2 Uh-Oh

CHAPTER TWO UH-OH I HUSTLED BACK to Mr. Willow's class and sat down at our table. I share Table 5, in the back, with Simon and Rosie. "Uh-oh," Rosie said. Rosie is a nickname for Rosa. "What?" I asked. She didn't answer. Instead, she poked Simon with her elbow and nodded her head in my direction.

Simon looked at me. Simon isn't a nickname for

anything. It's just Simon. He said, "Oh no." They nodded at each other and then looked at me some more. "What?" I asked again. Rosie said, "There's something going on with you." "No, there's not." "Yes, there is," Simon said. "What is it?" "Nothing," I answered—even though I knew there really was something. "You're having one of your moments," Rosie said. "We can see it in your eyes." "No, I'm not." "Yes, you are, Molly," Simon said. "We've seen this look, like, a million times. It's the exact same look you got before we jumped into the leaf pile a few weeks ago. I mean, every single leaf? Seriously?" Rosie pleaded, "Just tell us." "Okay," I said. I knew they were right. This thing was not going to get out of my head. "There's a mason jar on Principal Shelton's desk. It's the kind of jar my mom uses to make raspberry jam. She gives the jam out at Christmas." "What's so special about the jar on Principal Shelton's desk?" asked Simon.

I answered, "It's full of Skittles." "And?" Rosie asked. "I want to know how many Skittles are in that jar," I whispered. I had to be quiet because Mr. Willow doesn't like talking. I'd seen Simon get in trouble enough to know that. He can be a total chatterbox sometimes. Mr. Willow has even called Simon's parents before. And I definitely didn't want that to happen to me. "I need to know how many Skittles are in that jar." "We can't sneak into the principal's office, dump out a bunch of Skittles, count them, and then put them back without anyone noticing," Rosie said. "We'll totally get caught."

"And totally suspended," Simon added. "I need to know," I said. "It's one thing to not jump into the leaves until every single leaf in the yard is in the pile, Molly," Rosie said, shaking her head. "And then if another leaf falls, we have to stop jumping, go get that leaf, and add it to the pile. But this is different." Simon agreed, "Way different." All I said was, "I need to know." "This could mean, like, getting into serious trouble

at school," Rosie said, still shaking her head. "And at home," added Simon. "I need to know." Rosie looked at Simon. Simon looked at Rosie. Then they both looked at me. We were good friends. Best friends even. They knew me. They knew nothing would change my mind. "You need to know," Simon said. "I need to know." "Okay," Rosie said. She twirled her hair around her left index finger. I knew this was a good sign. "We're going to need a plan." But we couldn't come up with a Skittles-snatchingand- counting strategy right then. That's because Mr. Willow was already walking toward us. "Table 5," he said in a voice a little louder than usual. "Quiet down. Everybody get your composition books out."