Have You Met My Ghoulfriend? Read Free Page A

sitting at the table, talking to her friends.
    Oh, wow. Bad news for me.
    What could I do to change her mind?
    More horror to come, friends. I completely forgot it was phys ed day. I skulked into the gym, changed into my gym shorts, and looked for Aaron. But of course he was absent, lucky guy.
    The rest of the class was there, including Traci. I could see her pointing at my swollen ear and telling other kids about it. And then I turned and let out an unhappy groan.
    The climbing rope.
    Oh no. Today was the rope-climbing test.
    I staggered back, my heart leaping into my throat. I
hate
the climbing rope. The last time I tried it, I got rope burns all over my body.
    I knew I needed to pass the rope-climbing test to pass phys ed. I get all As in everything else. In fact, the kids in my class gave me the nickname Brainimon because I'm so smart.
    But my phys ed grade is the only grade my dad cares about. Flunk phys ed and I can say,Goodbye, Jefferson Elementary—and Hello, Plover School.
    How could I climb today? I was still shaky from meeting Phears. And I was afraid my big ear might weigh me down. So I ran over to talk to Coach Freeley before the testing began.
    Coach Freeley is built like a tank. He's very short and very wide, with bulging muscles everywhere you can have muscles. He has a broad chest that stretches his T-shirts tight over his perfect abs. He's young and the girls all think he's really cute—I guess because of that big chest and all the muscles, and because of his wavy black hair and white-toothed smile.
    He doesn't smile at me much. He tries to help me sometimes. But he knows when it comes to sports, I'm totally lame.
    I ran up to him as he was about to blow his whistle to get everyone quiet. “Coach, I can't climb today,” I said breathlessly.
    He narrowed his dark eyes at me. “What's your problem?”
    “Bad ear,” I said. “I was stung by a wasp.” I turned and showed it to him. It was still the size of a lemon.
    “Yuck. That's disgusting,” he said. “Can't you cover it up or something?”
    “It really hurts,” I said. “I'd better not climb today.”
    He shrugged his big shoulders. “No problem, Max. You can make it up any time you feel like it.”
    Any time I feel like it? You mean like,
never
?
    I thanked him and trotted off to the bleachers at the side of the gym. I was so happy, I wanted to leap up and pump my fists in the air. I don't have to climb today!
    But as I sat down on the bottom bleacher seat, I heard a voice next to me. “Whoa, Max—what are you doing?”
    I let out a startled cry as Nicky and Tara appeared at my sides.
    “Get up, Max. You've got to do your climbing test,” Nicky said. He pulled me to my feet.
    “Let go,” I snapped. “I'm not climbing today. Coach said I don't have to.”
    “But
we
say you
do
have to,” Tara said, moving behind me and pushing me toward the other kids.
    “Where have you been?” I asked.
    “We don't know,” Nicky said. “Sometimes we just disappear. We can't control it.”
    “We're new at this ghost thing, remember?” Tara said.
    Coach Freeley blew his whistle. Kids stopped talking and fooling around and began lining up in front of the climbing rope. The gym grew quiet except for the scrape of sneakers on the hardwood floor.
    “I have to talk to you two,” I whispered.“Phears stopped me this morning. He wants me to take you to him. If I don't, he says he's going to bring a friend—some kind of ghoul—to
break
me.”
    “Don't worry,” Tara said, squeezing my hand. “We'll protect you.”
    Nicky's mouth dropped open. He stared at his sister. “Protect him? How?”
    “No time for that now,” Tara said, pushing me toward the line of kids. “Now Max has to climb the rope.”
    “You can't make me,” I said, trying to get away from them.
    “Don't you want to impress Traci?” Tara asked.
    “Don't you want to impress your dad?” Nicky added. “You have to climb the rope to get an A.”
    “But I
can't
climb the