Fabulous Five 006 - The Parent Game

by Betsy Haynes

  CHAPTER 3

  Jana stood on the front porch of Taffy's house waiting for someone to answer the door. Taffy lived in the nicer part of town, and it had taken Jana a full twenty minutes to bicycle over. She wouldn't have come for anything else that Taffy might have said except that she had something serious to talk about that concerned Randy Kirwan. It was just like Taffy to want to get Jana on her own turf without any of Jana's friends around.

  It's funny, Jana thought, she'd known Taffy since the first grade, and the only time Taffy and she had come close to being friends was when they had found Baby Ashley in a basket on the front steps of Mark Twain Elementary. Baby Ashley had brought them close together for a short time, and Jana remembered the warm feelings they had shared as they knelt over the wiggling baby with her little hands waving and clutching at their fingers. It hadn't taken long, however, for Taffy to go back to being her old self and trying to hog the spotlight when the newspaper reporter came.

  The door was opened by Taffy's mother. "Oh, hello, Jana."

  "Hi, Mrs. Sinclair." If Jana could feel sorry for Taffy for any reason, it would be because of her mother. She was always pushing Taffy into acting and singing classes and modeling jobs, and she had even gotten her a role in one of the episodes of the TV show Interns and Lovers. Jana had to admit that Taffy had never looked better than in the death scene.

  Jana stepped into the foyer as Taffy came into the living room. She couldn't believe it. Taffy was just as dressed up at home as she was at school. She was wearing a pleated skirt and a sweater layered over a gorgeous blouse, and her hair was pulled back with a bright blue ribbon. Seeing her made Jana feel scroungy in the old jeans she had put on after school.

  "Hi, Jana," Taffy said, sweeping toward her.

  "Hi," responded Jana, trying to be friendly in front of Taffy's mother.

  "Let's go up to my room."

  Upstairs Jana tried not to gawk. Taffy's room was big, like the rest of the rooms she had peeked into on their way, and it had been redecorated since the one other time Jana had been there. She had thought it was pretty then, but now she was sure it was the most beautiful bedroom she had ever seen. It was just as Jana imagined the bedrooms of movie stars would be. There was a silky canopy that had its center attached to the ceiling and fell in graceful folds to hide partially a large four-poster bed. In the middle was a pile of beautiful stuffed animals with the biggest white bear Jana had ever seen. It was dressed in a tutu and had a sparkly tiara on its head.

  Everything was white in the room, including the furniture and the carpeting. Jana thought about her own little crowded bedroom with its used furniture in the tiny apartment she lived in with her mom. After Pink and her mother were married, she would probably even have to keep some of Pink's bowling trophies on the shelves in her room.

  The walls of this room were covered with pictures of Taffy posing in different costumes. She was in gorgeous party dresses, sundresses, swimsuits, all kinds of beautiful things. Then there were pictures of Taffy with what looked like important people. She recognized some of them as movie stars; others looked as if they were just plain rich and important.

  Jana was suddenly aware that Taffy was standing back while Jana admired her room. She was obviously eating up the chance to show off.

  "Those are pictures taken by the studios I work for," Taffy said, moving to the wall with the most pictures on it. "This one was for Tanninger's spring catalog; that one was for a book cover—aren't those two boys standing on either side of me darling?"

  She told Jana what each of the pictures was taken for. It impressed the socks off Jana, but she tried not to show it. She hadn't known that Taffy had done so much modeling.

  "Mother's trying to get me a part in an after-school television show. It won't be very big, but it would be a start."

  "Gee, that's great," said Jana. "You're getting to be really big-time."

  Taffy smiled at the compliment. "It's just work, but it's starting to pay really well. Mother says I might even get a chance to go to Hollywood someday. She has dreams of my making it really big, and her having a beautiful home in Beverly Hills."

  Jana thought she looked a little sad for a moment.

  Then Taffy brightened. "I really didn't ask you over to show you all my pictures. As I said on the phone, I have something serious to talk about.

