by Betsy Haynes
"I don't agree with your total assessment of the situation, Mr. McNatt," said Jana's mother. "I do, however, agree that if Jana and your daughter get to know each other better, it might help. I'm sure they will both reevaluate their actions after this afternoon," she said, looking at Geena.
Mr. McNatt got up and touched his fingers to his forehead in a symbolic tipping of his hat to Jana's mother. "We'll be going now. It's been nice to meet you both. Don't take it too hard now, Little Miss. These things go away with time," he said, smiling and putting his hand on Jana's shoulder warmly.
Jana watched as her mother walked Geena and her father to the door. She couldn't believe it. Not only was she being picked on by Geena McNatt, but now Geena was making it look as if Jana was the bully. It was totally unfair.
CHAPTER 13
Jana's mother's face was full of anger when she walked back into the room.
"Mom, I'm not picking on Geena! Honest!"
Her mother's face softened. "I know, sweetheart. You would never do a thing like that. It's obvious, however, that Mr. McNatt totally believes his daughter, too." She reached out and took Jana's hand. "Come on. Let's sit down and talk about this."
The tears finally leaked out as Jana told her side of the story, and her mother put her arm around her comfortingly.
"Was I wrong to bawl Geena out in front of Bumpers?" Jana asked.
"No, you weren't." Her mother looked thoughtful for a moment. "I just wonder what makes Geena do those things. Her father seems like a nice enough man. Still, there has to be a reason why she acts the way she does. What do you think it is?"
The thought startled Jana. A reason for Geena's picking on Mona and Whitney and squirting catsup in lockers? She was starting to believe that it was just because she was mean. "I don't know," Jana mumbled.
"Well," said her mother, getting up, "it's something for us to think about. Right now I need to get supper started. Sloppy joes okay tonight?"
"Yum," said Jana. "Do I have time to bike over to One-Hour Photo?"
"I think so, but don't be too long. Oh, by the way. Don't forget tomorrow's Pink's and my bowling night. You'll have to order a pizza."
Jana nodded and bit back a smile. As if she could forget that Friday night was bowling night. Her mom and Pink had been going bowling on Friday nights since they had started dating when Jana was a little girl. She wondered how many hundreds of deep-dish, pepperoni, green pepper, and mushroom pizzas she had consumed on Friday nights.
As Jana pedaled along, an idea began nibbling at the back of her brain, and it was full grown by the time she reached the photo shop. She thumbed through the pictures she had taken with Garrett's camera as the clerk stood watching. They had turned out terrific. "How much would it cost to get a couple of these made into eight and a half by eleven inches?" she asked.
The clerk gave her the price, and she calculated what she would have with the money in her bank at home and her allowance, which she would get tomorrow. It would be more than enough. "I'd like this one and this one enlarged."
Jana hummed to herself on the return trip home. The nerve of Geena, lying to her father and bringing him to Jana's house to tell stories to her mother. As her mother had said, Geena seemed to have her father convinced she was a nice girl. Her mother was right about another thing, too. Something was definitely wrong with that girl, and Jana knew what it was. She had a terminal case of meanness. Well, if Geena's father was as nice as Jana thought, she might just have a way of showing him what his daughter was really like.
"I asked at the office," said Christie at noon the next day, "and no one besides you and Randy has signed up to run for Miss and Mr. Seventh Grade. You're home free!"
"Yea!" cheered Katie, Beth, and Melanie. The Fabulous Five raised their milk cartons in a salute.
"Can you imagine?" said Beth. "That's awesome."
"Does your majesty want anything from this lowly servant?" said Melanie, bowing her head to Jana. "A quart of blood? My head? Anything?"
"Quit fooling, guys," said Jana. "After what Geena said about my thinking I'm a big deal, I'm not sure I want to be Miss Seventh Grade. Other people might get the same idea about me."
"Hey. Don't let it bother you," said Katie. "She was just trying to make you feel bad. You're not that way at all."
"How could you be bigheaded when your best friends are so outstanding?" kidded Beth.
