Chapter 8

Mush: The Ex-Quarterback

"Ok, class, please take out a pen. I am going to be passing out your Unit 2 World Lit. tests. As soon as you receive your test you may begin. Remember…no cheating. I will be watching," Mrs. Rose said as she walked up and down the isles of her classroom. But to Rae she sounded like a grown up in the Peanuts cartoons. All she heard was "wahwahwahwah".

It was first period on a Monday, and Rae was about to take a humongous test. However, that was the furthest thing from her mind. At the moment she was focused on what had to happen at the end of the test. Zodiac, Quills, Soaker, and Peter had gotten the list of Mush Meyer's classes just as Racetrack had requested. Sparrow, who was also in this class with Rae, had come up with most of the plan. Quills had been able to forge Mush's signature. And Rae, who Race had instructed to get real close to the popular group, was going to make sure that Mush didn't notice a thing.

Rae finished her test. Mush who sat to left of her was still working on his. And Mama, on the other side of Mush, was watching quietly. Then, Rae dropped her pen and it rolled right under Mush's seat. She tried to reach for it (she had made sure she had worn the most suggestive clothing that day). But Mush reached down and picked it up.

He held it out to her, "Is this yours?"

"Oh, yea. Thanks," Rae did her best to bat her eyelashes, stick out her chest, and act like the little helpless girl she knew Mush would drool over.

"No problem," Mush said starting to sound cocky. He kept his eyes on hers, "You're the new girl, right? Jack's half-sister."

"Guilty," Rae giggled, it made her want throw up, "I didn't think anyone had even noticed I was here." GAG!

Mushy laughed, "Hey, me and a bunch of the others are gunna go see a movie this Friday night. It would be my pleasure to take you."

What a loser, and Rae even knew that this guy had a girl friend, "Yeah, that'd be great. Pick me up around 7."

The bell rang, and everyone rushed out the door. But what no one had noticed was Mama, during Mush's conversation with Rae, had switched his test with a test made by the Conspiracy Club.

Ok, so Rae was now on her way to being "in". However, it wasn't who she would have chosen to be in with. She walked into class and there sat Jinx, the origin of all her happiness and all her doubts, sitting with Miracle. Rae walked over as Jinx started cracking up at something Miracle had said. This was not her day.

"Hey," she said. She really liked Miracle, but for some reason seeing her with Jinx made Rae feel jealous and defensive.

Miracle swished her long hair around to look at the newcomer, "Oh, what's up, Rae!" Raelyn knew that Miracle was just doing the same thing as she had done with Mush, or at least she hoped, but she still wished that Miracle would leave so she could make sure Jinx didn't fall for her.

Luckily at that moment the teacher called out, "Class has begun. Everyone back to your own seats!"

Miracle rolled her eyes sarcastically and went back to her assigned seat. Rae sat down next to Jinx not feeling all that much better. He elbowed her in the side and she turned to look at him.

"So, I heard from Miracle that this weekend was crazy for you guys."

Rae was to busy imagining running her fingers through his hair as his own traced her… "Huh?...Oh, yeah, this weekend was…crazy."

Jinx laughed, "You seem a little out of it, Campi. Not your usual loud-mouthed self today."

"I am not…" Rae started to protest until she noticed Jinx laughing at her. "Oh shut up!"

"Hey, hey…no need for hostility," Jinx threw up his hands in mock surrender. "Hey I was wondering if you would finally come out to the movies with me. We're going again this week."

"Well, I'm coming," Jinx perked like and excited puppy. "But Mush already asked me to go with him."

"Mush! Mush…Mush has a girlfriend," Jinx's mood plummeted as he stumbled for words. "You can't be serious. Mush! I've been asking you for weeks, Mush asks you once and you say yes! This is crazy. The guy's favorite pastimes are playing sports, watching sports, and porn. He doesn't care about anything else. Hell, I doubt he has room in his tiny little brain to care about anything else. Wow, I really misjudged you, Campi. I had you pegged for someone with a little most substance."

Rae knew he was right, but he didn't know that she wanted to be with him more than anything. What was she doing? Throwing all of this away for some club. "I thought he was your friend," Rae said meekly.

Jinx didn't look at her for the rest of the period (or the week for that matter). At the end of class, he got up and met Miracle at the door. He then promptly asked her to the movies.

Around Thursday after school, Racetrack and Spot came driving up to Rae in the parking lot.

"Special club meeting today," Spot called to her and then gestured to the car, " Come on and get in."

Once everyone was in Endy's basement, Peter went up to the podium at the front of the room.

"Today, I would like to submit a tape of the first big victory of the year made by yours truly." People clapped as someone clicked off the lights and the tape started to play.

The tape was shot poking out from behind a locker in the boy's locker room. Mush was getting his bag to change out from the locker. His coach came up next to him.

"Mush, you won't be changing today."

"What do you mean, Coach."

His coach look almost at the brink of tears, "Look, Mush, this is as hard for me to say as it's gunna be for you to accept. But rules are rules, and at NRHS academics come first. Look, kid, your English teacher just told me you failed your last test. You have a D in that class. We're gunna have to pull you off the team. Chip's guns fill in for you."

"Score," Spot shouted.

Then there were a few minutes of Mush cursing and banging his locker. Finally, he left the room.

The lights in the basement came back on. Everyone was kind of quiet. Rae had to wonder whether all of this was really needed. People started to leave until it was just Race and Rae left in the basement. Rae started to walk towards the door, and Race sauntered up to her.

"So, how about that, huh?" Race said with a superior, haughty smile on his face.

Rae exploded, "I think you all are ridiculous! He didn't deserve that! Plus, I haven't even seen them do anything that bad to any of you!"

She started stalking up the stairs.

Race yell up to her, "Oh really! You've only been here a month, Raelyn Campi. You don't know what it's like to grow up with these people. You just wait! Just wait till you go out with them Friday. You'll see!"