The Dare Read Free Page A

fluorescent lights near the door buzzed and flickered.
    â€œOur discussion is over. I’m really sorry,” Mr. Northwood told Dennis. He clicked his briefcase shut.
    Dennis just gaped at him. His mouth dropped open, but he didn’t say anything. Then Dennis threw up his hands in a gesture of total exasperation. “I—I don’t believe this!” Dennis screamed, losing his temper.
    Suddenly I realized someone was calling my name.
    I turned to the door and saw Margaret motioning to me.
    As I made my way to Margaret, I could hear Dennis shouting furiously at Mr. Northwood.
    â€œMargaret—what is it?” I whispered, stepping into the doorway.
    And then I heard a loud
thud.
    I heard Mr. Northwood let out a cry.
    A heavy feeling of dread shot through my body.
    Without looking, I knew that Dennis had slugged him.

chapter 3
    M
y breath caught in my throat. I turned back to the front of the room.
    I was relieved to see that Dennis hadn’t hit Mr. Northwood. He had angrily slammed a heavy textbook to the floor instead.
    Mr. Northwood had been calm and soft-spoken, but now he really lost his cool. He went all white and pointed a shaky finger at Dennis and started sputtering at him about respect for school property.
    Dennis looked totally stunned. I think he was really upset that he lost his temper like that. He was breathing hard, glaring at Mr. Northwood, balling and unballing his fists as the teacher laced into him.
    â€œWhat’s going on?” Margaret whispered, peeking in timidly from the hall.
    â€œWorld War Three,” I whispered back, picking up my backpack and edging out of the room.
    â€œWho’s winning?” Margaret asked as I joined her in the hall.
    â€œMr. Northwood, I think,” I replied, crossing the empty hall to my locker.
    I could hear Dennis and Mr. Northwood arguing loudly back in the classroom. I realized my knees were kind of shaky. Why am
I
upset? I wondered. It isn’t
my
argument.
    No one has offered to take
me
to the Bahamas this February, I thought bitterly. Why should I care if Dennis gets a makeup test or not?
    â€œI’m late for my job,” Margaret said, shifting her backpack over her red down jacket. Margaret waitresses at Alma’s Coffeeshop for a few hours after school every day. “I just wanted to ask if you want to come to dinner tonight.”
    â€œI guess,” I said, twirling the combination lock on my locker and pulling the door open. “My mom won’t be home till after nine. Thanks, Margaret.”
    â€œLater,” she called, hurrying down the hall, her red hair bouncing as she ran.
    I bent down and started pulling books from my locker and stuffing them into my backpack. A few seconds later, I glanced up to see Dennis angrily stomping out of Mr. Northwood’s room.
    He crossed the hall, shaking his head, muttering to himself. “I could kill that guy,” he said breathlessly to me. “I really could.”
    I laughed. I didn’t know what else to do.
    My heart started pounding. I mean, Dennis’s locker was two down from mine. But he had never said a word to me before.
    I stood up and tried to flash him an encouraging smile. I don’t think he noticed. He slammed his fist into his locker door. The
clang
echoed down the hall.
    â€œOw,” I said. “Didn’t that hurt?”
    â€œYeah,” Dennis replied. He grinned at me and shook his hand. “It hurt a lot. Stupid, huh?”
    â€œWell …” I couldn’t think of a good reply. My mouth had gone all dry. Dennis was just so good-looking. I guess I’d had kind of a crush on him for a long time. But I never really allowed myself to think about it.
    â€œI just hate that guy,” Dennis grumbled, flexing his hand.
    â€œHe isn’t being very fair,” I said.
    â€œHe’s a jerk,” Dennis replied angrily. “A total jerk.” His green eyes locked on my face. It was as though he were