Spy and Don't Tell

Chapter Nine

It's not everyday you get told that you are wanted by descents of descents of the circle who are pissed off at the people who killed their parents A.K.A. my parents. I didn't get the full details as to why the twelve of us were wanted, we were just told to have each others backs. So naturally, us girls were now spending so much time together my grandma jokes about making a room for all of six of us to stay in (actually now thinking of it, Jo took it seriously and put in a request to switch rooms to ours after this semester ends). The boys on the other hand were nothing like us. They like teamed off in twos which didn't end well for me because Morgan decided to team off with Alex.

"Jo, what's on your mind?" Patty asked snapping me out of my thoughts as Jo came into the library and over to us.

"Boys are stupid and confusing." Jo pouted popping down into the seat next to me.

"Aw is Jo having boy troubles?" Alice teased as Kat snickered.

"Z why does your brother have to be stupid and confusing?" Jo asked putting her head onto the table.

"Well someone just recently told me boys are stupid and confusing and if I'm not mistaken I believe my brother is a boy so I'd say that my brother is stupid and confusing because he's a boy." I said with a slow nod as if I'm talking to a little kid, which Jo could be sometimes.

"Haha very funny." Jo glared at me. "I'm being serious though. I was helping Madame Poppy with putting the tea pots and tea cups out when Jessica Foster—you know the senior who always tries to crash our movie nights?— anyways she came in and started asking Madame Poppy about the ball dancing they were doing that day and why they had that class when Madame Poppy told her about this ball that we get to have which is supposed to be like our homecoming or whatever." Jo said.

"A ball? Like fancy dresses and big up-do's? How exciting!" Kat said with a few smile. "Oh! Do you think Skip will ask me to it?"

"Kat, focus. You can daydream about Skip in a tux later." Lexi said snapping her fingers in front of Kat's face. Kat mumbled a sorry and went back to reading the book she had out.

"Okay so Madame Poppy mentioned a homecoming, ball, thing. So what? Why did it just now hit you that my brother is stupid and confusing?" I asked seriously wanting to know then end of the story.

"Oh well I asked Mrs Morgan about it and she agreed that there is going to be a homecoming for us and that she was going to talk about it when we get closer to it and that it's only for the students who are taking CoveOps this semester. So after I was told all this info I decided to ask the cutie with the booty—AKA Morgan—if he wanted to be my homecoming date and he said no and that he didn't even know that there was going to be a homecoming. Like hello, I just asked you to homecoming. Does he not realize how big of a deal that it to a girl? It takes wits to ask a guy to anything! And he completely turned me down!"

"There's a reason for everything, Jo." Alice said in a sing-song-y voice. "Also he lied. He did know. I got a little slip of envolopaper today in my CoveOps class from him asking me if I wanted to go with him."

"What did my parents do?" I asked leaning on the table with a smirk.

"Nothing. They didn't even notice. Well, your mom didn't anyways. Your dad winked and I'm pretty sure after class your dad gave Morgan a pat on the back." Alice said. Lexi snickered clearly knowing what was going threw my head.

"Okay so let me get this straight," I started, "Morgan can ask Patty to this homecoming thing and my dad will give him a pat on the back yet when a boy just stares at me my dad calls him out on it? How does that work?"

"It's the job of being a dad. Moms takes their daughters out shopping for your first grappling hook, dads calls boys out in the middle of class for staring at their daughters." Patty said.

"I bet when Alex asks you out your dad is going to turn tomato red with anger." Lexi teased just as my dad walked into the library, of course Lexi didn't know this because her back was to him only making her keep talking. "Well maybe not tomato red, he will probably grab you by the shoulders and say 'don't go with Alex, Z, you're too young for boys' only making you roll your eyes and say 'Dad, I'm not a little girl anymore so shut up or I will tell mom about the time you took me skydiving when I was four'."

"How do you know about the time I took her skydiving when she was four?" Dad asked making Lexi's eyes go wide with fear.

"How long has he been there?" Lexi whispered as if he couldn't hear.

"Long enough to hear you making fun of him." Kat whispered back.

"I think this is where you turn around and say 'Uncle Zachy, how have you been?' and then compliment his lecture today." I said standing up and walking over to the shelves closet to us to grab another book to help me with my homework.

"You can shut up now, Z." Lexi hissed at me before my dad started talking about something I wasn't paying attention to because at the time he was talking, Alex decided to appear out of nowhere next to me as I continued to walk away from my table of friends.

"Hey Gallagher." Alex said.

"Hey Blackthorn. What do you want? Need help looking for a decoding book for your homework? If so you're in the wrong area." I said nonchalantly.

"No actually I was looking for you. See, I tried to get answers from your brother but he wouldn't give me any so I thought I'd ask you."

"Okay then ask quickly because I got things to do."

"Is it true that I have to give your dad a dozen goats just to be partners for an assignment with you?"

"It's a dozen per assignment. Two dozen down payment to date and half a dozen per date." Dad said putting his arm around my shoulders. "But since it's you who's asking, double it."

I rolled my eyes at this, knowing he's joking. For one, where would we even put that many goats? Also who would take care of them when we're not at the safe house? Clearly he did not think this through. Oh and what would Mom do when she finds out? It would not be fun for any of us. Especially when any of the goats ends up eating Mom's shoes or clothes.