Free Drat! You Copycat! by Nancy Krulik

Chapter 1
    “Boys and girls, say hello to Becky Stern,” Mrs. Derkman told class 3A .
    It was early Monday morning. The teacher was standing in the front of the classroom. Beside her was a small girl with a long, blond ponytail.
    “Hi, Becky,” the kids all said at once.
    “Becky and her family have just moved here from Atlanta. I know you will all try to make her feel welcome,” Mrs. Derkman said.
    The class stared at Becky. Becky stared back at the class. Her blue eyes were wide open. Her face was pale. She looked really scared.
    Katie Carew raised her hand.
    “Yes Katie?” Mrs. Derkman replied.
    “Who is going to be Becky’s buddy?”
    Jeremy Fox, one of Katie’s best friends, smiled proudly when Katie said that. It had been his idea to give new students a buddy when they started at school. That way they’d have a friend right away.
    “Well, Katie,” Mrs. Derkman said, “would you like to be Becky’s buddy?”
    Katie grinned. “Sure.”
    “Becky, stick with Katie this week. She’ll show you around. Now take a seat at the empty desk in the second row.” Mrs. Derkman said.
    All eyes were on Becky as she sat down.
    “Okay, everyone,” Mrs. Derkman announced. “Please pull out your vocabulary notebooks and copy down this week’s word list.”
    As Katie opened her notebook, a tightly folded piece of paper landed on her desk. She hoped Mrs. Derkman hadn’t seen that.
    Mrs. Derkman hated it when kids passed notes. Sometimes she even read the notes out loud. That could be very embarrassing.
    But right now, Mrs. Derkman had her back turned to the class. She hadn’t seen a thing. Phew. Katie quickly unfolded the paper.

    The note was from Suzanne. “Why did you say you would be her buddy? We were supposed to play double dutch with Miriam and Zoe today. The new girl is wearing a dress. She can’t jump rope in a dress. All the boys will see her underpants.”
    Katie wasn’t sure what to write back. Suzanne’s note was kind of mean. It wasn’t like Katie had been trying to ruin Suzanne’s recess. She was just trying to help the new girl.
    But Suzanne was one of Katie’s best friends. Katie didn’t want her to be mad. She quickly scribbled back an answer. “Becky’s new. I was just trying to be nice. Maybe we can all do something else instead.”
    Just then, Mrs. Derkman turned to face the class. Katie quickly shoved the paper into her desk.
    “Okay, class, our first vocabulary word is bauble,” Mrs. Derkman said. “Can anyone use it in a sentence?”
    “I got one,” George Brennan shouted out from his seat in the front row. “When I really stink, I take a bauble bath!”
    Everyone started laughing—everyone except Mrs. Derkman, anyway.
    Mrs. Derkman shook her head. “George, that’s not how we behave in class. I don’t want to have to talk to you again,” she warned sternly. The teacher turned to the rest of the class. “A bauble is a small trinket. Now, does anyone else have a sentence?”
    Suzanne raised her hand high.
    “Yes, Suzanne,” Mrs. Derkman said.
    Suzanne sat up straight and smiled as everyone looked at her. “To a princess, an emerald necklace is just a bauble,” she said.
    Katie choked back a laugh. Somehow, Suzanne always found a way to talk about jewelry, makeup, or fashion.
    “Very nice, Suzanne,” Mrs. Derkman said. “Anyone else have a sentence?”
    Becky shyly raised her hand.
    “Okay, Becky,” Mrs. Derkman said.
    “To Queen Elizabeth, a diamond ring is just a bauble,” Becky said in her slow, Southern accent.

    “That’s just like what you said,” Kevin whispered to Suzanne.
    Suzanne didn’t answer him. She just stared at her own bauble—a plastic diamond ring she wore on her finger.
    Katie didn’t like vocabulary very much. She liked reading and history a lot more. Before she knew it, her notebook page was filled with all sorts of doodles. Katie always drew when she got bored.
    It seemed like forever until Mrs. Derkman looked at the clock that hung