Chapter 1
âH OW Y OU D OIN â?â
A beautiful morning at Rotten School. The apple trees shimmered in the morning sunlight. The grass on the Great Lawn still sparkled with dew.
I strolled happily, singing the Rotten School Song to myself:
âRah, rah, Rotten School!
Iâd rather be in Rotten Schoolâ
Than NOT in school!â
It was Saturday, and IâBernie Bridgesâdidnâthave a care in the world. Did I know that BIG troubleâwith a capital BIGâwas just minutes away? No with a capital NO.
âDudes! Wait for Bernie B.!â I shouted. I waved to my three buddies and ran to catch up with them. Feenman and Crench had one of Belzerâs shoes. They were tossing it back and forth, playing keep-away. Fun-loving dudes!
âHow you doinâ?â I asked.
âHow YOU doinâ?â Feenman replied.
âHow YOU doinâ?â Belzer asked.
âHow you doinâ?â I said.
âHow YOU doinâ?â
âHow YOU doinâ?â
We usually do this for at least half an hour. I donât know why we think itâs so funny. But it really cracks us up.
âHow you doinâ?â
âHow YOU doinâ?â
Saturday morning is when we go to the Student Center to study. Mainly we study air hockey, pinball, and the new PlayStation games. We donât like to mess up our weekends doing homework.
I checked out my three friends. Feenman and Crench are tall and thin and kinda dance when they walkâreal loose. Belzer is short and pudgy. He looks like his nameâheâs definitely a Belzer .
I shook my head. âYoâyou dudes are looking shabby,â I said. âWhatâs up with your clothes? Theyâre totally wrinkledâand they donât even fit!â
Feenman sighed. âBernie, our room is too small,â he said. âAll three of us are jammed in so tight, we have to take turns breathing!â
âIt used to be a broom closet,â Belzer said.
âSo? Whatâs that got to do with your clothes?â I asked.
âThereâs no room for a closet. We keep all our stuff in a big pile on the floor,â Crench said. âWe canât tell whose is whose!â
âLookâIâm wearing Feenmanâs shirt,â Belzer said. The shirt came down to his knees. He raised his arms. âSee these armpit stains, Bernie? Theyâre not mineâtheyâre Feenmanâs!â
âItâs so crowded,â Feenman said, âwe have to sleep standing up!â
âDudes, I hope youâre not complaining,â I said. âIhope youâre not hinting that I should share my room.â
Feenman squinted at me. âWell, Big B, you ARE all alone in that huge roomâ¦.â
âYou know I need a lot of space,â I said. âI need space for plotting and planning and scheming.â I put a hand on Feenmanâs shoulder. âAnd who do I plot and plan and scheme for? I do it all for you guys, right?â
âRight,â Belzer agreed. âWho convinced Nurse Hanley that Skittles are actually vitamin pills? Bernie did.â
âThat was a good thing,â Feenman and Crench muttered.
âAnd who got Mrs. Heinie to give us extra credit if we donât burp up our breakfast in class?â Belzer asked. âBernie did.â
âThat was a good thing, too,â Feenman and Crench said.
âIâm always thinking of you guys,â I said. âThatâs why I need the extra space.â
And thatâs what this story is aboutâmy extra space. Because guess what? An hour or two later Iwalked back to our dormâRotten House. I climbed the stairs to my room on the third floor.
And, yo! I stopped in the doorwayâand stared at another boy unpacking a suitcase.
He had wavy, blond hair that glowed in the sunlight pouring through my window. He had a round face with big, blue eyes and rosy cheeks. He turned to me and