Maddie's Big Test (3 page)

I didn't want to draw attention to myself and what a wreck I was. That would only mean questions to answer. I walked through the kitchen without looking at anyone.

“I'm going upstairs to study!”

My mom was amazed. “You have all weekend to study, Maddie!”

I heard Gran say, “And she'll need it, with all the work she has to do!”

Poor Gran. She is the only one gullible enough to believe what I tell her.

I collapsed onto my bed and sank like a pita bread. I was flattened. I had hardly enough time to take a breath before Gran burst into my room. I had never seen her in such a state. She looked like a pit bull!

“Ms. Spiegel called,” she said curtly.

That was all. Then silence. The longer it lasted, the crazier I got. Finally I cried desperately: “Everything she told you is a lie!”

Gran still had her pit bull look. It was too awful. I burst into tears. She didn't soften.

“What about the rolls of paper she found under your desk? Are those a lie?”

I had forgotten all about them! It was all over, my life was ruined. Still, I made an attempt to defend myself.

“Nicholas made me do it!”

“Nicholas will have the punishment he deserves,” Gran replied. “And so will you. You reap what you sow, Maddie.”

I felt like I was in an elevator hurtling down, down, down at top speed. I was about to crash when I managed to make out some of Gran's words.

“ … write the exam over on Monday. I managed to persuade Ms. Spiegel to let you do that.”

I kept on sobbing, but I felt a ray of hope. And it seemed to me that Gran's voice was not as angry as before.

“I didn't mention this to your parents. They have enough to worry about right now. You will have to tell them yourself, when this is all settled.”

I swallowed hard and agreed. I would do anything to wake up from this nightmare.

“I told your parents that I was inviting you over for the weekend.”

That sounded great to me. I would have perfect conditions for studying. There would be no distractions, no one to bug me.

But when I got to Gran's house, I had a rude awakening. She had drawn up a whole study program for me. And she was the strictest teacher I had ever had. No mistakes allowed! You did it over and over until you got it right.

But it worked! It is absolutely amazing what you can learn if you study.

And I began to enjoy it. Every right answer was like a victory. And Gran loved every second of it. She wasn't like a pit bull anymore. She called me her dearest little denominator!

***

I breezed through the exam. A piece of cake! And I got the top mark in the class.

Clementine found this a little hard to swallow.

“When I think where you started from, it's like a miracle!”

“I have my own study methods,” I told her. “You should be happy. I won't have to borrow your notes anymore.”

Take that, Little Miss Perfect!

Nicholas found it even harder to take, because he flunked his exam.

“You cheated, but you were allowed to write the test again. That's not fair.”

But I had seen that coming, and I had my answer all ready.

“I can go and tell them you cheated, too, if you like.”

He turned pale. And then, you'll never guess what he did. He offered me a bag of chips.

He must think I'm an idiot. He really needed to be taught a lesson. I took the bag of chips, just as I would if he had bought me off. I opened it up and poured the chips on the ground. Wow! Did that ever feel good! And I was proud of myself, because I really wanted to eat those chips.

***

I have never been so eager to show off one of my tests. Ms. Spiegel had stuck stars all over it.

At the dinner table, I laid the test on my dad's plate. His face lit up.

“I am dazzled, Maddie! But I knew you could do it. I was right to trust in you.”

Yikes. He must never, never find out that I cheated. At least not yet. I would hate to spoil his pleasure. Honestly!

We ate our dinner in peace and harmony. Then my brother Julian had to ruin it all. As we were leaving the table, he piped up.

“Don't forget, tomorrow is parents' night at school.”

“You've got to come,” Alexander insisted. “For once, my teacher has nothing to complain about.”

The same couldn't be said of Ms. Spiegel! I looked imploringly at Gran. She just stared back, and I could see a pit bull gleam in her eyes. I would not be able to escape my fate. So I lowered my head and told my parents everything.

Afterwards, there was silence, as heavy as a ton of bricks. I felt like all those bricks were about to land on my head.

But to my amazement, my dad said only, “I think you have probably learned a lot from this experience.”

Obviously, I had to agree. I repeated Gran's fine words about working hard, and reaping what I had sown, and so on and so forth. And I promised I would never cheat again.

“I was too scared!”

My dad cracked up. My mom, on the other hand, did not think it was funny at all. Instead, she unloaded the ton of bricks on me. The last brick was the worst of all.

“ … brought shame on your family. It was very wrong of Gran not to tell us what you had done. It makes us look like parents who — ”

“How soon you forget!” Gran interrupted.

My mom was stunned. And she never recovered, because Gran went on to tell us some fine stories about her. When she was young, my mom never did a lick of work. She only wanted to go out and have fun. She dreamed of becoming a movie star.

My dad started teasing her. He said she was like the grasshopper in the fable.

“The grasshopper all summer long

Sang her song …”

And he burst out laughing. Gran laughed, too, and so did my mom. But not like she thought it was funny.

That was another lesson for me. I hope I won't still have to go to school when I'm as old as my mom! As I looked at my exam paper, I realized that stars don't just fall out of the sky. Only in my dreams…

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