Off the Wall Read online

  “Rowwwwwroooooo!” Phin howled. He was in the backseat, jumping around, his little pink tongue darting in and out. He loved car rides more than anything.

  Sometimes Dad “baby-sat” when Mom had to work late. It didn’t happen often, but when it did, Madison usually felt a little tossed around. She understood why Mom didn’t like leaving Madison alone in the house all evening, but she didn’t know why Dad’s place had to be the automatic destination.

  Madison slung her orange bag over her shoulder and climbed into Dad’s car. They pulled in to his apartment parking lot moments later.

  Upstairs, while Dad prepared pasta dinner, Madison sat in the living room, trying to finish up her book report that was due the next day. Phin played with a stuffed bear on the floor. He’d chewed the eyes and nose and was now working on the fuzzy ears.

  “Maddie, I meant to ask you, how was that math test you had last week?” Dad asked.

  “I’m not doing so good in math right now,” Madison said.

  “What?” Dad said, wandering into the living room with a spatula in his hand. “But you’re my math superstar!” he cried. “You’ve always been an A student in math.”

  “Sometimes,” Madison said. “I’ve been having some trouble these days. Just a little. Nothing to worry about.”

  “Spending too much time on the computer and not enough time finishing up your homework?” Dad asked, tentatively.

  “NO!” Madison barked. “I only go on the computer for good reasons. Like my files, which are my journal, basically. I mean, you and Mom always said it would be good to keep a diary, right? And I do homework, like this book report. … You know I don’t spend too much time on the computer, Dad. And besides, you’re always on the—”

  “Madison!” Dad’s tone got sharp. “Computers are my business!”

  “Okay, but what’s your point?” Madison said.

  “Your mother says you’ve been logging on to some website and chatting a lot,” Dad said, squinting a bit, as if he were looking for a little more information than Madison was supplying.

  “TweenBlurt.com, yeah,” Madison said. “You know that site, Dad. I’ve showed you a zillion times. It’s where I get my e-mail. Of course, I have to log on to that site. And sometimes I chat with Aimee and Fiona and check out the other new sites. … ”

  “Okay, okay,” Dad said, waving his spatula in the air. “But do your homework first, right? I don’t like hearing about your having trouble in math. … ”

  “Yes, Dad, I do my work first,” Madison said, eking out a little grin.

  Dad grinned back and returned to his simmering pasta sauce.

  Madison turned back to the laptop screen and stared at the title of her book report. It had only one paragraph following it, and she had to fill four more pages—at least. She closed her eyes and tried to think of words to write.

  A few moments later, however, Madison wasn’t thinking about the book report at all. She found herself hitting INTERNET CONNECTION on her desktop. Dad was busy in the kitchen, so he didn’t hear when the computer whizzed and the Wall home page came clanking onto the screen. Madison followed the prompts directly to the hot topic of gossip and the subtopic “Friends-n-enemies.” She reread the post that Lindsay and Fiona had shown her in the school yard that day.

  “Excuse me. What’s that?” Dad said.

  Madison jumped.

  “Homework, huh?” Dad shook his head. “That’s some interesting-looking book report, hmmm?”

  Madison didn’t know what to say. She didn’t even hit the sleep screen on her monitor. She just stared up at Dad, dumbfounded.

  “What does that text say? ‘Fat camp’?” Dad said, looking at the screen. “‘Looks like she should be in first grade LOSER’”? What is this? This isn’t an e-mail from one of your friends, is it?”

  Madison squirmed. “Oh, no, of course not. It’s a new bulletin board. Kids post stuff on it. Gossip and stuff. I don’t have any idea who wrote this.”

  “This webpage doesn’t sound like you, Madison. Where’s the website monitor? Aren’t they supposed to keep an eye on what’s posted on these bulletin boards?” Dad asked.

  “Well, this is an unusual post, Dad. It’s not like most of them, which are nice and fun,” Madison said. She was taken aback by Dad’s serious shift in tone.

  “Are you defending this kind of talk?” Dad asked. “What else are kids posting here? Does your mother know that the site says these things?”

