Nathan was clutching at his throat, Otto was making gagging motions . . . and Daniel looked like he’d just lived through a live-action horror film.
They had no idea they’d entered, Justin realised, as he looked at his brother’s stunned expression. Uh-oh. He smirked to himself. I bet I know exactly who did it.
As he turned back towards the stage, he caught Riley gesturing across the auditorium to the others, mouthing: I’ll explain later.
I knew it. Justin grinned. He hoped he’d be around for that explanation.
‘Miss Carter?’ Principal Caine’s voice clipped out sharply, making Riley jerk back around in her seat. ‘Do you have a question?’
‘No, ma’am.’ Riley beamed at her.
‘Are you sure?’ Principal Caine raised her eyebrows sternly. ‘Surely you wouldn’t be waving your arms around for any other reason?’
‘No, ma’am,’ Riley repeated obediently. She folded her hands on top of the pile of notebooks on her lap.
Justin could tell she was trying to sit still – but, being Riley, that was a lost cause. She was practically wriggling with impatience to get moving and organising!
‘Hmm.’ Principal Caine gave her a long look before moving on. ‘Voting for Homecoming King and Queen will commence today and close by the end of the week. I am sure . . .’ her face hardened into stone, ‘. . . that we are all very excited about this.’
Justin snorted. If this is her version of excited, I’d hate to see her when she’s depressed!
‘There will be a table in the cafeteria where you may all cast your votes. Of course, we’ll need someone to organise the voting and I’m extending an open invitation to anyone who wishes to take on this responsibility.’
A hush fell over the auditorium, as hundreds of hands stayed firmly by their sides. All except one.
Principal Caine looked in every direction but to her left, where she would have seen Riley almost standing up, trying to make herself seen. Finally, the Principal sighed: ‘Fine, Miss Carter. The job is yours.’
‘Thank you, ma’am!’ Riley chirped. She immediately flipped open her top notebook and began to scribble.
Principal Caine cleared her throat as she picked up a new sheet of paper. ‘And now to announce the nominations for Homecoming King.’
Uh-oh. Justin stiffened in his seat. If Mackenzie was right . . .
‘Caleb Devlin,’ Principal Caine read, in a carrying voice. ‘Kyle Hunter, Justin Packer . . .’
Oh, no. Justin’s heart sank. That’s why Mackenzie was being nice to me! As the rest of the list of names was read out, Justin met his twin’s eyes across the crowded auditorium.
Daniel shook his head in obvious disgust. Uh-oh, Justin thought. I know that look. It was an expression Justin usually only saw from his brother when he got the name of a ‘very significant’ album wrong.
What could I do? Justin shrugged and turned up his hands in a helpless gesture. He’d had no control over the nominations!
Daniel’s eyes narrowed. But then the principal cleared her throat again.
‘And now for the Homecoming Queen nominations . . .’
Justin closed his eyes. Please, please, please, not . . .
‘The first candidate is Mackenzie Barton,’ Principal Caine read. ‘And the second candidate . . .’
But her voice was covered up by the victorious shrieking of Mackenzie, and – a second later – the echo of her entourage. It was so deafening, Justin covered his ears, scrunching down in his seat to escape. Even sitting at the front of the auditorium, he couldn’t quite catch the second name on the list.
Principal Caine shook her head, giving Mackenzie a stern look. ‘If we could have some quiet, please, Miss Barton? The third and final nominee for Homecoming Queen is . . . Debi Morgan!’
Ha! Justin grinned straight at his brother. Under his breath, he mumbled: ‘Bet you don’t think it’s lame now, do you?’
Daniel glared at Justin. Then Justin realised, Daniel had heard him all the way across the auditorium. ‘I forgot you have super-strong hearing now,’ said Justin, grinning. ‘This is going to be fun!’
As the assembly finally ended, Daniel shuffled along with the crowd filing out of the auditorium. His thoughts were miles away, on the gathering that would be happening that night.
What exactly happened at a werewolf gathering? Dad had refused to give him any hints, no matter how hard he pestered. But when he tried to imagine it for himself . . .
Someone grabbed his arm, and he let out a yip of surprise.
Oops. He slammed his mouth shut, just a moment too late. I hope no one heard that! It had definitely sounded . . . cub-like!
