The Magnificent Mya Tibbs

by Crystal Allen

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Fish and Nugget are at it again on the way home, but this time, it’s much more serious.

  “Don’t quit the team, Nugget,” says Fish.

  “I don’t have any reason to stay now. It’s over. I’ll tell Mr. Booker tomorrow in class.”

  We’re at the crosswalk, waiting for the sign to change. Fish’s face is redder than strawberries. The Don’t Walk changes to Walk. Nugget, Connie, and I cross the street.

  Fish yells to Nugget from the sidewalk, “I thought you got everything straightened out last night with your dad. Don’t quit now!”

  My brother keeps walking toward home. Soon Connie turns toward her apartment complex. I want to say something to my brother, but I just don’t know what would be good.

  Once he opens the door, Nugget goes straight to his room. I go to mine, drop my backpack on my bed, and then go look for Mom. She’s in Macey’s room, rocking in the chair.

  “Hey, Mom. Are you okay?”

  She grins and rubs her stomach. “I’m better than okay, Mya. It won’t be long before Macey’s here. I feel her moving around, but it’s a different kind of moving than normal.”

  I sit on the floor at Mom’s feet. Her ankles are still swollen, but she’s smiling.

  Suddenly, I recognize the music playing. “Mom, is that my old Rappin’ Rhymes Before Nappin’ Times CD?”

  She giggles. “It sure is. You can’t find that CD anymore. You kids download everything nowadays. But I saved this one. You and Nugget both loved it, and I hope Macey does, too.”

  The room is filled with hand-me-downs from Nugget and me. Each thing I look at brings back a memory. There’s a stack of books in the corner, a little wooden chair, and a box of toys.

  I tap my fingers on the carpet to the nursery rhyme music and sit quietly near Mom as I think about my talk with Connie at recess. She’s being an awesome big sister for Clayton. Maybe it’s time I step up and be one for Macey.

  “I wanted to work on this room today, but I just didn’t feel up to it,” she says. “I thought if I came in here and sat down, it would motivate me, but it hasn’t. I’m going to go soak my ankles in the tub.”

  “Don’t worry, Mom. We’ll get Macey’s room finished. Remember, we do things for each other. That’s the Tibbs way, right?”

  She keeps grinning. “Macey’s lucky to have a big sister like you, Mya. So lucky. How’d the Wall of Fame Game go today?”

  “Three for three, but it was so hard! I almost missed one. I’ve been thinking about the chili cook-off, too. Can I try to make a quick batch before I start studying?”

  Mom shakes her head. “A quick batch? No such thing. Do you remember our talk about chili last Saturday, when you told me you signed us up for the cook-off?”

  I nod, and she keeps talking. “I told you that some things should not be changed. So while you’re working on your Wall of Fame Game questions, you think some more on that. And I know you’re not going to like this, but I want you to take another day off from working in the kitchen. You’ve got a lot going on, Mya, with the Wall of Fame Game and this cook-off. Sometimes you need to just sit, be quiet, and think.”

  I stand and try to explain. “I don’t have time to just sit, be quiet, and think! And if I can’t practice making chili today, I might as well quit the cook-off!”

  She stops rocking. “Why are you talking about quitting? We’re not quitters! And if you don’t have time to sit and think, how will you find time to make perfect chili? There’s more to making good food than what’s on the recipe. Now go work on your questions before dinner.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  I have no idea what I said wrong. Maybe I do need to sit and think. That’s what I was doing when I realized Connie was right about good and bad reasons to make the wall. That’s what I’ll do. I’ll slow down for a minute and take some time to figure out why Mom won’t let me go back in the kitchen.

  Upstairs, I notice my brother’s door isn’t all the way closed. I knock on it, and he lets me in, then falls back on his bed. He’s playing a game on his phone and doesn’t look at me. I stand near the door.

  “Can I tell you something that Connie told me?”

  He keeps playing his game. “It’s a free country. Say whatever you want.”

  I walk over to his window and look out. “I think I may have done something right, but I did it for the wrong reason.”

  Silence.

