by Julie Bowe
Mr. Crow just smiles.
Quinn opens the lid on his container, but I don’t see what’s inside it because someone starts tapping my shoulder.
I turn and see Randi’s bright green eyes. “It’s all set,” she whispers. “We’re gonna meet during morning recess to vote on your triple-dog dare! ”
“Oh, boy,” I whisper back. “Where do we meet? ”
“Not you, ” Randi says. “Just us.” She glances around at the other girls. “We’ll tell you all about it this afternoon. ”
“I searched through three bags of corn chips to find enough perfect triangles,” Joey says, holding up a clear plastic bag of chips. “It was grueling. ”
“What did you do with the ones that weren’t perfect?” Tom asks. “Wait, let me guess. Ate them, right? ”
Joey rubs his stomach and smiles. Then he burps.
“I brought grapes, ” Jolene says. “For spheres. ”
Jenna huffs. “You always bring grapes, Jolene. ”
That’s true. Jolene is the grape girl in our class.
“Grapes are a good choice,” Mr. Crow says. “Healthy and spherical. A perfectly shaped snack. ”
Jolene gives Jenna a squint.
“What did you bring, Ida? ” Mr. Crow asks.
“Um . . . Jell-O, ” I say.
“Jell-O?” Jenna says. “That doesn’t have a shape. It’s just a blob. ”
“It’s finger Jell-O,” I say. I lift the lid on my container and show everyone the jiggly red hexagons inside.
“Yum! ” Stacey says.
“Very creative! ” Mr. Crow adds.
“That’s nothing,” Jenna says. “I got stars, and hardly any snacks come in that shape. ”
“Actually,” Tom says, “if you cut an apple in half sideways, you’ll find a star inside. ”
Jenna squints. “This isn’t kindergarten, Tom. ”
“So what did you bring? ” Dominic asks.
Jenna lifts her chin. “It’s very rare. I had to make my dad drive to three grocery stores before we found any. ”
Everyone crowds closer to Jenna. She soaks us up like a sponge. Then she slowly raises the lid on her snack container like she’s opening an Egyptian tomb. Slices of star-shaped fruit are inside. Four rows with four stars each. Sixteen stars altogether.
“Ah, star fruit,” Mr. Crow says. “That’s also very creative, Jenna. ”
Jenna nods.
“I’ve never had star fruit before,” Jolene says, nudging in for a closer look. “What does it taste like? ”
“Like grapes, ” I mumble.
Jenna snaps the lid shut on her container, just missing Jolene’s nose. “No samples, ” she says. “You have to wait until snack time like everyone else. ”
Jenna pushes past us. She sits down at her desk and recounts her stars.
Since I’m not allowed to be around when the girls vote on my triple-dog dare, I volunteer to fix up a snack table for Mr. Crow during our morning recess. But as soon as everyone starts coming back inside I leave the snacks and find Stacey.
“What did you decide? ” I ask her.
“We decided Brooke had the best idea ever!” Stacey says. “You are going to love this dare! ”
“Love a triple-dog dare?” I say. “But they’re supposed to make you smell bad. Or lose your hair. Or get you grounded for a month. ”
Stacey giggles. “Not this one. You’ll see, this afternoon! ”
“Can’t you tell me now? ”
“Sorry,” Stacey says, pretending to lock her lips with an invisible key. “I’m sworn to secrecy until our next recess. ”
“But I’m your best friend,” I remind her. “You’re supposed to tell me secrets. ”
“If I told you, everyone would be mad at me, ” Stacey says.
“Yes, but I would be happy with you, ” I reply.
Stacey thinks for a minute. “Okay, I’ll give you a hint, but that’s all.” She pulls me off to the side and huddles in close. “Your dare is something you have been wanting to do, but can’t. That’s why you’ll love it! ”
“But there are lots of things I’ve been wanting to do, but can’t. Cartwheels, for example. Straight A’s on my report card. Burping the alphabet. ” I give Stacey a very pleading look. “Can’t you give me a better hint? ”
“Nope, ” Stacey says. “You’ll just have to wait. ”
I sigh because waiting is something else I can’t do so great.
