Ann Martin - Mystery At Claudia's House

By Saturday, when I sat for Derek and Todd again, I was sick of thinking about Janine and her secrets. I just wanted to have a good time playing with the boys, and to forget about solving any mysteries. I'm not saying that I wasn't still curious about Janine; I just needed a day off. As I walked to the Masterses', I resolved to spend the day simply having fun.

"Hey, guys," I said as I reached the Masterses' driveway. "You look like you're having a blast." Todd was riding around on his little

bike, which has training wheels, and Derek was practicing moves on his skateboard.

"We are!" said Todd. "Look what I can do!" He zoomed up the driveway, made kind of a shaky turn, and zoomed back down.

"All right, Todd,” I said. "You're a great bike rider."

"Check out my moves," said Derek. He stepped onto the skateboard and rocked it back and forth. "Just like the guys at Muscle Beach, right?"

"Where's Muscle Beach?"

"Oh, it's out in California," said Derek. "It's this place where all the coolest skaters go to show off their stuff."

"Neat," I said. "Hey, you guys go on riding. I'm just going to let your parents know I'm here." I knocked on the door, and Mrs. Masters answered it.

"Oh, hi, Claudia," she said. "Thanks for being on time. We're just about ready to go." She reached for her car keys. "The boys have been having such a good time with you," she said. "They really like that detective game you've been playing."

"Oh, right," I replied. "Well, I have fun with them, too." I wasn't about to tell her that playing detective was more than a game. She probably wouldn't like to know I was encouraging .her boys to spy on people. All

the more reason, I thought, to give the detective work a rest.

After the Masterses left, I sat outside on the curb and watched the boys ride around for a while longer. Soon, though, they wanted to do something else.

"Let's go see what Janine is doing," said Derek. "I bet we can crack that case if we follow her today."

"Yeah! Let's play spy," cried Todd. "I promise to be really quiet."

"Sorry, guys," I said. "I think we better leave Janine alone for a few days."

"I'm really sorry I messed up our plan," said Derek. "I can't believe I did that."

"Oh, Derek, that's all right," I replied. "I think you were under a lot of pressure about that kissing stuff. I just hope you feel better now that you've told the truth."

"Oh, I do!" he said, smiling. "I really do." Then his face clouded over. "But only you and Janine and Todd know the truth. I still have to figure out what to do about my friends."

"Well, I'm sure you'll do the right thing when the time comes," I said. "Now, how about a game? Let's see," I said, thinking. Sometimes it's hard to come up with games that will work for kids who are different ages. "I know!" I said, after a moment. "How about Animals?"

"Animals?" asked Todd. "How do you play that?"

"Well, I first pick an animal and pretend I am that animal. You two have to guess what I am. Whoever guesses first gets to be the next one to act out an animal."

"Cool," said Derek. He sat down on his skateboard, and Todd sat next to him.

"Okay," I said, thinking quickly. "Here goes!" I started to lope around, bent over, with my hands hanging down low. Once in a while ' I'd stop and scratch myself. I made little grunting noises, too.

"A gorilla!" yelled Todd.

I straightened up. "That's right," I said. "Your turn."

Todd thought for a second, and then started to run around the yard, barking like a maniac.

"Dog!" yelled Derek. Todd nodded, but he kept running and barking for a few minutes, enjoying being a dog. When he was done, Derek stretched his neck out as far as it could go. He made ears by holding his right hand behind his head. He looked kind of graceful, if you can imagine that.

That's when I realized that Derek really is a good actor. He's not just pretending to be Waldo on the show. This may sound corny, but the fact is that Derek has a special gift for actually becoming something or somebody else.

He'd chosen a hard animal to act out, but it only took seconds for me — and Todd — to realize what he was. I let Todd be the one to guess first.

"Giraffe!" cried Todd.

"That was great, Derek," I said.

Derek blushed. "Thanks," he said. "I like this game. I guess I miss acting sometimes."

We played a few more rounds, and then, just as Todd was being a very convincing penguin, I heard voices behind me. I turned around and saw all four Pike boys — and Va-nessa — walking up the driveway.

"Hi!" called Nicky. "What are you guys doing?"

"Hi, Nicky," I said. I turned to Derek. "Didn't you and Stacey have a little talk about inviting kids over without checking with the baby-sitter first?" I asked.

"I didn't invite them!" cried Derek. He looked a little nervous, and I could guess why.

"We're here for a demonstration," said Byron.

"Yeah," said Adam. "A demonstration from an expert."

"Right," added Jordan. "An expert demonstration." The triplets folded their arms across their chests.

"Of kissing!" added Nicky, as if it were necessary. "And Vanessa's all ready to be kissed!"

I looked at Derek. He looked as if he'd rather be just about anywhere but his own driveway. "I think I hear the phone ringing," he said, desperately. He began to edge toward the front door.

"No way," said Byron, blocking his path. "We're tired of waiting. We want to see how you do it."

I had the feeling the Pike boys were testing Derek, as if they knew, somehow, that he'd been making up all those stories about what a great kisser he was. I stepped closer to the kids. "Okay, guys," I began. "Let's — "

"Wait a minute," said Derek. He took a deep breath. "There's something I have to say." He paused and looked at me.

I nodded at him, telling him to go on.

"I've never kissed a girl in my life," said Derek. He let out a big breath and looked around at the Pikes. "I'm no expert. I don't know anything at all about kissing. And I'm really, really scared about having to kiss somebody on the show." He hung his head, waiting for the teasing to start.

I held my breath.

Byron stepped forward. "Hey," he said, slapping Derek on the back. "We knew it all along!"

"Y — you did?" asked Derek.

"Well, maybe not all along," said Adam.

"But we were starting to wonder," said Jordan.

"Does this mean I get to go home?" asked Vanessa. She looked extremely relieved. "See you later!" She ran down the driveway.

"Hey!" yelled Byron. "You owe us money!"

"Yeah," shouted Adam. "You don't get to keep it if you didn't kiss him!"

Vanessa just kept on running.

"We put together all the money we had,” Jordan told Derek. "We gave her two dollars and thirteen cents, just to kiss you."

Nicky looked disgusted. "Now we have to figure out how to get it back," he said.

"I bet we can come up with an idea," replied Derek. "Let's see…"He frowned, as if he were thinking hard.

"Come on, Todd," I said. "Let's you and I play Animals by ourselves." I figured we should let the boys be alone for a while. They could talk "boy talk" and patch up their friendship.