"Did you see this?" Jessica Wakefield pointed to a notice on the bulletin board outside the principal's office. "I can't believe it!" It was Monday afternoon, and Jessica was supposed to be on her way to gym class. But she'd stopped when she spotted the neon orange sheet of paper.
Lila Fowler leaned closer to peer at the announcement. "Safety lecture given by Sweet Valley Spelunking Club," she read out loud. "Spelunking? What's that?"
"It means exploring caves," Jessica said. "Remember, Mr. Clark mentioned it at our last assembly?"
"Oh.
That." Lila sighed. She continued reading out loud, "Required for all sixth-graders prior to Cruz Caverns field trip on Thursday. Note: Attendance is mandatory!" Lila groaned. "I didn't even know Sweet Valley had a spelunking club. What a bunch of nerds that must be."
Jessica giggled. "Maybe the club's made up of bats."
"Or just batty people who like cold, dark places," Lila added, flipping her long dark brown hair over her shoulder. She shuddered. "I hope this field trip isn't
too disgusting and slimy."
"It can't be," Jessica said. "I mean, they wouldn't send us anywhere really gross or dangerous, right?" She noticed someone waving to her out of the corner of her eye and glanced down the hall. Jessica's identical twin, Elizabeth, was heading toward them, with Aaron Dallas at her side.
Jessica quickly fluffed her shoulder-length blond hair as they approached. She wanted to look her best for Aaron, who had been her sort-of boyfriend for a while. Lately Lila had been acting as though
she was interested in Aaron too. And Jessica wasn't about to lose Aaron to her so-called best friend!
"Hi, Aaron!" Jessica smiled brightly at Aaron and quickly stepped in front of Lila. "How
are you? Oh, hi, Elizabeth," she added.
"Hey, Jessica. Hey, Lila," Aaron said.
Lila shoved Jessica aside. "Hi, Aaron. Cool T-shirt."
"Thanks." Aaron grinned.
Jessica glared at Lila. What was with her complimenting Aaron every time she saw him? She'd already told him how great he was twelve times that day.
"What were you guys looking at?" Elizabeth asked. She craned her neck to get a glimpse at the orange notice.
"It's a flyer for some dumb safety lecture we have to go to tomorrow at three o'clock," Jessica told her. "For our caving trip. Is that ridiculous or what?" She turned to Aaron, shaking her head. "Field trips are supposed to be
fun. Why do we have to go to some boring lecture first?"
"I guess there are lots of safety issues," Elizabeth said. "We have to know what we're getting into."
"We're going to a
cave," Jessica replied, rolling her eyes. "What's so hard about that? You walk in, you look around--"
"Actually it's harder than you think, Jessica," Aaron remarked. "I've been caving lots of times, so I know what I'm doing. But spelunking can be dangerous if you aren't prepared."
"Aaron's right," said a deep voice behind them.
Jessica whirled around to see their school principal, Mr. Clark, standing in the doorway to his office. Jessica frowned. If she'd been eavesdropping on
him, she'd be in trouble right now. But Mr. Clark could listen in on anyone, and nobody would complain. Was that fair?
"Anyone who wants to go on the spelunking trip has to attend the safety lecture," Mr. Clark said sternly. "No exceptions."
"But, Mr. Clark, I've been on at least ten spelunking trips," Aaron said. "And I've got tons of experience. Once my flashlight batteries died, and I had to make my way out of total darkness. And another time I saved a little kid from falling off a cliff into an underground crater."
"Wow," Jessica breathed, gazing at Aaron with admiration.
"Incredible," Lila added, staring at Aaron, her eyes wide.
Do you have to be so over the top? Jessica thought, glaring at Lila again. When Jessica liked someone, at least she tried to be subtle about it.
Mr. Clark cleared his throat. "Very impressive, Aaron. Nevertheless, the lecture is required. Afterward the organizers will be handing out a quiz. Only those students who pass the quiz with flying colors will be allowed to go on the trip. So pay attention, everyone, and study hard!" He strode off down the hallway, looking very pleased with himself.
"Only Mr. Clark could turn a field trip into a reason to give us another test," Jessica grumbled.
"How do you think I feel? I know everything already. And I still have to go to that lecture and take the test--as if I'm a beginner," Aaron complained.
"Look at it this way--you'll probably ace the test," Elizabeth told him.
"True," Aaron said with a shrug. "I won't even need to listen to the lecture."
"Who
wants to listen to it?" Lila complained. "Can't they just give us some brochures to read on the bus?"
"I think it'll be interesting," Elizabeth said. "Caves are really cool."
"I think you mean cold," Jessica corrected her with a sigh. Really, Elizabeth could be such a nerd sometimes! If Elizabeth wasn't careful, she'd end up with an honorary membership to the spelunking club!
Of course, Jessica knew that she and Elizabeth didn't exactly share the same interests, even if they did share the same blue-green eyes and shoulder-length blond hair. Elizabeth was happy spending a whole day reading or writing. She didn't mind hanging out at home on a Saturday night, watching a movie with friends. Elizabeth didn't even mind spending her free time at boring lectures. In Jessica's mind, she was a glutton for punishment.
Jessica, on the other hand, had much better things to do with her time than listen to a science lecture. For instance, she could hang out with her friends in the Unicorn Club--like Lila, or Mandy Miller, or Janet Howell. They liked to think of themselves as the prettiest and most popular girls at Sweet Valley Middle School, and they were always doing fun things like listening to new CDs and practicing dance moves. Or shopping. Or talking about boys. The possibilities were endless. Only to Jessica, they
ended when someone else started talking about a cave lecture.
"Well, if we
have to go," Lila said, "I guess we'll be there."
We'll be there, Jessica thought with a frown,
and we'll be square!