It’s a hot day because of my stripped leggings. And itchy, because of my sparkly shirt. I concentrate on not scratching so the sparkles won’t get on my hands and end up on my chin or on my nose or on some other part of me where you don’t normally wear sparkles.
All the concentrating makes my brain tired, so I rest it on my desk during free time. All I can smell is eraser shavings. All I can see is Tom’s right arm.
I count the lint balls on his sleeve.
Twenty-seven.
Then I close my eyes and try to imagine what my triple-dog dare will be. And how I could ever love it.
I’m in the middle of imagining the girls daring me to eat a jumbo box of Choco Chunks, which is the only dare I could ever love, when a sheet of paper slides onto my desk. A drawing, actually. It looks like one of the pictures from Tom’s Picasso art book. Like a boy—Tom, maybe—made out of triangles, squares, and circles instead of bones, skin, and sneakers.
“It’s a get-well picture, ” Tom whispers.
I glance at him and notice that his ears are bright red, just like the tiny heart he drew on the boy’s square chest.
“Thanks, ” I whisper back. “But I’m not actually sick. Just a little . . . itchy. ”
“Oh, ” Tom replies, shifting in his seat. “Then I guess it’s a . . . itch-well picture. ”
“Neat, ” I say. “Can I keep it? ”
“That was the plan, ” he says.
I smile and put the drawing inside my desk. Then I rest my head again.
Just before our second recess, Mr. Crow sends me to the nurse so she can check my temperature.
It’s the only thing about me that’s normal today.
Chapter 15
I get back from the nurse’s office in plenty of time for recess.
In a few minutes, I’ll know what my dare is.
And how much I will love it.
I wait with Stacey outside the snow fort while the other girls get situated inside. Brooke wants to make the whole thing very dramatic.
She waves and we step inside the snow fort. “Stacey, please present the accused. ”
I gulp.
Stacey takes my arm and clears her throat. “I present . . . Ida May, ” she says, all official.
Everyone giggles. Except for Jenna. Her face is like a blank page in my sketchbook.
We sit down and Brooke gives Meeka and Jolene a nod.
They scramble up and start dancing. It’s a small dance because there’s not a lot of room. And short because they’re making it up as they go.
Everyone thumps their mittens together as Meeka and Jolene take a bow.
“You next, Randi, ” Brooke says.
Randi scoops up a fistful of snow and stands over me. “Ida May,” she says, “it’s time to announce the charges against you. ” She sprinkles snow on my head. I don’t ask why. “You are accused of spilling the beans on your friends, ” Randi continues. “Any last words? ”
I brush snowflakes off my eyelashes. “Um . . . I’m sorry I did it,” I say. “Please don’t make me eat a bug. ”
Everyone giggles. Even Jenna lets some slip.
Randi steps back.
Brooke takes center stage. “And now,” she says, brushing away the hair that’s stuck to her lip gloss, “by the powers invented in me, I hereby announce your triple-dog dare! ”
Everyone squirms and whispers. Kids laugh and shout in the distance. Snowflakes fall from the blue-gray sky. One lands on my coat sleeve. I can see its six perfect points. I think about all the snowflakes
piled up around me and how this one is different from all of them. And how much sky it had to drift through before it landed on me.
Brooke straightens her snow pants. “Ida May, we dare you to—” She pauses to clear her throat. “To—”
“Let Meeka pierce your ears!” Jolene blurts out.
Brooke shoots a look at Jolene. “I was supposed to say that! ”
Jolene covers her mouth with her fuzzy white mittens. “Oops. ”
My eyes go wide. “Um . . . could you repeat that, please? ”
“Yes, ” Brooke says. “We dare you to let Meeka pierce your ears! ”
I blink at Meeka.
Meeka nods. “If I’m going to be a doctor someday, I need to practice poking people with needles. ” She bites off her glove and reaches inside her coat pocket. She pulls out a pencil and flips open a little notebook. “How does tomorrow work for you?” She holds her pencil over the notebook and glances up at me. “Say, fourish? ”
“Um . . . not so great, ” I say, trying to think of a reason why I can’t get my ears pierced tomorrow. Then I remember one. “I have to walk Rachel to her piano lesson after school tomorrow. It’s a very important job. ”
I glance at Jenna, hoping she won’t offer to walk Rachel for me. My stomach loosens a little when Jenna glances away.
