EllRay Jakes is a Rock Star! (8 page)

BOOK: EllRay Jakes is a Rock Star!
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“Actually, I think Herkimer is a place, not a person,” I say, not knowing if she's kidding or not. You can't always tell with teachers, not when they're hungry. “But
anyway
,” I repeat, not straying from the topic, “I'm really sorry and everything, but I need that crystal back for my dad's work. Right away, like tomorrow.”
Ms. Sanchez narrows her brown eyes and tilts her head, and I can almost feel a question coming. “EllRay,” she says slowly, “did you give away those crystals without your father's permission?”
Okay. I could say no, I
did
have his permission, but I know from experience that I'd regret it someday. That lie would come back and bite me.
Also, lying is wrong—but that first reason not to lie is good enough for me.
If I say yes, though, that I
did
give away the crystals without my dad's permission, who knows what will happen?
But if I say nothing at all, I—
“I take it that's a
yes
,” Ms. Sanchez says, tapping her foot. “Tick-tock, EllRay.”

Tick-tock
” means “
hurry up
,” when Ms. Sanchez says it.
“Basically,” I tell her, looking down at the speckled floor.
“Why did you do it, EllRay?” Ms. Sanchez asks.
Why did I do it? It's funny, I think suddenly—but even my own dad didn't ask me this question. Not exactly. “I don't know,” I mumble, still staring at the floor.
“You can do better than that,” Ms. Sanchez tells me.
“Well,” I say, “I kind of liked it when everyone was paying attention to me in class, for a good reason, I mean, and I wanted them to keep on doing it. And when Annie Pat asked if she could hold the crystal, I just—I got carried away and told her she could keep it.”
“Did you
forget
that it belonged to your dad?” Ms. Sanchez asks.
“No,” I admit, deciding to keep on telling the truth, because it's the least complicated thing to do, in the long run. “I just wanted the kids to like me a little longer, and giving away those crystals seemed like my only chance.”
There is no way she could ever understand about how hard it is for a kid—especially a boy—to be too short to be chosen first for teams, or too bad a speller or mental math guy to win any prizes, or too boring to have an ATV. So I leave those parts out.
“But everyone
already
likes you, EllRay,” Ms. Sanchez says, shaking her head in what looks like amazement.
“Not enough.”
“Enough for what?” Ms. Sanchez asks. “Did you want to win the popularity contest? Is that it?”
I look up at her. “
Is
there a popularity contest?” I ask, trying not to sound too freaked out. “A real one?”
Don't tell me Cynthia Harbison was right!
“Oh, EllRay,” Ms. Sanchez says, shaking her head. “Of course not. But no fear, I'll bring the Herkimer diamond back. You'll have it tomorrow morning. Want me to make an announcement to the class about you needing the other ones returned as well?”
“No, thanks,” I say quickly. “I promised my dad that I'd get them back all by myself, by tomorrow. And so far I'm doing okay.”
“Tell me if you run into any problems,” she says, getting ready to leave. “Is that all?”
“That's all,” I tell her. “And thanks, I guess.”
“You're welcome, I guess,” she says, shooing me out of the room.
So, only two to go.
But they're the worst two: Jared and Cynthia.
13
NO WAY, ELLRAY!
I go up to Cynthia right after lunch. She is in the cafeteria, like everyone else on this rainy day, and she is gathering up her very neat trash while Heather waits for her. “I gotta talk to you,” I tell Cynthia.
Cynthia looks up, and she looks suspicious. “About what?” she asks.
“About that crystal I gave you yesterday,” I tell her. “The tourmaline. I need it back.”
Cynthia laughs. “No way, EllRay!” she says.
She looks pretty serious when she tells me this, and Cynthia Harbison is not exactly known for changing her mind about things.
“Yeah,” her loyal friend Heather says, glaring at me. “No way. That rock matches her eyes.”
“How come you need it back, anyway?” Cynthia asks.
“Because—because I want to give you something even
better
that matches your eyes,” I say, making up a fake reason on the spot.
Now, Cynthia looks like she is doing a mental math problem. “Something even better?” she asks, acting a little greedy, if you ask me.
“Like what
KIND
of thing?” Heather says, sounding as if she wants to make sure her best friend doesn't get cheated.
“You know those beautiful blue flowers they have at the supermarket?” Cynthia asks. “The ones that smell spicy and have glitter on the edges of their zig-zaggy petals?”
