OK, so another day has gone by and nobody's coming forward to claim responsibility for the attack on the Lochland Middle School cafeteria and the students and teachers who got sick as a result of that attack. Why isn't anyone talking or coming forward to confess their part in this terrible crime? I don't know; maybe it's because people are stupid and don't care that they placed the lives of many students and teachers in danger. Or maybe it's because someone is protecting the person who did the crime. It doesn't matter, as Joanna and her foster father, Javier, are questioning everyone at the school about what they knew about the incident.
So far, no one's talking.
To make things worse, The Discriminator featured an article about the food poisoning in the front page of the newspaper, only to twist it around and claim that a student pissed that Claire's tormentors were denied the right to graduate with their class as punishment decided to hit back at the school in revenge for those students. (Now you know that that story's not real. In fact, I did tell you that EVERYONE in Lochland Middle School was pleased to know that those evil students got exactly what they deserved. Shows you how much people are willing to tolerate in terms of treating disabled people. Also, twisting the story is the best way to lose someone's trust.)
Anyway, with that article being released in the school's newspapers, Joanna immediately sprang into action. Her brothers, Toby and Orlando, came to the school to help weed out the poisoner. (Sometimes, The Discriminator can go overboard with its reporting.) I wish I could feel sorry for the person they caught, as that person is going to get what they deserve.
Putting that aside, Declan still hasn't returned to school. I began to wonder what's going on, as the guy never misses a day of school. Did his parents use the food poisoning as an excuse to have him removed from the school? Was he sent to Clatskanie Middle/High School? Or (to make things worse) was he sent to a mental hospital for being too old for middle school?
Well, I guess I need to tell my imagination to shut up, as it always tends to run away from me when things get tough.
Anyway, as the school day progresses, I look around the cafeteria and saw that most of the students had gone back to the classic PB&J with potato chips, a cup of applesauce, and a carton of orange juice. Because that's all the cafeteria staff was allowed to serve for the rest of the year (until we find out who poisoned the food, of course!) Jem didn't gloat at the students as usual, not when she and I had to make the same lunch at home.
I sit with Clayton and Milton at our usual spot (which is the only table by the cafeteria window). As we're eating our lunch, the conversation between us is as follows:
Milton: I heard you guys got sick last week.
Jed: Yeah. It wasn't any fun.
Clayton: You should talk, Jed. After all, you were among the first people to go down.
Jed: Really?
Milton: How did that happen?
Clayton: Stupid school rules, of course. Why are people always trying to change the rules?
Jed: Who knows?
(At this point, Claire and the twins show up and Claire sits next to me.)
Claire: You guys didn't hear anything from Declan Caesar, or did you?
Milton: That punk is still here? I thought he moved away last summer.
Claire: No, that was David Castle, the math genius who's now attending classes at UCLA. I'm talking about Declan, who's still here, unfortunately. Have any of you heard from him?
Clayton: Nope. I haven't seen him since last Thursday, when he went home sick during gym class.
Claire: Such a shame, too. That guy still owes me for that stupid thing Aaron did last year.
Milton: For shame, right? I never liked the guy.
Jed: Me neither.
Clayton: Well, if he doesn't come back tomorrow, it'll be a miracle.
Judging by that conversation, I shall say that nobody at Lochland Middle School liked Declan and often got on his case regarding his age. It wasn't like he had a mental illness; he didn't want to grow up like the other kids his age. I mean, what a jerk!
Then again, nobody forgave him for his involvement in that incident last year. (You should know what I'm saying.)
Anyway, with the month of March being halfway over, I'm looking over the list of events that happened to me so far:
1. I turned 13 years old.
2. I meet Claire Evans and expose the people keeping her prisoner.
3. I deal with Adrian and Dorian Johanssen.
4. Barbara beats up Milton.
5. I have my bar mitzvah.
6. I woke up with a 105-degree fever, an upset stomach, and a migraine.
7. At the same time, I had a fight with Jem about me being a boy.
8. Barbara yells at me because I chose to be friends with Milton and not her.
9. I also scolded Jem for destroying my room.
10. I found out that Milton's parents are taking him out of Lochland Middle School.
Well, time for me to add to this list:
11. I discover that Adrian and Dorian Johanssen have become estranged from their parents.
12. I meet Joanna Norwood in the library.
13. I got detention for refusing to attend the End of February school dance.
14. The entire eighth grade class is punished for causing trouble.
15. The school issues some controversial new rules.
16. I got sick and was sent home.
17. I missed an entire week of school. Plus, almost everyone went home sick, mainly because of the cafeteria food.
OK, I'm going to stop right there, as this is more than what I needed to know.
Anyway, with the school on edge and the eighth graders being punished, I knew I couldn't afford to make any more mistakes. I needed to keep my head down and stick to doing my schoolwork, lest I turn into another Reginald, who's attending a school so bad, Clatskanie looks like a walk in the park. Reggie would be lucky if he managed to graduate, let alone get good grades. (Guess the people there don't care about how the kids are doing.)
But there was also Joanna Norwood; she was really starting to get under my skin. I mean, who does she think she is? Now I know she's rich and knows many people, so why should she bother with a 13-year-old boy like me?
Something has to give.
ns 15.158.61.12da2
