CHERUB: Class A - Robert Muchamore Page 0,66

attempts to get through basic training. You could be setting yourself up for a big disappointment.’
Lauren stood in front of James and barked an order. ‘Slap my face.’
‘Yeah, I’m really gonna hit you,’ James said, shaking his head with contempt.
‘I’ll show you I can take it,’ Lauren said. ‘As hard as you like.’
‘Give us a break, Lauren. You realise we could have lain in bed for at least another half hour?’
Lauren lunged forward, grabbed hold of James’ nipple and gave it a savage twist. James rolled backwards on to his bed, howling in pain.
‘What the hell did you do that for?’ he shouted.
‘Slap my damn face,’ Lauren shouted back.
‘You really want to see how tough you are?’ James raged. ‘Fine. Maybe I’ll knock some sense into you.’
There was a sharp crack as his hand hit her face. It was more painful than Lauren had expected, but she stifled her groan and toughed it out with a thin-lipped smile.
‘One hundred and seventy-four days,’ Lauren said. ‘Believe it.’
James grinned. ‘Will you be coming down to breakfast with me, or are you too tough for food as well?’
*
There were about sixty cherubs in the dining-hall when James and Lauren arrived. It took a couple of seconds for the room to go quiet, then chairs grated backwards and everyone stood up and started clapping and banging cutlery on the table. There were shouts of Lauren and whistles as well.
Shakeel was standing nearby; James looked over at him.
‘What’s this all about?’
‘Your sister,’ he said, as if James was some kind of idiot. ‘She’s the biggest hero in the history of CHERUB. Everyone dreams of getting revenge on Mr Large, but I never imagined any kid would really have the guts to do it.’
Kids piled in from all directions, until Lauren stood in an ocean of hugs and handshakes. A couple of stocky teenage boys hoisted Lauren off the ground, balanced her on their shoulders and took her on a victory parade around the dining-room. She had a mix of emotions on her face; happy, freaked out and afraid of getting her head smacked on a light fitting. As Lauren was galloped around the room, the kids at the dining tables were all pledging to help her dig.
‘Dig what?’ James asked.
‘We heard Lauren’s got to clean out the ditches at the back end of campus,’ Shakeel explained. ‘Everyone is putting on their wellies and going up there Saturday morning to help her out. We reckon with a hundred or more kids on the job, we’ll get the whole lot cleared out in a day.’
‘Cool,’ James said. ‘That’s really great of everyone.’
‘It’s what she deserves,’ Shakeel said. ‘I wish I’d belted Mr Large one. There’s a collection going around as well. Everyone’s putting money in and we’re gonna get her something from that shop in town that does trophies.’
Amy came up to James as Lauren was on her third circuit of the dining-room.
‘We had a whip round up on my floor,’ Amy said. ‘We got seventy quid. What’s Lauren’s favourite shop?’
‘She gets a lot of stuff from Gap Kids,’ James said. ‘Why?’
‘There’s already more than enough for the engraved tankard,’ Amy explained. ‘We were thinking of getting her some gift vouchers, or maybe a humongous teddy bear …’
26. SOCKS
‘You’re such a jammy little git,’ Kerry said. ‘You realise me and Kyle are stuck here on Thornton until this mission is finished?’
It was Friday night. They were in the boys’ bedroom and James was packing a hold-all for his flight to Miami in the morning.
‘That’s the wrong attitude,’ James said, grinning. ‘We’re all equally important members of a team. It’s just that my role is toasting on some beach in Florida, while you get to spend half-term here. If you’re lucky, someone might start a fire and you can watch one of the derelict houses burn out.’
‘You’re such a funny guy,’ Kerry sneered.
‘How many socks do you reckon?’ James asked.
‘At least one pair for each day.’
James looked in his underwear drawer and realised he only had two clean pairs. He started hunting around the floor and balling odd socks together.
‘Aren’t those dirty?’ Kerry asked.
‘A bit,’ James said. ‘But I’ve only worn most of them once. They don’t smell that bad.’ He put one of them under Kerry’s nose. ‘See.’
‘For god’s sake,’ Kerry said angrily, pushing James’ arm away. ‘They’re appalling.’
James gave them a sniff.
‘Phew,’ he gasped. ‘Those ones are a bit ripe. I think they’re what I wore to boxing club last night. But most of these are