The Campaign

by The Campaign (retail) (epub)

  “Hey, girl!” She grins cheerily at me.

  I smile, for what feels like the first time all day. Callie is my number one pick for vice president. She’s strong and smart, fast and funny, and best of all, sweet. She’d make a great class officer. I take a deep breath, filling my lungs with air and hope.

  “So, there’s something I want to talk to you about,” I say. “Don’t know if you’ve heard, but I’m running for president of our class.”

  Her grin disappears. “Mmm hmm,” she mumbles.

  On the excitement scale, Callie’s mmm-hmm was a two. My stomach knots, but I do my best to ignore the feeling and continue. “So, I need a vice president.” I glance at her. “Job is yours if you want it. And I really hope you do, because you’d make a great VP. Interested?”

  Callie doesn’t answer my question. Instead, she picks up her pace.

  Keeping up with her is hard. Keeping up with her while trying to have a serious conversation is even harder. The field is starting to fill up with other team members, and Callie runs over to a group of seventh-grade players that includes Emily Peters, Blake Smith, and Zoey Thompson. “Meeting,” she calls, and everyone huddles around her. Her mouth opens to speak, and instinct tells me I’m not going to like what she has to say.

  “I’m pretty sure everyone has already heard: Amanda is running for president of our class.”

  I try to look NOT WORRIED while my teammates all look at me.

  “Yeah!” I say cheerily. “I was just asking Callie if she wants to be my vice president. And I really want all of you to help me on my campaign.” I flash them a big smile. “How cool would it be if our team was in control of things like planning the class dance and the community service project? Right?”

  Everyone just blinks. It’s pretty obvious they don’t think it sounds nearly as cool as I do.

  I keep talking. “This election is really important to me, and I need your support.”

  I close my mouth, waiting for someone, anyone, to say I have it. But Emily looks at Blake, who looks at Zoey, then all eyes settle on Callie like she’s the designated spokesperson.

  Callie clears her throat. “Amanda, we were going to talk to you about this whole election thing. We don’t think it’s a good idea for you to run. I mean, you’re our goalie. It’s kind of a big deal that Coach Newton put you in such an important position. We need you to win games,” says Callie. “And the game against Brookside is next week.”

  “I know,” I say. Everyone knows how important it is to beat our biggest rival.

  “So, how are you going to have time to run a campaign and then a whole class and play soccer, too?” asks Callie.

  I try to imitate Mom’s TV smile. “Lots of kids do more than one thing at school.”

  “True,” says Zoey.

  I exhale, relieved that at least someone is being reasonable. But my relief is short-lived.

  “Thing is,” says Blake, “we’re worried you’ll be spending all of your time making campaign posters and writing speeches.”

  I shake my head. “Not when I’m supposed to be at practice.”

  My teammates exchange a look that says this is something they’ve talked about. “You really think it’s a good idea to run for class president?” asks Emily. “Because we don’t.”

  I hold up my right arm like I’m taking a courtroom oath to tell the truth. “Winning games is just as important to me as winning this election. Running for class president won’t interfere with playing on our soccer team. I promise.”

  “Our winning soccer team,” corrects Zoey. “Don’t forget Brookside has beaten us three straight years. We have to break the streak.”

  “I know. I know.” Anyone even remotely interested in girls’ soccer at Liberty Middle School knows that our archrival has smoked our you-know-whats for the last three years. And that Coach Newton is determined this year’s game will be our redemption.

  I get that winning is important. Especially against Brookside. And I get that Coach Newton and my team are trusting me to do a great job as goalie. I want to win games just as much as they do. But I also want to be president of my class.

  And to run, I need a veep. Callie doesn’t want the job. And beggars can’t be choosy. “So does anyone here want to be my running mate?” I wait for someone… ANYONE… to say they do. But no one does.

  Coach Newton blows her whistle. It’s time for practice to begin. My teammates disperse (a vocab word that I wish I wasn’t using) and head out to the field. Me being president of my class might not be what my lifelong best friend or my teammates want, but it’s what I want.

