Just Kidding by Annie Bryant Page B

directly above her head.
    Scott immediately jumped into her line of sight, and when she tried to pivot in another direction, he put his hand on her head to keep her from moving. “Scott, stop it!” Avery cried, trying to shake his hand off. “Foul! That’s a foul!”
    â€œThis isn’t a pickup game!” he shouted back. “We’re playing D-O-N-K-E-Y, Avery! Stop being a baby—I just told you what I thought and you got mad at me!”
    Avery was so furious that he was keeping her from the basket and now that he had called her a baby, she was determined to shoot no matter what. She tucked the ball under one arm and started pushing Scott away with her other arm. Scott grabbed her arm and wouldn’t let go, no matter how hard she tried to pull away.
    Finally, Avery gave up. She shoved the basketball hard into Scott’s arms and started to jog off, mumbling under her breath. Scott threw the ball onto the grass. “Relax, Ave. I was just kidding,” he said.
    â€œOh, sure!” Avery retorted. “Well, that’s the second time I’ve heard that excuse today, and it’s getting really old!”
    Anyway, there was no point in wasting time with Scott. Avery knew she needed to go to her room and calm down. Then she would start thinking about a campaign that would guarantee she would be chosen to head up the sports committee. What I need is a good slogan , she thought.
    Avery brainstormed as she climbed the steps to her room, and at her bedroom door, an idea flashed into her mind. She ran over to her desk, snatched a blank sheet of paper and wrote on it in bright red marker: SPORT SPIRIT—GIVE IT YOUR BEST!
    She held the slogan at a distance, very satisfied with how it looked and sounded. That ought to get people pumped , she thought. And it should be just what I need to prove that I’m the right person to run the sports committee!

CHAPTER
10
Without a Trail
    C harlotte slowed her pace as she made her way down Harvard Street. The last thing she wanted was to run right into Anna and Joline, especially when she was worried about Miss Pierce. Where was Miss Pierce? It seemed kind of strange that she’d disappeared.
    Even if I wasn’t worried about Miss Pierce, I wouldn’t want to run into the Queens of Mean , Charlotte admitted to herself. They’re rude enough to turn a day full of sunshine into a day of rain!
    But Anna and Joline seemed determined to run into Charlotte. “Oh, what a cute doggy!” Joline cried, kneeling down to pet Marty. Charlotte gritted her teeth and stopped; she couldn’t get away from them without yanking poor Marty off his feet, and she refused to do that to the little dude, who was shamelessly wagging his tail at Joline.
    â€œHe is cute,” Anna agreed, but she stayed on her feet and contented herself with making faces at Marty. Andthen, as though she had just noticed Charlotte, she said, “Oh, hey, Charlotte.” Marty turned his doggy face up to Anna’s and was wagging his tail winningly to grab her attention, but Anna kept her sharp eyes on Charlotte.
    Joline was cooing to Marty. “You are such a beautiful dog, you sweet thing! Charlotte, what’s his name again?”
    â€œMarty,” Charlotte said shortly. Everything about this meeting felt strange to her. She felt sure the Queens of Mean had something up their sleeves besides their arms!
    â€œMaaaarty,” Joline sang to the dog, stretching out the word and rubbing her cheek against his fur. “Marty, you are sooo darling!”
    Marty, you are a such a flirt , Charlotte thought. But you’re wasting your time with these two. They’re not sensitive enough to know how lovable you really are—they just want something from me, and they won’t leave you alone ’til they get it!
    While Joline took Marty’s paw and shook it, Anna said casually to Charlotte, “So, how’s your friend Isabel?”
    I