"Seriously. It bothers me," said Jana. "I've never had anyone say that to me before. It's made me stop and think. I do have the best of everything, you know. Randy is fantastic. You guys are the best. Everything is just so great. Do I show off without realizing it?"
"Hey, no," said Melanie, putting her hand on Jana's. "You're not that way at all. Why do you think everyone wants you to be Miss Seventh Grade? It's because you don't have a big head, that's why."
"Yeah, Jana," added Christie. "I've heard kids say they're going to vote for Marsha Reel for Miss Ninth Grade because they think Kaci Davis is stuck up. No one feels that way about you."
Jana looked at each of her friends' faces. They all wore concerned expressions. "Okay," she said, laughing. "I'm super. I just wanted to hear you say it."
Four wadded-up paper napkins hit her in the face at the same time.
Jana left Bumpers early that afternoon so she could go by the One-Hour Photo store and get the enlargements she had ordered. She was glad that Geena and her brothers were still there. So far everything was going according to her plan.
On the walk to the store, she thought about all the yellow ribbons that were being worn for Igor by seventh-graders. Girls were wearing them on their blouses and in their hair, and nearly every boy had picked up on it. Of course, good old Clarence Marshall was still wearing his huge ribbon, only now it was starting to get so smudged it didn't look very yellow anymore. It was funny, she thought, but it seemed to her as if Clarence was starting to hang around Geena a lot. He couldn't possibly be interested in a girl that had bloodied his nose, could he?
Jana's thoughts turned to Igor. She had talked to Shane at Bumpers, and he told her that he had put Igor in a box and taken him to Mr. Dracovitch, who took the iguana home to observe him for a few days and to try to get him to eat. Poor old Igor. She really hoped the science teacher could figure out what his problem was.
The enlargements were ready, and Jana paid for them and headed for Geena's house. Her father should be home from work by now, and if she was lucky, she could talk to him before Geena got there. She sighed. She'd have to do it, even if it meant having another confrontation with Geena and maybe even Max and Joe. But Mr. McNatt is a nice man, she told herself. I just know he is. If I can just get him to listen and look at these pictures, he'll know I'm sincere and will have to believe me.
Still, going to Geena's house was scary. She drew in a deep breath and turned the corner onto the McNatts' street.
CHAPTER 14
Jana punched the doorbell, drew in a deep breath, and squared her shoulders. The garage door at the side of the house was closed, and she couldn't tell if Mr. McNatt was home or not. She crossed her fingers behind her back.
A young man who was obviously a McNatt opened the door. He had the same blondish hair his father had, but he wore it longer, and his features were more delicate. He also had a light sprinkling of freckles across his nose like Geena. Jana guessed he was older than Max, probably high school age, and must be George. The last of the McNatts, thought Jana. Now I've met them all.
"Is Mr. McNatt home?" she asked as cordially as she could.
"If you mean my dad, no, but he should be here in about two minutes," the boy answered. "You can come in and wait for him if you want."
Jana was surprised at how pleasant he was. "Uh, no. I don't know if I should."
"Sure you should," he said, smiling and opening the door so she could enter. "You came to see him, and I know he'll be here shortly. I've got dinner just about ready, and he can smell it from wherever he's at. By the way, I'm George."
Jana la
ughed in spite of herself.
George showed her into the living room, and she sat nervously on the edge of the couch listening for sounds that would tell her if Geena, Max, or Joe might have come into the house from another direction. The only sounds she could hear were made by George in the kitchen, so they must still be at Bumpers.
Minutes passed and Mr. McNatt didn't come. Jana squirmed on the couch. The longer she waited, the more likely it was that Geena and the others would come home first.
Then she heard footsteps on the front porch and the doorknob rattled as someone turned it. Jana sprang to her feet, hoping against hope that it was Geena's father.
Max stepped into the room, and he and Jana stared at each other. A puzzled look crossed his face.
Geena pushed Max out of the way and barged in. "What's for sup—" When she saw Jana, she stopped dead in her tracks. "What are you doing here?"
