Taffy Sinclair 002 - Taffy Sinclair Strikes Again by Betsy Haynes Page A
Authors: Betsy Haynes
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school I kept practicing anyway. I also practiced the special smile Taffy had said drove cute boys wild. I would do one poison dart eyes and t hen one cute boy smil e and then one poison dart eyes and on and on like that over and over again. I hoped I wouldn't get mixed up and give my FORMER friends the cute boy smile and look at Randy Kirwan with poison dart eyes, but deep down I knew I wouldn't.
When Taffy Sinclair and I got to the school ground, we stopped and looked around. I was looking for Randy Kirwan or some other cute boys, but Taffy must have been looking for my FORMER friends because she said, "Over there," pointing toward the slide.
Beth was standing there looking lost. I guessed that was how a person looks when she doesn't have any friends, I thought. Anyway, Taffy and I headed straight for her. We even both started off on the same foot the way they do in the marching band. Just as we got even with her, we turned our shoulders toward her and looked at her with our poison dart eyes. Then we stuck our noses in the air and marched away. Next we found Katie and did the same thing to her. Melanie stuck her tongue out when we marched past her, and Christie almost looked like she was going to cry.
Unfortunately, Randy Kirwan was absent, but during the day I got several other chances to send hate messages to my FORMER friends. Once, across the cafeteria, I thought I saw Melanie and Katie talking to each other, and I wondered if they were talking about me. They were probably wishing they hadn't been so mean to me. I didn't care. It would serve them right for always looking for people's faults instead of their good points. Still, seeing them together again gave me a funny feeling that I c ouldn't get rid of all that day.
CHAPTER NINE
"Her e's your chance to practice body language on cute boys," Taffy said as we got to school Tuesday morning. She grinned at me as if we were in on some secret plot and then glanced toward the backstop of the baseball diamond where Randy, Mark, and Scott were standing together talking.
I already knew they were there. I had seen them when we were still half a block away. But surely she didn't think that I should send messages to Mark and Scott and Randy right there on the school ground of Mark Twain Elementary with every single kid in every single grade looking on. I couldn't do that. I hadn't practiced enough. I wasn't ready. If I goofed up, I'd be so embarrassed I'd die.
"I need to go to my locker," I mumbled, ducking my head and making a sharp left hand turn toward the building.
Taffy grabbed my arm and whirled me back around. "Oh, no you don't," she said. "Are you a chicken or what? It's your perfect chance to send messages to three of the cutest boys in school and —" she lowered her voice as if someone were listening in, "you can do it in front of your FORMER friends. Go on!"
I heard somebody groan. It must have been me. Taffy gave me a shove toward the backstop. I tried to breathe and couldn't. My lungs were collapsing along with my shaking legs. How could I send messages to anyone when I was dying of asphyxiation? It would be all her fault if I passed out and had to be taken to the hospital.
But before that could happen, Randy looked up. He looked straight at me and then he smiled.
"Hi, Jana," he said. He kept right on smiling, and it was the same smile as in the poster beside my bed. For a split second I remembered how many times I'd looked at that smile while I practiced sending him messages. It had always been easy in front of his picture in my room. Maybe I could do it now.
"Hi, Randy." I said it in the sweetest voice I could and opened my eyes really wide the way Taffy had taught me to do. It must have worked because I couldn't believe the next thing he said.
"Come here a minute. I want to ask you something."
My heart was pounding so loudly that I almost couldn't hear him. He had gotten my message, and now he wanted to talk to me. I remembered how important it was to
When Taffy Sinclair and I got to the school ground, we stopped and looked around. I was looking for Randy Kirwan or some other cute boys, but Taffy must have been looking for my FORMER friends because she said, "Over there," pointing toward the slide.
Beth was standing there looking lost. I guessed that was how a person looks when she doesn't have any friends, I thought. Anyway, Taffy and I headed straight for her. We even both started off on the same foot the way they do in the marching band. Just as we got even with her, we turned our shoulders toward her and looked at her with our poison dart eyes. Then we stuck our noses in the air and marched away. Next we found Katie and did the same thing to her. Melanie stuck her tongue out when we marched past her, and Christie almost looked like she was going to cry.
Unfortunately, Randy Kirwan was absent, but during the day I got several other chances to send hate messages to my FORMER friends. Once, across the cafeteria, I thought I saw Melanie and Katie talking to each other, and I wondered if they were talking about me. They were probably wishing they hadn't been so mean to me. I didn't care. It would serve them right for always looking for people's faults instead of their good points. Still, seeing them together again gave me a funny feeling that I c ouldn't get rid of all that day.
CHAPTER NINE
"Her e's your chance to practice body language on cute boys," Taffy said as we got to school Tuesday morning. She grinned at me as if we were in on some secret plot and then glanced toward the backstop of the baseball diamond where Randy, Mark, and Scott were standing together talking.
I already knew they were there. I had seen them when we were still half a block away. But surely she didn't think that I should send messages to Mark and Scott and Randy right there on the school ground of Mark Twain Elementary with every single kid in every single grade looking on. I couldn't do that. I hadn't practiced enough. I wasn't ready. If I goofed up, I'd be so embarrassed I'd die.
"I need to go to my locker," I mumbled, ducking my head and making a sharp left hand turn toward the building.
Taffy grabbed my arm and whirled me back around. "Oh, no you don't," she said. "Are you a chicken or what? It's your perfect chance to send messages to three of the cutest boys in school and —" she lowered her voice as if someone were listening in, "you can do it in front of your FORMER friends. Go on!"
I heard somebody groan. It must have been me. Taffy gave me a shove toward the backstop. I tried to breathe and couldn't. My lungs were collapsing along with my shaking legs. How could I send messages to anyone when I was dying of asphyxiation? It would be all her fault if I passed out and had to be taken to the hospital.
But before that could happen, Randy looked up. He looked straight at me and then he smiled.
"Hi, Jana," he said. He kept right on smiling, and it was the same smile as in the poster beside my bed. For a split second I remembered how many times I'd looked at that smile while I practiced sending him messages. It had always been easy in front of his picture in my room. Maybe I could do it now.
"Hi, Randy." I said it in the sweetest voice I could and opened my eyes really wide the way Taffy had taught me to do. It must have worked because I couldn't believe the next thing he said.
"Come here a minute. I want to ask you something."
My heart was pounding so loudly that I almost couldn't hear him. He had gotten my message, and now he wanted to talk to me. I remembered how important it was to
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