Free Fabulous Five 032 - Class Trip Calamity by Betsy Haynes Page A

carefully around the
mess on the stairs. And when Jana stepped into the crown and looked out one of
the openings, the sight was so beautiful that she temporarily forgot all about
Laura McCall.
    "Look," she said to the others, "there's the
Verrazano Bridge, connecting Staten Island and Brooklyn. Beyond it is the
Atlantic Ocean. That's the way all the immigrants' boats came in."
    "Yeah, the boats from England definitely came that way,"
murmured Melanie.
    She and Jana stared silently at each other for a moment.
    "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Jana asked.
    Melanie nodded, and they said in unison, "Christie."
    "I really miss her," said Melanie.
    "Me, too," Jana told her. "I wish she was
with us right now."
    "Don't forget, she's coming home this summer,"
said Katie, who was standing beside Melanie. "And one of the first things
she'll see when her plane gets to America is the Statue of Liberty!"
    "Yea!" they all shouted.
    "Hey, maybe she'll have to stop at Ellis Island,"
teased Beth, "and she'll be dressed like an immigrant and carry all her
stuff in a big wicker basket. I can see it all now. Her tennis racquet will be
poking out the top of the basket."
    Jana shook her head and grinned. "There you go again,
Beth, getting totally carried away."
    Because of the size of the crowd, they had to move quickly
through the crown and down again.
    "It went fast, but it was still fun," said Katie
as they sat down on the grass outside the Statue to rest.
    "Yeah, I loved it, too," added Beth. "Even if
Laura almost spoiled it by throwing up."
    The girls nodded and exchanged glances, and then Katie
nudged Jana. "Uh-oh," she said, looking sharply to the left. "Randy's
motioning to me to get your attention."
    Jana whirled around. Randy was standing beside one of the
picnic tables. He was alone, and he smiled when she looked at him.
    "Hi, Jana. Can I talk to you?"
    She stared silently at him for a moment. Part of her was
really mad at him for spending so much time with Laura. Another part of her was
hurt and disappointed that they hadn't spent the day with each other the way
they had planned. But the biggest part of her still cared about him too much
not to listen to his side of the story, so she excused herself from the others
and went to him.

CHAPTER 14
    "You're mad, aren't you?" Randy asked in a quiet
voice.
    Jana sighed and answered him as honestly as she could. "I
don't want to be, but I guess I am . . . a little bit."
    Randy nodded that he understood. "I guess I don't blame
you. I know we planned to be together today."
    "Yeah," Jana said wistfully, "it was supposed
to be a pretty special day."
    Randy shifted from one foot to the other. "And I
wrecked it by spending so much time with Laura."
    All Jana could do was nod.
    "I'm not sure I understand everything that's going on
myself," Randy began. "Laura's been acting pretty obnoxious in some
of our classes lately. I guess she could tell I didn't like it because she's
also been hanging around a lot as if she wants to talk about something. Maybe
explain. Or apologize. I don't know, but when I try to pin her down and find
out what's bothering her, she clams up."
    "But didn't you tell me yesterday that you've tried to
give her a little friendly advice?" Jana reminded him.
    Randy looked sheepish. "Yeah, she was yelling at Funny
in front of everyone in the hall a couple of days ago, and I told her I thought
she ought to cool it. Naturally she didn't listen."
    "I know she thinks you're an especially nice person.
Everybody does. And I also know this isn't the first time she's come to you for
help. But what I can't figure out is why is she making such a big deal over
drinking?" Jana insisted.
    Randy sighed. "I don't know for sure, but from little
things she's said about her life at home, my guess is that she and her dad are
having problems. She acts pretty miserable and I think that she's trying to get
attention. Actually I think she's desperate to get everybody to notice her."
    Jana was thoughtful