Joe came in next and looked at Jana. To her relief he gave Max a shove, and the two of them went into the kitchen.
Jana clutched the envelope containing the photos close to her chest. "I came to see your father," she said as bravely as she could.
"My father? Why?"
Jana squared her shoulders and made her backbone straight and rigid. "Because I have something to show him." She heard a car door slam in the driveway.
"What do you have to show him?" demanded Geena.
"You'll see."
Geena glared at Jana as if she could eat her alive.
"Well, what do we have here?" asked Mr. McNatt as he stomped into the house. "What brings you here, Little Miss?"
Before Jana could answer and tell him about the pictures, he continued, "I'll bet I know." He waved a finger in the air. "You've thought about the trouble you and Geena have been having, and you want to be friends with my daughter, don't you? I knew as soon as I saw you that you were a fine girl yourself. Come on then," he said, reaching out and taking hold of her and Geena's arms. "Why don't you give your mother a call and stay for dinner?"
Jana was pulled into the kitchen where George was taking a big casserole of lasagna out of the oven, and Max and Joe were arguing over who should set the table. Mr. McNatt grabbed the two boys by the shirt collars and bumped their heads together. Max and Joe frowned at Jana as if she were the cause of their being punished.
"Quit the arguing! We've got company for dinner," their father ordered. Then, turning to Jana, he commanded, "There's the phone on the wall. Pick it up and dial your mother."
"Really, Mr. McNatt, I ought to . . ." As Jana tried to protest, he turned his back on her and went to the sink and started to wash his hands.
"Nonsense, Little Miss," he said over his shoulder. "If you and my Geena are going to be friends, you might as well start right now."
Jana looked at Geena, who stared back.
Jana gulped and reached for the phone to call her mother. As she dialed, she heard Geena's father say, "George, you idiot, you burned the lasagna again." Her mother sounded surprised at Jana's plans, but she said she was pleased that Jana was making an effort to be friends with Geena. Unfortunately there was no opportunity for Jana to blurt out the truth and ask her mother to rescue her from the McNatts without Geena's father's hearing. She sucked in a deep breath as she hung up the telephone and turned back to the dinner table, where the McNatt family was waiting expectantly for her.
The dinner was like nothing Jana had ever experienced in her entire life. Max and Joe battled each other for the lasagna and the garlic bread, and their father bellowed at Joe, who sat next to him, each time he reached across the table to get the Parmesan cheese.
"The five of us have been making do ever since the children's mother died ten years ago," Mr. McNatt explained to Jana. He jerked the lasagna platter away from Joe, who had jerked it away from Max, and handed it to Jana so she could have seconds. "We've done pretty well, if I do say so myself. The boys have been easy for me, of course. I know how to handle men. You just rap them across the head to get their attention. But Geena has been something else. She's a young lady. I'm real glad you've decided to be friends with her, Little Miss. For some reason, she doesn't bring any of her other girlfriends home."
Jana looked out of the corner of her eye at Geena, who was staring red-faced into her plate. She's embarrassed, thought Jana. Geena McNatt is actually embarrassed. Just then Max grabbed the garlic-bread basket. Seeing it was empty, he lunged for the half-eaten bread on the edge of Geena's plate. Jana watched in amazement as Mr. McNatt's long arm streaked out, and he hit Max on the back of the hand with the ladle from the lasagna before Geena even had time to react. Max jerked his hand back and rubbed his knuckles, and Geena flashed him a look of triumph.
"Geena looks a lot like her mother. She has her tiny freckles and wavy hair, only she doesn't keep it as neat as her mother did. But I suppose that will come when she gets interested in boys." Mr. McNatt looked at Jana hopefully. "Maybe you can give her some advice on how to dress a little more . . . feminine."
Geena's father really doesn't understand why she has no friends, Jana thought. It boggled her mind. She had to agree that after seeing the family up close, Geena probably wasn't too bad, compared to Max and Joe and even her dad. All of them, except George, who ate quietly by himself at the end of the table, were pretty rough. George seemed somehow to be different. She wondered if he was more like his mother than the other children.
