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about everything else.”
    â€œI know the feeling,” I said. “I’ll e-mail you as soon as I get home.”
    â€œI’ll look for it in my in-box,” she said. “Now I have to go interview some students for my story.”
    We shook hands good-bye and I started to pack up my stuff. Kids were trickling out of the newsroom, and it looked like the meeting was ending. On the way out, I stopped at my mailbox. There was an envelope marked CONFIDENTIAL. I knew those were my Dear Know-It-All letters from Mr. Trigg. I quickly stuffed the envelope in my book bag. Even though I was doing the bulk of the work on the Mr. Cougar story, I still had a Dear Know-It-All column to write too.
    I knew I’d be home in a few minutes, but I couldn’t wait to share my big news with someone. As soon as I got out of the school, I pulled out my cell phone and started to write a text.
    Me: Mom! Guess who came to newsroom?
    Mom: Who?
    Me: LAUREN FIELDS!!!
    Mom: Really?
    Me: YES!!! And she asked me to come to a meeting at the Gazette.
    Mom: That’s incredible!
    Me: I KNOW!!!
    Mom: R u coming home?
    Me: Be right there!
    Mom: <3 u
    Me: <3 u 2!
    Mom was waiting at the door for me. She gave me a giant hug. “Tell me all about it!” she said. “I can’t wait to hear.”
    I gave Mom a detailed description of everything that had happened at the Voice meeting. Iwas happy to relive every second of it!
    â€œIs Michael going to the Gazette too?” Mom asked.
    â€œI don’t know. I was thinking of asking him, but . . .” I didn’t know how to explain what I was feeling.
    â€œIs everything okay between you two?” Mom asked.
    â€œOh yeah. It’s nothing,” I fibbed. “He’s just a little busy with football. I’m not sure he’ll have time to go.”
    â€œThat doesn’t sound like Michael,” Mom observed. “He’s usually so reliable.”
    â€œI know.” I sighed. “It’s the whole Cougar Curse thing.”
    â€œDon’t tell me you believe in curses now?” Mom laughed.
    â€œNever!” I said. “But I think everyone else in school does,” I admitted.
    â€œSometimes it’s easier to believe in myths than to recognize the truth that’s staring you in the face,” Mom said.
    Mom had no idea how true her words were. ByMonday the Cougar Curse myth seemed to have taken over the school.
    Mr. Rinaldi dropped his book at the beginning of math class.
    â€œOops, must be the Cougar Curse!” he joked.
    â€œDon’t joke about the curse,” Sue Diaz gasped, “or it will come back to you ten times worse.”
    â€œOh please,” Bart Visitini said. “There’s no such thing as a curse.”
    Finally! A rational thinker joins me at Cherry Valley Middle School.
    â€œThis is a good opportunity to review our ratio and proportion skills,” Mr. Rinaldi said. “Let’s take a vote. Who believes that the Cougar Curse is real?”
    Sue raised her hand into the air and was joined by sixteen other students in the class.
    â€œWho believes that the Cougar Curse isn’t real?” Mr. Rinaldi asked.
    Bart Visitini and I raised our hands. I looked around and was surprised to see twelve other kids had raised their hands too. I had obviously miscalculated. There were more of us in the CherryValley Rational Thinking Club than I had imagined.
    â€œSo what’s the ratio of Cougar Curse believers to the total number of students in the class?” Mr. Rinaldi asked.
    â€œSeventeen to thirty-one,” Sue said after Mr. Rinaldi called on her.
    â€œCorrect,” said Mr. Rinaldi.
    â€œWe are correct,” Sue added. “Because the curse is real.”
    Everyone started calling out an opinion at the same time.
    â€œLet’s put math aside for the moment and discuss this,” Mr. Rinaldi said.
    â€œYou just dropped a book,” Bart said. “It happens