Meeka flips to another page in her notebook. “I’m completely booked on Wednesday,” she says. “How about Thursday? ”
“We have dance on Thursday, remember?” Stacey says.
Meeka nods and jots a note. “I have an opening on Friday, after school. ” She taps the pencil against her chin. “That would give you the weekend to recover. ”
“Sounds . . . perfect, ” I say.
“Oooo . . .” Brooke says. “That gives me the best idea! ”
We all wait for Brooke to fill us in.
“I’ll have a sleep-over at my house on Friday night and Meeka can pierce Ida’s ears then!” Brooke says. “We’ll make it a real ceremony! ”
“Daremony is more like it, ” Randi says.
“Yeah, a daremony!” Jolene says. “Meeka and me will do another dance. Only we’ll practice this time. ”
Meeka nods.
“And Stacey can help me decorate,” Brooke says, smiling at Stacey.
“Will do! ” Stacey replies.
“What about me? ” Randi says. “I need a job. ”
“You can bring the potato, ” Brooke says. “We’ll need one to hold it behind Ida’s ear so Meeka doesn’t poke her head. ”
“Potato patrol, ” Randi says. “Roger. ”
Brooke starts explaining all about piercing ears because she overheard Jade’s friend Meghan tell how she pierced her cousin’s ears for her.
Meeka takes lots of notes.
Everyone is acting like the daremony is Brooke’s best idea ever.
Everyone except Jenna.
Everyone except me.
“Um . . . excuse me, ” I say when Brooke stops to take a breath. “I hate to interrupt, but there’s one, tiny problem. ”
“What? ” they all ask.
“My parents won’t let me get my ears pierced until I’m ten. ”
“So?” Brooke says. “Just hide your ears until your next birthday. ”
“Hide my ears? ”
Brooke nods. “Scarves, hoodies, hats. Problem solved. ”
“You can borrow my earmuffs,” Stacey says. “They’ll hide your ears and keep you nice and toasty.” She tosses her fuzzy purple earmuffs onto my lap and gives me a warm smile. “You can start wearing them now for practice. ”
“But my birthday isn’t until summer, ” I say. “I can’t wear earmuffs until—”
“It’s all settled then, ” Brooke cuts in. “Daremony at my house Friday night. Be there or be square. ”
Everyone gets up and starts heading back inside.
I pull off my hat and put on Stacey’s earmuffs.
I lean against the snow fort and think about how sweaty my life is going to be.
Dear Stella,
I got my triple-dog dare today. I have to Let Meeka pierce my ears at Brooke’s sleep-over on Friday. I would almost rather kiss a cane toad. Or maybe even a boy. How could Stacey think I would Love this dare? I even asked her how she could think that during silent reading. She said, “Getting your ears pierced is fun!” and I said, “Not if Meeka is piercing them” and she said, “It’s easy and there’s hardly any blood” and I said, “Blood?!” and she said, “Won’t it be fun to swap earrings?” and I said, “How much blood?” and then Mr. Crow said, “Shhh! This is silent reading, girls. Save the chatter for Later.”
Later we watched a slideshow about Pablo Picasso. Tom had shown Mr. Crow his book and got him all inspired. We even had to draw ourselves using shapes Like Mr. Picasso did. Circles, triangles, squares. I chose scribbles because that’s how I’ve been feeling lately and Mr. Picasso’s drawings are all about feelings.
Jenna Looked over at my drawing and said, “A scribble is not a shape.”
Then Tom Looked at Jenna and said, “A friend is not a boss.”
Then Quinn Looked at all of us and said, “A booger is not a snack.”
That made us Laugh. Even Jenna.
Mr. Crow must have been feeling especially creative, because we hardly got a break before he started teaching us about concrete poems, which are poems that are shaped Like the thing you’re writing about. So, if your poem is about a triangle, it’s shaped Like a triangle. If it’s about a tiger, it’s shaped Like a tiger.
