When In Doubt, Spy It Out
part eight
chameleon pov
5:48 p.m.
gallagher academy for exceptional young women
roseville, virginia
grand hall
After locking myself in the bathroom and refusing to come out, everyone had left for dinner. My stubbornness was defeated by the rumbling my stomach was creating and I reluctantly left my suite and headed down to the Grand Hall. I didn't want to face my friends or family.
All I wanted to do was curl up with a bowl of ice cream and drown myself in a Jersey Shore marathon.
Hm, not a bad idea.
After entering the Grand Hall I grabbed a plate of the main dish and plopped down next to Liz. The second I sat down they stopped talking.
"Don't stop for me, please continue," I said, stabbing my green beans and stuffing them into my mouth.
"Well," Macey said, eyeing me, "I really think that texturized is better than original. In my personal experience."
I spit my green beans out onto my plate. "WHAT in God's name ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?" Praying to the Lord that Macey wasn't giving Bex advice on—her relationship with Grant.
"Nothing you need to know, sweet innocent Cammie," Macey said smiling sarcastically.
"Fine. You know what? I don't even want to know!" I raised my hands in the universal sign of defeat. "What's up with you, Liz?" I asked, avoiding the green beans on my plate.
"Oh just working on the new chemical compounds for this explosive eyeliner. One end explodes and the other is waterproof and stays on for eighteen hours!" She said gleefully.
"That's... great!" I finished.
Liz frowned. "You'd rather be eating ice cream and watching Jersey Shore, huh?" Her shoulders slumped.
"NO! No, Liz, I'm honestly interested. Tell me more. Honestly." I reassured. Lately, everyone had been focused on me, and I would do anything to keep the attention off of me.
As Liz babbled on I pretended to listen and even added in some advice every once in a while.
I felt like someone was watching me.
"I feel eyes."
"Ooo, déjà vu!" Bex said jokingly. "Except this time you aren't wearing a slinky black dress and honey-potting Macey's boyfriend." She laughed and I frowned.
"Must you bring that up? Anyone got eyeball?" I responded.
Macey looked at me seriously. "Besides Tina Walters who is starting another rumor about you and Grant, that would be your father, mother, aunt, and three certain Blackthorne Boys." She smirked. "They didn't let me skip three grades and a level of CoveOps for nothing, Cam." Then she winked and looked at her Cultures & Assimilations flashcards.
I huffed. "He's not my father."
"Whatever you say, but in our business, blood counts for a lot. Especially for you." She said, eyes never leaving her flashcards.
"I change my mind—there's a Jersey Shore marathon on tonight and I think my cotton pajamas are calling."
Bex rolled her eyes.
"Lighten up, Chameleon. DJ Pauly D can't get any stupider."
Liz was about to interject when Bex held up her hand, "Leave it, Elizabeth."
"So um, Bex," I said, picking at my bread.
"Ooo, Cammie's nervous. This must be good." Macey looked up from her notecards.
"What's up with you and Grant?"
Liz froze and Macey smiled devilishly.
"Okay look," I said, leaning toward Bex, "Sure he's my brother, but you're my best friend and he's your first boyfriend, and I'll look at this like we're not related. I want to know. You've always been there for me, and I want to be there for you. For everything."
Bex smiled at me. "Thanks, Cam. And they're going good, thanks. He's actually very sweet."
I snorted. "Oh, sorry, you were serious. Continue, please."
"He compliments me and I like how he doesn't go easy on me in P & E and isn't afraid to stand up to me. He's... really something."
"That's so romantic!" Liz said, hugging her flashcards to her chest.
"Sweet." Macey commented.
I was about to add in my two cents when Jonas plopped down into the seat next to Liz. "What's romantic and sweet? PLEASE DO NOT say Zac Efron." He rolled his eyes.
"No, Jonas, not Zac Efron." I said, laughing.
Weight settled to my left and Macey smirked. "That's right, romantic and sweet? Zach Goode, not Zac Efron."
"I think your ego is bigger than your-" I snapped.
"My what?" He smirked.
I blushed at the innuendo he layed out. "ITS BIGGER THAN YOUR FREAKING BRUISE!" I yelled.
"What bruise?"
I punched him. "That one."
"Sup, ladies, sister-lady." Grant nodded, squeezing in between Bex and Macey. "Ooo, what is that?" Grant questioned, grabbing Liz's eyeliner and opening it.
"NO!" Bex, Liz, Macey and I jumped at once.
We stood up suddenly, frozen, waiting for the thing to explode.
It didn't explode. Liz grabbed it from Grant and glared at him, re-capping the device.
Bex and Macey smacked him at the same time.
