Triple Trouble
Page 6
“Great, what’s your cell?” Emma asked.
“I don’t have a new one yet, so boys, one of you text Emma your number, please,” she said.
One of them did, although he didn’t look too happy about it. We said good-bye to Belinda and Bonita.
“Bye, Dexter, Oliver, and Asher,” Emma said to the triplets. They gave us a forced good-bye back.
“Can we go to the multiples festival? Can we go?” Emma said, as we went out the door and into the parking lot.
“I don’t know,” my mom said. “It seems like a little too much. A festival and a dance.”
“I’m definitely going to the dance,” I warned. Definitely. (With Nick!)
“Well, I definitely want to go to the festival now,” Emma said excitedly. “I’ve been craving competition.”
Emma was practically skipping.
“It would be nice to go somewhere where we’re not so unusual,” I said. “Where we fit in. Where everyone looks like someone.”
“That does make a compelling argument,” Dad said.
“I think it would be fun,” I agreed. “All those twins and triplets and quads? Pretty cool.”
“I have to admit, it sounds like fun,” my mom said, nodding. “Okay, I think it’s a good idea.”
“On one condition,” my dad said. “You’re not going as a brand, a package, or to be marketed. Deal?”
“Deal!” Emma and I said at the same time. I smiled at Emma. Sometimes it was fun being a twin.
“We’ll just be us,” Emma reassured our dad.
We gave each other a twin hand-clap-slap. We were going to Multipalooza!
Twelve
LATER THAT WEEK, AFTER SCHOOL
After last period, I stopped at my locker and headed to the library for my tutoring session.
“Hi, Emma,” Ox said. He was leaning against the wall just outside the library.
“Hi!” I said. “What are you doing here?”
“Well, I knew you had tutoring today, and I’ve got a few minutes to kill before I suit up for football practice, so I hoped I’d get to see you.” Ox smiled.
I smiled.
Ox smiled.
“Um, so.” I tried to continue the conversation. “Does football season last all year?”
Ox snorted.
“Actually, football is a fall sport,” he told me. “We only have one more game.”
“Oh!” I thought fast. “That gives your team one last chance to get over .500! Or, conversely, if you lost, your percentage would only be .416 repeating six. That’s not so good.”
“Yeah,” Ox agreed. “But I had one hundred percent fun playing, and I think next year our team will be really good. I’m moving up to junior varsity. They play on the high school field, so it’ll be cool. You’ll have to come cheer me on.”
“Me?” I cringed, imagining myself in a cheer outfit attempting clumsy cartwheels.
“Only if you want to,” Ox said quickly. “I know sitting in the stands isn’t exactly thrilling. . . .”
“Oh! In the stands!” I started laughing. “I thought you expected me to be a cheerleader!”
“Only in your dreams, Twin,” Sydney said, passing by holding pom-poms. “Cheerleading is for the athletic and adorable. Not mathletic and dork-able.”
“Very clever, Sydney. Ha-ha!” I said. Insulting, but clever. I remembered back when Sydney had wanted Ox to be her boyfriend, but instead he liked ME. Ha-ha.
“I was just kidding!” She smiled at Ox.
“Saying ‘just kidding’ doesn’t excuse an insult,” Ox told her. Then he turned to me. “Though it’s not really an insult because I like mathletic and dorkable.”
I swooned. Sydney flounced off. Ha-ha.
“Emma! I got a new geometry app for my phone!” Jason came running down the hall toward us, followed by Mason and Counselor Case.
“That’s my cell phone, Jason,” Counselor Case corrected him.
“And I made slime in science today! Wanna see?” Mason held out an orange blob.
“Great,” I said.
“Cool, dude,” Ox said.
“Just to be clear, that does not go in my hair or in my tote bag,” I informed Mason.
“Aw.” Mason’s face dropped.
“Emma, before you begin with the boys, I wanted to update you on the plans for the Multipalooza festival,” Counselor Case said.
“We’re going too!” Mason and Jason screamed and jumped around like crazy people.
“Ox, can you come?” Mason stopped jumping. He treated Ox like a hero, which was pretty cute.
