no grown ups

No Grown ups by Amanda Stogsdill

The lunchroom is crowded and noisy. I dodge around kids fighting over seats, a food fight among the high schoolers, until I spot an empty table in a quiet corner. Finally! Plopping my lunchbox down, I toss my backpack on to the floor beside me. "May I join you?" Lena asks. I nod, she scoots on to the opposite bench.

"Want to trade?" After swapping our lunches, we get down to business. "We must surprise her before school lets out." I say enthusiastically.

Lena nods in agreement, chewing a nectarine. Why Mom packs those, I never know.

"Where?" I ask. "In front of the whole school?"

Shaking her head, Lena mentions Fun Day, nearly two weeks away. Our class has a break from assignments; we play games and watch movies. When some of our fifth grade class joins us, our discussion becomes lively. "Quiet." Lena hisses, "No one must know."

"Yeah, yeah. Keep your shirt on." Willie says, "My lips are sealed." James, Marty, and Gladyss also make the universal sign for zipping their lips.

"Have you finished your project?" Marty asks, mouth full of hamburger.

"That's so gross!" Anna wrinkles her nose, "And yes, Beth and I finished ours." They would! Being best friends since forever, they're always on time with assignments, and have always been inseparable.

"Come over to my house!" I whisper during gym, "Let me get permission first. Mom and Roger should be out."

Roger's my fourteen-year-old brother. He's a real pain, always playing loud music, never picking up his clothes, and arguing with Mom about everything. He really wants his liscense. Sthing about wanting to pick up a girl named Tammy. They can't date until he follows Mom's rules. Like having a curfew.

After getting permission from Mom, I give everyone the okay the next morning. We work on the posters all afternoon, using every colored marker and colorful paint I own. They look really cool, I hope she appreciates them. Marty is an artist; he painted a beach scene with a mermaid on a rock, shells, and beautiful seagulls swooping over the blue waves.

After our snack, we began planning the menu. There's some disagreement about what she likes, so we move on to the music. "Mr. Woodson said she likes Elton John and Madonna." Gladyss frowns, "Who are they?"

"They were mom's generation!" Roger laughs from the doorway, "Awesome posters!"

We freeze like statues. Lena's hand is suspended in midair, the pencil dangling from her fingers. Roger stands there, hands on his chest, smiling. "Don't worry. Your little secret's safe with me!"

Way to go, Roger! We breathe sighs of relief. He'd better keep it! I frown.

On the bus Marty and I begin by discussing the party, but stop because kids might overhear. Then, we switch to our vacations. He's spending the summer with relatives. Big bummer! That means I'm stuck with Roger, or our boring neighbor! I swear, she hates kids! No games or cookies. Just old movies, she expects me to stay in my room which wouldn't be so bad if I had a TV. Seriously, I'm not even allowed outside!

In front of us, two seventh graders have eavesdropped. "What are you kids talking about?" One of them turns around, poking me.

"Nothing." I reply, hoping the kid hadn't figured out the surprise.

After lunch count, Ms. Clark gives us time for projects. We're all growing flowers or other plants. With partners, we water them, and check their growth. Some of the flowers have wilted, others have bloomed. Gladyss and I are pleased ours are blooming. Ms. Clark walks around, checking on our projects. "Remember, your presentations are due by the end of this week." She reminds us. Gladyss and I swap grins, that's not all she'll get from us! Other kids groan. "Spelling and grammar count. Do multiple drafts if you need to." She continues, ignoring the groans.

After music, we have our math test. I have more right answers than wrong even though fractions are so difficult. Across the aisle, I see Anna and Beth comparing answers. I bet they got a perfect score!

It's Friday, everyone's dreading giving their reports. Gladyss and I read over our report one last time, checking for mistakes. We think it's pretty good, but Ms. Clark will decide that.

During lunch, a bunch of us attempt to figure out a distraction plan. "I could bring my pet hampster!" Jenny smiles, "He could accidentally run around in class!"

"That won't work. She'll just ask one of us to put it back." James rolls his eyes.

"No. She'll get the janitor to clean up the mess." Jenny insists. "Once she's out of the room, then ..." Jenny beams.

