daughter and heir, Margot, from participating in gym class today. She woke up with a 102 temperature. We sent her to school because we understand the importance of education. But we are concerned if she participates in gym her temperature may go even higher and that could cause brain damage, which would make it impossible for her to get into a good college.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Trudi Johnson
Mrs. Mars finished the note and chuckled. "Very creative. Tell your mother bravo." Her eyes turned serious. "Now get into uniform."
"But... but..." I took a few steps back. I couldn't work out-- not today. I couldn't risk sweating my hair into a frizzy poofball the day of my big date. "Feel my forehead," I demanded.
"No, thank you. I've been around long enough to know the old hot-water-on-the-forehead-just-before-class trick."
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Hmm. I didn't know that one. I logged the info for future reference.
"But you can get in serious trouble for ignoring a note from a parent. And what if I die!" I was truly getting agitated.
"That'll be my cross to bear. Now get dressed."
I hate to waste a good note, but it was clear she wasn't giving in today. "Okay," I said with a resigned sigh. "What are we doing today?" I prayed it wouldn't be something athletic.
"Dodgeball," she wheezed.
"Great! I love dodgeball," called Sybil.
I shot her a look that could kill. "I'm sure you do."
In the locker room, as I slipped into my hideous green gym uniform, I noticed that Amanda was looking at me, not through me like she normally did, and gesturing as she spoke to the Twigettes. Then she started across the room.
Amanda coming toward me meant just one thing-humiliation. What could she possibly want with me? Then I remembered that we were playing dodgeball, I am not going to be her designated dodger, I told myself as she approached. But something in her eyes, the half smile on her lips, said that wasn't why she was coming over. My head started spinning as I shuffled through the reasons she'd be talking to me after all these years.
Was it to apologize once and for all about seventh-grade summer camp?
This was something that had haunted me ever since the incident all those years ago.
"Urn, Margot, right?"
As if she didn't know. "Yes. That's me. What's up?"
"Urn, are you stalking my boyfriend?"
My breath caught in my chest. "Boyfriend?"
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"Dirk tells me you've been turning up everywhere he's been. I'm sure it's not a coincidence. You need to stop."
My body suddenly stiffened as though rigor mortis was setting in, I couldn't move.
"D-Dirk?" The name struggled from my lips.
"Dirk Conrad, my boyfriend!"
Somehow I forced out a tiny laugh. "Ha, ha. Dirk Conrad thinks I'm stalking him. That's funny."
She shot me an angry look. "Stay away!" she snapped, and then went back to getting dressed.
I kept an incredulous smile glued to my lips until Amanda and her crew exited the locker room. That's when I finally allowed myself to breathe. Humiliation.
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Chapter Six
The rest of the school day was a nightmare. Not only did I have a pop quiz in Economics, I also had to go through the day making sure I didn't run into Amanda or Dirk again. That would have been too embarrassing.
Back to that pop quiz ..,
And now a multipart extra credit problem:
Question: If teacher A decides to give a short test that nobody in the class sees coming, then whether students B thru Z know the answers or not--and they probably don't because why would they?--the students still must write some gibberish on a single sheet of loose-leaf paper and turn it in. Now, if there are twenty-six kids in teacher A's class, and there are teacher As in every school in America, and if these teachers give just ten pop quizzes a day destroying trees by the billions, how long will it take before the ozone layer is totally depleted and the Earth turns into a flaming ball of fire? Answer: YESTERDAY!
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There is no way I could be expected to do well on a pop quiz with all that was going on in my life. Fortunately, Economics was last period. At least I could hide in class until I figured out my next move.
I came up with the perfect plan. I would hole up in the first-floor bathroom until I was sure most of the students were gone for the day. Then I'd sneak to my locker.
When I arrived in the locker area there were just a few students milling about. No one I knew--good. I peeked around