  “I didn’t tell you about this, and only Connie—well, and everybody in my class—knows. I signed up for the Wall of Fame Game just to win a bet against Naomi Jackson. She said cowgirls weren’t as smart as beauty pageant winners. I wanted her to eat those words.”

  Nugget drops his cell on the bed. He sits up and frowns at me. “Have you lost your mind? The Wall of Fame Game is about honor, and pride, and it’s For All My Efforts, remember? You don’t even like Naomi Jackson! I can’t believe you would sign up for the Wall of Fame Game just to beat her.”

  I keep staring out the window because I don’t want to look at him. His voice has so much angry in it that I’m scared to turn around. He keeps talking.

  “Mom and Dad would flip out if they knew you took a bet for the Wall of Fame Game.”

  I’ve heard enough, so I grab my backpack and stand in his doorway. “You should look in the mirror, Nugget. Don’t you get it? I’m doing the Wall of Fame Game for the wrong reason. I was only doing it to prove something to Naomi. You tried out for baseball for the wrong reason. You only did it to prove something to Dad. And that’s bad because you really love baseball, and you know so much about it. The difference is, you’re going to quit. Naomi Jackson can’t make me quit. I’ve found the right reason to make the wall, and it has nothing to do with Naomi. You need to find the right reason for playing baseball without giving up.”

  I ka-clunk out of his room. Nugget needed a kick in the pants, and I gave it to him.

  He’s a Tibbs. And so am I. We’re not quitters. Thanks, Mom, for reminding me of that.

  I sit in my room for a long time, thinking about what I said to Nugget, and how I thought just like him only a few days ago. I had stinkin’ thinkin’, but I figured it out. Naomi is not going to be my reason for making the Wall of Fame. Now if I can just figure out what I’m doing wrong with the chili.

  After sitting in my room for almost thirty minutes, I grab my backpack and head to Macey’s room. As soon as I walk in, I feel better. Mom’s gone to take her nap. It’s so calm in here, and the Rappin’ Rhymes for Nappin’ Times music makes me giggle. I unzip my backpack and take out my questions. Just looking at them makes my heart thump.

  1. Name four of the thirteen original American colonies.

  2. Name the four stages of the water cycle.

  3. Name four major organs in the human body.

  I think about what happened today and then picture myself standing in the cave with Mrs. Davis. She’s asking me questions about the thirteen colonies and body organs and the water cycle. I’m staring at her like she’s speaking a foreign language. Then she tells me I’m disqualified.

  I tug on my braids to make me focus and then look at my questions. Name four of the thirteen colonies. Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and . . . firecrackers! What is the answer? I glance at my study sheet. I forgot Georgia, New York, New Jersey. I’ll just pick one—Georgia will be my fourth colony.

  Georgia, Georgia, Georgia. I say it over and over until I know it’s in there with the other three that I remembered. Next question. Four stages of the water cycle. Okay, there’s evaporation, precipitation, condensation, or wait . . . that doesn’t sound right. Is that the right order? Firecrackers! This is too hard!

  “Mya, why are you studying in Macey’s room? Wait a minute . . . is that Rappin’ Rhymes Before Nappin’ Times I hear? No way! I used to rock that music when I was four years old, until I went to sleep.” Nugget strolls in, and I frown at him.

  “Do you need something? I’m trying to study.”

>   He leans against Macey’s crib. “Connie’s right. She’s really smart.”

  I put my hands on my hips. “I’m busy, Nugget.”

  “No. Let me finish. I heard what you said to me. I love baseball. It’s my favorite sport. I probably know more about baseball than I do about anything I learn at school. But I’m not good at playing it. I try, but I just can’t seem to hit that ball!”

  I put down my questions. I can tell when my brother needs me, and right now, he does. I walk over to him. “I know what you mean. I brought home a folder full of A+ papers. Now I’ve got this Wall of Fame Game, and it shouldn’t be that hard, but it is. I even know which questions are coming, and I still might not get them right.”

  Nugget stands in front of me. “What did you say about knowing what’s coming?”

  I roll my eyes. “Even though I know what’s coming, I still might not get the answer right. Is that what you’re talking about?”

