Free Love Stinks! by Nancy Krulik Page A

heart delivered in time for Valentine’s Day!”
    “That would be so embarrassing!” Jeremy exclaimed.
    “Well, if Becky does send you a heart, at least it will be delicious.” Katie was trying to make him feel better.
    But it didn’t work. “I hate Valentine’s Day!” Jeremy grumbled.

Chapter 2
    But not all the fourth-graders hated Valentine’s Day. In fact, Wednesday afternoon, right after her cooking class, Katie hurried over to Suzanne’s house. She, Becky, Emma Weber, and Jessica Haynes were all getting together with Suzanne to make valentines for their friends.
    “Oh, that’s a cute one,” Emma said as she looked at the long, thin, squiggly-shaped card Katie was working on. “It looks just like Slinky.”
    Suzanne looked curiously at Katie. “You made a valentine for a snake?”
    “Of course,” Katie told her. “Animals need love, too. I even made one for my dog, Pepper.”
    “Pepper’s cute, but Slinky is creepy,” Suzanne said with a shudder.
    “Slinky is not creepy!” Katie insisted.
    “I’m glad our class has a guinea pig. I love Fuzzy,” Suzanne boasted.
    Suzanne was always bragging about what was happening in class 4B. But Katie didn’t care. She was glad Suzanne was happy in her classroom. Katie was certainly happy in hers.
    Class 4A was a very different kind of classroom. Katie had never been in one like it before. Her teacher, Mr. Guthrie, wasn’t very strict. He let the kids sit in beanbag chairs instead of at desks. He thought they learned better when they were comfortable.
    Mr. Guthrie did other cool stuff, like letting George Brennan and Kadeem Carter have joke-telling contests. He called them joke-offs. And Mr. Guthrie had gotten the class the coolest pet in the whole school—Slinky the snake. The kids had raised him ever since he’d hatched from his egg.
    “Look what I made for Jeremy,” Becky announced, interrupting Katie’s thoughts. She leaped to her feet and held up a giant red construction paper heart with lace trim. “Do you think he’ll like it?”

    Katie knew Jeremy would hate getting a huge card from Becky. But she didn’t tell her that. Katie didn’t like to hurt people’s feelings.
    “I don’t know what you see in Jeremy,” Suzanne said. “He’s such a jerk.”
    “That’s mean, Suzanne,” Katie told her.
    Suzanne shrugged. “He’s your best friend, Katie. Not mine.”
    Katie nodded. That was the truth. Suzanne and Jeremy were both Katie’s best friends. But they didn’t always like each other very much.
    “Who are you making valentines for, Suzanne?” Jessica asked her.
    “Just for my very best friends,” she said. “I don’t want to waste time making cards for people who aren’t going to give me one.”
    “That makes sense,” Jessica said. “Oh, and just so you know, I’m making one for you.”
    Emma W. was busy making her valentines. “Do you have any more pink construction paper?” she asked.
    “Sure,” Suzanne told her. “It’s over there, next to Heather’s play kitchen.” She pointed to a little plastic kitchen that was filled with plastic food, pots, and pans.
    Heather was Suzanne’s one-year-old sister. Lately, Suzanne’s whole house had begun to look like a toy store. There were stuffed animals, rag dolls, and big rubber balls all over the place.
    Emma certainly didn’t mind. She had three younger brothers. She knew what it was like to live with a lot of toys around. She just stepped over the dolls and balls to reach the construction paper. “My twin brothers have the same kitchen,” she told Suzanne. “But theirs isn’t as nice. It’s a hand-me-down.”
    “That one’s brand-new,” Suzanne told her. “My parents are always buying new toys for Heather.” She sounded a little jealous.
    Ding dong. Just then, the doorbell rang.
    “I’ll get it,” Suzanne called out, loud enough for her mother to hear. She leaped up from the table and raced for the door.
    When Suzanne returned, she was carrying a big