5th Grade Freak-out

Chapter 2 – Lizboa – And a Quarrel

  Mrs Sullivan was right. Lizboa hardly tried after that one lesson, and did just well enough not to have to redo her work and take up her free time, for that was when she played tennis or swam.

  “She’s a good player, isn’t she?” whispered Bianca to Esther, as she watched Lizboa deftly returning a difficult serve on a sunny but breezy day that was most comfortable for playing tennis.

  Frances was playing against Lizboa. She proved to be an exceedingly good tennis player, unlike her twin brother, whose play was a catastrophe. But Gabriel was much better at swimming, while Frances fussed over putting one toe into the water.

  “Yes, she’s quite good,” said Esther. “I’ve got a good mind to put her onto on second team with Frances.” Esther was the school sports captain, and was a quick swimmer and a graceful tennis player.

  “Oh, so our Lizboa is not a patch on our sports captain?” said Bianca, teasingly.

  “You know what I mean, Bianca,” said Esther.

  “Really? How do you know?” giggled Bianca.

  Just then, Frances walked off the court, panting. “Tired,” she sighed, and flung her racket on the bench. Alice Bringham-Jones took her racket and went on the court. She served well, throwing the ball high up, and giving it a hard whack as she sent it down.

  Lizboa returned it with just as much power. It was a high ball, and the small Alice had to jump gracefully up to hit it back to the corner of the other side of the court. Lizboa was at the opposite corner, and ran quickly to retrieve the ball – but it was too late – the ball had bounced twice.

  The spectators, Gabriel, Frances, Esther and Bianca, all shouted, “One to Alice!”

  Lizboa scowled. “It was luck. She has no real skill in this sport.” This was the kind of comment Lizboa often made. The girls were getting quite tired of it.

  Frances shouted sarcastically, “Then how should Alice play? You’re such a professional player; we’d all be honored if you would give a little coaching to Alice, and we could just watch and pick up hints.”

  “Oh yes – crumbs from the rich man’s table!” Bianca smirked.

  Lizboa scowled. She was very good at sports, but she was not skilled at arguing. She and Alice continued to play.

  It was hard to tell who was better. Alice was more deft, had a more graceful style and was more enjoyable to watch, whereas Lizboa really knew when and how to hit the ball. At the end of the set, Alice had won six games and Lizboa four.

  “Well, let’s play again, and I’ll show you that you aren’t actually even talented at tennis,” grumbled Lizboa, who was furious over her loss, and determined to claim victory over Alice.

  Alice smiled calmly, and said coolly, “Of course!”

  So they played another set. This time, Alice beat Lizboa even more easily, winning six games consecutively, while Lizboa won none. Lizboa realized that Alice was a touch better than herself, so she didn’t play any more games with Alice.

  Alexis came just at that moment. “Hi! Playing tennis, I see?” As she walked towards the court, Lizboa, who was exasperated and indignant over being beaten by Alice twice, stormed off to the spectators’ bench.

  Alice laughed, and said, “Lizboa! You are such a coward! Squirming away into your turtle shell!”

  Lizboa stopped halfway, and replied, “Do you honestly think that I was walking off the court? I was just exercising my leg muscles!”

  Alice answered, “Why would you exercise your leg muscles right after you’ve played a match?”

  Lizboa scowled, and made a face at Alice, then walked back onto the court.

  She took her racket and served. Lizboa and Alexis played the first game of the set. They went on and on stuck at deuce, and finally the spectators were too bored to be amused, and told them to quit the game.

  Later, Esther had to decide on the members for the teams for swimming and tennis. So she made a list. I shall not bore you with the lists for the 3rd, 4th and 5th teams, as they consist of the younger grades. But for the 2nd and 1st teams, all of the players were from the 5th grade.

  Frances and Lizboa were the players for doubles on the 2nd Tennis Team, and Frances was the singles player. Carlotta was reserve.

  Esther and Alice were the players for the doubles on the 1st Tennis Team, and Esther was the singles player. Baixue was reserve.

  As for swimming, Lizboa, Gabriel, Esther and Alice formed the 1st relay team, and they each would compete in an individual event: Lizboa had the best endurance, so she would do the 400 meters; Esther the 200 meters; Alice the 100 meters; and Gabriel, who could handle short distances unbelievably quickly, the 60 meters.

