and—"
"Stop that, Beth," cried Dekeisha. "You're
giving me goose bumps."
"Me, too," said Lisa. "Maybe I'll take my
name off the list."
"Hey, I was only joking," Beth told them. "I
haven't checked the list today. Have a lot of kids signed up?"
"Quite a few," Alexis answered. "Even some
boys."
Jana's hairbrush stopped in midair. Was Randy one of them?
She didn't want to ask Alexis because she knew that if she mentioned Randy's
name, everyone would want to talk about their breakup. She slipped her brush
into her backpack and motioned to Beth that she was leaving. "Gotta run,"
she called, and hurried into the hall. She knew it was silly, but she
just had to check the sign-up sheet to see for herself if Randy was one of the
boys on the list.
It was almost time for the bell to ring, and she increased
her speed to a jog as she neared the main hall, where the bulletin board was.
She jerked to a halt when she rounded the corner and saw Keith coming her way.
His face lit up when he saw her. "Hey, Jana, guess what?"
He didn't wait for her to reply. "I just signed up to be a Book Buddy at
the library. I saw your name on the list, so I decided I'd do it, too."
Jana smiled weakly, and her mind raced. "Gosh, Keith.
Are you sure you want to do something like that? It's going to be a lot like baby-sitting,
you know."
Keith gave her a surprised look, so Jana decided to lay it
on thick.
"Yeah, you know how second-graders are," she went
on. "They'll try to get away with murder. We're really going to have our
hands full. Probably half of them will eat too many cookies and throw up, and we'll have to clean it up."
Keith looked slightly nauseated himself for an instant. Then
he shook his head and said, "Naw, they won't make us do that. There are
going to be a bunch of parents and teachers there, too. They'll have to
clean it up."
Jana frowned. "You didn't really sign up because I did,
did you?"
"Sure. Why not?"
"Lots of reasons," Jana said emphatically. "For
one thing, Beth's going to be there. And second, I told you that I'm not going
to go out with my best friend's boyfriend, so you might as well give up."
" Ex -boyfriend," Keith corrected her. "And
besides, you can't let Beth run your life."
Jana glared at Keith. "She doesn't run my life. She—"
The ringing bell broke into the conversation. Keith gave her
a flirty grin as he turned to leave, and said, "See you Saturday night."
Jana let out an exasperated sigh and trudged to her own
class, realizing later that she hadn't looked at the list to see if Randy's
name was on it.
She was at her locker after school when Beth came running
up.
"Jana, guess what? Keith is going to the library
overnight! His name's on the sign-up sheet. Isn't that super? Maybe he saw my
name, and that's why he signed up. Do you think that's it? Maybe he wants to
get back together."
Jana could hardly stand to look into her best friend's eyes.
Poor Beth, she thought. How would she feel if she knew the truth? How would she
feel about me? Jana wondered, and blinked.
"Well, what do you think?" Beth insisted. "You
know how nutty Keith can be sometimes. I'll bet he wants to wait until all the
little kids are asleep and then get me in a dark corner of the library and ask
me to get back together. Don't you?"
"Gosh," fumbled Jana. Then she shrugged and added,
"You know him better than I do."
"Yeah," said Beth. She had a dreamy look on her
face. "Wouldn't that be romantic?" Then she jolted to attention and
grabbed Jana's arm. "I almost forgot. Randy's name is on the list, too,
but—get this—Sara Sawyer's name is right under his."
Jana's heart almost broke in two. They must have signed up
together. Pictures raced through her mind of Randy and Sara holding hands while
they read stories to the little kids, gazing romantically at each other as they
passed out refreshments, disappearing among the dark bookshelves after the
second-graders were asleep.
She swallowed hard. "Beth," she said seriously, "I
can't go
"Stop that, Beth," cried Dekeisha. "You're
giving me goose bumps."
"Me, too," said Lisa. "Maybe I'll take my
name off the list."
"Hey, I was only joking," Beth told them. "I
haven't checked the list today. Have a lot of kids signed up?"
"Quite a few," Alexis answered. "Even some
boys."
Jana's hairbrush stopped in midair. Was Randy one of them?
She didn't want to ask Alexis because she knew that if she mentioned Randy's
name, everyone would want to talk about their breakup. She slipped her brush
into her backpack and motioned to Beth that she was leaving. "Gotta run,"
she called, and hurried into the hall. She knew it was silly, but she
just had to check the sign-up sheet to see for herself if Randy was one of the
boys on the list.
It was almost time for the bell to ring, and she increased
her speed to a jog as she neared the main hall, where the bulletin board was.
She jerked to a halt when she rounded the corner and saw Keith coming her way.
His face lit up when he saw her. "Hey, Jana, guess what?"
He didn't wait for her to reply. "I just signed up to be a Book Buddy at
the library. I saw your name on the list, so I decided I'd do it, too."
Jana smiled weakly, and her mind raced. "Gosh, Keith.
Are you sure you want to do something like that? It's going to be a lot like baby-sitting,
you know."
Keith gave her a surprised look, so Jana decided to lay it
on thick.
"Yeah, you know how second-graders are," she went
on. "They'll try to get away with murder. We're really going to have our
hands full. Probably half of them will eat too many cookies and throw up, and we'll have to clean it up."
Keith looked slightly nauseated himself for an instant. Then
he shook his head and said, "Naw, they won't make us do that. There are
going to be a bunch of parents and teachers there, too. They'll have to
clean it up."
Jana frowned. "You didn't really sign up because I did,
did you?"
"Sure. Why not?"
"Lots of reasons," Jana said emphatically. "For
one thing, Beth's going to be there. And second, I told you that I'm not going
to go out with my best friend's boyfriend, so you might as well give up."
" Ex -boyfriend," Keith corrected her. "And
besides, you can't let Beth run your life."
Jana glared at Keith. "She doesn't run my life. She—"
The ringing bell broke into the conversation. Keith gave her
a flirty grin as he turned to leave, and said, "See you Saturday night."
Jana let out an exasperated sigh and trudged to her own
class, realizing later that she hadn't looked at the list to see if Randy's
name was on it.
She was at her locker after school when Beth came running
up.
"Jana, guess what? Keith is going to the library
overnight! His name's on the sign-up sheet. Isn't that super? Maybe he saw my
name, and that's why he signed up. Do you think that's it? Maybe he wants to
get back together."
Jana could hardly stand to look into her best friend's eyes.
Poor Beth, she thought. How would she feel if she knew the truth? How would she
feel about me? Jana wondered, and blinked.
"Well, what do you think?" Beth insisted. "You
know how nutty Keith can be sometimes. I'll bet he wants to wait until all the
little kids are asleep and then get me in a dark corner of the library and ask
me to get back together. Don't you?"
"Gosh," fumbled Jana. Then she shrugged and added,
"You know him better than I do."
"Yeah," said Beth. She had a dreamy look on her
face. "Wouldn't that be romantic?" Then she jolted to attention and
grabbed Jana's arm. "I almost forgot. Randy's name is on the list, too,
but—get this—Sara Sawyer's name is right under his."
Jana's heart almost broke in two. They must have signed up
together. Pictures raced through her mind of Randy and Sara holding hands while
they read stories to the little kids, gazing romantically at each other as they
passed out refreshments, disappearing among the dark bookshelves after the
second-graders were asleep.
She swallowed hard. "Beth," she said seriously, "I
can't go
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