Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15 Michael entered the kitchen, where his mom and Jane were eating an after-school snack. "Cookies, would you like a cookie?" Mrs. Gomez asked. "Mom!" Michael protested. "Don't call me Cookies! It's embarrassing!" Over the last year or so, he had grown to not like his mom's nickname for him. "Oh, come on, it's cute. You're cute!" Mrs. Gomez offered him two cookies on a plate. "I don't want to be cute! I'm in the fifth grade." "You can be in the fifth grade and still be cute," his

mom assured him. As Michael reached for the cookies, Mr. Nemesis, who was perched on top of the refrigerator, leaped onto Michael's backpack. He had been waiting all day to get another chance at the squirrel who had eluded him the day before. "MEOOOOOWWWWW!" Mr. Nemesis growled, wiggling his head into the partially unzipped top of the backpack. Merle and Pearl found themselves face-to-face with the angry cat! "MEOOOOOWWWWW!" Mr. Nemesis said again, which in cat meant, "Aha! I knew you were in here! I smelled you!" The squirrels were trapped against the bottom of the backpack, but thankfully, the opening in the top was too small for more than just Mr. Nemesis's head to fit through. "AHHHHH!" Merle screamed before Pearl put her paw over his mouth. "Shhhhh!" "Mr. Nemesis! Bad boy!" Mrs. Gomez shouted as she jumped up from the table to grab the cat. "What are you doing?" Michael began spinning around, trying to fling Mr. Nemesis off. "You're gonna make him fall!" Jane cried, worried about her cat. "Good!" Michael said and spun faster.

Mrs. Gomez managed to stop Michael's rotation and grab Mr. Nemesis, yanking his head out of the backpack. "Naughty kitty!" she scolded. "Why in the world are you attacking a backpack?"

"Who knows?" Michael offered nervously. "Leftover chicken nuggets, maybe? Thanks for the cookies, Mom." Michael grabbed the cookies and set the plate down on the countertop by the refrigerator, noting the crisp $10 bill hanging from a magnet. "Stay here and talk with us for a second," Mrs. Gomez called after him. "Sorry, Mom. Can't! Gotta study!" Michael said as he headed for his room. Mrs. Gomez smiled. "I won't argue with that."