After we say goodbye to Torielle and Katie, who both have Language Arts together, Jana and I go to Social Studies.
“What’s so funny?” asks Fiona as we walk into class. “Tell me, you guys,” she begs.
I can’t believe she’s still trying to interact with Jana.
But we both tap our chests. We are so desperate to talk that both of us want Fiona to say our names.
“You’re crazy,” says Fiona. In that moment, I’m not a very nice person—I really would like to slap Fiona. We’re not crazy. We’re just two best friends having fun. Fiona is the crazy one. She embarrassed Jana just to try to score some points on social media.
Still, we both nod and continue to tap our chests.
“I don’t understand you, Maddie and Jana!” Fiona says.
“Thank you,” bursts out Jana, hugging Fiona. Wow. That was strange. She really did that? Hugged the Betrayer? Did I hallucinate? And then it hits me—Fiona is Jacob’s cousin. Maybe Jana wants to get close to Fiona again to get close to Jacob.
“Thank you,” I say, still irritated that Jana was so quick to hug Fiona. “Not being able to talk in Social Studies would have been a real problem.”
Chapter Eight:
THE DEBATE
Today, we’re getting our debate topics in Social Studies.
I know because Ms. Yoon has just written on the whiteboard in giant orange letters:
TODAY: DEBATE TOPICS!!!
I shrug off my backpack and sit down. I’m not exactly happy about this.
The bell hasn’t rung yet, but it’s about to any second. Chatter fills the room as kids make their way inside. All around me, students unzip their backpacks and slap their binders onto their desks, reminding me that I’m going to have to debate in front of all of them. Ugh! Public speaking is my worst nightmare. I know I’ll be cringe-y bad. When I get nervous I start to talk really fast. I sweat and my voice gets shaky.
I race up to Ms. Yoon. “Would it be possible to do an independent study?” I ask. Actually, I’m more like begging.
“There are always all kinds of possibilities,” she says, putting away her dry-erase marker on the ledge. “What interests you?”
“I’m not sure. I want to do something to replace the debate.”
“I’m sorry, Maddie, but everyone has to debate. That’s not something you can get out of.”
“All right,” I say, trying to look more cheerful than I feel. More kids flow into the room, and the bell is about to ring. I sit back down.
“What were you talking to Ms. Yoon about?” Jana asks, turning around in the desk in front of mine. I explain, and she gives me a sympathetic look.
“It’s so hot in here.” She fans her face. Her cheeks are apple red.
“I know. It’s like a sauna.” I might not be happy about having to do public speaking, but at least my best friend sits nearby. I really hate the fact that we don’t have any morning classes together. It’s so unfair. At least Ms. Yoon is one of those cool teachers who lets students sit where they want. Not-so-nice teachers use alphabetical order. My last name is Campbell, which means I always have to sit next to Fiona Callum in my other classes. She talks endlessly about how she and Jana did this or that when they used to be best friends. It’s super annoying.
Jana sneaks a glance behind us, where Jacob sits in the last row with Lukas.
“Jacob’s soooo cute,” she whispers. It’s true. Even if I’m not supposed to notice it. He and Lukas are batting a hacky sack back and forth, and somehow Ms. Yoon isn’t noticing.
I school my features. “I’m going to have splash some cold water on your face,” I joke, “to cool you down.”
“As long as it’s not the nasty warm water from the fountain,” says Jana with a groan.
“Don’t worry. The water fountains are always blocked up from all the spit wads and gum. So it will have both gum and spit in it.”
“Eww.” Jana makes one of her silly faces. She goes cross-eyed and puckers her lips.
I giggle. She really knows how to make the best faces. It’s one of the many reasons why I love her. I feel proud of myself for holding up my end of the BFF Code and staying neutral when it comes to Jacob. But how much longer can I keep this up? Hopefully, I won’t have to for much longer. I’m sure Jana will flip flop to a new crush like she always does.
At the front of the classroom, Ms. Yoon holds up her What’s your superpower? mug. She smiles really big, like she can’t wait to get started with our class.