  Now, I just have to figure out how to make it happen.

  MY CAMPAIGN INSPIRATION NOTEBOOK

  Abraham Lincoln

  BORN: February 12, 1809, Hardin County, Kentucky

  DIED: April 14, 1865. Assassinated at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., by John Wilkes Booth

  SIGN: Aquarius. Traits: Charming, impulsive, romantic, nonconformist.

  PARTY: Republican

  STATUS: Married to Mary Todd Lincoln

  KIDS: Four boys. Robert, Edward, William, Thomas

  PRESIDENCY: He became the 16th president of our nation in 1861.

  NICKNAME: Honest Abe

  PETS: Horses, turkeys, rabbits, goats, cats, AND DOGS! (That man loved animals, almost as much as he loved the idea of equality for all.)

  HEIGHT: 6 feet 4 inches (he was the tallest president), and with his stovepipe hat on (and he never took it off) he was almost 7 feet tall! Legend has it that he stored things like letters and documents in his hat.

  SIDE GIG: Story and joke teller

  FAMOUS SPEECH: The Gettysburg Address

  PRESIDENTIAL CHALLENGE: A nation divided!!!

  Interest in my inspiration notebook has gone from a 1 (when Dad first suggested the idea) to a 9.5 (now that it’s evident I need all the help I can get).

  And what president could be more inspiring than Good Ole Abe. I mean, half of a country was against him and he still got the job done. Surely he can provide some much-needed inspiration, because I truly, madly, desperately need some.

  Okay. Here goes.

  One: Growing up, Abe didn’t have it easy.

  He was born in a one-room log cabin, and his family struggled to get by. When he was nine, his mother died and his older sister took care of him. Abe had little formal education, but a strong interest in books and learning. In fact, most of what he learned was from books he read on his own. As a young man, Lincoln worked as a shopkeeper, surveyor, and postmaster. He even split firewood for a living. All before going into politics!

  Bottom line: If you want to be president, become a surveyor first.

  Ha! I don’t think a career reading maps or checking out land would help me get elected class president. I guess the lesson here is that the journey to political success isn’t always easy.

  (Note to self: REMEMBER THAT!)

  Two: Even though Abe had it tough growing up, being president was even tougher.

  Seriously, he had a very tough job as our president because when he was elected, a bunch of states in the South didn’t want him to be president. They didn’t like his policies on slavery, so what did they do? They up and left the country and formed a new one called the Confederacy. Bad, huh? It gets worse. Just a month after he took office, the Civil War started and it lasted four long years and claimed hundreds of thousands of American lives.

  During that time, Lincoln faced all kinds of opposition, but he persisted and managed to free the slaves and hold the country together. It wasn’t easy. He even advocated (another well-used vocab word!) forgiveness for the South and helped the states that had seceded from the nation to heal and rebuild. Then, after all of that, he was assassinated.

  Bottom line: Becoming a leader and then being one isn’t always easy. But you can’t give up. That’s the lesson here. Just because two sides want different things doesn’t mean a leader should quit. No way! A true leader doesn’t quit. A true lead
er finds a way to make it happen.

  Seriously! If Abe Lincoln could figure out how to deal with half a nation going against him, I can find a way to deal with a best friend gone rogue and a few disgruntled teammates.

  Oh yeah, and find a vice president by tomorrow.

  Pas de problème. That’s French for I CAN DO THIS THING!

  Chapter Eight

  TICK TOCK

  It takes effort, but I don’t slam Dad’s car door as I get out. Even though I want to. Being greeted by none other than Ben Ball was not how I planned to start my school day.

  He grins at me. “Word on the street is that you’re still veepless.”

  I sling my backpack over one shoulder and begin the walk toward homeroom. Right now, I have one purpose and one purpose only: to ask Annalise Robey (who sits in the desk behind me in homeroom and starts every day by offering me a Pep-O-Mint Life Savers) if she wants to be my vice president.