  Evelyn, Alexis, Baixue and Bianca formed the 2nd relay team, and again, each girl would compete in an individual event: Bianca the 400 meters; Alexis the 200 meters; Evelyn the 100 meters; and Baixue the 60 meters.

  Each student was chosen for his or her strengths and weaknesses. The games mistress approved of these lists, and Esther broke the news to the girls in assembly the next day. They were all extremely pleased, except for Lizboa, who kept on grumbling about favoritism.

  Lizboa was out to have her tennis racket strung, while the girls were sitting in the common room, discussing her.

  “She’s so arrogant! She seems to think that she’s the best at all games,” complained Elsie angrily.

  “Oh well – at least she does have something to be proud of,” said Evelyn.

  “Yesterday, I was diving, and Lizboa actually had the spunk to tell me that my somersault was incorrect!” declared Esther. Esther was sports captain and one of the finest players and swimmers that the school had ever had, and no one had the right to judge her over sports except the mistresses.

  “Well, since she finds fault with us in sports, we’ll find fault with her in lessons! Every time she says something or answers a question, we’ll pounce on her at once,” suggested Alice, scornfully.

  “That sounds rather – mean, somehow. Lizboa does have the talent; she’s just too proud of it! I mean, her arrogance must come to an end, but we should use a subtler way,” said Bianca, who cared for every girl in the school.

  “But what other way is there?” shouted Alice, losing her temper over the proud Lizboa. “Dear head girl is such a model, so good to everyone, she can’t even put a disgusting girl in her place!”

  Half of the girls whispered loudly, “Alice!” Bianca looked hurt. She knew Alice was exasperated with Lizboa and not her, but she was still offended by Alice’s comment.

  Alice reddened. “Sorry,” she said humbly. “I’m just so tired of that Lizboa. And I lost my temper, I suppose.”

  “It’s okay,” said Alexis. “Anyone would explode with that awful Lizboa. What about the plan, then?”

  “Leave it for now,” said Bianca. “Until Lizboa proves herself to be worse than just arrogant and proud, that’s not something too, well, wrong.”

  Some of the other girls secretly wished for Lizboa to be sat on, but if the head girl said different, then they went with it.

  It was the next day at lunch, while the students were bathing in the pool, that the sparks flew.

  Gabriel was down in the deep part of the pool, trying to see how long he could hold his breath. Lizboa was on the springboard, getting reading to jump into the water. She ran off the board, and curled herself up into a beautiful ball, did a graceful somersault, and splashed into the pool.

  “Ow!” The girls heard the muffled cries from the bottom of the pool. Lizboa, not aware that someone was in the water when she dove in, had descended right on the bewildered Gabriel’s arm. Lizboa was at least a hundred and twenty pounds, while Gabriel was skinny and tall.

  Lizboa pulled Gabriel up to the shore. Gabriel’s arm was not badly hurt, but there was a bruise there.

  “You didn’t mean any harm,” said Gabriel. “The bruise will be black and blue tomorrow, but of course it isn’t your fault. It’s all right. Bruises will heal.”

  Unlike any other girl, who
would have been relieved that Gabriel forgave them and was not angry with them, Lizboa exploded like a little spitfire.

  “All right, you call it? I was trying out a new kind of dive, with my back going into the water first, and you spoilt it all! And now you pretend as if you’re badly hurt. Well, you aren’t. And I’ll get back at you, you see if I don’t!” raged Lizboa.

  Gabriel stared at Lizboa unbelievingly. “I do not pity myself, but if you had descended on my head instead of my arm, I could have been critically injured. But you can’t even deign to apologize – or simply forget it – you come and blame me instead! How should I have known that you were going to dive in? And if you were a truly good athlete, you would have been able to find a way to fix the problem before you went into the water! You’re no athlete. Yes, you are good at sports. But truly good athletes are humble and have good hearts.”

  The girls heard the quarrel and crowded around Gabriel, Lizboa and Frances. Some of them didn’t know what had led to it, and asked one another. The girls told the story indignantly, all saying that Lizboa had been utterly unreasonable.

  Frances came up and patted Gabriel’s shoulder. “Calm down, Gabriel. I’m sure Lizboa didn’t mean anything she said.” The two of them walked towards the school.