The pencil sharpener whirs in the back of the classroom. My mind whirs too, thinking again of all the ways I could get out of this project. Maybe I can tell Ms. Yoon that I have a really sore throat and can’t speak for the next two weeks. I just have to think of a believable excuse.
“Okay, everyone,” says Ms. Yoon, setting her coffee mug down on the desk. “We’re going to get started!” She says this like she’s about to give away ice cream cones. “Over the next week, we will be using class time to conduct research about topics that I will be assigning. These are subjects that you will debate in teams over three days, September eighteenth through the twentieth. I think you will really enjoy the process, but it will be a lot of work.”
Lots of people’s shoulders slump at the sound of “a lot of work,” including mine.
“You’ll also need to spend time outside of class to research,” continues Ms. Yoon. “Everyone will need to consult at least five sources. These could be books, articles, videos, or reliable Internet resources.”
Sean Thompson, a boy who always wears baseball hats, shoots up his hand. “Can we use Wikipedia?” he asks hopefully.
Ms. Yoon shakes her head. “No, not officially. Only as a way to find other resources. But don’t worry—we will be visiting the library.” She perches on the edge of her desk. “Our school librarian, Mrs. Herrick, will be giving you all kinds of tips on finding sources.” She swings her legs. “The library is my favorite place in the whole world.”
Okay, I can get behind that. I like libraries. Especially all of their art books.
Ms. Yoon slides off her desk and steps closer to the front row. “So, as promised, I’m going to give everyone their topics today, as well as assign groups.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I see that Fiona is soundlessly clapping her hands. She’s obviously trying to kiss up to the teacher.
Ms. Yoon paces for a moment. “All of these topics are considered controversial,” she says in a serious tone. “Many people are going to have strong opinions on them, which is going to make for fun and lively debates.”
“If Ms. Yoon says ‘fun’ one more time,” I whisper to Jana, “I’m going to start screaming.”
“It’ll be fine. Trust me,” Jana whispers back.
That’s easy for her to say! She just doesn’t know what it’s like to be not so outgoing.
“So, are you ready?” asks Ms. Yoon as if we are at a pep rally. She cups her hand behind her ear. “Can’t hear you. Are you ready?” she asks in a louder voice.
“Yes!” shouts Fiona. Everyone is sort of mumbling in agreement.
“Louder!” insists Ms. Yoon. “Are you ready?”
This time, the thunder of stomping feet erupts from the back of the classroom. I turn around and see that it’s Jacob and Lukas. They’re stomping their feet and pounding their fists against their desks. The whole back row is now doing it, and soon the pounding and stomping extends through the whole classroom. Jana and I start to pound too. It’s pretty fun. Like an orchestra of stomping.
Ms. Yoon makes a motion for us to stop. But she’s not mad. She’s smiling. “Much better, you guys. That’s the spirit! So there will be groups of four assigned to each topic. And they are right here.” She dramatically retracts the projector screen that was covering the whiteboard. On it are seven topics and the names of the people in each group.
Everyone leans forward, scanning the topics to see whom they’re paired with. I hope I’m in a good group, and pray that Fiona is not in it.
I’m not in the THE VOTER AGE SHOULD BE LOWERED TO THIRTEEN topic. But I see that Lukas is. Nor did I get PUBLIC SCHOOLS SHOULD BAN DRESS CODES.
My eyes scan the rest of the topics. I’m not listed on any of them, until I get to the very bottom: SCHOOLS SHOULD BAN SECURITY CAMERAS.
And there’s my name. I’m with Fiona, Jana, and Jacob!
Wow. I’m not sure how to feel about this. I swallow hard. I’m really happy to be with Jana. But Fiona. Awkward. And Jacob, well, that’s a problem. How can I stay neutral if I have to interact with him?
Jana turns around and high-fives me. “We’re in the same group! Yes!” She lowers her voice. “I’m with Jacob. This is a miracle.”
Of course she said I’m.
But it’s we.
We are with Jacob. And Fiona too.
Then it hits me. Yesterday, we got to pick whom we wanted to work with, and Ms. Yoon honored what we wrote. Fiona must have written down Jana’s name and probably her cousin Jacob’s. Jana wrote down Jacob and me. And I wrote down Jana.