After the meal, Mr. McNatt ordered Max and Joe to do the dishes so that Jana and Geena could spend some time together. Jana looked longingly toward the front door. The last thing she wanted to do was spend time with Geena, and she knew Geena felt the same way about her. If only there was some way to escape. But there wasn't—for either of them—and Geena led her silently up to her room.
The room was pretty much what Jana expected. Sweat suits and dirty tube socks littered the floor, and jeans were hung on the bedpost. She didn't see one piece of feminine clothing in the room. She would have liked to look in the closet to see if there were any there.
Geena stood to one side, chewing her lip while Jana looked around. Suddenly she snarled, "What do you have in that envelope? Is it something you're going to show my dad?"
Jana looked at her for a moment, thinking. "No," she said. "They're just some pictures I took with Garrett Boldt's camera."
Geena stared at her as if she didn't know whether to believe her or not. "Well, I guess you think you're really big time now that no one is going to run against you for Miss Seventh Grade."
"Look, Geena. I didn't want to run for Miss Seventh Grade. My friends talked me into it. I couldn't care less about it, except that Randy Kirwan is running for Mr. Seventh Grade, and I think it would be nice to run with him."
Geena sneered, "You've got all the friends in the world, don't you? I bet you make your Fabulous Five friends jump through hoops." She moved a picture of a pretty red-haired lady that was on a table that served as a desk.
"No," Jana said patiently as she moved toward the table. "As a matter of fact, I don't think anyone could make people like Katie Shannon and Christie Winchell do something they didn't want. They're pretty strong. We've just been friends a long time. Is this your mother?"
Geena nodded.
Jana picked up the frame and looked at the smiling, freckled face in the photo. "She's so pretty. Do you remember her at all?"
"It's none of your business!" Geena snapped.
Jana put down the frame and backed away a little. "I don't remember much about my father," she said softly. "He's not dead, but my mother divorced him when I was little. He's an alcoholic, and I write to him sometimes, but he hardly ever answers."
Geena squinted her eyes and stared at Jana, as if trying to decide whether or not to believe her.
"You're lucky to have such a nice dad," said Jana. "He really loves you. I can tell."
Geena shrugged. Suddenly her face seemed to soften. "Are you going to have a new dress for when you win Miss Seventh Grade?"
"I hope so," Jana sa
id. "But I'm not sure. Listen, I'd better go. Randy's coming over tonight, and we're going to listen to records."
All at once the sparks flew back into Geena's eyes, and she turned away. Jana mumbled good-bye, but Geena didn't respond.
As Jana was making her way down the stairs by herself, Geena called out in an ominous tone, "You'd better take care of that dress."
CHAPTER 15
Later that night, after Randy had left, Jana got into bed and sat up in the dark, thinking. After eating at the McNatts' house that night, she was amazed to find that she felt sorry for Geena. It must be awfully lonely for Geena, being a year older than everyone in her class, hanging around the edges of groups, and going to Bumpers by herself. And everyone in her family, except her older brother George, seemed to solve things by hitting or yelling. Even Mr. McNatt, who was a construction supervisor, had to be tough to handle the men he worked with. Maybe Geena had never seen any other ways of solving her problems. There had to be a way to help people like that.
But what about all the kids Geena picked on? Jana asked herself stubbornly. Feeling sorry for Geena probably wouldn't stop her from bullying people. And even though Jana had tried to talk to Geena about her mother, Geena had threatened her about the dress. Jana sighed. Geena McNatt was a bully. That's all there was to it.
Jana was still sitting up and thinking when she heard her mother and Pink come home. Her mother pushed the bedroom door open slightly and peeked in.
"Oh! You're still awake, sweetheart. How was your dinner?"
"Okay. Mom, can I talk to you a minute?"
"Sure." Her mother turned on the bedside lamp and sat on the edge of the bed. "What's up?"
After Jana told her about her supper at the McNatts' and her conversation with Geena, she asked, "Can you and Pink do me a favor?"