Free Fabulous Five 026 - Laura's Secret by Betsy Haynes

good-bye."
    "Oh, well—that's okay. We just wondered where you'd
gone. We thought maybe Alexis had said something that made you want to leave."
    "Oh, no," Laura protested. "I . . . I got a
stomachache."
    "Gosh, that's too bad. Feeling better?"
    "Yeah," answered Laura.
    "Great," Tammy said. "Well . . . see you at
school on Monday."
    "Right." Laura hung up the phone and lay back on
her bed.
    Why does life have to be so complicated? she wondered. She
thought back to the day she had invented the story about having a maid. It
seemed like a million years ago. What had The Fantastic Foursome been talking
about, anyway?
    Oh, yes, she remembered. Melissa had made some comment about
what she was wearing. Her clothes looked old and wrinkled, or something like
that. So Laura had started that harmless little lie. And that one teensy lie
had snowballed and snowballed until it turned into a total disaster. If only
Melissa hadn't made that nasty remark about her shirt.
    That's right, Laura thought, sitting up again. Melissa had
started the whole thing. If she hadn't been so critical of Laura, this mess
would never have happened. Laura frowned as she thought about Melissa. If The
Fantastic Foursome split up, maybe it wouldn't be so bad not to have
Melissa-the-Perfect around always criticizing!
    "But Melissa didn't start the lie," whispered a
little voice-in her mind. " You did."
    Laura sighed. She felt sad, tired, and fed up with people.
She had done all she could to keep everything under control. Melissa's
pickiness and Tammy's big mouth were a lot to put up with.
    Laura thought about Alexis. Poor Alexis. She had looked so
awful at the mall. So disappointed in everything. And so hurt.
    A rush of guilt washed over Laura. She really liked Alexis.
It made her feel terrible to think she had hurt her.
    Well, Laura corrected herself indignantly, I really wasn't
the one who hurt Alexis. It was Tammy who spread the rumors about her. If Tammy
had minded her own business and kept her mouth shut the way I told her to,
Alexis wouldn't be so hurt, The Fantastic Foursome wouldn't be about to break
up, and I wouldn't be so miserable.
    "But Tammy wasn't the one who lied," whispered the
little voice.
    I can't blame it on anyone but myself, she thought.
    Laura rolled over on her stomach. She had to figure out a
way to get out of this horrible mess. But most important, she knew she had to
make things right again.
    It had all started with the maid. That stupid, rotten maid—
    An idea flashed in Laura's mind. She stretched out on the
bed and let her mind play with the thought and develop it.
    That's it! she thought excitedly when she had it worked out
just right. The maid had started this whole thing. And now the maid would get
her out of it!
     
    All the kids at school greeted Laura with friendly smiles
and waves on Monday morning. Tammy must have spread the word about Alexis, she
realized. They're all on my side now.
    Laura thought about letting go of the whole incident and not
going through her with plan. It was tempting. Even the best plans could
backfire, and if hers backfired, everyone would know she had lied.
    Laura went into the empty bathroom before lunch and into one
of the stalls. A minute later she heard the bathroom door open and feet shuffle
in.
    "It's so hard to believe," a voice said. Laura
recognized it as Beth Barry's.
    "I know," replied her friend Jana Morgan. "Alexis
has always been such a great person. How could she possibly have done something
awful like steal ? "
    Laura peeked at the girls through the crack in the door.
Jana and Beth were brushing their hair in front of the mirror.
    "I can't believe it, either," Beth said. "But
when you've got the word of two people—even when those two people happen to be
Laura McCall and Tammy Lucero—against one person, you have to wonder a little."
    Laura gritted her teeth at the mention of her name.
    "I always thought Alexis was almost perfect," Jana
commented. "She gets good grades, she's nice to