Luckily, his band mates were still too depressed about Homecoming to notice. ‘Walk with me!’ Justin whispered, yanking on his arm.
‘Why?’ Daniel asked, pulling back.
Justin made a face. ‘Because Mackenzie Barton is a lot less likely to approach me if I’m surrounded by you and your Band of Moody Men!’
Laughing, Daniel fell into step. Justin had a point – Otto and Nathan did look pretty moody at that moment.
‘Since when are you scared of Mackenzie?’ he asked.
Justin looked agonised. ‘Ever since she got it into her head that Pine Wood needs its very own Kate and William.’
‘Who?’ Daniel shook his head, baffled.
‘Dude, you seriously need to at least take a peek at mainstream news every once in a while.’ Justin rolled his eyes. ‘There’s being alternative, and then there’s just being clueless.’
‘Oh, shut up.’ Daniel elbowed him, grinning. ‘So what is it, exactly, that Mackenzie wants from you?’
Justin groaned. ‘She thinks we’re going to be Homecoming King and Queen!’
‘I can see you two together,’ said Daniel, with a nod.
‘I seriously need help,’ said Justin. ‘And I thought, who better than you to ask how to kill girls’ interest? You’ve been doing it naturally for so long!’
‘It is a gift,’ Daniel said solemnly. ‘Either you’ve got it, or you don’t. And I can’t help you if you lack the natural skills.’
For a moment, they laughed, but Justin then gave Daniel a shove. ‘Don’t make me laugh – I shouldn’t be laughing. This is crisis-time.’
‘OK, OK.’ Daniel forced himself to think it through as they neared their classrooms. The crowd in the hallway was already starting to thin as other students disappeared into their next classes. ‘Look, I can’t help you out of this one. If she’s elected Homecoming Queen and you’re elected Homecoming King . . .’
Justin looked like he had had a touchdown disallowed, or something. ‘Then I’m trapped. We’ll have to dance at Homecoming together.’
‘Unless . . .’ Daniel frowned, hesitating a few feet away from the door of his next class. ‘Who says Mackenzie has to win? If she loses, you’re free and clear.’
‘Oh, come on.’ Justin fell back against the wall of lockers, looking miserable. ‘Mackenzie was the Queen Bee at middle school, and she’ll probably be Empress Bee here. Who could possibly take her on?’
Daniel looked down at his boots. ‘I dunno, Bro.’
He heard Justin gasp. ‘Debi!’
‘Where?’ Daniel looked around, but couldn’t see her anywhere. Then he finally got it. ‘Debi for Homecoming Queen? That’s brilliant. She’s new, she’s pretty, she’s fun, she’s lovely. She has a smile that could . . .’ Daniel stopped himself before he turned wolf. He took a deep breath. ‘I think she could beat Mackenzie if she tried.’
Hey, she could do anything, he thought . . . But he didn’t say that. No way was he going to sound that sappy in front of his brother. Did he have a cheesy grin on his face, just from thinking about her? Uh-oh. He was pretty sure he did.
‘So, you’ll talk to her about it?’ Justin said.
‘What?’ Daniel choked, his grin disappearing. ‘I didn’t say that!’
‘Come on, dude!’ Justin grabbed his arm. ‘You have to help me out. If D
ebi wants to win, she has to campaign for it. She can’t just sit back and let Mackenzie roll all over her. You need to talk her into fighting for the crown !’
‘Uh . . .’ Daniel winced. ‘You know how I feel about the whole Homecoming thing. And after yesterday’s mess at the Meat & Greet, I honestly don’t know if Debi even wants to talk to me about anything.’
‘Please, Bro. I’m asking you to save me!’ Justin dropped to his knees in the middle of the hallway, throwing out his arms in a melodramatic gesture. ‘You can’t let me be Mackenzinated!’
‘All right, fine . . .’ Daniel sighed. ‘Just get up off the floor, before Coach Johnston thinks you’ve injured your TCL.’
‘You mean ACL,’ said Justin, jumping to his feet.
‘I’ll do my best,’ said Daniel, ‘but I can’t make any promises. Seriously, after yesterday, she probably thinks I’m a total weirdo.’
‘Then you can’t make things any worse,’ Justin said. He brushed himself off, grinning, and started to saunter away towards his next classroom. ‘Right?’
Daniel winced. ‘Is that your impersonation of an encouraging little brother?’
