the tree back toward the
building. Maybe she's found out how Laura managed to get into my locker,
thought Jana.

"I'll be back in a minute," she said. "I need
to talk to Funny."

Hurrying to her, Jana asked, "What's up? You look as if
you're hiding from someone."

"I am," Funny told her. "I don't want Laura
or the others to see me talking to you right now, because I just found out how
Laura got into your locker."

Jana's pulse quickened. "You did? How?"

Funny breathed a deep sigh. "You're not going to
believe this, but Laura is so paranoid about her friends that sometimes she
insists one of us do something to prove our loyalty."

"Yes, I believe it," Jana assured her. "There
have been rumors about it ever since school started."

"Well—" Funny hesitated. "You're going to
hate
this, but here goes. Sometime around Christmas Laura was mad at Melissa for
something, and she told Melissa that the only way she could prove her
friendship to Laura was to stand close enough to spy on you when you were
opening your locker and get the combination to your lock."

"You're kidding!" Jana's mouth dropped open, and
she looked around helplessly. "And Melissa actually did a thing like that?
She got the combination to my lock?"

When Funny didn't answer, Jana shook her head and said, "Silly
question, huh? Obviously she did, and Laura has been waiting all this time for
the perfect moment to use it." Jana stared at the ground, anger welling up
inside her.

"Right," said Funny. "She was so afraid you'd
tell on her and the other kids who plan to drink that she thought she'd scare
you off by getting you in trouble first."

"Well, it didn't work," said Jana.

"I've got to run," Funny said anxiously. "Laura
and Tammy and Melissa stopped in the girls' rest room, but they should be out
by now and heading this way."

Jana nodded. "Thanks, Funny. I appreciate what you've
done for me."

"I'm really sorry about all this," Funny murmured,
and Jana knew she was sincere.

Funny started to leave, but Jana called out, "Wait a
minute. One more quick question. How did you find out?"

"I overheard Laura and Melissa talking about it a few
minutes ago. Laura was bragging about how easy it had been to pull that on you,
but Melissa is really scared someone will find out and she'll get in trouble."

I'll bet she is, thought Jana as Funny hurried away. Melissa's
whole life involves being perfect. Straight A's; officer in two or three clubs;
perfection with a capital P. Getting in trouble would totally humiliate her.
But she deserves it, Jana thought angrily. She shouldn't get away with a thing
like that, and neither should Laura!

Jana stomped back over to her friends and repeated what she
had just heard from Funny. "Can you believe that Laura would do a thing
like that?" she demanded.

"Yes,"
chorused the others.

"I think you should get revenge," remarked Beth.

"Me, too," agreed Melanie.

"If you could prove it, you could take her to Teen
Court," offered Katie.

"No, I couldn't. Today after school is the last session
of Teen Court for this school year," Jana reminded her. "You're on
the Court—how could you forget a thing like that?"

"Whoops." Katie grinned sheepishly.

"Maybe you could do something on the trip tomorrow,"
said Beth. She rubbed her hands together and grinned slyly. "Like rat on
her."

Jana shook her head. "I couldn't, not even on Laura.
But that's not the only reason. I'd get a lot of other kids in trouble, too,
like Dekeisha, and Sara, and Lisa. And
you
!
" she added
emphatically.

Beth looked embarrassed, but she didn't say anything.

"I'm sure we can think of something else," said
Melanie. "Something that will just get Laura and Melissa."

"Sure," Jana said without conviction. Getting
revenge would only lead to more trouble between The Fantastic Foursome and The
Fabulous Five, and she had had enough of that for one year.

Later that evening Jana was fixing her lunch for the trip
and thinking about her predicament with Laura when the phone rang. It was
Randy.

"I thought you'd be at Bumpers tonight, since the rest
of The Fab Five were there," he told her. "Everybody's pretty excited
about tomorrow, and the place was a madhouse."

"I'm glad you missed me," Jana replied with a
catch in her throat. "But I had a lot of things to do tonight." And a
lot of things to think about, she added silently. "Besides, I want to be
wide awake when the bus leaves at six o'clock in the morning."

"Yeah. Me, too. It's going to be tough," said
Randy. "Hey, by the way, what's this I hear about a liquor bottle falling
out of your locker this morning? It isn't true, is it?"

It was all Jana could do to keep from telling him the truth
about how Laura had gotten the combination to her locker and planted the bottle
inside to get her in trouble, but she didn't. Since she couldn't actually prove
it was Laura who did it, it would sound like gossip, and Randy hated gossip.

"I'm afraid it is true," she answered. "I
must have left my locker unlocked last night and somebody played a nasty joke."