  I thought about it a lot last night, and Annalise is definitely my best option.

  She’s popular, but not so popular that she would make less popular people feel bad. Pretty, but not so pretty that other girls would hate her for it. Smart, but not so smart that less industrious students might feel inferior. And she always smells minty fresh.

  She also happens to be a piano virtuoso. Not a required skill for a running mate, but a good one. Who knows, maybe Annalise can come up with some original theme music for our campaign. A Jonas Brothers melody pops into my head.

  “Umm… Adams… did you hear me?”

  I walk, head down, pretending I didn’t hear Ben. It’s a hint that he doesn’t pick up on. He falls into step beside me. “Adams, did I hear it right? You’re still veepless?”

  I clear my throat. “Veepless isn’t a word.”

  Ben cackles. “It will be if you don’t find someone soon to be your running mate. I heard that no one on the soccer team wants you to run.”

  I come to an immediate halt. My mouth falls open. “How did you hear that?”

  Ben taps both sides of his head. “Adams, didn’t ya know I have 20/20 hearing?”

  I smirk. “Don’t you mean vision?”

  Ben waves a hand through the air. “That too. Point is, I make it my business to know what’s going on around Liberty Middle. And what I know is that if you don’t act fast, you’re going to be out of the race.” On the loudness scale, his voice is a seven. Other kids are looking our way as Ben keeps talking. “The incomparable Miss Meghan H. and Baby Bree…”

  I motion for him to keep his voice down. “Please don’t call them that.”

  “Duly noted,” Ben says. He starts talking again, but this time (thankfully) his voice is a little lower. “Word on the street is that the football team is planning to vote for Meghan and Bree.” He shrugs. “What can I say? Athletes like donuts. And Frankie Chang already has the honor society on lockdown. I think he promised them all that if they vote for him, his father will teach them how to build a robot that can make their bed.”

  “A robot can do that?” I ask.

  “Appealing, isn’t it?” asks Ben. “But not what we need to be discussing.” He pulls a sheet of paper from his back pocket and starts to read from it.

  LIBERTY MIDDLE SCHOOL

  CLASS PRESIDENT

  The president of each middle school grade will preside over class government meetings and be the liaison between the school administration and parent boosters. In addition, the class president will be directly responsible for leading all efforts to plan the class dance and community service project.

  The class president may also represent the school at functions outside of school, such as school board meetings or in the community. Class president is a challenging position that offers an excellent opportunity for building communication and leadership skills.

  CLASS VICE PRESIDENT

  The vice president is responsible for supporting the president in all student government activities. In addition, the vice president will take over duties of the president if she or he is unable or must resign due to a move or a change of school. This also means the vice president may oversee meetings or functions if the president is out of town or absent due to illness. In addition, the vice president will help recruit volunteers and delegate responsibilities to volunteer committees.

  When Ben finishes reading the job descriptions of class president and vice president, he refolds the paper and slips it back into his pocket. I shoot him a tell-me-something-I-don’t-know look. I’ve read those descriptions so many times that I’ve practically got them memorized.

  “Okay. I’ll bottom line it,” says Ben. “You need to pick me for your vice president. For a couple of reasons. One, I have an engaging personality.”

  I clamp my lips shut. I’m not sure engaging is how I would describe it.

  Ben continues. “Two, aside from being a comic genius, I’m also a brilliant political strategist.”

  An image of my dad pops into my mind. Not sure he and Ben fall into the same category.

  “What do you know about running a campaign?” I ask, immediately regretting the question. What’s the point of hearing Ben’s answer when I’m planning to ask Annalise to be my running mate?

  Ben doesn’t bother answering anyway.

  “Adams, there’s a third reason you need to pick me.” He pauses, like he’s waiting for a drumroll. “If you don’t have a veep by end of day today, you’re out of the race.”

  He’s not wrong about that. Mrs. Lee is expecting me to give her the name of my running mate by the end of the day. My eyes scan the seventh-grade benches for Annalise.

