Unaware of events in the car, Meg trudged toward what she was sure would be another miserable day at school.
It sure looked like it was going to start that way. Loitering around the section of lockers where her own sat was her classes "popular clique" - and leaning directly against her locker was the clique's acknowledged leader, the super-snotty Candi Gilmore.
As she approached the group, they all stopped talking and glared at her. "Well well," Candi said. "Look who's here. And what do you want?"
"I need my books," Meg said, resigned to it all.
"So?"
"So, you're standing in front of my locker."
"Well, if you can't get your stuff together before old man Finster's lit classs, that's your problem!" Candi sneered. "And you know how he hates tardiness." The other girls giggled.
Just then the warning bell rang. "Let's go, girls," Candi said. "Looks like Meg's going to be the last one to lit class again."
Meg sighed as she got her books out of her locker and ran for Lit Class. She pounded in the door just seconds after the class bell. Sure enough, Mr. Finster looked up with a scowl on his face. "Miss Royer -" he began.
Just then, the door opened again and Candi Gilmore entered, her smug look vanishing as she realized that somehow, she was even later than Meg.
Finster's scowl now found a new target. "Miss Gilmore," he said sternly. "You and Miss Royer both know the rules. I want a 2-page report from each of you tomorrow on Charles Dickens."
"Yessir," Meg said.
"Hey, like, wait a minute! I can't be late! I passed her in the hall!" Candi protested.
"Miss Gilmore - that's three pages."
"You can't do that! I can't be..."
"Four pages. Care to go for five?" Candi shut up. "I didn't think so. Now, both of you, take your seats."
Candi, fuming, sat next to her fellow cliquer, Gracie Lowe. "What happened?" Gracie whispered. "You were with us one minute, and the next, you were gone!"
"I don't know," Candi said, "But I'm sure it's somehow Royer's fault! After school, I'm gonna fix that little dweeb!"
