Worst Class Trip Ever

Did you ever have a moment that seemed totally unimportant at the time, but then later you realized it was the moment when your whole life changed? Watching my middle-school science teacher eat a barbecued bug was that moment for me.

But maybe I should start from the beginning. My name is Dani McFeeney. That’s short for Danielle, but nobody ever calls me that except my little brother, Kenny, and he’s totally obnoxious. But more on that later.

The story really starts with Mr. Truskey.

Thompson Q. Truskey is the craziest teacher at Tweedale Middle School. He’s probably the nuttiest teacher in the state of Florida, or possibly the whole US of A. Despite that, they still let him teach sixth- and seventh-grade science.

I was on my way to his classroom one day when my friend Cassie Saunders caught up to me. Did you hear? she cried breathlessly. Cassie is almost always breathless. Its pretty much how she and her identical twin sister, Chrissie, go through life.

Did I hear what? I asked distractedly, less focused on Cassie than on what kind of mystery meat the cafeteria might be serving for lunch that day. Judging from the smell wafting through the halls, it had to be something like water buffalo, or possibly emu.

Cassie fell into step beside me as we rounded the corner at the end of the hall. I heard Truskey has some kind of big announcement today, she said, tugging at a strand of her curly, shiny black hair. "Not just big—like, huge."

I shrugged. Yeah? I said. Its probably something like the time he liberated those earthworms we were supposed to dissect.

We both grimaced at the memory. Mr. Truskey isn’t just a teacher, he’s an environmental activist, too. During the summer he’s always going on these exotic quests to sample soil quality in the jungles of Outer Middle-of-Nowhere or to save the greater swamp-dwelling sludge frog. At the beginning of the year he spent about four class periods telling us all about how he single-handedly flew a propeller plane deep into the rain forest of Costa Rica and piloted a motorboat down the Amazon, though it’s hard to believe he could do either of those things and return in one piece. I’ve seen him screeching out of the teachers parking lot in his ancient hatchback, and its not a pretty sight.

But back to the worms. The poor, doomed worms. Mr. Truskey liberated them by releasing them into the potted ficus tree in Principal Halls office. Unfortunately he failed to notice that the ficus was fake. The janitor must have been peeling dried-up worms off the carpet for days. Even though it was pretty funny, I think a lot of kids felt a little sorry for Mr. Truskey after that one. He always means well, even if he’s kind of a spaz.

When Cassie and I entered the classroom, Mr. Truskey was already at the front of the room, pacing. His wild black hair looked even wilder than usual, and he was wearing flip-flops and an I HEART BIODIVERSITY T-shirt.

People! he called, clapping his hands as the bell rang and everyone scrambled for their seats. Simmer down. Before we get back to our discussion on electricity, I have something very exciting to tell you.

You’re getting a haircut? Ryan Rodríguez called out from his seat in the back row. Ryan is the ADHD-fueled class clown of the sixth grade. He’s physically unable to sit still for more than 4.3 seconds at a time and drives most of the teachers crazy.

Mr. Truskey leaned back against the front of his desk and smiled patiently as everyone snickered. Sorry to disappoint you, Ryan, he said. But its almost as exciting as that. Ms. Watson and I just finished a meeting with Principal Hall. He’s approved my proposal for a special trip to the Esparcir Islands!

For a second we all thought he was talking about his next summer adventure. I guess we looked underwhelmed, because Mr. Truskey’s eyes opened even wider as he stood up and jumped on top of his desk, sending papers and pencils flying.

People! Did you hear me? he exclaimed, flinging his arms wide, tripping on a stapler, and almost toppling himself back onto the floor. Ten of you are going to have the adventure of a lifetime! You’ll get to come with me, see a part of the world few have ever seen, and help save the planet!

Pacing back and forth, his flip-flops flapping against the Formica desktop, he explained the rest. Ten students from Tweedale Middle School—sixth, seventh, and eighth graders—would be spending five days on a tiny island near the equator that was supposed to be the habitat of a bunch of rare species. There the students would be cleaning up an old trash dump so the whole island could be turned into a wildlife refuge. Some rich guy in our town had already donated a bunch of money to cover all the major expenses, which meant all the students had to pay for was sunscreen and souvenirs. Best of all, the trip would take place in just three weeks. Anyone who went would get full science class credit for the time they were gone, and would have plenty of extra time to make up any work they missed in their other classes.

