Always, Abigail Page 4

  Things to Do Tonight

  1.Practice poms.

  2.Cross fingers AND toes.

  3.Repeat.

  Three Reasons Why I Hate Riding the Bus

  1.AlliCam are really getting on my nerves. I don’t even want to sit with them anymore. This must be what it’s like to have real sisters.

  Besides all the inside jokes, they keep talking about funny stuff that happened in class and then turning to me and saying, “Sorry, Abigail. Guess you had to be there.”

  Or they talk about their e-mail pen pals from Paris, France. Of course, Mr. Blue Eyes, being the cool new teacher that he is, is totally into computers and the Internet for LA assignments. So while I’m stuck writing old-fashioned friendly letters to Gabby Marco of Crestdale Heights, they’re e-mailing two French girls named Brigitte and Colette, who are practically supermodels. (I saw the photos they e-mailed. Both are definitely born for the runway.)

  And I won’t even mention how much they talk about J&M. I’m so sick of them, and I barely even know them. What’s it going to be like when we’re all on poms together?

  2.Jackson Dawber started making fun of Gabby yesterday. He found out that Gabby calls her brother “Paul Bunyan,” so he started calling her Babe the Blue Ox. (I don’t know how he found out about the Paul Bunyan thing. I didn’t tell him, but I think I might’ve mentioned it to AlliCam. I can’t believe they’d tell Jackson, but maybe they did. I felt kind of crummy thinking that I might’ve been the reason Jackson was calling her Babe.)

  While Jackson was being his normal idiotic self, Gabby just sat there in her usual seat in the middle of the bus staring out the window. I did see her close her eyes and take a deep breath, but otherwise, she acted like she couldn’t even hear Jackson singing at the top of his lungs.

  “Old Paul Bunyan had an ox.

  E-I-E-I-O.

  And that old ox was big and blue.

  E-I-E-I-O.

  With a Gabby, Gabby here;

  And a Gabby, Gabby there…”

  I swear that kid is so demented sometimes.

  Why was Jackson such a moron when he really should’ve known better?

  3.The day after the Paul Bunyan thing, when Gabby got on the bus, she pulled something out of a plastic bag. She held it up for me to see. Thankfully, AlliCam were comparing their nail polish color at the time and didn’t notice. It was a shoebox decorated like a hawk. The thing had feathers all over it, a big old hawk head, and a hook beak. She’d made a mailbox for Miss Hendrick and decorated it like a hawk! Was she crazy?

  The Note I Slipped to Gabby before Homeroom

  Dear Gabby,

  Are you nuts? What do you think Old Hawk is going to say when she sees that thing on her desk? You must want to get suspended or something. You better not say I had anything to do with it.

  Abigail

  The Speech Old Hawk Gave Us in LA before She Noticed the Old Hawk Mailbox on Her Desk

  “These spelling papers are astonishingly atrocious, my friends!” she said, shaking a stack of notebook paper at us.

  The papers had so much red ink all over them that they looked like blood-splattered evidence from a crime scene.

  “I have to call a spade a spade here and say that this is simply not sixth-grade work.”

  I knew half the class was thinking, “What the heck does a spade have to do with spelling papers?” The other half was thinking, “What in the world is a spade?”

  Old Hawk went on with her sermon. “Furthermore, I am not accustomed, and will never be accustomed, to accepting this kind of work! Now the burning question of the day is, what are we going to do about this?”

  No one moved a muscle. No one coughed. No one scratched an itch. No one even blinked an eye for fear Old Hawk would think they had an answer to her question.

  I kept thinking if the question were really “burning,” every fire alarm in the whole school would’ve been going off because NO ONE was going to answer Old Hawk.

  The Thing Old Hawk Said When She Noticed Her New Mailbox

  “Good heavens! What on earth is this?”

  The Note Old Hawk Pulled Out of Her New Mailbox

  Dear Miss Hendrick,

  We’ve been having so much fun exchanging friendly letters. We didn’t want you to feel left out, so here’s a mailbox for you. It’s decorated like a hawk because hawks like to sit on perches and watch over things just like you sit on your stool and watch over us while you teach.

  Enjoy your mail!

  Sincerely,

  Spirit of the Sixth-Grade Sky

  The Reason Why Everyone Is Going to Write Letters and Put Them in the Old Hawk Mailbox

  After reading Gabby’s letter, Old Hawk was flying high. She sat on her stool during language arts smiling like a proud peacock fanning her feathers. I didn’t even know she could smile.

  She let us quit our vocabulary practice five minutes early so we could talk quietly with our friends until the bell rang. That’s when I heard kids whispering about writing her nice notes all the time to keep her in a good mood every day.

  Someone said, “Whoever came up with the mailbox idea is a genius.”

  I looked over at Gabby. As usual, she had her head in a book and was laughing to herself in her usual weird way. I wondered what everyone would think if they knew Gabby was the one who had made the mailbox.

  The Reason I Feel Like Throwing Up This Morning

  Pom-pom tryouts are TODAY.