“He can’t come,” Jason scoffed. “He’s just a singleton.”
“JUST a singleton?” Ox frowned. “JUST?” He reached down and picked Jason up off the ground. Then he pulled Mason up too.
“Just ONE of me can lift TWO of you,” he said while the twins dangled from his arms, giggling.
Ox let Mason and Jason down. Then he looked at me. “I should get to practice,” he said. “What’s this festival?”
“And I have some math tutoring to do,” I said.
Jason cheered and Mason groaned.
“I’ll call you after dinner,” Ox told me, and said good-bye to everyone.
“Oooh, I know math,” Mason said. “Ox plus Emma equals L-U-V . . .”
“Enough, Mason,” Counselor Case said. “Boys, behave yourselves with Emma. I’ll see you at five o’clock.”
As I herded the twins through the library doors, Jason said, “Actually, did you know that Ox plus Emma results in Oxemma, which is a patented health care technology used for diagnostic imaging?”
Mason and I were silent.
Oxemma? Hee.
“Time for math,” I said firmly. I had a job to do.
I could think about Ox later.
Hee.
Thirteen
VOGS MEETING
I sat in the VOGS meeting, waiting in suspense. Mrs. Burkle was giving out assignments for the next session of VOGS. Oh, how I hoped I would be an anchor and get to introduce the show! I thought I’d proved myself pretty well lately. I had been doing short news stories the past few weeks and wanted something juicier.
“Our anchors will be . . .” We all held our breath. Then she announced four people who were . . . not me. Rats. I let out my breath. I’d really been hoping. I saw Nick shoot me a glance of pity. I tried to put a smile on my face like it was no big deal. After the meeting ended, Nick came right over.
“Hey, I’m sorry,” Nick said. “I know you wanted to be an anchor.
“Oh, it’s no big deal,” I said.
Nick looked at me.
“Oh, okay, it is a big deal,” I confessed.
“Why don’t you go ask Mrs. Burkle about it?” Nick asked. “Not to complain, just to ask if there’s something you can do to get the anchor spot next time.”
“Well.” I looked over and saw that Burkle was standing by herself.
“I have to grab something from my locker, but text me how it goes,” Nick said. “See you.”
I said bye to Nick, then took a deep breath and approached Burkle.
“Mrs. Burkle?” I asked her. “ ’I’m not complaining, but I was wondering if there is something I can do differently so I can be an anchor next time?”
“Oh, Payton, I’m glad to see you express an interest. Well, I did just give you the plum interview opportunity for the breaking-news feature, interviewing the triplets.”
Ergh. I couldn’t tell her that was Emma, not me! It was so unfair!
“A little constructive criticism: The interview was a little choppy,” Mrs. Burkle said. “I’d like you to work on your closures and also looking at the camera more.”
ERGH! Now it was REALLY unfair! I was being judged for Emma’s work! Nooooo!
“May I have a chance to show you I can do better?” I practically begged.
“Well, I am looking for exciting features. The triplets story did generate a lot of interest. Perhaps we can pursue that further?”
“Well, I was thinking more of an in-depth interview with our own students,” Mrs. Burkle said.
“Well, the triplets will be there,” I said. “Their aunt is one of the people who runs it. And Emma and I are both going. We could have our first VOGS on location!”
“We haven’t gone on location before.” Mrs. Burkle looked thoughtful.
I held my breath. It would be like I was a real news reporter, reporting news from exotic places all over the world. It would almost be like having my own show.
“Didn’t you say you’re looking for exciting ways to expand VOGS, right?” I asked her.
“That is very true!” Mrs. Burkle nodded. “I think it’s an idea worth exploring further. Bring me a plan. Dates, times, students’ names, story ideas. I’ll ask the principal about field trip permissions, liabilities, logistics, and chaperones.”
“Okay!” I nodded so hard I thought my head would fall off.
This would be awesome. I’d be the first traveling news correspondent for VOGS! If I could prove myself, Burkle would have to let me be the anchor next semester, wouldn’t she?