‘Sorry, dude.’ Justin paused, turning back. ‘Um . . . good luck?’
‘Thanks,’ Daniel said dryly, and turned towards the doorway of his own next class. Behind him, he heard Justin mumble: ‘Who you calling “little” brother?’
An hour later, Daniel stood in the cafeteria doorway, took a deep breath and . . . immediately regretted it. His werewolf senses picked up every single smell in the cafeteria and the kitchen beyond – and probably the alley behind the school where the trash was dumped. Yuck!
At least he had a packed lunch. Taking shallow breaths to hold out the stink, he started towards Debi’s table. It was easy to find: her bright red hair shone like a beacon, summoning him across the room. Even the thought of having to walk up to a table occupied completely by girls wasn’t enough to slow him down.
Unfortunately, within thirty yards of Debi’s table, he could hear exactly the wrong kind of conversation taking place.
‘No, seriously!’ Debi was saying to the girls around her. ‘I’m just happy to be nominated for Homecoming Queen, especially since I’m new in town. That’s just cool.’ She smiled and took a sip of her orange juice. ‘I don’t need any more than that.’
‘Yeah, but come on, Debi!’ The girl on her left, Sarah Perkins, shook her head. ‘Don’t you want to win ?’
Debi shrugged and unwrapped her lunch. ‘Nah, not really.’
‘But why not?’ The girl on her right, Eileen Black, let out a groan of longing. ‘Just think of it! The crown, the dance, the pictures, getting treated like a queen for a whole week . . . and showing Mackenzie that she can’t win at everything!’
‘That’s the main problem.’ Debi sighed. ‘I’ve got enough to deal with on the cheerleading team already, without irritating Mackenzie even more.’
Oh, no. Daniel cringed, stopping still in the middle of the cafeteria as he absorbed her words. I’m going to look like a total idiot if I butt in and tell her to do just that!
He almost turned around – but then he caught sight of Justin across the room. He was sitting at a table full of football players, most of them busy with a messy food fight – but Justin wasn’t paying any attention. The pleading puppy expression on his face was impossible to ignore.
Daniel squared his shoulders as he headed into danger. He couldn’t let his brother be Mackenzinated . . . even if he did have to get involved with Homecoming to save him!
The horror . . .
As he approached Debi’s table, Daniel put on his best ‘confident grin’. Sticking his hands in his pockets, he nodded politely to the other girls, then turned to Debi. He hadn’t talked to her since yesterday’s debacle at the Meat & Greet, but – thank goodness – she smiled at him just as brightly as if that had never happened. Maybe she’ll give me another chance . . . if I don’t mess this up too badly!
‘Hey,’ he said. ‘Are you excited about the nomination?’
As if I didn’t already know the answer.
‘I’m just happy to be nominated,’ Debi said. She must have practised her answer, because it came out exactly as he’d heard it only moments ago. His spirits sank as he heard her say the familiar words: ‘Especially since I’m new. That’s –’
‘–“Just cool”,’ Daniel finished for her, glumly. ‘Right.’ He sighed.
Then he saw the expression on her face. She was staring at him. ‘How did you know what I was going to say?’
He froze. Back away! Don’t let her know you’re a freaky furball boy with super-hearing! ‘I . . . That’s how I would feel if I . . . ’
‘Got nominated for Homecoming Queen?’ asked Sarah Perkins. The whole table erupted with a fit of giggles that threatened to knock him off his feet.
Debi was clearly stifling a laugh, too.
Maybe Justin was right; Daniel really didn’t have much experience with girls who actually liked him. But he was pretty sure he recognised the look on Debi’s face right now, and he could tell she was thinking that he might have been the weirdest boy she had ever met.
He cringed. Between yesterday and today, how much worse of an impression could he make? He could practically hear the warning bells jangling in his brain. Red alert! Red alert! Run now, before it’s too late!
Lowering his head in an idiotic nod, he started to turn to make his getaway. Then a familiar voice sounded in his ear: Justin, whispering to him from all the way on the other side of the cafeteria.
‘Do not lose your nerve, Bro. Remember what’s at stake! ’
Daniel winced. It was hardly fair that Justin literally got to be a voice-in-his-head! Sometimes werewolf super-senses were anything but an advantage.
