Frenemies by Sheryl Berk

Author:Sheryl Berk [Berk, Sheryl]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Juvenile Fiction, School & Education, Social Themes, friendship, Bullying
ISBN: 9781499809282
Google: 4UyuDwAAQBAJ
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Published: 2019-09-24T20:48:02+00:00

There was no time to waste. Mr. Carter checked them into their hotel and sent Emma to her room and Jackson to his to get changed immediately for the Student Congress opening ceremonies.

“You literally have fifteen minutes,” he said, shooing them off. “Dress to impress!”

She carefully laid out her outfit on the bed: a simple black skirt and a red blouse with a bow—“power red” was what Izzy had called it when they spotted it in a shop window at the mall. It showed she meant business!

Jackson met her at the elevator; he was still tying his tie when he suddenly looked up. “Wow, you look . . . ,” he began.

Emma tugged at the bow at her neck. “Wrinkled. I look wrinkled. I know. I can’t help it; my stuff was squished in my bag.”

“I was going to say you look pretty,” Jackson continued. “Really pretty. Red is your color.”

That was a good thing—because her face now matched the color of her blouse! “Thanks. You look good too.” Jackson had chosen a light-blue shirt that made his eyes sparkle.

“Good? Not devastatingly handsome and ready to kick some Congress butt?” he teased. “Make sure you add those points to my card.”

“I will,” Emma flirted back. “I’m keeping a list.”

They found Mr. Carter waiting for them in the lobby, pacing back and forth. “There are some amazing schools here,” he told them. “The competition is fierce. We can’t afford to make any mistakes.”

He ushered Emma and Jackson into the main ballroom where they were each given a name tag and instructed to take a seat at a numbered table.

“There will be opening remarks, then each team will be asked to stand and introduce themselves to the Congress,” he explained.

Jackson gulped. “What are we supposed to say?”

“Just your name, the school you represent, and ‘I’m honored to be chosen as a member of the National Student Congress,’” Mr. Carter told him.

Unfortunately, Emma wasn’t paying attention. She was too busy looking around the enormous ballroom with its twinkling crystal chandeliers and massive stage.

“Is that where we will present our arguments?” she asked, pointing to the podium at its center.

“I believe so,” Mr. Carter said. “But all these tables will be gone and replaced with seats—one thousand of them to be exact.”

“A thousand?” Jackson looked like he was getting more anxious by the minute. “That many people are going to be listening?”

Mr. Carter nodded. “And there’s also the broadcast on the National Student Congress site, which could be accessed by millions around the world.”

Jackson wiped some sweat from his brow with the back of his sleeve. “Okay, you did not mention that before.”

“There was no need to. And there is no need to worry about it,” Mr. Carter assured them. “You are extremely well prepared.”

“Easy for him to say,” Jackson whispered to Emma. “Are you seeing this?”

“I am!” Emma responded breathlessly. “It’s beautiful—and so huge!”

“Really? Doesn’t this freak you out?”

Emma shrugged. “Are you kidding? I get to talk to a thousand people? And be broadcast around the world? It’s a dream come true!”

Jackson shook his head.

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