  “Dad, it’s not like someone’s naming real names or anything. This could be anyone,” Madison said. She couldn’t believe she was defending the negative message that had hurt her friend Lindsay so badly only hours before.

  “Let me see this,” Dad said, bending over Madison’s laptop. She leaned back and let him scroll around. To her relief, he clicked “Sports” and “School” next. There he found a bunch of lame postings about hockey and homework.

  “See?” Madison said. “It’s not that bad. I told you.”

  “Hmmm, maybe not,” Dad said. “I suppose the website has policies about what can be posted.”

  “Of course!” Madison said. “Most postings are nice. Kids don’t want to be mean, right?”

  “I don’t know about that,” Dad said, even more serious than before. “I think kids can be very mean.”

  Madison tried changing the subject a little bit. “Do you think boys or girls are meaner?” she asked.

  Dad chuckled. “You want me to say boys are meaner. But, you know what? I think it has to be girls.”

  “Daaaaaad!” Madison moaned.

  “Seriously, Madison. There was this girl in my seventh-grade class who I remember tortured me.”

  “Tortured?” Madison asked.

  “You bet,” Dad said. “Even I was picked on at school.”

  “Wow,” Madison said.

  “I know you think the website isn’t a big deal, but I’m concerned. This is serious. I’m going to speak to your mother about this.”

  “Mom? No! Do you have to?” Madison said.

  “Of course I do,” Dad said, his voice unwavering.

  Madison sighed. “Okay, I guess it is a big deal. Fine. I’ll act more serious about it from now on,” she said.

  Dad smiled. “Well, don’t get too heavy on me,” he joked. “Why don’t you log off for now and come eat?”

  Madison took a deep breath. The apartment smelled like tomatoes and basil and cream and garlic. Her belly rumbled like a volcano.

  “Do you want salad?” Dad called from the kitchen, where he was finishing up making dinner.

  “Sure,” Madison said, shutting down her laptop and heading into the kitchen.

  Phin jumped up onto one of the chairs and panted for a treat of his own.

  Madison broke a bread stick in half and shared it with him.

  “I’m really sorry about the website,” Madison said as Dad put a steaming plate of penne pasta in front of her. “You’re right. I will be more careful on The Wall. I’ll be more careful everywhere.”

  “I hope so,” Dad replied, in a serious voice. “The Internet can be a great place for information and communication. But you need to watch yourself. I don’t like the tone on that site. … ”

  “Okay, okay, Dad, no more lectures,” Madison said. “Please?”

  “By the way, Maddie … I can help you with the book report after dinner if you want,” Dad added with a wink.

  “You can?” Madison cried. “You’re the best.”

  “You only say that because I’m the one feeding you,” Dad cracked.

  Madison smiled and grabbed another bread stick.

  Chapter 7

  ON WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON, MADISON hid in the corner carrel of the library, putting the finishing touches on her book report. Dad had been a huge help. Madison had nothing more to do than proofread the pages and print the report out for delivery to Mr. Gibbons at the end of the day.

  She popped her flash drive into a computer station in the media center of the library
and did a spell check on the document. Everything looked good. Then she sent the document to the big printer in the librarian’s office.

  While she waited for it to print, Madison opened up a file she’d been working on that morning. She was continuing her new file in honor of Mrs. Wing’s new baby—and had included a VID (very important document) that had been sent to her personally by Mrs. Wing. Well, everyone in class had gotten a copy, but Madison liked to think hers had been a private note.

  Mrs. Wing

  Update on the baby: Mrs. Wing made contact!!! She sent all of the kids in her special technology lab a group note (I scanned my copy in here). I think she misses us as much as we miss her.

  Greetings to all my computer students!

  As you know, my family has a beautiful new addition. My husband and I adopted a baby girl last week. Her name is Phoebe Kim Wing and she’s now four months old and as bright as a beam. We couldn’t be happier.

  I will be out of school for several weeks while we all get used to each other. But I wanted to check in and make sure that you are continuing your computer work, especially work on the school website.

  I’ve spoken with Principal Bernard, who has made arrangements for the substitute, Mr. Franks, to help with the update on the site. Starting Friday, November 10, you’ll resume your after-school meetings. Please, everyone, show him that you’re working hard. Come to the first meeting on time. It will start after three o’clock, which gives you time to sort your stuff after the last bell. He will help you set up new pages and updates.