  The Post-it Note I Found on the Bathroom Mirror When I Got Out of the Shower

  Abigail,

  Just do your best, and you’ll knock ’em dead, sweetie!

  ♥

  Mom (& Dad)

  The Reason Why I’m Freaking Out about Pom-Pom Tryouts

  I’m sooooo tired. I lay in bed last night going over and over the pom-pom routine in my mind. The last time I looked at my clock it said 3:17 a.m. When my alarm went off at seven, I felt like I hadn’t slept at all. My brain feels like mushy oatmeal. (And thinking about oatmeal makes me want to throw up even more.) I’m so stressed, I don’t think I can even remember the routine. If I don’t make the pom squad…I’m so freaked out I can’t even think of words to describe how horrific my life will be if I don’t make it.

  Things to Do to Stay Calm Today

  1.Take deep breaths.

  2.Read Post-it note from Mom and Dad.

  3.Repeat.

  The Note Gabby Slipped to Me before Homeroom

  Dear Abigail,

  Miss H is in Old Hawk heaven with that mailbox. She’s too happy to wonder who made it for her, so you don’t have to worry. I think it’ll work out pretty well for the whole class.

  Gabby

  P.S. I know you have pom tryouts today. I don’t get why anyone would want to jump around on a basketball court, shaking fistfuls of colored paper streamers in front of a huge crowd. Especially wearing those short skirts and tight sequined tops, but hey, whatever. Everybody has their thing. I know you really want to make it, so good luck. Shake it like you mean it!

  The Reason Why Gabby Really Bugs Me

  She’s acting like she’s Little Miss I’m-Above-Being-a-Pom-Pom-Girl. I’m sure she’s just jealous because she knows she couldn’t be one if her life depended on it. There’s more chance of Old Hawk being voted students’ favorite teacher than of Gabby making the pom-pom squad.

  Three Good Things about Tryouts/Three Bad Things about Tryouts

  1.We got to do our routine in groups of threes. AlliCam and I got to be a group. ☺

  I could tell by the way the judges smiled at AlliCam that they liked them better than me. ☹

  2.I did my cartwheels and roundoffs perfectly. ☺

  So did everyone else. ☹

  3.The seventh- and eighth-graders who were watching told me I was awesome. ☺

  They told everyone
they were awesome. ☹

  The Reason I Won’t Be Able to Sleep Again Tonight

  Before homeroom tomorrow, the pom-pom squad roster will be posted outside the office.

  The Note I Found on the Kitchen Counter in the Morning, Next to a Chocolate Glazed Doughnut

  Abs,

  Had to leave early this morning.

  Toes and fingers crossed for you today!

  Love you no matter what!

  Dad

  The Roster Posted outside the Office Read

  1.Cami Anderson

  2.Alicia Brenton

  3.Alli Martin

  4.McKenzie Sanford

  5.Jackie Swanson

  6.*Abigail Walters

  Three Reasons I’m Flying Higher Than Old Hawk

  1.I MADE IT!!!!!

  2.AlliCam made it! SISTERS POMS FOREVER!!!

  3.Jackie and McKenzie said that maybe the star by my name means that they’ve chosen me as the sixth-grade captain. Maybe Jackie and McKenzie aren’t as bad as I thought. Now that we’re all on poms together, I bet the five of us will get along great.

  And I can’t believe it! Me! The captain? I couldn’t be more excited if I were going to Hollywood on American Idol.

  Friendly Letter #3 from Me to Gabby

  Dear Gabby,

  Thanks for wishing me luck. I’m sure you’ve heard by now that I made the pom squad. It looks like I might even be the sixth-grade captain. I know you don’t think it’s any big deal, but being a pom-pom girl is one of the greatest accomplishments for a middle school girl. It changes people’s lives. And being the captain is like landing the starring role in a major motion picture. It’s hard to imagine it’s all happening to me.

  Abigail Walters

  Pom-Pom Girl (Waiting to be named captain)

  P.S. Way to go with the mailbox! Old Hawk’s been a dream lately, thanks to you.

  Three Reasons I Love Being a Pom-Pom Girl

  1.Kip Thompson. He said hi to me in the hall. He’s one of THE cutest guys in the entire seventh grade. He’s never even looked at me, let alone talked to me before today, so it HAS to be because of poms.

  2.The secret wave. AlliCam and I spent the entire bus ride coming up with an idea for a secret pom-pom girl wave. Something all us pom girls can do when we pass each other in the hall. The one we decided on is so cute. We salute each other with our right hand and then slide our hand down the side of our head and wave with two fingers. Since I’m going to be the sixth-grade captain, I’m going to suggest the new wave to the eighth-grade captain at our first practice.

  3.Our pom-pom girl uniforms. Tomorrow is our first practice. We get to try on our new uniforms. I know once I put on that skirt and those sequins, my life is never going to be the same.

  Before School the Next Day I Found This Note Taped to My Locker

  Abigail Walters,

  Please come see me in my office before school.

  Coach Jenson

  Three Questions I Have about the Note

  1.Why does the note have yesterday’s date on it?

