Free Fabulous Five 014 - The Seventh-Grade Menace by Betsy Haynes Page A

seemed somehow to be different.
She wondered if he was more like his mother than the other children.
    After the meal, Mr. McNatt ordered Max and Joe to do the
dishes so that Jana and Geena could spend some time together. Jana looked
longingly toward the front door. The last thing she wanted to do was spend time
with Geena, and she knew Geena felt the same way about her. If only there was
some way to escape. But there wasn't—for either of them—and Geena led her
silently up to her room.
    The room was pretty much what Jana expected. Sweat suits and
dirty tube socks littered the floor, and jeans were hung on the bedpost. She
didn't see one piece of feminine clothing in the room. She would have liked to
look in the closet to see if there were any there.
    Geena stood to one side, chewing her lip while Jana looked
around. Suddenly she snarled, "What do you have in that envelope? Is it
something you're going to show my dad?"
    Jana looked at her for a moment, thinking. "No,"
she said. "They're just some pictures I took with Garrett Boldt's camera."
    Geena stared at her as if she didn't know whether to believe
her or not. "Well, I guess you think you're really big time now that no
one is going to run against you for Miss Seventh Grade."
    "Look, Geena. I didn't want to run for Miss Seventh
Grade. My friends talked me into it. I couldn't care less about it, except that
Randy Kirwan is running for Mr. Seventh Grade, and I think it would be nice to
run with him."
    Geena sneered, "You've got all the friends in the
world, don't you? I bet you make your Fabulous Five friends jump through hoops."
She moved a picture of a pretty red-haired lady that was on a table that served
as a desk.
    "No," Jana said patiently as she moved toward the table.
"As a matter of fact, I don't think anyone could make people like
Katie Shannon and Christie Winchell do something they didn't want. They're
pretty strong. We've just been friends a long time. Is this your mother?"
    Geena nodded.
    Jana picked up the frame and looked at the smiling, freckled
face in the photo. "She's so pretty. Do you remember her at all?"
    "It's none of your business!" Geena snapped.
    Jana put down the frame and backed away a little. "I
don't remember much about my father," she said softly. "He's not
dead, but my mother divorced him when I was little. He's an alcoholic, and I
write to him sometimes, but he hardly ever answers."
    Geena squinted her eyes and stared at Jana, as if trying to
decide whether or not to believe her.
    "You're lucky to have such a nice dad," said Jana.
"He really loves you. I can tell."
    Geena shrugged. Suddenly her face seemed to soften. "Are
you going to have a new dress for when you win Miss Seventh Grade?"
    "I hope so," Jana said. "But I'm not sure.
Listen, I'd better go. Randy's coming over tonight, and we're going to listen
to records."
    All at once the sparks flew back into Geena's eyes, and she
turned away. Jana mumbled good-bye, but Geena didn't respond.
    As Jana was making her way down the stairs by herself, Geena
called out in an ominous tone, "You'd better take care of that dress."

CHAPTER 15
    Later that night, after Randy had left, Jana got into bed
and sat up in the dark, thinking. After eating at the McNatts' house that
night, she was amazed to find that she felt sorry for Geena. It must be awfully
lonely for Geena, being a year older than everyone in her class, hanging around
the edges of groups, and going to Bumpers by herself. And everyone in her
family, except her older brother George, seemed to solve things by hitting or
yelling. Even Mr. McNatt, who was a construction supervisor, had to be tough to
handle the men he worked with. Maybe Geena had never seen any other ways of
solving her problems. There had to be a way to help people like that.
    But what about all the kids Geena picked on? Jana asked
herself stubbornly. Feeling sorry for Geena probably wouldn't stop her from
bullying people. And even though Jana had tried to talk to Geena