Who did Jacob write down? I want to look back at him so badly. But I don’t.
Ms. Yoon explains how debate is not a yelling match. It is a discussion on a topic that has been thoroughly researched. It’s not personal. It’s logical. She has us push our desks together in rows, forming tables of four desks each. “I want you to sit with your group,” she explains, “and discuss a little bit about your topic. Just whatever comes to mind.”
I don’t think I’ve ever seen Jana move so fast. She sits in the desk directly facing Jacob’s. So she can stare into his blue, blue eyes, of course.
I should sit next to Jana. I should let her have Jacob all to herself. But I can’t help myself. I sit in the desk beside him. This way I’ll at least get a side view.
“Oh no! I’m surrounded,” jokes Jacob. “By all girls. And my cousin.”
“Ha, ha,” Fiona says, and kicks his chair.
“You’re lucky,” smirks Jana.
“We do have the best topic,” says Fiona, who sits directly across from me. “Don’t you think? Way better than that cloning one.”
“They all sound hard,” says Jana.
“Not if we do the research,” sniffs Fiona. She sits up very straight and flicks imaginary lint off her hoodie.
Jacob twirls his pencil. “I was hoping for the one about the driving age getting lowered. It’d be so awesome if I could drive next year. In a Porsche race car.”
“No, it wouldn’t,” says Jana in mock horror.
“It’d be way too dangerous,” says Fiona. Behind her glasses, her eyes grow big with worry.
Jacob crosses his heart. “I promise, if I got my license next year in eighth grade, I wouldn’t run any of you over. Just your toes.”
“Wow,” I say, “you’re so thoughtful.”
And Jacob grins at me.
Even though I don’t want my heart to beat extra fast, it does.
For another five minutes or so we talk about security cameras. Stuff like where we’ve noticed them—at malls, inside gas stations—and whether we’ve ever seen any security cameras at Northborough Middle School.
“I’m pretty sure there’s one near the office,” says Fiona.
Jacob nods. “Oh, right. That’s to capture you on camera.” He gazes at us in mock seriousness. “My cousin’s such a problem child.” Fiona kicks his chair again.
“I think there’s one by the gym,” I add.
“I don’t think there’s any,” says Jacob, and Jana readily agrees.
Soon we launch into a huge argument about whether we need cameras. Not a serious one. But we’re all debating it.
Fiona shushes us. “Quiet,” she says. I forgot how bossy she is. Sure, Jana is bossy too, but in a fun way. Fiona would shush the principal. “Ms. Yoon is trying to talk.” She points to the front of the classroom, where our teacher is asking us to stop our discussions so we can listen.
“Now that you’ve talked over your topic, here’s the next step,” she says. “Divide your group in half. Two of you will argue pro. Two of you will argue con. Pro means you agree with the statement. Con means you disagree with the statement. The pro team is called the proposition and the con team is called the opposition. So the con side will be everybody at desks that are on my right. And the pro side will be the opposite.”
Everyone starting murmuring and trying to figure out whether they are con or pro.
“It’s not that hard,” states Fiona. “Jana and I are pro. And Jacob and Maddie are con.”
Jacob smiles at me, and I can’t help smiling shyly back. No matter how hard I try, I do still like him. It’s so frustrating!
Meanwhile, Jana’s face twists in confusion. “What? Are you sure? I’m pretty sure that Jacob and are on the same team.”
Fiona rolls her eyes and makes a huffy noise. “No, because you’re facing him. But sitting next to me. So we are the same team.” She says we in a possessive way.
Jana’s hand shoots up. “Ms. Yoon, can you come over here? We have a question.”
Our teacher strides over and patiently explains that yes, Fiona is right. “Jacob and Maddie will be working together.” And she nods at Jana and then Fiona. “You two girls will be a team. You’ll be arguing for cameras.”
“But I’m much more con,” protests Jana. “Shouldn’t I argue the side I believe in?”
If there was any doubt in my mind that Jana really liked Jacob, it’s gone now. Not that I doubted it exactly. It’s just that I was hoping she was thinking he was devolving into “very cute” versus a major crush.