  2.Does Ms. Jenson want to tell me that I’ve been named sixth-grade captain?

  3.Why does she want to see me before school when our first practice is after school?

  One New Way to Spell “Loser”

  A-L-T-E-R-N-A-T-E

  The Reason Why I Wish There Had Not Been a Star by My Name on the Roster

  The star by my name DOES NOT mean I’m the sixth-grade captain. It means I didn’t really make the squad. It means I’m an ALTERNATE.

  Ms. Jenson explained that, this year, they had decided to cut the sixth-grade squad to five girls so that they could add more girls to the eighth-grade squad. “We think it’s important to give the eighth-graders more opportunities since it’s their last year of middle school,” Ms. Jenson said.

  More opportunities for eighth-graders? What? Everyone knew that sixth-graders were the ones who needed more opportunities. We were the ones struggling to survive middle school for the very first time in our lives.

  Ms. Jenson went on to explain that being an alternate meant that if someone couldn’t fulfill their commitment to the squad (she should’ve said fulfill their dream of a lifetime) then I would get to take their place. All I could think was that being an alternate for a pom-pom girl at Crestdale Heights was like being an alternate for someone who wins the lottery.

  “Oh, I’m sorry, I really don’t want this million dollars. You take it instead. I hate spending money, so go ahead and have it.”

  Being an alternate meant NEVER being a pom-pom girl.

  Ms. Jenson blabbed on and on about how she had wanted to tell me this yesterday and that she didn’t know why I didn’t get the note until today. While she talked, I thought about how instead of “alternate” she should’ve just said if there’s a star by your name, it means “you have no chance of being popular” and “forget about Kip Thompson ever talking to you again.”

  Ten Reasons I Wish I Were Someone Else

  1.I am NOT a pom-pom girl.

  2.Ditto

  3.Ditto

  4.Ditto

  5.Ditto

  6.Ditto

  7.Ditto

  8.Ditto

  9.Ditto

  10.Ditto

  Three Things I Did after Talking to Ms. Jenson

  1.I went to find AlliCam.

  2.I took them into the bathroom.

  3.I said, “I’m not a pom-pom girl. I’m an alternate.” Then I bawled my eyes out. Neither of them knew what to do. Somehow that made me feel worse.

  The Thing I Thought About during First Period While I Hid My Blotchy Face and Red Eyes behind My Reading Book

  What about SPF? Without the “P” would there be an “S” and “F”?

  Questions I Thought About Later in the Day

  Would I be in the pom squad yearbook photo listed as an alternate? Or would I not be in it at all? I didn’t know which one was worse.

  Three Reasons I’m Going to Have to Get a New Life

  1.Today AlliCam stayed after school for their first pom-pom practice, so I had to sit alone on the bus.

  2.Gabby kept looking up from the book she had her head buried in to stare at me. She better not even think about trying to sit with me just because AlliCam aren’t around. I have enough problems without being associated with her freakishness.

  3.After school I watched TV Land reruns and ate ten 100-calorie snack bags—three Oreos, four Cheese Nips, and three Lorna Doones. If I kept this up, everyone might start calling me “Flabby Abby.”

  One Thing My Mom Did

  Let me eat dinner in my room.

  One Thing My Dad Did

  Brought me my dessert.

  One Thing My Brother Did

  Opened my bedroom door, stuck his head in, and said, “They don’t know what they’re missin’.”

  One Thing I Did

  Cried even harder because even though they all were being so nice to me, it didn’t make me feel any better.

  The Reason I May Have to Switch Schools

  AlliCam taught the whole pom-pom squad the secret wave (which was my idea). Every time I go into the hall, I see them saluting and wiggling their fingers at each other. How could something I thought was so cute yesterday make me want to cry so hard today?

  The Note Miss Hendrick Pulled Out of Her Old Hawk Mailbox Today

  Roses are red

  Violets are blue

  The kids in 6H

  Are glad we got YOU!

  The Reason Why Everyone Knew the Note Was from Jackson Dawber

  No one else would write something so stupid.

  Three Reasons Why Everyone Thinks Jackson’s Stupid Poem Is Genius

  1.Old Hawk let us work in groups today for spelling, and we got to pick our own groups.

&n
bsp; 2.She shortened our homework assignment from ten questions to five.

  3.She ended language arts ten minutes early so she could start reading Tuck Everlasting.

  Three Reasons Why Even Old Hawk’s Good Mood Didn’t Cheer Me Up

  1.Being able to choose my own group didn’t do me any good since AlliCam aren’t in my class. I ended up working with Jeannie and Marcy, but that just made me feel like a “pom-pom girl loser” because they tried out and didn’t make it either.

  2.Having less homework just meant I’d have more time after school to watch reruns and eat junk food. Not that I like homework or anything. I’m not that much of a geek—not yet anyway, but I already didn’t have enough to do after school.

  3.I couldn’t enjoy Tuck Everlasting because right before Old Hawk started reading it, a note came for me from the office.