Flowers?
“Uh, yeah. I guess. I'll give you flowers,” I mumble, trying to look around like I'm not looking around.
But I sure hope nobody else is listening in on this nightmare conversation.
“Well-l-l,” Cynthia says slowly, “if you bring me those exact flowers on Friday, Valentine's Day, and you give them to me in front of the whole class, I'll give you back your blue rock.”
“It's a crystal,” I remind her. “A tourmaline, remember? And I need it tomorrow.”
“Whatever,” Cynthia says, waving her hand in the air. “I guess I can trust you about bringing me those flowers. But throw away my trash, while you're at it.”
“Yeah,” Heather says. “Throw away Cynthia's trash.”
“Sorry. That's not part of the deal,” I tell them, and I walk away fast—before Cynthia
makes
it part of our deal.
Sparkly blue supermarket flowers!
They sound expensive.
I kiss good-bye all the money I've been saving.
14
SOMETHING REALLY MESSED—UP
It is still Wednesday, and we are having afternoon recess. It has finally stopped raining, so we are outside. I can tell by the expression on Jared's face that word has gotten out that I need the last crystal back—thanks to Emma, Annie Pat, Kevin, or Cynthia, I guess. But I don't blame any of them for blabbing—because what else is there to talk about at Oak Glen Primary School?
Jared is ready for me when I walk up to him on the rain-shiny playground, which smells like wet chain-link fence, and his friend and robot Stanley Washington is standing next to him. A couple of other kids—including Emma and Annie Pat—are hanging around, too, because it's still too drippy to sit down anywhere. “Dude,” Jared says to me, after bouncing the red kickball a couple of times so hard that it
SPLATS
water on Stanley's pants. “Don't even ask, unless you have something good to give me.”
Something good to give him.
“Like what, exactly?” I ask, trying to think fast.
Flowers are definitely not gonna do it for Jared, not that I'd ever bring him any.
No way!
“I don't know,” Jared says. “Something big. Maybe even money, like—five dollars,” he says, obviously making up a number on the spot.
Emma and Annie Pat look wide-eyed at each other when they hear this.
“Five dollars,” Stanley says, like he's echoing Jared.
“I thought we were friends,” I say, speaking only to Jared—because we
are
friends, at least some of the time. Jared ignored me in both first and second grade, but it's been like being on a roller coaster in the third grade. A mostly uphill roller coaster, if that means Jared has not been a very good friend to me nearly all that time.
In fact, he tried to beat me up once, but that's a different story.
“Five dollars,” Jared says again, holding out his hand. “
Now
. Hand it over, EllRay, and I'll bring your rock back tomorrow.”
“It's a smoky quartz crystal,” I remind him. “And why would I have five whole dollars with me now, in my pocket?” I ask. “You know we aren't allowed to bring that much money to school.”
“Okay, then you should make EllRay do something else,” Stanley says to Jared, really excited now. “Something
worth
five dollars. Something really messed-up. Like—EllRay should have to go into the girls' bathroom. When there's a girl in it!”
“Classic,” Jared says
“Ooh,” Emma says, and Annie Pat covers her mouth with her hand, she is so shocked—because it is terrible for a boy to go into the girls' bathroom.
It's probably even against the law!
Also, there aren't just third graders at Oak Glen, there are fourth, fifth, and sixth graders, too. And some of those older girls look pretty tough
.
They're like grown-ups, practically—and they're
big
.
They could squash me like a
BUG.
But I need that crystal back.
Behind Jared's back, Emma waves her arms to catch my eye, and she makes an “Okay!” circle sign to me with her thumb and pointer finger.
“Okay,” I hear myself say to Jared. “I'll do it. Let's go.”
15
SCREAMING AND YELLING
“What's the plan?” I whisper to Emma as she and I march across the darkening playground toward the school building.
I don't like having a girl help me, but I'm desperate. I just hope she actually
has
a plan. Emma has been known to get carried away sometimes and promise stuff she can't deliver.
It's because she wants good things to be true, that's the thing.
“Annie Pat ran ahead to empty out the downstairs bathroom,” Emma whispers back. “So she'll be the official girl in the girls' bathroom. And I'll stand guard at the door when you go in, so you'll be okay in there. No one will dial 9-1-1 or anything.”
BOOK: EllRay Jakes is a Rock Star!
5.86Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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