Still, he steeled himself to turn back to Debi. ‘I think you’d be a great Homecoming Queen,’ he said, through gritted teeth.
‘You do?’ Debi blinked at him, while the other girls looked shocked then started whispering to each other. ‘I thought you hated Homecoming!’
‘Well . . .’ Daniel winced. ‘I know I’m not really a fan in general, but –’
‘Yesterday at the Meat & Greet, you said you thought the whole King and Queen deal was lame.’ Debi frowned at him. ‘What’s changed?’
‘Well – well, it’s not that – it’s more . . .’ Daniel sighed, and gave up. All he had left was . . . the truth. ‘You have to be the Queen,’ he said, sinking down on to the seat next to her. ‘If you don’t win, then Mackenzie will. And she’ll be a nightmare.’
‘He’s so right,’ Eileen said. She gave Daniel an approving look even as she spoke to Debi. ‘You know she’ll take her “Queen” role way too seriously. Everyone will suffer under her . . . regime.’
On Debi’s left, Sarah rolled her eyes. ‘I bet she already has a tiara on mail order. And that she’s planning to wear it for the whole week that she’s Queen.’
‘It’ll be a reign of terror!’ Eileen gasped.
Debi gave a sigh. ‘I’m sure you’re right. But still . . .’ She shrugged helplessly. ‘What can I do? I just don’t have it in me to campaign for votes. If people like me, they like me. If they don’t, they don’t. So . . .?’ She held out her hands. ‘Anyway, titles and popularity don’t really matter, do they?’
She kept going, but Daniel couldn’t focus. Inwardly, he was smiling. He couldn’t agree more.
But then Justin’s voice was mumbling in his ear again. ‘You’re losing her. Try harder! ’
Daniel hunched his shoulders. ‘Shut up!’ he growled at his brother . . .
. . . and Debi’s eyes widened with shock.
‘Excuse me?’
‘Sorry!’ Daniel stood up quickly, horrified. ‘I wasn’t . . .’
I wasn’t what? Daniel thought. Wasn’t talking to her? Who else could I have been talking to?
‘. . . I just . . .’
Think, Packer. Think!
‘I didn’t mean “shut up” as in “b
e quiet”,’ he garbled. ‘I meant, “shut up” as in: Shuuuuut uuuuup. ’ He put on his girliest voice. ‘You are, like, so totally going to win. Completely. Posalutely.’
Now you’re just making up words!
‘Posalutely?’ asked Debi, with a frown. ‘I don’t know . . .’
‘What if someone else campaigned for you?’ Daniel said, hoping to change the subject – and quick.
Debi laughed. ‘Who would even want to do that?’ Shaking her head, she gestured at herself. ‘Come on, Daniel. Nobody even knows me well enough to run around the school telling everyone how amazing I am.’
‘I do.’ The words had come out before Daniel could stop them.
Eileen and Sarah’s jaws dropped so fast, they might have needed parachutes.
Daniel could feel the tingle of his teeth. His incisors were growing, right there at the cafeteria table. ‘I mean . . . I mean . . .’ he said. He only just managed to turn away before he said: ‘I mean, I do . . . very much think we could find someone to do that for you.’
Luckily, the girls at the table all started talking. They were so quick that even with his werewolf hearing he couldn’t work out what they were saying. They didn’t seem to have the same problem, though, and within a minute they’d made some kind of agreement.
‘Definitely,’ said Eileen, with a firm nod. ‘Riley Carter is the only one capable of pulling this off.’
Debi bit her lip, looking thoughtful. ‘Maybe. But Riley’s organising the Homecoming Game and the Homecoming Dance. When would she have any time left to help me out?’
‘Hey, it doesn’t hurt to ask, right?’ said Daniel, and grinned. He knew just the guy who could ask for Riley’s help.
It’s payback time, Bro.
Chapter Three
Half an hour later, Justin was standing in his English class, feeling as nervous as if he were about to run on-field for a big game. Get a grip, cub! he ordered himself. You can do this.
Slowly, reluctantly, he forced his feet to move across the floor. Since everyone was working on individual projects, the room felt unnaturally quiet, with only a soft hum of conversations in between some of the desks. His loud, clomping footsteps sounded like thunder in his ears. With every step, he was certain that people would look up at him and demand to know what he was doing.
Puppy Love! Page 3