  "You know, Jana, you and I didn't get along at Mark Twain. You even had"—she hesitated and then corrected herself—"we even had clubs against each other. Since we've gotten to Wacko, though, we haven't really seen much of each other, and I've been thinking a lot about us." She had a worried look on her face. "I know you still have The Fabulous Five, but there's no reason for us to be enemies anymore."

  It was as if Jana had been hit by a tidal wave. This was not at all what she had expected to hear from Taffy Sinclair. She had assumed they would be enemies for life. "I guess not," she said hesitantly.

  "To prove it, I want to do something for you, but I won't if you don't want me to. I promise."

  Jana's old defensive instincts about Taffy came rushing back. What was she trying to pull?

  "Randy and Laura McCall are in my Family Living class. I know how much you dislike Laura, kind of the way you felt about me in Mark Twain Elementary," she said with a sideways smile. "I heard Laura telling Tammy Lucero that she wanted to ask Randy Kirwan to be her partner in the parent project. I didn't think you would like that very much."

  Jana stared blankly at Taffy. Randy and Laura McCall? Teaming up on the parent project? Her boyfriend and her worst enemy in junior high walking around school together and acting as if some stupid stuffed animal, or even Randy's football, was their darling little baby? Jana's face turned red as she realized just how much Laura would love to rub that in. She would absolutely die.

  Taffy looked sympathetic. "Don't worry, Jana," she said as she gently placed a hand on Jana's arm. "I have a plan."

  CHAPTER 4

  Taffy wants to help me? Jana thought in disbelief. It was impossible. They had always been enemies. It was true that they hadn't seen much of each other since they had come to Wakeman. She had been so busy getting used to junior high that Taffy hadn't been on her mind as much as she had been at Mark Twain Elementary. The Fantastic Foursome had taken her place as the number one enemy of The Fabulous Five. Still, Randy had said that Taffy had told him she liked Jana now.

  "What kind of plan?" Jana asked. She braced herself to hear some obviously devious idea.

  "I want you to remember that I won't do this if you say not to." Taffy seemed to be considering how to tell her. "I thought if I asked Randy to be my partner on the Family Living project, Laura couldn't ask him, and then she couldn't steal him away from you. I'd only do it because I want us to be friends."

  Jana felt as if she were going to be sick. Taffy and Randy acting as make-believe parents for two whole weeks? She didn't know whether to laugh or cry. How different would that be from Laura and Randy's being partners? she wondered. Was either one of the girls less likely to try to steal Randy away from her than the other?

  Taffy did say she wanted to be friends, Jana reminded herself. And she wouldn't ask Randy to be partners if Jana didn't want her to. Did Taffy really want to be friends? Jana couldn't imagine going to Bumpers or to a movie with Taffy the way she did with The Fabulous Five. She felt trapped. What could she do?

  "You have to decide real soon," Taffy said, gripping Jana's arm dramatically. "Laura may have already asked him."

  Jana thought the expression on Taffy's face must be right out of one of her acting classes.

  "I don't know," Jana answered. She needed time to think. "This is awfully sudden. I don't know if I want to butt into something Randy is doing."

  "I know you need time to think about it," Taffy said sweetly. "But Laura could ask him any minute. You've got to hurry and decide."

  On the school ground the next morning Jana found Katie and Melanie waiting at their special place by the fence. Christie and Beth came u
p just as she was starting to repeat Taffy's offer.

  "Don't tell me you believed her!" squealed Christie.

  "I just can't figure out why she would lie to me," Jana answered defensively. "What can she gain? She could ask Randy to be a parent without even asking me, couldn't she? I couldn't do anything about that. And I'm certainly not going up to Randy and tell him he can't be Taffy's partner."

  "You're right," said Katie. "That's what's so puzzling. But I just can't believe she'd do it out of the goodness of her heart."

  "Maybe she has changed," said Melanie. "We haven't seen that much of her, and we certainly haven't had any fights with her lately."

  "Taffy change?" asked Beth, rolling her eyeballs back in her head. "Not in a million years."

  "So you haven't talked to Randy about it?" Christie asked.

  "What would I say? Hey, Randy, don't be partners with Laura or Taffy on the Family Living project. They're just trying to steal you away from me. He'd think I was acting jealous."

