In the cafeteria, shortly after arriving, Skye cracked one of her jokes that made the girls laugh. They were so wrapped around the joke that they almost didn't notice Madeline coming in. With an angry look, Madeline slammed her lunch bag on the table and quickly sat between Debra and Andrea. The laughter cut short once the girls heard the slam and looked at the madness written all over Madeline's face.
"What's wrong with you?" asked Skye.
"I'm angry!" Madeline popped her head forward.
"Glad I asked," Skye said with a poker face.
"Why are you angry?" asked Lizzie.
"Because my calculus teacher failed me," answered Madeline.
"Why?" Andrea asked.
"Because she's mean!"
"You've never failed anything before," commented Debra.
"You don't think I know that?"
"I'm sorry, Maddie," said Lizzie.
"Oh, 'sorry' won't change the D on my test."
"Dang."
"You got to be so angry at everybody," Andrea noted. "It's just one D."
Lizzie giggled. "That stands for 'One Direction'."
"Did you study?" asked Debra.
"Of course I studied, Debbie," Madeline replied. "I study every day. I study over summer break because I want to."
"Listen, your teacher couldn't have failed you on purpose," started Skye, "because you're a complete teacher's pet."
"Hey!"
"Like you didn't know. I don't take calculus but I have to see your test.
"Oh, it's right here." Madeline pulled out her graded packet from under her peach-colored shirt. She stuck it in Skye's hands.
"Why did you put your test under your shirt?" asked Andrea.
"Because if I try to get some light on my paper, maybe my grade will change."
"It doesn't work that way," Skye remarked.
"Who do you think you are? Like, some kind of wizardry expert?"
"No, but I used to practice witchery as a kid."
Madeline scrunched her forehead and leaned back.
"Yes, be very afraid," Skye smiled. She looked at the packet and flipped through the pages. "Um, since I am passing in math, I can tell that some of your answers are wrong."
"That's impossible. I'm never wrong."
"Well... you're wrong now. Maddie, do you even remember taking this test?"
"Yeah, I'm not brain-damaged."
"Well, you answer questions like you are."
"Why are you insulting me?"
"Because, Alberta Einstein, for one question, which required a number as an answer, you put down, 'The first one'."
"What do you mean by, 'The first one'?" asked Andrea.
"You know," replied Madeline, "the first... whatever the question said."
"The question asked for no first one," Skye notified. "Plus, you wrote, 'IDK' for most of the problems." Skye showed the packet to Madeline so she could see the answers she wrote down that made them get marked as incorrect.
"Madeline, how could you say, 'IDK' when you 'DK'?" asked Lizzie.
"Maybe I got flustered," Madeline responded.
"You were flustered by something," Skye said, "because you got the first three questions right but then it went all downhill from there."
"Madeline, what's up?" Andrea questioned.
"Well, I took the test, feeling great," started Madeline, "then Chad started texting me."
"Chad Welch?" Debra inquired.
"The hot lacrosse player with the broad shoulders?" asked Lizzie.
"That's the one," Madeline shook her finger.
"So you texted him back and got sidetracked?" inquired Skye.
"Texted him back? We had a conversation."
"Why couldn't you talk to him later?" asked Debra.
"Because he's hot and hot don't wait."
"It's true," Lizzie agreed. "One time, I left my hot dinner on the table for twenty minutes and when I came back, it was cool. So hot don't wait."
"Madeline, if you want to go back to being a straight-A student again, you can't face any distractions," said Skye.
"Fine, I won't get distracted ever again," promised Madeline.
"I wonder how Chad got his shoulders to be so broad," said Lizzie.
"From playing lacrosse. Duh!"
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