"I could set off a firecracker." Bryan grins, "Or a stinkbomb." His dad owns our local fireworks store. We all shoot down that idea, pointing out the dangers of fireworks.

After lunch, we give our reports. I can tell some of us haven't practiced, others rush through. They're probably nervous. When our turn comes, Gladyss and I each hold our container of flowers and read our report. My palms are sweaty, I'm nervous too. I've never liked class presentations.

 On the phone with Bryan that night, we try to come up with more ideas. Our ideas fall flat, each worse than the last. Next, Beth calls to say she and Anna have a plan, to bring a mouse! That's almost as terrible as the hampster idea!

"Who have you been talking to?" Mom glares from the doorway, "It's past nine."

"School stuff." Please, let it go! I silently plead.

"Seems like too many calls for a school night. Don't be too much longer." Mom remarks, before disappearing upstairs.

Tuesday, and we still haven't come up with a plan to distract Ms. Clark. In desperation, I use plan B, Roger! "What do you want?" He growls, headphones clamped over his ears. I knock hesitantly; he and Mom had been arguing, as usual.

"I need your help! Could you please distract Ms. Clark on Friday? Our class has a secret."

"It wouldn't have anything to do with those posters, would it?" He smirks, "Some secret."

"You promised you wouldn't tell!" I plead.

"What's in it for me?" He sits up, shirt sticking to him, eyes bright and eager.

"I'll do your chores." I cross my fingers.

"Not good enough. Keep talking."

"You can borrow my comic books!" I suggest hopefully. He shakes his head after several more suggestions, returning his headphones to his ears. "Come back when you have something good." He says smugly.

"What can I do?" I ask everyone at recess. "Time's running out." We're huddled by the bike racks, the only place we have privacy. I hope.

"I've asked Roger. I tried persuading him to do something for us."

"Why him?" Danny looks skeptical, "He hates you."

"He saw our work." Marty explains, "He promised he'd keep our secret."

"He's in class with my sister." Anna smiles, "Let me see what she can do."

That night, after another round of phone calls, I knock on Roger's door. "If you will distract Ms. Clark on Friday, Tammy will go on a date with you." Another finger cross.

"Who told you about that?" He glares.

"I've heard you and Mom. Also, Anna's her sister." I add hastily, seeing his scowl. "I'll cover for you." I wink.

"How should I distract her?" He frowns.

"You could say your teacher needs her. Your classroom's on the second floor, right? By the time she returns, everything will be ready." It's not the best plan in the world, but it's all I can think of.

"Fine. I'll do it. Tell Anna I'll call her sister." He smiles, looking happier than I've seen him in days.

Other preparations are less challenging. Lena's sister will take some kids to purchase the food. James can sneak in his boom box. With just days to go, everyone's on edge.

Finally, our big day arrives. In the morning, we play Pictionary and Hangman on the board. Ms. Clark brings in popcorn for our movie, Jack.

By now, I'm sure most of the students know about our plan. "Did you do it?" Some ninth graders ask in the lunch line. Bryan tells them it'll happen this afternoon.

We're just finishing Jack, when there's a knock on Ms. Clark's door. "Class, I have to help another student. Can you behave for a few minutes? Mr. Lee's next door." She warns. He's the other fifth grade teacher. We nod, then watch her leave. Marty gives us the thumbs-up once she's out of sight, and we set to work. The posters are taped up, snacks are set up on the now-clear science table, James cranks up his boom box. "Surprise!" We yell, seeing Ms. Clark in the doorway.

"Wow!" She cries, eyes wide. "What's all this?" She gazes at our decorations, not quite believing we pulled this off.

"A going-away party for you." Bryan says. Lena hands her the going-away card.

"Thanks you guys!" She actually has tears in her eyes.

"Who will take your place?" I ask.

"My sister will have the new teacher." Karen adds.

"Not sure. I hope it's somebody who loves teaching. Whoever it is, I'm sure they'll be great. Your sister should be fine."

On the bus that afternoon, we eagerly plan our summer vacations. I'm glad I'm not the only one staying here. Sleepovers in Bryan's tree house, swimming in a pool, plus Fourth of July fireworks! With luck, I won’t be bored.

The End