4 The Ice Age

CHAPTER FOUR The Ice Age Dry Ice (noun). It's carbon dioxide in the solid form. And it's super cool. Literally. As in —78° C, which is —109° F! And when it heats up, it doesn't melt like regular water ice. Instead, it converts directly into a gas without ever being a liquid! Some say the gas looks like a spooky but hopefully friendly ghost. ELIJAH BENT OVER, STARING AT HIS BOTTLE. "Hey, guys. C'mon. I'm sure it will start to explode like a volcano. Just give it a sec." "More like eternity." Jeremy stood with his arms crossed, glaring. The reddish-orange mixture bubbled, but only a little bit. Hardly any vapor escaped. Memito blew out an exasperated sigh. "It's never going to work, guys. We're going to lose." He slumped back in his chair. "We need a miracle." "I bet there's a simple solution," said Elijah in an upbeat voice. But I knew he was feeling down. I watched him tug on his afro. He only did that when he was really upset. I felt awful for him. "Check the water," I whispered from across the room.

He kept on staring at the water with hopeful eyes, like it would start to fizz as fast as opening a soda can. But that only happens because the pressure is released, and then carbon dioxide bubbles out. "It's not a ghost. It's like a wimpy version of Alka-Seltzer," said Memito. Elijah leaned his hands against the table. "We just need to give it more time." "Psst, Elijah," I said, creeping toward him. "Check the water." His brows drew together. "The water?" "What are you doing, Kate?" asked Phoenix, frantically waving the index card for our next challenge. "We need to get started on Moon Rocks." I held up my hand. "Hold up." Cupping my mouth, I whispered to Elijah. "You need warmer water." "Oh, thanks, Kate!" His lips pulled into a wide smile. "So I just need to add warm water. Will do!" "We're supposed to use warm water?" gasped Julia, whose table was right in front of Elijah's. "Um, yeah," I admitted a little reluctantly. Julia frowned at her group's attempt at a Ghost. "We put in ice water." She hoisted up her water bottle. "And it's not doing anything."

"There's no mist," said Avery. "Nothing's happening." "Just a few tiny bubbles," murmured Skyler. "Guess we're all doomed to get bad grades," said Memito in a gloomy voice. "Except for Kate the Chemist, Phoenix, and Birdie," said Jeremy. "Everyone calm down." Ms. Daly made a stopping motion. "In science, if you don't like how it's going, it's fine to start again. Get new bottles and I'll take yours." Elijah and Julia eagerly handed theirs back to Ms. Daly, then they hustled over to the materials table to grab new bottles. I strolled triumphantly back to my teammates. Only, instead of smiling, Phoenix glared at me. "You helped Jeremy's group," she accused with a baffled expression. "And Julia's, too." "Well, that second part was by accident. But Elijah's my friend," I said, resenting that I even needed to explain this. Birdie shot me an understanding look. Elijah was her friend too. But since Elijah was my next-door neighbor, I've known him even longer than Birdie. He and I started hanging out when we were still in diapers. Our moms would take us to the playground

together. I met Birdie a few years later in first grade, and we've bonded like hydrogen and oxygen in water ever since. "Well, we'd better get started on Moon Rocks," Phoenix said. "We need to keep our lead." "Don't worry, we've got it under control," I said. "It's all going to work out. Uh, not really. That was the worst prediction I've ever made. Because what happened next was the opposite of working out. It was a science disaster of epic proportions.