“I’ll head straight to the principal’s office to propose this. I have some boxes to bring there anyway. Would you kindly assist me?” Burkle asked.
“Sure. I’m going that way anyway to catch the late bus,” I told her. She handed me a filing box, and we walked down the hallway.
“So Emma and I will go. And the triplets. Also, would it be okay if I could pick the cameraperson for the segment?” I asked her.
“Perhaps are you referring to Nicholas?” Burkle smiled knowingly.
I felt myself turn red. Even the teachers knew we liked each other?
“I’ll put Nick on the request list,” Burkle said.
We walked down the stairs, and I heard some familiar voices echoing down the hall. It was Mason and Jason. As I turned the corner, I could see that Emma was walking with them toward the main office door. That’s where Counselor Case had her office.
“Hey, it’s Payton! And hi, English teacher lady!” Mason yelled. “Hey, Payton! Guess what? We were guinea pigs!”
Mason crouched down on the floor and pretended to be a guinea pig.
“Although we didn’t have conclusive results,” Jason said. “Right, Emma? Right, Emma?”
Emma looked pained. “We were learning about probability,” she said. “So I had them do an experiment on the odds of one of them reading the other’s mind. Purely unscientific, of course.”
“How did it go?” Mrs. Burkle asked.
“Wheeet! Wheeet!” Mason did what I think was supposed to be a guinea pig noise imitation. “We beat the odds.”
“We had seventy-four percent accuracy!” Jason said.
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“Nothing,” Emma grumbled. “It was just a game.”
“It means we have twin ESP!” Mason whooped and stood up. “E! S! P! E! S! P!” he chanted.
“And it means I have a headache,” Emma groaned, putting her hand to her forehead. “Hi, Mrs. Burkle.”
“Boys, would you chivalrously hold the door for us since our hands are full?” Mrs. Burkle asked. Jason pushed the door open, and we all walked in.
I put the box down where Mrs. Burkle set hers just as Counselor Case came out.
“Hello, Bertha. Hey, gang. I thought I heard my sweet boys,” Counselor Case said. “They were sweet for you, Emma, weren’t they?”
“I can answer that! I can read Emma’s mind,” Jason said. “She’s thinking no! Mason was not sweet, but Jason was.”
“Nuh-uh,” Mason said. “She’s thinking Mason is sweeeeet. And better-looking.”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I was thinking,” Emma sighed. “You both do have ESP. I don’t need to do any further experiments.”
“I knew it!” the boys said.
“I think she was being sarcastic,” Counselor Case said.
“This sounds like a fascinating experiment,” Mrs. Burkle said. “It could make a good news story for VOGS as a follow-up story to our trip to the Multipalooza.”
“The twins and multiples festival?” Counselor Case asked.
“Yes, I’m proposing that VOGS travel to the festival next weekend to tape a feature,” Mrs. Burkle said.
“I’d love to hear more about this,” Counselor Case said. “Is it for kids?”
“Yeah, they have a kids division,” I said. Then I caught Emma’s face. Oops. Maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned that.
“Wonderful! Coach and I will have to bring the boys,” Counselor Case said.
“Fabulous, and we can feature Mason and Jason in the VOGS cast,” Mrs. Burkle said. “We can show older twins mentoring younger twins.”
“Perhaps we can all caravan together,” Counselor Case said.
“I want to ride in a car with Emma!” Jason said. “We can do spelling bee words the whole way.”
“I call sitting next to Emma,” Mason said. “Can I bring Mascot?”
“I need to get out of here,” Emma whispered to me in a strangled voice.
Emma was Mason’d and Jason’d out, that was for sure.
“Look at the time!” Emma said. “Payton and I need to catch our late bus. So, bye, everyone!”
“Maybe Emma can sit in between us on the ride,” Jason was saying. “If we take Dad’s car, it’s real squishy in the back. Emma can sit on the hump!”
“Flee,” Emma said under her breath. And we fled.
“Sorry about that,” I said to Emma as we headed down the hallway.
“Oh, you know I like Mason and Jason,” Emma said. “In small doses. Chaperoned by their parents. Without a gecko. And if possible, fifty feet away from me.”