To be honest, I was really hoping that she would be over it by now. That a couple of days back at school would have worn away the crush thing.
But noooooo.
Jana is my very best friend. We have to be united and respect the BFF Code. I can’t ever tell her how I feel about Jacob. I don’t want her to shoot dagger eyes at me like she is at Fiona right now. And I definitely don’t want to lose her as my very best friend.
Ms. Yoon tours around the room, making sure that everyone understands who is on their team. “I realize you all want to be on the same side as your friend, but that won’t always happen,” she tells the class.
Of course, Ms. Yoon assumed that Jana wanted to be with me. And normally, if it weren’t for her huge crush, that would be true.
Pfft! A balled-up piece of notebook paper hits me square on the nose. I’m about to get angry but then realize Jacob tossed it in a friendly way.
Jacob gives me his lopsided grin. “Hey,” he says. “Are you ready to fight against those two? It’s going to be a tough battle ahead. But I think we can do it together.”
That’s when it hits me (figuratively, this time): I’m on Jacob’s team. Me! We’re going to be working on a project together for twelve days! I know, because Ms. Yoon has just written on the board when everybody will debate. Jana, Fiona, Jacob, and I are on September eighteenth. That means for twelve days, we get to sit together and work together.
And suddenly, I’m liking this debate project a whole lot more.
Later, after class is over and Jana and I are walking down the hall, I feel guilty for being so happy to work with Jacob, so I apologize. “Sorry,” I say.
“What for?” asks Jana, as we thread around a clump of eighth graders carrying band instruments.
“For getting on Jacob’s, you know, team.”
“Not your fault. That’s Ms. Yoon’s.” Jana pauses. “You know, I was watching you in class. And I wonder something. Do you like Jacob?”
“What?” I vigorously shake my head. “Nooooooo. Not at all.”
Jana lets out a breath. “Okay, just checking. I don’t understand why we couldn’t pick who we’re partners with. I mean, look at me. I’m stuck with Fiona.” She rolls her eyes. There’s a traffic jam as we pass the birthday bulletin board. Everyone is looking to see who has a birthday in September. We don’t need to look. We know.
“If it couldn’t be me, I�
�d want it to be you,” Jana says, then lowers her voice. “On Jacob’s team, that is.”
“Yes,” I agree, speaking up because the hall is filled with the loud buzz and chatter of dozens of conversations. “I’m so happy that I can help you out.” And it’s not a lie. It’s not a lie at all.
“I can’t wait for school to be over,” she says. “School is lasting forever. This day sort of sucks.”
“I’m sorry,” I say, and then I hug her. “Instead, think happy thoughts. Think about your birthday slumber party, which I am going to help you plan and is going to be amazing.”
Suddenly Jana’s face lights up. “Yes,” she says. “We’re a great team. It’s going to be awesome.”
As we high-five each other, this eighth grader clunks me in the arm with his trombone case.
“Excuse me!” Jana races after the kid before he disappears into the throng crowding the hallway. “Apologize,” she demands. The kid blinks behind his smudged glasses. His long arms swing down practically to his knees. He looks like he suddenly sprouted up last week and doesn’t quite know what to do with such long limbs. “Apologize for what?” He shuffles back a step, looking around as kids passing by slow down to check out the confrontation.
“For hitting my friend.” Jana points at the offending trombone case. “With that.”
“Oh,” he says, staring at his instrument.
Jana’s brows furrow. Her hands slap onto her hips.
“I’m sorry.” The boy swallows hard. “Really, really sorry.” He looks at me. At least, I think he does. His glasses are so fogged up, it’s hard to tell. “You all right?” His voice is anxious.
“Yes,” I say, trying to suppress a giggle. This boy towers over tiny Jana, yet he looks petrified. Jana has that effect on people. He turns around and hurries away.
“You’re awesome,” I say.
“I know,” says Jana. Then we link arms and skip to fifth period.
I get home after school and say a quick hi to my mom. It’s her day to work from our house—she’s a librarian at Boston College, which is a pretty big commute from our town. Then I go upstairs to my room and pretty much just dance around excitedly for a half hour.
Pumpkin Spice Secrets Page 5