  "I guess so," agreed Christie. She seemed to be thinking the situation over. "I wonder if it is possible that Taffy feels differently about us," she said slowly. "Why don't we each try to talk to her and sec how she reacts? You know, just make casual conversation. If she really feels differently about you, she ought to be friendly with all of us."

  "Good idea," said Jana.

  "Gosh," said Beth. "I don't think I can stand to go through life without Taffy Sinclair hating me."

  Everyone laughed at that, and soon the conversation drifted back to the parent project.

  "I can't wait to be parents with Scott," said Melanie. "It's going to seem just like we're married." She got the dreamy look in her eyes again.

  "What about Shane Arrington and Garrett Boldt?" asked Christie. "I thought you liked them, too."

  "I do, but Scott was my first true love. Then Shane was my second, and Garrett was my third."

  The rest of The Fabulous Five giggled.

  "I don't know how you can be so fickle," said Katie in an exasperated voice. "You act as if you want all the boys in Wacko Junior High for yourself."

  "Yeah," answered Melanie. "But wouldn't it be fantastic? Besides, you're just saying that because Tony Calcaterra's not in your class."

  This time Katie stuck her tongue out at Melanie.

  "There's no one in my Family Living class that I want to team up with," said Beth.

  "How about you, Jana?" Christie asked.

  "Randy's not in my class, and I don't know if I want to team up with anyone else or not."

  "Well, if you're going to object to Randy's teaming up with someone, I don't think you should have a partner," said Beth.

  "I'm not against Randy's being partners with someone. It's just who he teams up with, that's all." Then she added with a laugh, "Mona Vaughn would be fine."

  "I guess so," said Christie. "She's not nearly as pretty as Taffy or Laura. But don't forget, Matt Zeboski is her boyfriend, and he's in that class, too."

  "I heard that Laura is going to use a stuffed unicorn for a baby," Melanie continued.

  "That's because it has a horn growing out of the top of its head and will look like her," said Beth, grinning widely at her own joke.

  Katie said, "Lisa Snow told me she has a Garfield that she's going to use, and Tammy Lucero has an orange piñata that's shaped like a bull."

  "Taffy's going to use a big white bear dressed in a tutu," said Jana. "She showed it to me last night. Is it ever gorgeous, and its name—get this—is Monique."

  Just then the bell rang for class, and Jana followed behind the others. Marcie Bee called to her from two lockers away as they got their books out for class, "Oh, Jana! Doesn't the Family Living thing sound like fun?"

  "Sure does," Jana answered.

  "I've got the cutest bunny I've had for ages that I'm going to use. His name is Buniper. Of course I've got to put him through the wash and hang him out by his ears to dry before I can bring him in Monday."

  "Great," responded Jana.

  "I've got a kangaroo that I've had since I was a baby," said Dekeisha Adams, a tall black girl who was from Copper Beach Elementary. Jana knew Dekeisha from the modeling class they had been in at Tanninger's. She was also on the seventh-grade cheerleading squad with Beth and Melanie. "Its name is Jo-Jo. Won't that make a cute baby's name?"

  Gloria Drexler and Melinda Thaler joined in the conversation as Jana pulled her books from her locker and left. Even though she was beginning to get more into the spirit of the parent project now that everyone else was excited and constantly talking about it, she couldn't get Taffy Sinclair out of her mind.

  The morning took forever to pass. Jana had never been so bored with her classes, and she couldn't concentrate on what the teachers were saying. The more she thought about Taffy's offer, the more confused she became. Should she believe Taffy or not? Which would be worse, she wondered, to have Taffy as Randy's partner or Laura? One had been her worst enemy, and the other was probably her worst enemy now.

  "Jana. Did you hear my question?" asked Miss Dickinson. "I asked you what your opinion is as to why the heroine behaved the way she did."

  Perspiration popped out on Jana's forehead as she suddenly remembered she was in her English Lit class. The last thing she remembered Miss Dickinson talking about was the book she had assigned the class to read.

  Jana struggled to remember the story. She hoped it was the heroine in the book that Miss Dickinson was asking about. She gulped and said, "Uh, she did it because she felt that no one loved her. Uh . . . she was trying to get attention."