  Gabriel’s temper was about to cool off when he heard Lizboa’s cry: “Of course I meant all of that! Fancy me going back on my word. You two must be mad! And I hate you, Gabriel Salvatone Ceqae, for what you said about me not being a proper athlete. You’re a horrible, conceited, self-centered creature! I suppose you think that you’re an athlete. Well, you aren’t! Look at the way you do your backstroke! You do it in a way that makes the water splash on your face.”

  She jumped into the water. “See? You should do it…” she swam a few strokes of backstroke. “Like this! So don’t think that you are close to being a proper athlete!”

  Gabriel’s face was stone-green, and his brown eyes flashed dangerously. His lower lip was trembling with rage. He opened his mouth a few times to answer Lizboa, but he could not; he was overcome with surprise, resentment and anger.

  Frances spoke for him. “Well, I’ve been noticing your tennis! You never do your backhand properly. You return those hits that should be returned by backhand with some sort of peculiar, weird, twisted shot. If you don’t learn to use your backhand, you’ll never be any good at tennis. Good tennis players will see your folly and continuously hit to your backhand side, and you will be prone to lose.”

  Lizboa nodded. “Yes. My backhand in tennis is terrible, and I’m trying hard to make it better. You had a perfect right to criticize me in that sense. But seriously, if you condemn me for my tennis, then I suppose you would like me to do that better. And I am trying to do better in diving, too – but this brother of yours comes and spoils everything! He deserves to be punished.”

  Lizboa climbed out of the pool and came towards Gabriel. Frances, now also trembling with half-anger, half-fright, heard those words in her head again and again: He deserves to be punished. Instantly she realized that Lizboa was now coming to ‘punish’ Gabriel. She did not know how Lizboa would ‘punish’ Gabriel, but she, as a sister, must protect him.

  As Lizboa came over, close to Gabriel, Frances jumped out in front of Gabriel. Lizboa knew that Frances was trying to protect her brother. Well, thought Lizboa, I’m not going to let Frances block me from punishing Gabriel!

  Lizboa smirked, then reached out one hefty arm, and pushed Frances out of the way. The small Frances collapsed onto the wet ground. She climbed up slowly, and to her horror, saw Lizboa angrily slapping Gabriel as he crawled backwards, and then pinching the bruise on Gabriel’s arm vigorously.

  Frances scrambled towards her brother. “Oh, are you all right? That beast of a Lizboa slapped you hard. Oh, what about your bruise? Did … did she hurt the bones?” Frances anxiously rushed the words out.

  “I’m okay, Frances. Of course, where that beast slapped me is hot and hurts, and my arm is sore, but I’ll manage. What about you? Are you all right?” replied Gabriel, in a comforting, big-brother voice.

  “Oh, me? I’m fine, Gabriel! So long as you’re all right,” said Frances.

  “No. Oh, Frances, I can’t say how much I appreciate your rushing out and trying to protect me. I…I’m your elder twin brother, and it should be me who protects you, and not you to protect me. I haven’t done my job is a big brother well at all. Sorry,” apologized Gabriel.

  “Oh, it’s okay. You’re only a few minutes older than I am, really. Let’s go back to the dorm. Do you want to go to the nurse?” said Frances, helping Gabriel up.

  “No. I don’t want to go to the nurse, because if I do, she’ll ask why I got the bruise and the slaps. I don’t want to get anyone in trouble,” said Gabriel.

  Frances shook her head. “You’re not even going to have Lizboa punished for her abominable behavior? Well, I shall tell Mrs Sullivan,” vowed Frances, fiercely.

  “Don’t!” objected Gabriel.

  “You might not tell the authorities – but I shall,” declared Alice. “We can’t let our dear Lizboa go on like this.”

  “We should first tell Harriet, Bianca and Felecia, and let them deal with it. After all, they’re the head girls. We shouldn’t be making decisions as large as these on our own. The three of them are at a meeting now. When they’re done, I shall tell Bianca,” came the cool voice of Esther.

  “No! I can’t bear to wait,” cried Alexis.

  “Alexis, Alice, please listen to what Esther tells you, please. I don’t want to get Lizboa into too much trouble, either,” begged Evelyn. Alexis and Alice both looked towards their younger sister, heaved a long sigh, and nodded.

  Lizboa fumed. “Well – I shan’t care! As if a strong athlete would be discouraged by silly teachers.”

  But of course Lizboa did care. She had not been in the mistresses’ good books lately!

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