The Chicken Nugget Ambush by Mark Lowery

Author:Mark Lowery [Mark Lowery]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bonnier Publishing Fiction
Published: 2016-06-02T00:00:00+00:00

Marshmallows

As the flames died down a bit, Mad Dan handed round wooden skewers to everyone (apart from Gamble who isn’t allowed sharp things), then passed around marshmallows for us to toast. This was pretty exciting. I mean, obviously they’re no match for a doughnut, but I hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast and they were definitely better than nuggets. At last, something sweet!

I was just about to stab my skewer through the marshmallow when Rosie called out, ‘Hey! You can’t let Roman have one. It’s against his diet.’

As if to make absolutely certain, she pulled the marshmallow off my stick and flung it into the fire. I watched as it sizzled and turned black.

I no longer had the strength to argue.

‘OK,’ announced Mad Dan, as everyone else slurped their marshmallows and made mnyam mnyam noises. ‘Whenever you’re in a survival situation, it’s important to have a leader. So each day at the campfire we’re gonna choose someone to be tribal chief. The chief gets to make one rule that the rest of us have got to follow until a new chief is elected.’

This would’ve sounded quite cool. If I’d had any chance of winning, that is.

Before we voted, we nominated the people who we thought deserved to be tribal chief. Mr Noblet chose Gamble, because he’d saved his life at dinner time. Kevin nominated Rosie Taylor, which made everybody else howl with laughter. And Miss Clegg suggested Vanya. She didn’t explain why but I guessed it was because Vanya had beaten up Gamble on the bus.

Then we had to put our hands up to vote. Gamble got two votes (one from Mr Noblet and one from me because he told me he’d chuck me in the fire if I didn’t), Rosie also got one vote (from Kevin), Mad Dan got one vote (from Miss Clegg) even though he wasn’t nominated. Everyone else voted for Vanya.

Rosie was furious and screamed that the whole class was jealous of how beautiful she was, before storming back to her tent with Kevin gazing after her.

‘What’s your rule going to be?’ said Mad Dan, plonking a feathery Native American headdress on Vanya’s head. To be honest he also seemed a bit annoyed that she’d won it.

Vanya thought for a moment. ‘I think Roman should be allowed a marshmallow,’ she said. ‘It’s not fair that he didn’t get one.’

Wow! What an amazing friend. I could’ve wept. ‘Thank you so much,’ I croaked.

Vanya shrugged. ‘What are friends for?’

‘I’m not sure he’s allowed …’ said Mr Noblet uneasily.

‘That’s a good point,’ said Mad Dan, who still seemed miffed with me about the sick on his car and the water zorb. ‘You’ll have to come up with something else.’

Vanya frowned. ‘No. I’m the chief and you said I could make a rule. Everyone heard you.’ There was a steeliness to her voice like she wasn’t going to back down. ‘It’s either that or I make a rule that you’ve got to sit in a bath of spiders …’

Mad Dan shivered. And so I was allowed to eat a beautifully-toasted, crispy, gooey marshmallow.

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