Big News!
Page 4
“Thanks, Miss Thompson!”
“You’re welcome—and, Emma, stop running!”
I HURRIED over to my regular lunch table. Sophia was eating tacos with Lizzie and Shakira—exactly the people I needed to talk to.
“Hi, guys. Wanna be famous? Wanna be on my show?” I asked in a hurry.
“Sure!” they said together with mouths full of taco meat and cheese. We all started laughing.
“Sorry, Emma,” they said, still giggling. As soon as they were done swallowing, I set up my cell phone camera.
“Can I hold the camera again?” offered Sophia.
“That would be great!” I gave it to Sophia, and she pressed record.
“So,” I said. “Lizzie and Shakira, were you guys planting zucchini in the organic garden by the school yard the day before yesterday?” I asked.
Shakira answered first. “Yes! It was so much fun!”
“No,” said Lizzie.
“No, you weren’t planting zucchini?” I asked, a little confused.
“Yes, we were planting zucchini, but I mean no, it wasn’t fun. It was so gross. We had to get dirty and mucky. It was not fun, Shakira,” Lizzie said.
“Yes, it was. I had a blast,” Shakira insisted.
I needed to interrupt. “Can you guys answer a question for me? Did you see Javier there? In the garden?” I asked.
“Oh, yeah, Javier was there,” Lizzie said. “He was really into it. He even asked Mr. Delmonico if he could take some of the soil and seeds home with him to plant his own zucchini garden.”
“He did?” I asked. “Did Mr. Delmonico let him?”
“No, Mr. Delmonico said no,” explained Shakira. “He said if Javier’s parents wanted to let him plant a zucchini garden at home, then they would have to tell Mr. Delmonico, who would help them find the seeds. He said Javier couldn’t just take everything home without asking his parents first. Javier looked upset. He was so upset he asked to go to the bathroom before we were finished.”
“Yeah,” continued Lizzie, “he didn’t even come back outside. We met up with him after we finished in the garden and saw him walking through the lunchroom.”
Yes! I knew it! I pulled out my reporter’s pad and wrote:
Clue #5: Javier planted zucchini in the garden and left early to go to the bathroom.
“Did we help?” Lizzie asked.
“Are we gonna be on TV?” asked Shakira.
“Yes! You guys were awesome! I gotta go. Thanks for your help!”
I had one more interview to do, and I was pretty sure the mystery would be solved. Sophia handed me the camera, and I ran over to Beatrice in the kitchen.
“Hola, Beatrice,” I said. Beatrice speaks Spanish, too.
“Hola, linda,” she said back. “¿Cómo estás?” That means “Hello, beautiful. How are you?” You say it like this: OH-la, LEEN-da. KO-mo es-TAHS?
“I’m okay,” I said in English. I had to hurry. I had a feeling the health inspector would be here soon.
“Beatrice, remember when you heated up Javier’s hamburger on Monday?”
“Ah, let’s see. Yes, yes, I remember.”
“Well, when you saw it, did it have a worm inside?” I asked.
“Ay, claro que no, mi amor,” she said. That means “Oh, of course not, my love.”
“That’s what I thought,” I said. “One more question. Did you see Javier in the kitchen before lunch?”
“Oh, yes. He came here from the garden with one of those watering cans full of dirt! He asked me for a cardboard container. I gave him one and then he put all the dirt from the watering can into it. Que asqueroso,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “Who knows what was in there! I told him to get out of the kitchen with that stuff. He ran off, and he forgot to take his gardening tools back outside. He left them over there.” She pointed to the countertop. “They were in the way, so I moved them to the cabinet. I completely forgot they’re still there! Thanks for reminding me. I’m gonna figure out where they need to go after lunch.”
“Thanks, Beatrice!” I started running out of the kitchen. “¡Gracias!”
“Okay, mi amor. Adios. See you later. Don’t run!”
As soon as I found a place to sit, I pulled out my reporter’s pad and wrote:
Clue #6: Beatrice the cook saw Javier pour soil from a watering can into a cardboard container.
That was all I needed to know. I was almost positive the case was solved. I just needed to ask Javier a few more questions …
“Okay, kids, line up. Lunch is over,” called Geraldine. “It’s too rainy for yard time, so Miss Thompson’s class, go to the computer lab. Mr. Smith’s class is going to the library. Miss Shaw’s class …”
Oh, no! I thought. I’m out of time!
I had to talk to Javier and write my report so that everyone would know what really happened. And I had to do it fast, because just behind Miss Thompson, I saw Principal Lee walking into the lunchroom—with the health inspector!
