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1. Competition

CAMMIE POV

Although I'd been at the academy a couple of days prior to official opening, my heart was beating faster than ever when I twisted the doorknob that led to a room filled with my best friends in the whole world. But I expected them to actually greet me with a hug and screams, not this.

And as I opened the door Liz, Macey, and Bex didn't even say hi. They just stared into open space, shocked, and I was afraid. It's hard to surprise a spy.

"Hey, guys," I laughed it off. "Nice to see you, too, after a summer apart. Haven't seen you in four months. No biggie."

"Uh huh," mumbled Liz as she turned around on her bed to reach for a piece of paper and handed it to me, and I've never surprised Liz. Ever.

Contest for all Gallagher Girls age 14 or older! Please come to the Ballroom at 4 o' clock on Wednesday afternoon for information on:

A CHANCE OF A LIFETIME:

3 GALLAGHER GIRLS TO EMBARK ON THE MISSION OF A LIFETIME!

To compete, one must be physically able to pass Test 8K in Mr. Fibbs' lab and be in the top 20% of all school classes. More information Wed.

I apparently didn't look as shocked as everyone else did, so Bex whispered, "Do you know what this means?"

"Yeah," I told her. "Way too much buildup for one hundred broken hearts. At least a hundred people are going to go for this and only three are going to make it. It isn't even worth the time."

"What do you mean?" asked Liz. "Are you saying we couldn't make it?" Liz and her insecurities.

"No," Bex said abruptly. "And Cammie's kind of right. But it's all we can do to at least try out, guys. Chance of a lifetime, remember?"

"Uh huh," Macey sighed, staring at her drying magenta nails. "We're junior year. We're top of the top, guys."

"Well, that's true—" I started.

"Yeah," Macy told us snottily. "It is true. And we're GOING to try out, okay? We ARE. And we're going to make it. We'll be those three girls."

"Whoa, Macey," Liz seemed surprised. "That was totally not like you. Maybe you've changed over the sum—"

"And maybe I haven't. This is a chance of a lifetime—and everyone knows I'm taking little-kid classes. I don't want to be known as the idiot, do I? I'm MAKING this."

"O-kay," Bex looked at the paper. "We're going to do this. We're going to win."

"That's the spirit. I guess. But there's four of us."

"HOW COULD YOU NOT TELL ME ABOUT THIS?" I screamed at my mom in her office. I never screamed at her, not to say I was the perfect child. I wasn't.

When I thought of our time together, a picture of her sitting behind her desk and me screaming at her just wasn't what came to mind. And her feeling bad.

"Now, Cammie, is this really a big—"

"How? Do you think I could never make it? Do you not want me to try? Is there something you want me to know now before—"

"Cammie. Calm down. It's just a silly competition. It wasn't even my idea. I found out today. Okay? Of course I think you can make it and obviously you're going to try, all right? There's nothing you need to know except this: There's more to it than what is on the flyer. 'Kay?" She looked like she was doing something sneakily. There was more to the hint than what was obvious.

Hopefully I knew that. I was supposed to be a first-class spy.

"Okay. Sure." I apologized and left, feeling horrible of accusing her of something like that.

And as I trudged up the stairs to my room I thought about how this whole thing was affecting and twisting my whole school out of recognition. I vowed that I wouldn't let it twist me.

Not that I wasn't going to be one of those three girls. I'd do anything.

Anything to see Zach, if he was a part of this after all.

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