  “So,” says Ben.

  “I appreciate that you want the job, but I was planning to offer it to Annalise Robey.”

  No sooner is her name out of my mouth than Ben starts snort-laughing so loud that I’m pretty sure kids who go to middle schools in neighboring states like Maryland and West Virginia (and even as far away as Kentucky and Tennessee) can hear him. “Life Savers girl?”

  The way Ben asks the question makes me defensive on her part. “Yeah,” I say, my hands now on my hips. “I think she’d make a great veep. And what’s wrong with good breath?”

  The corners of Ben’s mouth curl up. “If you think she’d be so good, ask her. Hey, Annalise,” he calls out over my shoulder, and just like that Annalise materializes beside me. “Amanda has a question for you. Go on,” he says to me. “Ask her.”

  I brush a stray curl off of my face. This wasn’t how I wanted to ask, but now it’s not like I have another choice. “Umm, Annalise, don’t know if you heard, but I’m running for president of our class.” I flash a smile that I hope conveys both confidence and friendliness. “I wanted to know if you’d like to run with me, as my vice president?”

  “Thank you,” says Annalise.

  On the enthusiasm scale, she’s a three. I press my lips together and shift nervously from one foot to the other while I wait for her to elaborate.

  Annalise blows out a breath and I smell mint. “I have a big piano recital coming up,” she says. “All my free time is spent practicing. And my mom would never let me take time off from practicing to run.” Annalise shoots me a look like she’s embarrassed to have such a strict parent. “I’m sorry, Amanda. See you in homeroom.”

  “Sure,” I say.

  Ben hardly waits for Annalise to walk off. “So, Adams, why not pick me? Admit it. You know I’d do a great job. Plus, it seems I’m the only person who wants it.”

  I scratch a mosquito bite on my left wrist. It’s kind of impressive that Ben had the job descriptions in his back pocket. And that he wants to do it.

  The first bell rings. Ben’s eyes narrow at me. “You have exactly ten seconds before this offer expires. Tick tock, Adams. Tick tock.”

  I picture Mrs. Lee’s face and what it will look like if I tell her that Ben Ball is my running mate. He drives teachers crazy, even crazier than he drives his fellow students. My favorite teacher will be surprised. Shocked. Definitely concer
ned that I’ve lost my mind.

  Zut alors! In French, that means I want to tear out my hair.

  “Okay,” I say.

  Ben squeals louder than Meghan and I do when we’ve come across a bargain at the mall. He looks so happy that I think he’s going to hug me. I take a step back to make sure he doesn’t.

  “Adams, you won’t regret this,” he says.

  Something tells me I already do.

  LIBERTY MIDDLE SCHOOL

  FROM: THE OFFICE OF PRINCIPAL FERGUSON

  TO: ALL CANDIDATES RUNNING FOR CLASS OFFICERS

  Student Candidates:

  Congratulations on your decision to run for the position of class president/vice president. Following is an explanation of the rules and guidelines that will govern this campaign as well as the schedule of events. Please read this document carefully, and return the form, signed by you and a parent, to my office on Monday morning.

  Good luck to you all,

  Principal Ferguson

  CAMPAIGN RULES/SCHEDULE & ELECTION GUIDELINES

  Campaigns will take place from Tuesday, October 1, to Thursday, October 10. During this time, candidates may hang no more than six posters in the Liberty Middle School hallways and cafeteria. Posters must be appropriate for school and may not harm anyone else involved in the running for office. Stickers and/or buttons promoting your candidacy may also be distributed.

  A word of caution: Use common sense when creating campaign materials. If you aren’t sure what is appropriate, ask Mrs. Lee. Anything inappropriate will be taken down, and you could risk losing your candidacy.

  DISTRIBUTION OF CANDY OR OTHER FOOD ITEMS ON SCHOOL PREMISES IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.

  Interviews of all presidential candidates will be conducted on our campus TV station on Tuesday, October 8, and broadcast live to grade-level homerooms.