3 TWO LATE TO CLASS

CHAPTER 3 TWO LATE TO CLASS Alexander sprinted up the escalators. He was out of breath by the time he reached the ninth floor. He rushed into his classroom. Alexander looked around. Students were talking, laughing, and running all over the place. "You sure picked the right day to be late, Salamander!" someone shouted. "There's no teacher!"

Alexander turned to see Rip holding a big yellow box that said HANDS OFF! "Dr. Tallow is even later than you are!" said Nikki, rushing over. "What kind of teacher "Guys!" Alexander interrupted. He lowered his voice. "I saw a balloon goon!" Nikki's eyes widened. "You did?! Where?" "Behind the school," said Alexander. "No way!" Rip said. "Did you pop it?" Nikki asked. "Well, no," said Alexander. "I mean, I tried to— I ran after it. But it just vanished! I ended up slashing a garbage bag instead."

"I hate to burst your bubble, Salamander," said Rip, "but balloon goons can't just disappear." "Maybe the garbage bag looked like a balloon goon?" suggested Nikki. "But—" Alexander began. "So, Salamander," said Rip, "before you fought the garbage bag, did you finish your animal report? Bet it's not as awesome as mine!" Rip shook his yellow box. "Yep, I finished it," said Alexander. "It was fun!" "For you, maybe," said Nikki. "I had to write about crummy goldfish." "Pfft! Whatever!" said Rip. "You're just jealous because Dr. Tallow likes me more than you!" He pointed to the board.

The door swung open. Dr. Tallow walked in. "Sorry I'm late," she said, rubbing lotion on her hands. "I left my lotion in the car! My skin dries right up without it." But most students didn't hear her. They were still chatting loudly. Dr. Tallow clapped her hands. CLAP! CLAP! CLAP-CLAP-CLAP! The students echoed her clap back to her. "That's better," said Dr. Tallow. She turned to Nikki, smiling. "Except for you. Your claps were a teensy bit late." Dr. Tallow went to the board and added a nineteenth X beside Nikki's name. Nikki tugged on her hoodie strings until only her narrowed eyes were visible.