  And I’ll be back very soon—I promise.

  Missing you,

  Mrs. Wing

  Madison hit SAVE after pasting in the scan of Mrs. Wing’s letter. She was just about to walk into Mr. Books’s office (Mr. Books was the school librarian) to check on her book report printout when someone came up from behind and tapped Madison on the shoulder.

  Madison turned around, half expecting it to be Egg or even Dan, goofing on her while she was busy working.

  But instead, she came face to face with Fiona.

  “Hey, I was looking for you. I need to talk to you!” Fiona whispered.

  Madison wrinkled her eyebrows. “Why are you whispering?” she asked.

  “I have a secret,” Fiona gushed. “And it’s a BIG secret.”

  “Define big,” Madison teased.

  Fiona punched her gently on the shoulder. “Come over here, and I’ll tell you,” she said, dragging Madison out from the seat near the computer toward two rows of bookshelves in the back of the library.

  The two BFFs collapsed onto the floor in the non-fiction section, between G and P, where no one could hear them.

  “Okay, so he finally, really asked me,” Fiona said. Her eyes twinkled.

  “Asked you? What? Who?” Madison asked.

  “Egg! He asked me out. For real,” Fiona said.

  Madison gasped a little. “He asked you out? He said those exact words?”

  Fiona nodded, giggling. “He wants to go to the movies next week. Can you believe it? I know we’re sort of a ‘couple,’ but this really makes a difference. He said his sister, Mariah, will take us, so I know our moms will agree to the date, because we’ll have a chaperone.”

  “Wow,” Madison said. “I can’t believe it.”

  “He just asked me, over by the lockers.”

  “Double wow,” Madison replied. “He asked you right here in school?”

  Fiona nodded, grinning from ear to ear. “Maddie, I really, really like him so much. And the deal is that Mariah told him that when we get to the movies, she might just let us sit alone anyway. Isn’t that cool? I have butterflies in my stomach—I’m so nervous and excited at the same time. It’ll be like going to the movies alone together, don’t you think? What do you think will happen?”

  Madison sat back, nestled in between the two bookshelves, and took a deep breath of stale library air. It smelled like old books there. Fiona’s news actually made her dizzy.

  “It’ll be like going alone on a real date,” Madison said. “Lucky you.”

  Fiona bowed her head. “Are you okay with all this? Because I know you and Aim have always had this thing where you felt weird about me and Egg liking each other. … ”

  “No, I’m really happy for you, Fiona. Does Aimee know?”

  Fiona shook her head. “Not yet. She’s meeting with a teacher right now. You’re the only person on the planet I’ve told. You can’t tell anyone else.”

  Madison crossed her heart. “I won’t tell a soul. I swear.”

  “Oh, it’s almost time for the next class. I just couldn’t wait to tell you. I was ready to explode!” Fiona said, standing up and grabbing her book bag. “I’ll e- you later, okay?”

  “Later,” Madison said, waving good-bye. She was slower to get up off the floor and grab her stuff.

  Brrrrrring.

  The class bell rang. It echoed in the library. Madison smoothed out her pants and tugged at her woolly sweater. She felt warm, so she stopped to pull it off and tie it around her waist.

  “So you’re here, too, huh?” said a voice from behind Madison as she stood readjusting her clothes. Poison Ivy snapped her gum.

  “Oh, hello, Ivy,” Madison said coldly. She turned to walk away, but Ivy stood directly in her path.

  “On the way to science class?” Ivy asked.

  Madison rolled her eyes. “Yes, aren’t you?”

  “Of course I am. But I need to borrow your notes before class. I didn’t have a chance to finish one of my labs,” Ivy said.

  “Ha!” Madison laughed out loud. “Sure, you didn’t.”

  “Excuse me?” Ivy snarled.

  “I bet you didn’t even start the stupid lab assignment,” Madison said.

  Ivy looked a little flustered. “What’s your problem? You’re my partner. You’re supposed to help me.”

  “No, we were supposed to work together,” Madison said.

