All Shook Up (From the Files of Madison Finn, 22) Read Free Page A

want to….”
    Fiona pounded him in the shoulder.
    “Settle down! Settle down!” Dan said, imitating Principal Bernard’s voice.
    Lindsay laughed.
    Madhur stood up all of a sudden. She seemed unfazed by the whole exchange. “I’m going back to get one of those giant brownies I saw. Does anyone want anything?”
    “I’ll take a brownie,” Dan said.
    “I’d love an orange,” Fiona said sweetly.
    “Can you grab me some chocolate milk?” Lindsay asked.
    “You bet,” Madhur said. “What about you, Maddie?”
    “I don’t need anything else,” Madison said. “Thanks for asking.”
    As Madhur walked back toward the kitchen, Hart leaned in to Madison. “What’s up with Madhur?” he asked. “Did she invite herself over to our table, or what?”
    “I invited her,” Madison said.
    “Why?” Aimee said, sounding a little Ivy-like.
    “Because,” Madison said, “I wanted to.”
    “She’s sweet,” Fiona said, shooting another look at her brother. “Don’t you think so, Chet?”
    “What are you looking at me for?” Chet stammered.
    Madison giggled. She wasn’t the only person at the table who thought Madhur was cool. It was probably the first time she and Chet had ever agreed on anything.
    “You should have heard her in English class today,” Madison went on. “She has such an interesting life.”
    “Oh, yeah?” Fiona asked.
    “Her family speaks, like, five languages,” Madison said.
    “Whatever,” Aimee said, rolling her eyes.
    The boys stood up with their emptied trays and moved away from the orange table.
    Aimee stood up, too.
    “Why are you acting like that?” Madison asked.
    “Like what?” Aimee replied.
    “That. You know.”
    “No, I don’t,” Aimee said firmly.
    “You always do this,” Madison said. “Whenever I make a new friend, you get weird.”
    “I do not.”
    Madison sighed.
    “Remember when Fiona first moved here?” Madison asked Aimee.
    Aimee shrugged. “Okay, fine. I acted a little weird. But only because you’re my best friend. That’s all. You can only have so many best friends, Madison.”
    “Who made that rule?” Madison asked.
    Aimee didn’t respond. She tried to change the subject.
    “So, what’s going on with Hart today?” Aimee asked. “He’s so into you. Did you see the way he saved you a seat?”
    “Aim!” Madison cried.
    Fiona laughed, so Madison had to laugh, too.
    “What’s so funny?” Madhur said reappearing with the brownie, orange, and chocolate milk.
    “Private joke,” Aimee said.
    Madison was a little taken aback by Aimee’s curt response, but she tried to gloss over it.
    “Hey, Madhur, do you have study period next?” Madison asked. “Because if you do, I was thinking of heading up to the media room in the library to do a little work. I could show you TweenBlurt….”
    “I can’t,” Madhur said, taking a big bite of brownie; she chewed and talked at the same time. “I have to meet with Mr. Gibbons. I’m working on the conference that’s coming up in two weeks….”
    “You signed up?” Madison asked. “So did we.”
    “That’s great,” Madhur said. “So we’re all in it together.”
    “Great,” Aimee said, rather unenthusiastically.
    As the lunch bell rang, the conversation came to a screeching halt. Poison Ivy swooped in.
    “So, lunch is over. Are you going to your locker now?” Ivy asked. “Because you promised me that notebook….”
    Madison saw both Madhur and Aimee out of the corner of her eye. The two of them made the exact same “How can you possibly be talking to her ?” face.
    “The notebook,” Madison repeated. “Right.”
    Madison gave her friends—including Madhur—a quick wave good-bye and headed into the hallway with her enemy. They walked down the hallway toward the stairs and over to Madison’s bank of lockers.
    “I can’t believe you’re hanging out with that geek,” Ivy said to Madison.
    “Who?” Madison asked.
    “Madhur Singh, of course,” Ivy said. “She is so