Faire Exchange: Chapter 18

Martin tries to protect Gregg.

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Martin and Jeremy were Gregg's only hope. Whatever he'd done to get Rina's attention, it couldn't possibly lead to anything good. Not when she'd spent first period releasing random odors all over the classroom, enough that for a moment Mrs. Horn seemed ready to take everybody outside just so they could breathe. It never came to that, but if that was how Rina would treat an entire class, imagine how she'd treat a single person.

True, nothing had happened to Nadia Xu, at least not yet, which meant maybe Rina would treat Gregg okay as well. But fear gnawed at Martin's mind all morning, and he and Jeremy knew the risk was too high.

"We've gotta help him," Jeremy whispered after the bell rang for lunch. "But how?"

"I have an idea," Martin said.

They couldn't fight Rina, that would just make things worse. They couldn't ignore Rina, either. But there was still a chance to keep her from getting too close to Gregg.

Martin and Jeremy were going to have to run interference.

Nadia was already at their usual table, by herself, tugging open the bagged lunch she'd brought from home. If yesterday was any indication, Rina was going to sit with her. To keep Gregg safe, the boys had to arrange the other seats very carefully.

There were eight seats to the table, in two rows of four. Nadia sat two seats from the right. Jeremy took the one seat to her left. Martin sat across from her, with an empty seat at the corner next to him, exclusively for Gregg. Rina would have to sit next to either Nadia or Martin—he'd lost in rock-paper-scissors. Grandma had taught him that sometimes, no sacrifice is too great.

Nadia watched with her uneaten sandwich in her hand. "What's going on?"

"We're trying to keep Rina away from Gregg," Jeremy said.

"She was asking about him this morning," Martin said. "We're worried she might start picking on him."

"Oh." Nadia darted her eyes to the side. "I don't think we need to worry about that."

"Still, we don't wanna take any chances," Jeremy said. "You two were hanging out earlier. What'd she want?"

"Just to use my phone. She thinks it's the most amazing thing ever. I think it's really the only reason—Oh, there's Gregg now. Hey, Gregg!"

"Hey, Nadia." Gregg laid his tray down to Martin's right. "Why're you—"

"Don't sit there!" Jeremy jumped out of his seat.

"Sit here instead." Martin pointed at the empty seat to his left.

"Uh… sure." Gregg picked up his tray, stepped behind Martin, and sat down at the corner. "What's going on? Why're we all clumped together?"

"This is apparently their idea of protecting you," Nadia said.

"Protecting me? From… You mean—?"

Rina set her tray down next to Martin. "Good afternoon, everybody. Nadia, how were your classes this morning?"

"Th-they were fine, Rina. How about yours?"

Martin bit down on his lip. Surely "Lady" Rina was just seconds from vaporizing Nadia for not calling her "Lady."

But Rina simply said, "More boring than usual. I did what I could to liven it up, though."

If "liven up" meant making the classroom smell like Godzilla's toilet, that was a good way to describe it.

Rina looked around the table. "Why is everyone clumped together like this?"

Nadia glanced at each of the boys in turn. "We just wanted to make a little extra space."

"I see. How about you, Gregg? Receive any big surprises lately?" Rina leaned over to see past Martin.

"Me?" Gregg suddenly hunched over the chicken fingers on his tray. "I-I-I guess so. Tried a new candy I never heard of. It was pretty good."

"I'll bet it was. Gregg, would you like to come sit next to me?"

Gregg curled his head down further.

"Gregg? I asked you a question."

"S-sure." Gregg picked up his tray and stepped over to the seat on Rina's left.

"Thank you," Rina said. "Now, how about giving me a few of your… what do you call them? Chicken fingers?"

"Sure." Gregg took half of his chicken fingers and placed them on Rina's tray. "Here."

"Thank you very much," she said.

Martin's plan was crumbling right before his eyes. What on earth was wrong with Gregg? What did he think he was doing?

"Tell me," Rina said to Gregg. "That candy, where do you suspect it came from?"

"I thought you put it there."

"And why do you think I put it there?"

"I thought it was because you like me."

Martin, who hadn't even taken one bite during this spectacle, now nearly let his sandwich drop out of his fingers.

"And tell me," Rina said. "Do you like me? Tell the absolute truth now."

"Yes," Gregg said, casually yet with a falter, as if he'd let it slip by accident. "You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen."

Rina bit down on a chicken finger, her head held high as she relished his praise. "Now, what do you think that candy did after you ate it?"

"I think it made it so I have to do whatever you say."

"Oh, no no no!" She waved her chicken in a tut-tut motion. "Not quite. It made it so when I ask you something, you give me the truth, in word and deed."

That idiot. That poor, possessed idiot.

"One last thing," Rina said. "Nadia thinks I should start being nicer to people. What do you think?"

Martin suddenly admired Nadia a lot more than he used to. She must be tough if she could say that to Rina.

"I think she's right," Gregg said. "Everybody's afraid of you. Kids are skipping school. I like you, but I'm afraid of you, too."

The entire table—it felt like the entire cafeteria—fell silent. She said wanted honesty, and now she got it. Now that this spell had backfired on her, she might very well scatter his body—and everything around her—all over the country.

But instead, just looked at him sullenly for a moment, then pushed her tray forward. "On second thought, you can have the rest of this. I hate for a chicken to let its fingers go to waste. Do whatever you want."

Gregg picked the chicken off her tray as she walked off, her cape billowing behind her.

Martin couldn't stop staring at him.

Him? Rina?

Was he nuts?