For homework we have to write a concrete poem using an easy shape. Here’s mine:
one
big yellow
circle in the sky
grows apples
for making
pie
I signed my name Like this:
Which is how I would Look if I were a poem.
Chapter 16
I tried calling Stacey last night to talk about the daremony, but her grandma told me a friend invited her to the Purdee Good for ice cream.
I bet I know which friend.
And now I won’t have time to talk to her before school because my dad has the morning off, so he’s taking me out for breakfast.
“Everything good?” Dad asks as we head to the Purdee Good. “I mean with school and everything? ”
“Yep, ” I say.
Dad glances at me and then back at the road. “Anything bad? ”
“Nope. ”
I watch snowbanks rise and fall outside my window.
“I hear you’re walking Rachel home after her piano lessons. ”
“Mmm-hmm, ” I say.
“That’s a big help to Mom. ”
I nod.
“And to Mrs. Drews, ” Dad continues. “Especially considering . . . everything. ”
Dad turns on his blinker and we head down Main Street.
“Everything? You mean about Mr. Drews’s job? Because he got a new one. Jenna said so. ”
Dad nods and waves to someone walking down the snowy sidewalk. “That, and Mrs. Drews’s not feeling well lately. ”
“I know, but Jenna said it’s only temporary. ”
“Mmm-hmm, ” Dad says. “A baby can do that. I know Mom felt queasy when she was expecting you. ”
Dad slows down suddenly as a couple of kids run across the street in front of us. I jerk forward and my seat belt snaps to attention.
So do I.
“Baby? ” I say. “What baby? ”
Dad glances at me. “Mrs. Drews’s baby. She’s expecting. Didn’t Jenna tell you? ”
I sit back. “Nope, ” I say.
“Huh,” Dad says. “Mom didn’t mention that it’s a secret. ” He parks next to the Purdee Good and turns off the car. “Better keep it under your hat . . . er . . . earmuffs for now, okay? ”
“Okay, ” I say.
I watch Jenna out of the corner of my eye all day at school. I wonder why she hasn’t mentioned her new baby. I wonder why Rachel hasn’t e
ither.
Whenever I’m around Jenna, I drop a few hints.
“Did you see that special on baby penguins last night? ”
“I just love baby carrots, don’t you? ”
“Tom told me his baby sister got a crayon stuck up her nose. ”
But Jenna doesn’t budge.
I think about telling Stacey that Jenna has a big secret.
But if I do, she will probably tell Brooke.
I keep it to myself.
When the bus gets to my stop after school, me and Rachel head to my house.
Jenna follows along. Even after we turn the corner.
I stop and look at her. “Um... aren’t you going the wrong way? ”
“Yes,” she says. “I mean... no. I’m going with you. ”
“You are? ” I say.
“You are? ” Rachel says.
Jenna gives us a quick nod. “My mom . . . she told me I should. ”
Jenna glances away.
“But I don’t mind walking Rachel home,” I say.
“Yeah, Ida doesn’t mind, ” Rachel chimes in.
Jenna doesn’t say anything. She just kicks at a chunk of ice on the sidewalk until she kicks it loose.
“But, I suppose if you want to—” I start to say.
I hear a small cough and look at Rachel. She shakes her head no.
I look at Jenna again. “You can walk Rachel home, ” I say. “Just for today. ”
Rachel puffs.
Jenna sniffs, shaking back her braids. “If I have to, ” she says.
I take off for my house.
Rachel catches up.
Jenna follows along.
When we get there we ditch our coats and kick off our boots. I leave Jenna sitting on the staircase while Rachel starts her piano lesson. When I come back from the kitchen with a plate of brownies, Jenna’s checking her watch and tapping her foot to “Three Blind Mice.” There’s a hole in her sock and one toe peeks out. It’s painted orange to match her fingernails.
“If you want, ” I say, “we can wait in my room until Rachel’s done. ”
Jenna’s foot skips a beat. She checks her watch again. “I guess that would be okay, ” she says.
We grab our backpacks and head upstairs.