Uh-oh.
TIME was ticking, and I didn’t know what to do. I started scanning the lunchroom for ideas—
Then I saw it. A lunch box, a sweater, and two hats on the floor.
“Miss Thompson!” I shouted with my hand raised high.
“What is it, Emma?”
“Javier left his sweater on the floor. I also see a lunch box and two hats. Can we go pick them up?”
“Sure, but hurry.”
I ran over to Javier in line and pulled his arm.
“Whoa … okay, I’m coming,” he said as I dragged him toward the other side of the lunchroom.
“You forgot your sweater, Javier,” I said, loud enough for the class to hear. Then I pulled him behind a closet door and pressed record.
“We only have a minute, Javier, but I have to ask you a few more questions.”
“What?”
“The day you found the worm in your hamburger, you also took soil from the organic garden so you could grow your own zucchini at home, right?”
Javier started looking around like he was checking to see if anyone else could hear.
“Uh, I don’t know, Emma,” he answered sheepishly.
“I think you do know,” I replied. And then I explained the whole thing. I told Javier what I thought really happened. I told him why I thought he was the one who put the worm in his own hamburger.
“I … um … I …” he said. Then finally, he said, “Ugh. I guess you might be right. It’s probably my fault. But, Emma, I swear I didn’t do it on purpose.”
“I know you didn’t,” I said, trying to comfort him. “Don’t worry about it. It’s not a big deal right now, but it will be if I don’t write my report before the health inspector finds someone else to blame.”
Javier and I raced back to our class. When we got to the computer lab, I sat down and took a deep breath. Now I knew for sure that Miss Thompson did not put that worm in Javier’s hamburger. And neither did Geraldine the lunch lady or Beatrice the cook.
I pulled out my reporter’s pad. This was the worst part—writing. But there was no time to be nervous. People needed to know the truth, and they needed to know it fast. So I started writing. And then I wrote some more. And then I realized, it was easier this time. I knew exactly what I wanted to say. It felt like my shiny purple feather pencil was taking over. Before I knew it, I was done.
Luckily the computer in the lab was a lot like our computer at home. So I got it ready just like my dad showed me. I sat up straight and looked into the camera. I saw myself on the computer screen, just like before. I was already wearing my green velvet blazer and my pearls, which made me giggle. This was so cool.
I cleared my throat, held my Emma microphone with confidence, and started reading.
“Hello, everyone. This is Emma, and I’m on the air! I’ve finally solved the case of the lunchroom wormburger. If the principal and health inspector are watching, please stop what you’re doing and watch the rest of my report before you look for someone to blame.
I talked about everything I had learned at lunch. The aluminum foil, the cardboard burger box, the zucchini planting, and finally, how Javier put gardening soil in a cardboard box that looked just like the one Geraldine used for Javier’s hamburger. I played all the witness interviews so people could hear it for themselves.
“Then I knew what really happened,” I read. “I knew how Javier’s hamburger became a wormburger. So I ran to find Javier and interviewed him a second time. Take a listen.”
Then I pressed play on my most recent interview with Javier.
Emma: The day you found the worm in your hamburger, you also took soil from the organic garden so you could grow your own zucchini at home, right?
Javier: Uh, I don’t know, Emma.
Emma: I think you do know.
Javier: Okay, okay. Yeah, I took some soil from the garden. I just wanted to make my own zucchini garden at home. What’s wrong with that? I like zucchini bread!
Emma: I’m sure Mr. Delmonico would be upset, but I don’t care about that part. Javier, think about it. You put soil into a cardboard container that looked just like the container Beatrice used to heat up your hamburger.
Javier: So …
Emma: So that’s how your hamburger became a wormburger.
Javier: What do you mean?
Emma: You had both cardboard boxes on your table at lunch, right?
Javier: Yeah, I guess so.
Emma: You said you took one bite of your hamburger and then put it down. When you picked it up to take a second bite, you saw the worm.
Javier: Yeah …
Emma: Javier, when you put your hamburger down after the first bite, you must have put it down in the wrong box. You put it in the box with the soil—a box of soil that probably had worms inside. One of them smelled your hamburger and decided to crawl right in. When you picked the hamburger back up for your second bite, the worm had already made a nice little home for himself inside. Bam! Your hamburger was a wormburger!
Javier: I thought I kept those boxes separate … but Adrian wanted to see the soil, so I opened the soil box. I must have forgotten to close it.
Emma: Thought so.
Javier: I … um … I … Ugh. I guess you might be right. It’s probably my fault. But, Emma, I swear I didn’t do it on purpose.