"That's awful," said Randy. "Do you know who
did it?"

"I have an idea, but I can't prove anything." Jana
hesitated. "Randy," she went on slowly, "there's something I'd
really like to ask you."

"Sure. Is something wrong?" he asked.

"Not exactly, but . . . well, maybe," Jana
fumbled.

"Maybe you'd better tell me what it is." Jana
could hear concern in his voice.

Jana sighed. "It's just that it seems every time I look
around lately, you're talking to Laura McCall. You know we don't get along very
well, and I guess it just bothers me, that's all."

"It shouldn't. You know you're the only one I like."
When Jana didn't answer, Randy added, "Is that all that's bothering you,
or is there more?"

Jana bit her lower lip. She couldn't fool him, so she'd
better get the rest of it off her chest. "No, I keep wondering if you're
going to be partying with Laura and Shawnie and all the other kids tomorrow."

"Hey, you know I wouldn't do that," Randy said. "Just
because some of those kids are my friends doesn't mean I'll go along with
everything they do. I thought you knew me better than that."

"I do," Jana insisted. "It's just that Laura's
been hanging around you so much this past week, and I know she's planning to
drink on the bus. I kept wandering if she was trying to get you to join in."

"Aw, come on. Don't be silly," said Randy. He was
trying to sound as if he was teasing, but Jana could tell that he was serious.

What do you mean, don't be silly? she wanted to shout.
Still, a memory was beginning to nag at her. She had gotten jealous of Randy's
attention to Laura once before. She had even run out of Bumpers and straight
into the path of a car because she was angry at him. Randy had been a hero. He
had pushed her aside and been hit by the car himself and was in a coma for days
and days. It was only later that she had found out the truth. Laura had a crush
on Shane, and she had been asking Randy to put in a good word for her. Jana bit
her lip. She had been wrong about Laura that time. Maybe she was wrong this
time, too.

"Hey, are you still there?" asked Randy.

"Yes," she said in a small voice.

"I'm sorry if things looked funny," he said. "Honest.
It's just that Laura has needed some friendly advice lately, and for some
reason she asked me."

"What kind of advice?" Jana asked stiffly, her old
suspicions coming back again.

"Sorry," said Randy. "She asked me not to
talk about it to anyone."

"Oh," Jana mumbled. A few minutes later they said
good-night and hung up. Jana headed upstairs to get ready for bed. She looked
at herself in the mirror while she brushed her teeth, wondering why she didn't
feel better. Randy had said he wasn't going to drink tomorrow and that Laura was
only asking for friendly advice. That should be good news.

But instead of feeling better, what she really felt was
angry and confused.

It was still pitch-black when Jana's stepfather dropped her
off in front of Wakeman Junior High the next morning, but the lights at Wakeman
were blazing. In front of the building kids milled around, waiting to board the
string of buses at the curb.

"Jana! Jana! Over here!"

Katie was waving from the front steps, and Jana could see
that she was the last of The Fabulous Five to arrive. Melanie was yawning and
gazing off in the distance as if she were still half asleep. Beth was sitting
on the steps, wearing earphones and rocking back and forth to music coming from
the small tape player attached to her belt. Jana felt a flutter of excitement
as she rushed to join them. This was going to be fun.

Alexis Duvall reached Katie, Beth, and Melanie at the same
time Jana did. "Bummer," she grumbled. "The bus assignments are
according to homeroom, which means that since we're split into different homerooms,
we won't all be able to sit together."

"Oh, no," complained Beth. "They can't split
us up! It won't be any fun if we can't sit together."

"We'll be together on the boat and at Ellis Island and
the Statue of Liberty," said Katie. "That's most of the time."

"Yeah, but it's on the bus when some of the kids are
going to bring out their thermoses," Alexis reminded them.

Jana didn't say anything. On one hand, she was glad that
Randy would be on her bus, since none of the other Fab Five members were. But
on the other hand, Laura McCall, Tammy Lucero, and Clarence Marshall were on
her bus, too.

"The first bus must be yours, Jana," said Beth. "Mr.
Neal's waiting there."

Jana nodded and glanced toward the line of buses.

"Wow!" Melanie shouted. "Look who one of your
chaperons is. Mr. Arrington. Shane's dad. Oh, Jana. You're so lucky. I'd give
anything to trade places with you."

A tall, thin man in jeans and a T-shirt was leaning against
the first bus in line. His blond hair was trimmed into a rattail at the back of
his neck, and he was deep in conversation with Jana's homeroom teacher. Jana
blinked in surprise at the sight of Mr. Neal, who looked more handsome than
ever in an open-necked sport shirt and trim-fitting jeans. It seemed strange to
see a teacher in casual clothes. She remembered with a twinge of nostalgia how
she had had a huge crush on Mr. Neal when he was her teacher in fifth grade.