We walked into the school lobby, Emma pausing for a moment as always in front of the trophy booth to see her name on some of the trophies.
“Hi, Emma!” Nick came into the lobby too. “So, Payton, how did it go?”
“I’ll let you two chat,” Emma said. “I’m going to go to the bus and make sure I get my front seat.”
“See you in a minute,” I said to her. Then I turned to Nick. “It went great. Thanks so much for making me talk to Burkle.”
I told him about my idea for Multipalooza.
“Cool,” he said, looking impressed.
“So, um . . .” I looked down at the floor. “I know it’s the same day as the dance, but would you want to come and be the cameraperson? We’d get back in time.”
“Sure,” Nick said. “I need to help the decorating committee with the lights, but I’m not in charge of it. Let me ask my mom.”
It would be another field trip for me and Nick! The first time was New York City. That was back when I was feeling definitely less comfortable around him. I never would have had the nerve to ask him to go somewhere before. Now that we were going to the dance together, I felt so much more casual and cool around him!
“Payton?” Nick asked.
“We can get a couple of people to work on it with us,” I said. “Maybe Lakiya as a sound person and—”
“Payton—” Nick interrupted me.
“Or if you don’t want Lakiya, you can choose someone else,” I said hastily. “Maybe Willa?”
“Payton! Is that your late bus?” Nick asked, pointing to a bus that was closing its doors.
Ack! Yes! Yes, it was!
“Why, yes,” I said, casual and cool-like. “I’ll talk to you later.”
The bus started pulling away.
“Oh no!” I yelped. So much for casual and cool. I ran down the sidewalk toward my bus.
“Hey! Wait!” I yelled. “Waiiiit!”
My heavy tote bag banged against my leg as I ran awkwardly toward the bus. I could see people’s faces as they laughed and pointed at me. And then, thankfully, the bus slowed down and came to a stop. The doors whooshed open, and I jumped on board.
“You’re
lucky I waited,” the bus driver growled at me. “If it weren’t for your sister driving me crazy . . .”
Emma sat in the seat behind the driver, looking smug. I slid into the seat next to her, breathing hard.
“I merely informed him that official district policy was that if a student is in sight trying to reach the bus, all efforts to wait for the student should be taken,” Emma said.
“I didn’t see her,” the driver said.
“Emma, shush, you’re embarrassing,” I whispered.
“Well, I saw her, so she was in sight,” Emma said to the driver loudly. Then she turned to me. “I’m embarrassing? Shall I do an imitation of you running to the bus? The bus that would have left without you had it not been for your loving twin?”
“Ergh.” I sank in my seat. “I meant to say, ‘Thank you, Emma.’ ”
“That’s better,” Emma said.
Fourteen
THE NEXT DAY, BEFORE SCHOOL
“Welcome to the team of our first On the Scene VOGS cast!” Mrs. Burkle clasped her hands joyfully. “That’s what I’ll be calling our traveling broadcasts: On the Scene with VOGS!”
We were sitting in the VOGS room. Mrs. Burkle had called Payton and me into a meeting before school started. I yawned. It was too early for Mrs. Burkle’s enthusiasm.
“Hooray!” Payton was wide awake and full of excitement.
“Emma, although you are not a member of VOGS, you will be a special correspondent!” Mrs. Burkle sang out. “When we’re at Multipalooza, you’ll be coreporting with your twin sister.”
“I will?” That woke me up.
“She will?” Payton said at the same time. I looked over at Payton. I could see her face fall with disappointment. I knew that she was hoping this was her show, her chance to shine on VOGS. I opened my mouth to stick up for her, but Mrs. Burkle cut me off.
“And here’s the rest of the Multipalooza team!” she announced.
And in walked the triplets. Dexter. Oliver. And Asher. They were dressed in matching gray shirts, black jeans, and gray sneakers.
“Why are they here?” Payton whispered to me.
“My five correspondents for Multipalooza! Behind the scenes, part of the scenes,” Mrs. Burkle said. “Identicals make great television!”
Payton slumped.