Chapter One: Pictures and Paste
Cass was pasting an article on the kidnapping of Jaycee Lee Dugard when the doorbell rang. "I'll get it!" she yelled, pounding down the stairs. The pointy-eared girl felt butterflies in her stomach as she screeched to a stop just a foot from the front door. What if it was Yo-Yoji?
Don't be stupid, Cass scolded herself, ears flaming red at her apprehension. Who cares if it's Yo-Yoji? He's my friend. I mean, duh.
Still, she hesitated before taking the doorknob and turning it.
"Guess what I found out?"
Before Cass could react, a certain spiky-haired boy rushed in the door, pink in the face. "What, no 'hello, how are you'?" Cassandra said sarcastically as Max-Ernest regained his breath.
Max-Ernest turned to her. "There's no time!" he cried, hands flying in exaggerated motions in front of him. "Where's Yo-Yoji? He needs to be here too!"
Cass shook her head. "Not here yet. What's so important, anyway? You look like you just run a marathon."
"I'll tell you when Yo-Yoji gets here. I hope he hurries." Max-Ernest stood a little awkwardly, hands stuffed in his pockets. "Er," he mumbled a bit sheepishly, looking hopefully at his friend, "D'you have any chocolate, by any chance?"
"What for?" Cass groaned, closing the door. "You practically ate us out of house and home last time your parents decided to have a little 'break'."
"It's ridiculous!" the boy exploded dramatically, "No chocolate for a whole week? They said they were working things out between Paul-Clay and their own problems, but-but-what about my state of being? I can't work without chocolate! By this point, I'm desperate! I'd even take milk chocolate! Milk chocolate, Cass! Now do you see how hopeless this all is?"
"No." Cassandra walked into the kitchen, Max-Ernest trailing, still moaning, behind her. Melanie, Cass's adopted mother, was talking animatedly on the phone with Albert 3-D, Daniel-Not-Danielle's father and her own (ick) boyfriend. Cass purposely ignored her mother as they rummaged through the pantry.
"We have some baking chocolate chips," said Cass thoughtfully, taking the bag down from a high shelf with a little help from a step-stool. Max-Ernest immediately jumped at the chance, and by the time the two friends were walking up the stairs he had scarfed down half the bag's worth.
"So...when's...Yo-Yoji, hmmgh, going to get here?" asked Max-Ernest as he popped one chocolate chip after the other into his mouth. Cass shrugged wordlessly. The pair stepped into Cass's bedroom.
"Hey, what's this?" Max-Ernest picked up the article Cass had been pasting earlier. "It's all gluey. Is this the next big thing for your Wall of Horrors?" The spiky-haired boy held it an inch away from the wall, squinting at it critically.
"Yup," answered Cass proudly, her face brightening. "It's going to go right between that one big article about forest fires and the clipping on the tsunami in Hawaii. Want to help me glue it while we're waiting?"
"Sure!"
And that is exactly what they did.
