brownies.
She’d fixed her hair extra nice, too, with that purple barrette.
Sophie was feeling as good as she’d ever allow herself to feel.
But then she saw it.
Trash bags with smelly garbage hanging from her school locker, piled around the floor, spilling the stinking mess everywhere.
Tuna cans.
Coffee grinds.
Broken eggshells.
She dropped the brownies.
Tore the barrette out of her hair.
Stood there frozen. Kids walked past her, holding their noses at the smell.
“I didn’t do this, okay? I didn’t bring this here!”
Then she saw the sign—in pink block letters.
GARBAGE GIRL
She tore it down just as Tree ran up.
“
Who did this?
” he shouted. But he already knew. “We’ll clean it up. Sully, Eli, and me. You won’t have to—”
Teachers were coming now.
Students saying it was awful.
The bell rang.
They stood there.
Mr. Cosgrove pushed a Dumpster into place; moved quickly. Took down the bags, threw out the garbage.
“They’re going to explode someday from all the garbage inside them,” he told Sophie, but it didn’t make her feel better.
She grabbed a smelly tuna can and stormed off.
“Sophie,” Tree shouted.
She kept walking.
Tree ran after her. “Where are you going?”
“I’ve got someone to see.” She was almost running, holding that can.
Pushed into first-period geometry—her class—stormed right up to Amber Melloncroft and Sarah Kravetz, who looked away, trying not to smile.
Mr. Pelling, the math teacher, said, “You can’t walk in here like that.”
Sophie slammed the can down on Amber’s desk.
“
If you and your friends ever do that to me again, you’re going to be sorry!
”
Amber shouted, “I don’t know what you’re talking about, and take your lunch off my desk!”
Sophie picked up the can, shoved it under Amber’s upturned nose. “This is a smell you know real well.”
“That’s enough!” Mr. Pelling shouted.
“She’s threatening me!” Amber wailed.
“No.” Tree stood tall. “She’s telling the truth about what you did. Now everybody knows.” He stepped closer. “I want to know
why
you did it.”
“Get away from me, you overgrown freak!”
“What made you think you had the
right?
”
“
In the hall!
” Mr. Pelling pointed at Tree and Sophie.
He marched them to the principal’s office.
“Threatening a student,” he told Mrs. Pierce, the administrative assistant.
The principal was on the phone with the superintendent.
They had to wait.
“Dr. Terry,” Tree said to the principal, “Sophie didn’t threaten anybody. Those girls have been mean to her for a long time.”
Dr. Terry leaned back in her chair. “Several teachers told me what happened with the locker. It was an awful thing to do. I apologize to you, Sophie, on behalf of this school. That is not what we’re about. But you should have come in here to talk to me as soon as it happened.”
“I never think about principals when I’m mad.”
Dr. Terry smiled. “I understand.”
“I don’t know if you do, Dr. Terry. You didn’t see it.”
“Sophie, something like this takes time to fix. I’m going to talk to Amber and her friends. I’m going to talk to their parents and to this school community at large. There is zero tolerance for cruelty at Eleanor Roosevelt. I’ll call your parents, too, so we can work this out together.”
Sophie looked down. “I don’t think I want to come back to this school.”
Tree’s heart just broke for her.
Dr. Terry leaned forward. “I’m asking you to give me a little time to make this right.”
“I’m in eighth grade, Dr. Terry. Unless I flunk, you haven’t got much time.”
Aunt Peach arrived at the school, folded her considerable arms, and eyed Sophie like a prison guard.
“What are we going to do about your temper?”
“They put garbage on my locker, Aunt Peach!”
“That was a cold, cruel thing to do.”
“And I let them know it. Sometimes you’ve got to shout the truth and wake people
She’d fixed her hair extra nice, too, with that purple barrette.
Sophie was feeling as good as she’d ever allow herself to feel.
But then she saw it.
Trash bags with smelly garbage hanging from her school locker, piled around the floor, spilling the stinking mess everywhere.
Tuna cans.
Coffee grinds.
Broken eggshells.
She dropped the brownies.
Tore the barrette out of her hair.
Stood there frozen. Kids walked past her, holding their noses at the smell.
“I didn’t do this, okay? I didn’t bring this here!”
Then she saw the sign—in pink block letters.
GARBAGE GIRL
She tore it down just as Tree ran up.
“
Who did this?
” he shouted. But he already knew. “We’ll clean it up. Sully, Eli, and me. You won’t have to—”
Teachers were coming now.
Students saying it was awful.
The bell rang.
They stood there.
Mr. Cosgrove pushed a Dumpster into place; moved quickly. Took down the bags, threw out the garbage.
“They’re going to explode someday from all the garbage inside them,” he told Sophie, but it didn’t make her feel better.
She grabbed a smelly tuna can and stormed off.
“Sophie,” Tree shouted.
She kept walking.
Tree ran after her. “Where are you going?”
“I’ve got someone to see.” She was almost running, holding that can.
Pushed into first-period geometry—her class—stormed right up to Amber Melloncroft and Sarah Kravetz, who looked away, trying not to smile.
Mr. Pelling, the math teacher, said, “You can’t walk in here like that.”
Sophie slammed the can down on Amber’s desk.
“
If you and your friends ever do that to me again, you’re going to be sorry!
”
Amber shouted, “I don’t know what you’re talking about, and take your lunch off my desk!”
Sophie picked up the can, shoved it under Amber’s upturned nose. “This is a smell you know real well.”
“That’s enough!” Mr. Pelling shouted.
“She’s threatening me!” Amber wailed.
“No.” Tree stood tall. “She’s telling the truth about what you did. Now everybody knows.” He stepped closer. “I want to know
why
you did it.”
“Get away from me, you overgrown freak!”
“What made you think you had the
right?
”
“
In the hall!
” Mr. Pelling pointed at Tree and Sophie.
He marched them to the principal’s office.
“Threatening a student,” he told Mrs. Pierce, the administrative assistant.
The principal was on the phone with the superintendent.
They had to wait.
“Dr. Terry,” Tree said to the principal, “Sophie didn’t threaten anybody. Those girls have been mean to her for a long time.”
Dr. Terry leaned back in her chair. “Several teachers told me what happened with the locker. It was an awful thing to do. I apologize to you, Sophie, on behalf of this school. That is not what we’re about. But you should have come in here to talk to me as soon as it happened.”
“I never think about principals when I’m mad.”
Dr. Terry smiled. “I understand.”
“I don’t know if you do, Dr. Terry. You didn’t see it.”
“Sophie, something like this takes time to fix. I’m going to talk to Amber and her friends. I’m going to talk to their parents and to this school community at large. There is zero tolerance for cruelty at Eleanor Roosevelt. I’ll call your parents, too, so we can work this out together.”
Sophie looked down. “I don’t think I want to come back to this school.”
Tree’s heart just broke for her.
Dr. Terry leaned forward. “I’m asking you to give me a little time to make this right.”
“I’m in eighth grade, Dr. Terry. Unless I flunk, you haven’t got much time.”
Aunt Peach arrived at the school, folded her considerable arms, and eyed Sophie like a prison guard.
“What are we going to do about your temper?”
“They put garbage on my locker, Aunt Peach!”
“That was a cold, cruel thing to do.”
“And I let them know it. Sometimes you’ve got to shout the truth and wake people
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