  “That’s what I’m talking about,” Ivy said. “Are you deaf?”

  “No, I’m not deaf,” Madison said calmly. She was enjoying watching Ivy get all worked up. Usually, Ivy was the better bully, but Madison liked those rare moments when she felt in control.

  “You obviously don’t know the meaning of the word homework, Ivy,” Madison said. “It means you actually have to do work, at home.”

  “Well, YOU obviously don’t understand what it means to be partners, Madison,” Ivy whined. “It means that occasionally you show me your notes. I would do the exact same for you.”

  “Yeah,” Madison mumbled. “If you ever took notes.”

  Ivy’s jaw dropped. “Excuse me?”

  “Look, Ivy, I have to go,” Madison said. “Why don’t you just ask Mr. Danehy for help?”

  “Whatever!” Ivy fumed. She turned on her heel and walked away.

  Madison slung her orange bag over one shoulder and watched Ivy disappear through the library doors. Then Madison followed, at a safe distance, so she wouldn’t have to encounter Ivy again until they were safely inside Mr. Danehy’s science classroom.

  Unfortunately, the girls’ lab seats were right next to each other. It was pure torture; it was sitting in the lap of the enemy, Madison thought. Worst of all, Ivy and her drones whispered all during class and Madison just knew they were gossiping about her. At one point, they passed a note over to Hart and he laughed out loud.

  Madison hoped the note didn’t say something bad about her. She hated to think of Hart laughing at her expense—right in front of her!

  When the final bell rang at the end of the school day, Madison was eager to get out of the building and away from Ivy. Aimee was still in her dance class and Fiona had indoor soccer, so Madison considered walking a little bit of the way with Egg. She didn’t want to head home alone again. But walking with Egg was tricky. What if Madison were to let it slip out that she knew the real deal about Fiona and the movies?

  The air outside was crisp—a real November day. Madison walked home alone
quickly. Mom’s late afternoon meeting was bound to run even later, so Madison was responsible not only for walking the dog when she got home but also for getting the food out for dinner.

  She heard Phinnie scratching at the door and the floor, panting fast as she walked up the porch steps. He knew she was coming.

  “Helloooo, Phinnie!” Madison called, fumbling for her house key. She kept the key tied to a string that she knotted inside her orange bag. It rattled in the lock and Phin let out one long “Rowrroooooooooooooo!”

  He practically knocked her over as he jumped up to say hello.

  Madison grabbed the worn leather leash and attached it to Phin’s collar. She made a loop around the neighborhood, passing Aimee’s house first and then turning onto Ridge Road, which passed Fiona’s house. Madison giggled to herself as she thought about Fiona’s upcoming “date” with Egg. She imagined him buying Fiona’s ticket, saying nice things, and then reaching out in the darkness of the theater to hold her hand. …

  Ewwwwww!

  Madison shook off the thought immediately. No matter what, she couldn’t imagine Egg romantically—in any context, especially not with her BFF.

  Some thoughts were just off-limits. This was one of them.

  Phin soon seemed eager to head back home, so they hustled back. The streets weren’t busy this afternoon. Madison passed people racing home from work and walking their dogs, too, but since it was cold outside, she didn’t see too many kids playing or riding bikes. As she approached the Finn house, she waved to a neighbor out fixing a shingle on the side of his blue house.

  By the end of the walk, Phin’s paws were cold. He raced back up the steps quickly, pulling Madison behind him.

  Once inside, she dumped her coat in the hallway and turned on the radio. Helping get dinner ready required good music. Madison flicked on the Top 40 station and listened for Jimmy J and the Dudes, one of her favorite bands. They didn’t come on after three songs, so she turned the radio back off.

  Mom had left a note with detailed instructions on what to prepare. Madison needed to chop lettuce and tomatoes for the salad. She needed to turn over the chicken that had been marinating all afternoon. She also needed to shuck some corn. Even though it was out of season, Mom had found some salt-and-sugar corn, the yellow-and-white-mixed kind that always tasted so sweet in the summertime. It was nice to have it for a treat on a cold day. Madison hated peeling “hair” off corn, but she’d do it anyway.