"And that must be your other chaperon," commented
Katie. "Can that possibly be Curtis Trowbridge's mother?"

"No way," said Beth as they all stared at the
attractive dark-haired woman with Curtis who was approaching Mr. Neal and Mr.
Arrington. She was wearing high-heeled sandals, a bright-colored sundress, and
fashionable sunglasses.

"How can a nerdy kid like Curtis have such a great-looking
mom?" asked Melanie.

Jana laughed. "Maybe he takes after his dad."

Just then Mr. Bell went past them and up to the top of the
school steps, calling for everyone's attention.

When most kids had quieted down, he said in a loud voice, "Good
morning, everybody! Are you ready to start your trip?"

The applause was so wild that Jana looked around the quiet
residential neighborhood and wondered if anyone in the surrounding houses could
possibly still be asleep.

The principal shushed the crowd again.

"Your homeroom teacher will be standing beside the bus
you are assigned to ride. It's time to board now. Have a wonderful day!"

A few kids applauded, but most made mad dashes toward the
buses.

"I'll see you guys at the boat dock in Battery Park,"
Jana called out to the rest of The Fabulous Five.

As she joined the crowd pushing to board her bus, she looked
around, hoping to spot Randy, but she didn't see him.

"Take your time, everybody," cautioned Mr. Neal. "There
are plenty of seats, and the bus won't leave until everyone is on board."

As soon as Jana climbed on, she saw Randy. He had a pair of
seats midway down the aisle, and he was motioning to her. It wasn't until she
reached him and slid into the seat beside the window that she realized they
were sitting directly behind Laura McCall and Tammy Lucero. Jana frowned. Had
Randy done that on purpose?

Mr. Neal took roll and introduced the chaperons, then made
an announcement. "Okay, everybody, listen up. These old school buses
travel pretty slowly, so it's going to take us awhile to get into the city. In
the meantime, I want everybody to stay seated. No jumping around. You can talk
and sing songs, but keep the noise level to a roar. The chaperons and I are
going to be in the front of the bus, so let us know if you have any problems."

"Like if somebody gets carsick and pukes?"
Clarence yelled from the back of the bus, and then guffawed at his own joke.

Mr. Neal frowned but didn't respond.

"When can we eat our lunches?" asked Heather
Clark.

"We'll have lunch at the Statue of Liberty,"
replied the teacher. "There are outdoor picnic tables, and we should get
there just before noon."

"I'll starve by then," muttered someone toward the
front.

"It's okay if we take a drink out of our thermoses,
though, isn't it?" asked Laura. She grinned at Tammy and winked.

Mr. Neal nodded. "But just be careful. We don't need
any messes to clean up."

A bunch of kids giggled at that, and Jana leaned toward Randy
and said, "This is making me nervous. Do you think those kids will really
do it?"

Randy shrugged. "I hope not, but Clarence and some of
the others think they're pretty big deals. I wouldn't put it past them."

Jana looked around the bus. Almost all the seats were taken.
Shane Arrington and Tony Sanchez were directly behind her and Randy. Clarence
and Joel Murphy were horsing around in the very last seat in the back.

By the time the buses pulled onto the turnpike a few minutes
later, the air was filled with excited chatter. Outside, the sun was turning
the sky a gorgeous shade of pink.

Randy closed Jana's hand in his and gave her a reassuring
smile. "I bet we'll have a blast today, no matter what the other kids do."

Just then someone began singing the Wakeman fight song, and
everyone joined in.

"Hey, this is the last time we'll be able to sing 'Go!
Fight! Win! Wakeman Junior High!'" said Curtis when the singing died down.
"From now on it will be Wakeman Middle School."

"Right!" yelled Derek Travelstead. "Let's
sing it again!"

"Same song, second verse, a little bit louder, and a
little bit worse," chanted Laura and Tammy.

The kids sang it a second time and then a third. That was
followed by chorus after chorus of "On Top of Spaghetti."

By about the twelfth chorus, Jana started to relax. Nobody
really had the nerve to bring booze on this bus, much less drink it, she
decided.

She whispered her feeling to Randy, adding, "Why would
anyone want to spoil such a good time by doing something like that, anyway?"

Before Randy could respond, Jana saw Tammy turn to Melissa
McConnell, who was sitting across the aisle from her. "It's time to bring
out the thermoses," Tammy whispered. "Pass it on."