  "Very good, Jana. Please pay attention. Now class . . ."

  Jana's thoughts went immediately back to Randy, Taffy, and Laura. What was she going to do?

  CHAPTER 5

  Several students were in the yearbook staff room when Jana arrived after school. Mr. Neal was looking at photographs with Garrett Boldt, and other students were working in groups of twos and threes.

  Jana loved the busy atmosphere in the room. Large sheets of paper with lists of things for each of the classes to do and schedules for photo sessions were taped all around the walls. There were personal computers on some of the tables and piles of paper and things they needed to prepare The Wigwam. It seemed so businesslike, just like a newsroom.

  "Hi, Jana!" Funny called. Funny Hawthorne was one of the members of The Fantastic Foursome clique, and the only good one as far as Jana was concerned. Laura McCall was their leader. It was even rumored that she made her friends do certain things to remain members of The Fantastic Foursome. Melissa McConnell was the fastidious one. She was precise in every way and had run against Christie for seventh-grade president, probably at Laura's insistence. Tammy Lucero was the world's biggest gossip. But Jana and Funny had hit it off from their very first day at Wacko Junior High when Funny returned the class schedule that Jana had dropped. Lots of people thought Funny was a bubblehead, but she really wasn't. She just had a great sense of humor and showed it by laughing a lot.

  "How are the plans coming for your mom's wedding?" Funny asked, beaming at Jana with her usual big smile.

  "Okay, I guess. But Mom's turning into a basket case. I can't believe how she's worrying about every little detail as if the world will come to an end if even the smallest thing goes wrong. I guess she's just nervous, but I hope I'm not like that when I get married." Jana rolled her eyes toward the ceiling and then grinned at Funny, who sat at a table covered with papers. "So, what are you up to?"

  "I got started on the list of committees and other activities that seventh-graders are in. Do you want to help?"

  "Sure," said Jana, dragging over a chair. Being around Funny always lifted her spirits. "What do you have so far?"

  "I've got the football team and the boys' and girls' basketball teams. Then there are the track teams and soccer. Of course there's the class officers. We need b-i-i-g pictures of them. That way, you and I get our pictures in special." She giggled.

  "Don't forget the Teen Court,"
said Jana.

  "Oh, that's right. Your friend Katie's on that, isn't she?"

  Funny looked down when she said that. Jana wished it were easier for the two of them to be friends. Even though they belonged to separate cliques that were always at war with each other, they each understood how the other one felt. That helped a lot, but Jana had seen Funny and Laura arguing once, and she knew it was because Funny was hanging around Jana.

  "Yes, Katie's on it, and so are Shane Arrington and Whitney Larkin," Jana answered.

  Funny continued with her list of activities. "And then there's the Drama Club and the cheerleading squad and the band."

  "There sure are a lot of seventh-graders doing things," said Jana. "Let's see, on cheerleading there's Mandy McDermott, Dekeisha Adams, Melanie, and Beth and . . . oh, yes, Laura. Sorry. I almost forgot her. I didn't do it on purpose." She gave Funny a look that said she truly was sorry.

  "You know," said Funny thoughtfully, "Laura really isn't all that bad. You guys have the wrong idea about her."

  Jana didn't answer right away, although she knew Funny was waiting for her to say something. After thinking for a moment she said, "I know you Fantastic Foursomes are all friends, just the way we are in The Fabulous Five. But it sure seems as if Laura's out to get us."

  Funny was silent herself for a moment. "It seems the other way around, too." Then she touched Jana's arm. "You're the leader of The Fabulous Five. They'll do whatever you want. Isn't there some way you can make them understand?"

  Jana looked at Funny. "I heard that Laura is going to ask Randy Kirwan to be her partner for the Family Living project. Is that true?"

  A cloud passed over Funny's face, and she said quietly, "She did say she wished he would ask her." Then she added quickly, "But she said she'd like to be Shane's partner, too, except that he's not in her class."

  "I know," said Jana. "Shane's in Mrs. Clark's Family Living class with me."