  My brother nods. “Yeah. That’s what I thought you said. Thanks, Mya.”

  I shrug. “For what?”

  “I think you just helped me figure something out.”

  I ka-clunk back to my spot and take a seat. “Well, good. I wish there was a way you could help me. I need to study now, later, and even while I sleep. I’m really scared that I’m going to get disqualified tomorrow, Nugget. These questions are really hard.”

  He stares at the ceiling. “There’s actually research on learning while you sleep. Look it up on the internet.”

  “I don’t have time! If you know about it, please help me.”

  “Okay. I’ll go look it up. Stay here.”

  I keep studying, hoping my brother’s right. If I can learn while I’m asleep, that will double my study time and give me a better chance at going three for three tomorrow.

  A half hour later, Nugget returns with his phone. “I don’t know if this is going to work, but we can try, okay? I downloaded a recording app on my phone. Now we can record the questions, and the answers, to play over and over again.”

  I breathe in and breathe out. “You don’t have any idea how much you’ve helped me.”

  I shove my brother on the shoulder. He shoves me back and walks over to Macey’s crib. I hear him saying the question, and then giving the answer right behind it! If this works, I’m as good as on that Wall of Fame.

  Soon Nugget’s finished. “I’ll set it up for you before we go to bed. We’ll know tomorrow if it worked.”

  “It has to work, Nugget, or else I’m out of the game.”

  “Keep studying, as if you didn’t have the recording. Then when you go to sleep, it will just be repeating what you already know.”

  “Thanks for helping me.”

  “You helped me first,” he says.

  As my brother leaves the room, I believe things will get better for him. But not for me. This is the second day in a row that I haven’t practiced making chili, and if I don’t learn as I sleep with this recording, I’ll lose my chance to make the wall. I didn’t think it would mean that much to me since I don’t care about my bet with Naomi. But as I stare at Macey’s crib, I realize that I want my name on that wall more than I ever did before.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Thursday morning, I feel ten times smarter than I did before I went to bed. I think my head is bigger, filled with perfect answers to my Wall of Fame Game questions! I stand in the mirror like I’m the smartest cowgirl in the country. “I’m the Magnificent Mya Tibbs! I’m going three out of three again today!”

  I dress quickly, eat even quicker, and almost run to school. As I step into the cave, there’s a rhythm in my ka-clunk that I haven’t had since Monday.

  “Twelve answers for three questions,” says Starr.

  “Twelve for three,” says Starr.

  “That’s just ridiculous,” says Starr.

  “Totally ridiculous,” says Skye.

  Starr hugs me. “You’re going to do it, Mya. We can feel it.”

  Skye hugs me, too. “We definitely feel it.”

  “Thanks. I have to admit, I’m feeling pretty good,” I say.

  Nothing can shake me today. Or at least that’s what I was thinking.

  “Why are you in such a good mood? Twelve answers are way more than you can keep in that little brain of yours. Say good-bye to the Wall of Fame Game, Mya Tibbs Fibs,” says Naomi.

  I put my backpack in my cabinet, and just as I’m about to spin around and let her have it, I get a picture of Mom rocking in Macey’s room, and the little chair I used to sit in when I was two years old. Instead of blasting Naomi, I ask her a simple question.

  “Why are you doing the Wall of Fame Game, Naomi?”

  She rolls her eyes. “I told you before. If I can get on the wall, I’ll be able to add that to my portfolio. Pageant judges and movie directors like that kind of stuff. Everything else, like our bet, is bonus points. And when I beat you, it will be sweet payback for what you did to me during Spirit Week.”

  Connie was right. Again. Beating me was not Naomi’s main reason for making the wall. Why didn’t I figure that out? Naomi should have never been my number one reason for making the wall.

  I close my cabinet and say something I never dreamed I’d say to her.

  “Good luck.”

  My classmates mumble and talk as I walk out of the cave. What they don’t know is—Naomi’s right. She figured things out long before I did. Her portfolio is important to her, not beating me.

  In class, I swing my feet under my desk because I can’t wait for my turn.