As Mr. Truskey blabbed on and on about the glorious wildlife of the Espa-whatever island chain, Cassie leaned over from her seat across the aisle. Whoa! she whispered. A trip to the islands that counts as school? How cool is that?

I had to admit it was pretty darn cool. As the rest of the class murmured at the news, I raised my hand. Mr. Truskey? Totally awesome idea! And the wildlife refuge sounds like a great cause. Sign me up!

I could already imagine it: me and my two best friends, Michelle and Tina, setting off on our island adventure. The three of us would work together in the balmy island breeze, picking up old tin cans and whatnot in a beautiful palm grove. Later we would lounge on the beach, feeling good about our days work. Talk about perfect! We could save the world and get a tan at the same time.

Mr. Truskey seemed pleased at my enthusiasm. Groovy, Dani, he said. I’ll hang a sign-up sheet on the bulletin board outside. Just get permission from your parents first.

I will, I promised, visions of body surfing on crystal clear Caribbean waters dancing in my head. I’ll call them right after class.

After that, things happened fast. Sort of like a train wreck.

As soon as I left Mr. Truskeys class, I rushed to the office to call my parents, cursing the annoying Tweedale Middle School rule that bans students from carrying cell phones during school hours. When I reached my mom at the newspaper where she works, she sounded surprised as I blurted out the whole story.

Are you sure this is something you’re interested in, Dani? she asked. It sounds like it could involve some hard work.

I’m up for it, Mom, I swear, I told her. Love me some environmental causes—you know that.

She was silent for a second. I crossed my fingers, pressing the phone to my ear and listening to the muffled hustle and bustle of the newspaper office in the background.

All right, Dani, Mom said at last. I’ll need to check with your father, of course. But I suppose you can go.

Whoo-hoo! Thanks, Mom. See you at dinner.

I hung up the phone and rushed back to the science wing. I was hoping my name would be the first one on the list, but there were already half a dozen names on the page. I scrawled my name on the next empty line, eager to hurry off to the cafeteria to find Tina and Michelle. They didn’t have science until after lunch, and I wanted to make sure they signed up before all the spots were filled. Mr. Truskey had explained that if more than ten people signed up, he would try to work something out so everyone could go. But I didn’t trust that. I was in such a hurry that I didn’t even bother to check out the other names on the list. I figured it didn’t matter. With my two best friends along for five days and four nights of sun, sand, and environmental activism, what could go wrong?

Oh, I was so young and foolish then.

"You signed up for what?" Tina wrinkled her nose. That was never a good sign. Tina, Michelle, and I have been friends since our first day of first grade, and I can almost always tell what they’re thinking. And I wasn’t liking what I saw Tina thinking at all.

I gazed at her across the lunch table, alarmed. Think of it as a free vacation for school credit, I said. Come on, you guys have to sign up right away—it’ll be a blast!

Tina looked doubtful. I don’t know … , she murmured, staring down at her tuna sandwich. The same kind of sandwich she brings every single day. Belatedly I remembered that Tina doesn’t really like change, or surprises, or anything too new and different.

I glanced over at Michelle for help. She wasn’t even paying attention as she stared across the crowded cafeteria with a gleam in her eyes. Check it, Dani, she hissed. Here comes your boyfriend.

My cheeks went red, and I scowled at her, wishing I’d never tried to talk to her about Josh Gallagher. Josh is on the boys’ basketball team, which practices at the same time as the girls’ team. I’m the only sixth grader, boy or girl, who made varsity this year, and Josh was the first one to congratulate me about it, even though he was in seventh grade and he barely knew me at the time. Ever since, he still says hi to me whenever he sees me in the halls.

Here’s the thing about Josh. Most people agree that he’s the cutest guy in school. I don’t usually notice stuff