act natural | mi high

06 | The Hive

'St Heart's school is chosen by a celebrity chef as a test bed for his new health drink.'

SEEING THE NEW POOKIE PLUMMER FILM THE PREVIOUS WEEKEND WASN'T AT THE TOP OF MADELINE'S TO-DO LIST. BUT IT HAPPENED.
AND SHE COULDN'T PRETEND SHE DIDN'T ENJOY IT OR THE WRISTBAND PRIVILEGES
THAT CAME ALONG WITH IT. Considering his short temper, it was a wonder Mr McNab hadn't lost his rag with the state of his classroom that morning. Maddie and Dan were in the middle of a paper airplane competition as he rattled on about insects. "Bees, ants, termites, they're examples of creatures that operate with a hive mind, but it can be a terribly destructive force too." Madeline rolled her eyes as Dan's plane went slightly further than hers, she started making a new one.

"Sorry to interrupt, Mr McNab" Mr Flatley poked his head into the room. The students continued their previous actions. "I just wanted to let everyone know that I shall be away for a few days attending a conference on school discipline." Timed perfectly, the bell rang, the students grabbed their things and left the room as fast as they possibly could. "Have a good time Sir." Maddie smiled as she breezed past Mr Flatley. "Oh yes, uh thank you, Madeline. So, whilst I'm away, please make sure that you... Oh..." the classroom was empty before he even finished his sentence.

"Morgan, fix your tie." McNab was taking full advantage of Mr Flatley's absence. "Beckett. Jewellery off." The pair stood with Roly both rolled their eyes. Dan fixed his tie and Maddie reluctantly removed her rings. "Donaldson, tuck your skirt in, boy."

"Come on." Maddie's eyebrows knitted together as a man and a camera crew approached the school. "That's the bloke of the TV!"

"Jimmy Jubbly, the cook!" "Jimmy Jubbly's not just a cook, he campaigns for better food for schools." Melissa informed as if she was reading from a recently published article. "That's not going to be hard here." Tom quipped, as the rest of the students chirped excitedly around them. Camera crews and celebrities seemed to frequently have that effect on the students of St Hearts. "Excuse me, can I help you?" Mr McNab was the last person to tolerate celebrity. "Yeah, I'm Jimmy Jubbly. The Minister sent me, you know, for the experiment." He mumbled the last bit, avoiding eye contact with the students.

"Oh, you?"
"Yeah, me, Jimmy Jubbly. Come on where's the kitchen."

Jubbly played up to the camera, wheeling his trolley of boxes inside the school without any opposition from Mr McNab. Maddie and Dan shared a glance, she was glad she wasn't the only one that thought that was weird.
Nothing had seemed majorly different or odd throughout the day, minimising Maddie's initial skepticism at least until there was something else that ignited it again. For now, she was absentmindedly eating her lunch and feeling slightly relaxed at the fact that so far there had been no life-threatening, world-saving mission gifted to them from Frank today.

"Oi! I was going to sit there." Aneisha approached their table, tray in hand, annoyed at Byron's sudden infiltration of her seat. "Sorry, only people with Pookie Plummer wristbands are allowed at this table." Tom taunted and Maddie sent him a threatening glance. Aneisha sent her a reassuring nod, silently telling her not to worry as she reached for one of Dan'a chips. "Ho-oh! Sorry - no band, no chip." His hand hovered over the food smugly, until a plastic wrist band hit him square in the nose. He sent a glare to Maddie, the obvious culprit, a smirk on her face. Aneisha hoped Maddie would keep Dan distracted just enough for the chip she'd taken from Zoe's face to hit him too. Unfortunately, Dan was too quick to catch on, jolting out of the way. The chip missed him, and hit Melissa behind him.

"Ouch! What was that for?" Maddie rolled her eyes at the obvious over-reaction. It was a chip. Roly grabbed food from his tray, aiming it at Aneisha. She ducked. Maddie knew exactly where this was headed. There was a pause, and everyone else had caught on too.