  “Mya, you’re up,” says Mrs. Davis.

  I’ve got a strut in my ka-clunk, and I don’t care who sees it. Once Mrs. Davis closes the curtains and hits the egg timer, I switch gears because I’m ready!

  “Here we go! Name four of the original thirteen American colonies.”

  I close my eyes and pretend I’m still listening to the tape. “Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Georgie Porgie pudding and pie. Kissed the girls and made them cry.”

  My eyelids flip open. Did I say that out loud?

  A huge wrinkle pops up in the middle of Mrs. Davis’s forehead. “What did you say?”

  I swallow hard. “Georgia. The last original colony I said is Georgia.”

  My heart’s bump-thumping again. I’m scared to close my eyes, but I definitely don’t want to keep them open, either. Mrs. Davis shakes her head and reads the next question.

  “Name the four stages of the water cycle.”

  My toes wiggle inside my boots as I answer. “Evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and collection.”

  “Good,” she says.

  My shoulders rise and come down slowly as I breathe out a bunch of air I didn’t know I had in me. Whatever happened with my first answer must have been some weird brain mix-up. But now it seems to be over.

  “Name four major organs in the human body.”

  I inhale and then exhale before I begin. “Okay, there’s the lungs, the heart, the liver, and the wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round, round and round, the wheels on the bus go round and round, all day long.”

  Ding.

  I stop singing and take a seat next to Mrs. Davis. If I’m lucky, this will be a bad dream, and my alarm clock will go off any moment now.

  But it doesn’t. This is really happening.

  I feel the heat of Mrs. Davis’s eyes staring at the side of my face. I can’t look at her because I’m so embarrassed, and I don’t even have an excuse for all the dumb things I just did.

  Except . . .

  “I was trying to say the brain as my fourth major human organ, but it was stuck behind the wheels on the bus and I couldn’t say it. I know exactly what happened, Mrs. Davis. I listened to a recording while I slept last night, and it had some old nursery rhymes playing in the background. They must have stuck in my mind a lot better than the answers to the Wall of Fame Game questions.”

  “I see. That’s very interesting.” Then she drops the bad n
ews. “Mya, you missed question number three. That’s your first miss this week. One more incorrect answer, and you will be eliminated.”

  I feel her words. They sting, and I can’t stop the tears from running down my face.

  Mrs. Davis takes my hand. “Don’t cry. You’re not eliminated. You still have another shot. But tomorrow you have to answer every question correctly.”

  I stare at the floor, because I could be the next person eliminated. “I know. Fifteen answers.”

  She nods. “That’s right. But you can do it.”

  I lift my head to look at her. “I’m not so sure, Mrs. Davis. I know the questions are going to be harder tomorrow.”

  “But if you study, you’ll get the job done.” Mrs. Davis puts her arm around my shoulders and squeezes me close. I love her hugs, because I know she really cares about me.

  “Listen to me, Mya Tibbs. Be confident. You can do this. But not making it isn’t the end of the world. The only thing you’ll lose is getting your name on the wall. Life will go on, okay?”

  I nod, but it’s not okay. It’s not even true. If I don’t make the Wall of Fame, everything will change. I’m just now understanding how important the Wall of Fame Game is for my little sister. And for me.

  Usually Mrs. Davis is right. But today, she has no idea how wrong she is. I step out of the cave and, without looking at anyone, take my seat. I can feel the stares, but I refuse to look at anything except the top of my desk.

  At recess, I tell Connie and the twins about the recording Nugget made for me, and how I was rappin’ rhymes instead of answering questions.

  “Did you get eliminated?” asks Connie.

  “We’re your friends, Mya, no matter what,” says Starr.

  “We’re definitely your friends,” adds Skye.

  “I missed one,” I say. “I’m one wrong answer away from wearing that lame T-shirt.”

  Connie puts her hands on her hips. “You listen to me, Mya Tibbs. We’re going to make that Wall of Fame together, understand? You’re not going to miss any more questions.”

  I nod.

  Skye takes her sister’s hand. Connie takes mine. The silence makes me feel worse.