Emma: I know you didn’t.
I pressed stop on the interview and wrapped up my report.
“So, there you have it. How did a worm get inside Javier’s hamburger? It crawled inside from Javier’s soil box. It was just an accident. The case of the lunchroom wormburger is officially solved.
“Ms. Health Inspector, I hope you’re watching. No one needs to get fired. It was all an accident.
“Thanks, everyone, for watching this edition of ‘Emma Is On the Air.’ I’ll see you next time!”
Then I had to post my report on the school bulletin board. I remembered all the buttons Papi clicked—and presto! Done. I ran over to Miss Thompson and told her to watch it right away.
PURRR,” Luna said as she sat in my lap at home that night.
“Aw, thanks, Luna. I know you wanted to be there. I was thinking about you the whole time.”
“Meeeoow,” Luna said with a happy purr. She was really proud of me. I could tell.
There was a knock on my bedroom door.
“Come in,” I said as I sat on my bed feeling satisfied—and, of course, famous!
“Hi, mija,” said Papi, leaning through the doorway. “I heard about what happened at school today. Principal Lee called.”
Principal Lee had spoken to me at school, too. She showed my report to the health inspector, and they both went to talk to Javier and learned the truth. Principal Lee was glad none of her staff members got in trouble. And she thanked me.
Everyone else at school saw my report, too. It was awesome. People were patting me on the back and saying I looked so cool. That was neat because people don’t usually think I am cool. Sometimes it feels like they don’t even know I’m there. Well, not anymore! Now I am famous! I sang the word in my head. And laughed. I was so busy thinking about school I forgot my papi was there.
“Hello? Emma? Are you gonna answer my question?”
“Oh, sorry, Papi. What was that?”
“I was saying, you did a great job this week. Not only did you solve the mystery and write a report all by yourself, but you know what else you did?”
“What?” I asked.
“You helped people. You helped Principal Lee protect Miss Thompson and Geraldine and Beatrice. And you helped Javier figure out the mistake he made. And now we all know that the kitchen at school is clean and safe. Thanks to you. Nice work.”
I smiled as Papi left my room. Wow. He was right. I did help people. I started thinking again that maybe the helping part felt better than the famous part.
Nah—that is silly. Being famous is the best! I started doing the famous jumpy dance with Luna.
“We’re famous! We’re famous! We’re famous!” I sang.
Luna took off running around the room, and I chased her. And then I fell on the floor, laughing.
“I’m counting on you, kitty … my little gatita. We’re going to solve every mystery on the planet! We’ll be”—I stopped to sing—“famous! ¡Somos famosas! Come on, Luna, we have to go find our next case!”
1. Find a news story that’s super awesome. I like stories about bugs that crawl into food. But you should pick a story that you like—that way, you won’t have to go to the hospital for boredom overload!
2. Wear news clothes that are awesome. I always wear my green velvet blazer and my pearl necklace, but you can wear more than one necklace, or instead of a blazer, a raincoat. Even if it’s not raining. Ha-ha!
3. Sing the news! It’s super funny when you sing your news report. Sometimes I sing, “This is Emma … and I’m on the aaaiiirrrrr.” Luna always cracks up.
4. Do the famous jumpy dance! The famous jumpy dance is a good way to be famous. Your cat or dog can do it, too. Even your brother or sister, but only if they are not mean and promise not to touch your stuff.
See? Totally boring-proof!
Emma will be back ON THE AIR in
This is Emma Perez, and I’m ON THE AIR!
Today at school, Sophia, Javier, and I were working on our extra-awesome outfits for the costume party. We had the best idea ever and were going to win the contest! But now Sophia’s costume is missing. Where could it be? Did someone take it on purpose?
Emma and her friends were’t ready for so much party drama, but if they work together to figure out what happened, they might just save the day!
Don’t miss a minute of
IDA SIEGAL is an award-winning journalist and on-air reporter at NBC’s flagship station in New York City, WNBC. She most recently won an Emmy Award for her coverage of Super Storm Sandy. Ida also lives in New York City, with her husband and their two children. The Emma Is On the Air series marks her children’s book writing debut.
Text copyright © 2015 by Ida Siegal
Illustrations copyright © 2015 by Scholastic Inc.
This book is being published simultaneously in hardcover by Scholastic Press.
All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Inc. SCHOLASTIC, SCHOLASTIC PRESS, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
First printing 2015
> Cover art by Karla Peña
Cover design by Sharismar Rodriguez
e-ISBN 978-0-545-68694-5
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher. For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., Attention: Permissions Department, 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.