"What is the matter with you, Grant?" I yelled. "You could've just killed us all. Get some freaking brains!"
"Sorry!" He apologized. "Geez, chill, Cam!" He said, stealing the rest of my bread.
"HEY!" I protested.
He rolled his eyes. "Ready for tomorrow?" He said, smiling at me deviously.
"SHUT UP GRANT." I warned.
"What's tomorrow?" Jonas asked.
"It's the one of the biggest moments in history." Grant said, taking a page from Zach's book and being cryptic.
Liz's eyes grew wide as she racked her photographic memory for what day in history tomorrow could possibly be.
"WHAT IS IT?" She yelled after three seconds.
"The day the most gorgeous spy was born." He said. "Oh make that two." He winked at me.
"Yes, Grant, we know tomorrow is yours and Cammie's birthday," Macey said, rolling her eyes.
"Oh," Liz relaxed, "of course I knew that."
"Grant, birthdays aren't important." I said sighing.
"They are when you turn eighteen!" He protested.
"Who cares?" I said. "Nothing changes."
"Come on, Cam." Macey said rolling her eyes. "You are so not getting out of this."
"Yeah, stop being such a party pooper!" Grant said, sticking his tongue out at me.
I ran a hand through my hair and sighed. "Whatever."
Liz and Bex smiled and clapped their hands together and Macey rolled her eyes.
"But don't expect me to have fun!" I added quickly, pointing at Bex.
She narrowed her eyes. "I will make you have fun, Cameron."
I smiled. "Bring it on, Rebecca."
"Ooo, we're using full names here. I wish I had a longer name sometimes." Grant jumped in. "Me and Macey and Jonas are outcasts. Cammie has Cameron, Liz has Elizabeth, Bex has Rebecca and Zach has Zachary. Or Zachariah. That'd be so cool! We should start calling you Zachariah! Like from the Bible or something!"
"Grant." Jonas said. "Go play with a tampon or something. Seriously."
/\ PAGE BREAK /\
next day
11: 34 a.m.
covert operations sublevel 2
"I'm sure you'll all be happy to hear that Mr. Solomon is going to be co-teaching alongside Ms. Cameron," I remembered my Mom saying at breakfast this morning.
Great, just great. My Aunt and 'Father' who possibly were romantically interested in each other were teaching together?
CoveOps was my favorite class, and now it was going to be ruined!
"Chill, Cam, it's seriously not going to be that bad." Bex rolled her eyes.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY LITTLE SISTER!" Grant said, running into the elevator before it closed, Zach running in right behind him.
He picked me up in a huge hug and spun me around.
"GRANT!" I yelled. "PUT ME DOWN!" He did and smiled hugely at me. "AND I'M OLDER!"
I crossed my arms and frowned.
"But I'm taller!" He reasoned.
"I always wanted siblings." Macey said thoughtfully.
"No you don't." I said, and earning a push from Grant.
"HEY!" I threw a punch at him and he blocked it.
"Oh great, here they go! Look at what you did Macey!" Bex moaned. I missed Macey's snide retort as I brought my knee up into Grant's family jewels.
He groaned.
The elevator door dinged.
"Well that's gonna ruin Grant's sex life." Macey said, stepping over his body.
Zach's eyes widened as if he felt Grant's pain.
"Ughh," I said. "Please do not give me a mental picture."
Macey smiled sarcastically. Bex rolled her eyes and we walked out of the elevator, Grant limping and Zach following.
"Happy birthday, Grant!" I said, sitting down in my seat.
"It's really been eighteen years, huh?" Abby commented, and I noticed her coming out of a different elevator.
"Sure," I commented.
"Congratulations. Try living eighteen more." She said, passing my desk.
"It's my birthday too, Aunt Abby!" Grant called.
She ignored him.
"Why is Cammie always the favorite?" He grumbled.
"Oh my gosh." I said, burying my head in my arms. "Grant. Have you met yourself?"
"Yes, and I am beautiful, no matter what they say. Words can not bring me down."
"Did he just?" Macey asked disbelieving.
"Yeah."
"Oh wow."
"At least your not related to him."
"At least I'm not sleeping with him."
Bex turned bright red. "You're never going to let me live this down will you?"
"Nope." Macey and I both said.
Zach broke into a huge grin to my right.
"What?" I asked, curiously.
"Girls are so weird. You're like a foreign language."
"Oh really? Well-" I was about to retort when Solomon entered the classroom and all conversations stopped.
"Weapons training today. Let's go."
Great, I thought. Weapons training with eight other girls, two trained assassins, and my aunt and 'father'.
Happy Birthday to me.
