Chapter 1 – A Taste Sensation

 

I sat down at the back of the class and rested my chin on the desk. I was waiting for Simon to arrive. He was my best friend.

There were plenty of kids coming in, talking loudly, on their first day back. Some boys came over for a while, and then went off to other friends.

This was the last term of the year. Ten weeks before Christmas.

I looked out of the window at the playground, already shimmering in the heat. It was always hot in Jabellup Crossing.

Some flies settled on my desk. Some more crawled over my arm. Lazy old flies. They probably wanted me to carry them around, like a great big fly transporter.

Suddenly there it was! A kookaburra call. Simon was at the door making his world famous bird call, and grinning from ear to ear.   As always, a football was under his arm, and he wore his hat with an emu feather in it. Just like mine.

`Hi Davy!’ he called.

`Hi!’ I replied. `I’ve saved you a spot.’

Then I saw them, Muggins and Jonesy. Our worst enemies. They were the meanest kids in the school.

`I hoped they wouldn’t be back,’ I said to Simon.

`Me too,’ he answered.

Muggins and Jonesy stood at the front of the class and pulled out a bag of chocolate coated sultanas. They threw the little balls up and caught them in their mouths. I was amazed that Jonesy could it. I suppose everybody is good at something.

Then the most amazing thing happened; Muggins started giving out his chocolate coated sultanas. He was smiling and being nice to people. I couldn’t believe it.

`What’s happened to them over the holidays?’ I asked Simon.

`I don’t know but I don’t trust them,’ he said.

`Hey Davy! Simon!’ Muggins called, `Do you want any?’

`Nah,’ Simon answered.

Then Simon whispered to me, `He’s rubbed them in dirt, or spat on them, or rolled them in his armpits.’

Yuck! My face screwed up at the thought.

Just about the whole class was around Muggins and Jonesy, even Julie.

Julie was the coolest girl in the class. She was really pretty and good at sport. Sometimes the other boys teased me about her, but I enjoyed it. Julie had once told Simon that she really liked my blue eyes and freckles.

Julie put a chocolate coated sultana into her mouth. Yuck! I screwed up my face again.

Craviss Sogood was there too. She shouted all the time, even when she was whispering.   Craviss was tall and skinny like Jonesy. She shouted out that Muggins and Jonesy were really nice guys. Simon was staring, mouth open, at her.

`Do you want to go over and give her a big kiss?’ I asked.

Simon looked at me and said, `Yes, she’s gorgeous. I’d love to kiss her.’

We both laughed.

Then, Muggins shouted for quiet. Only a few of us weren’t munching away on chocolates.

`Okay, listen,’ Muggins said. `I’m gonna chuck these onto the floor and then I’ll try and get you. If you put them in your mouth before I touch you, they’re yours.’

Muggins waved a packet above his head, and chucked them. They landed everywhere. Kids went in all directions, over chairs and desks, pushing and shoving. Someone pushed Craviss down. She landed near a chocolate coated sultana and whipped it into her mouth.

`Come on Davy,’ Simon begged, `I’ve changed my mind. Let’s get some.’

I grabbed Simon’s arm and stared at Muggins.

He was at the front of the class yelling, `Here I come, here I come!’

Jonesy was there beside him, but they weren’t chasing anyone.

Everyone else was on the floor. All you could see were the tops of heads and backs. A desk was pushed over as two kids raced towards a chocolate coated sultana. Excited screams rang throughout the classroom, but these soon stopped. Something was wrong.

Weedy Tim stood up, with Julie beside him. They looked at a chocolate coated sultana. I froze as I saw Julie mouth two words. She said them barely above a whisper.

`Kangaroo poo!’

Horrified, Simon and I shouted out her words of warning.

`Kangaroo poo! Kangaroo poo! You are all eating roo poo!’

There were no more sounds of fun. Everything was chaotic. One boy, Tony, gagged on his mouthful.

Just about everybody started spitting. Craviss had a whole mouthful. She just sort of opened her mouth and cried it all out. Garry Phipps wasn’t listening. He kept on crawling from under one desk to another, swallowing the small brown balls whole, without even tasting them. He shovelled them into his mouth.

Some kids cried. A boy named Todd raced out of the class and was sick. A crowd of kids gathered around him. Muggins and Jonesy, on the floor, laughed.

The nine o’clock bell rang. Mrs. Cratty strode through the kids around Todd. Poor Todd. The kids said how disgusting it was, but they all stayed to watch. Mrs. Cratty sent them off to their classes and ordered us to sit and read quietly.

`But Mrs. Cratty!’ we said.

`No buts. Sit down and read quietly.’

`But Mrs. Cratty,’ Julie argued.

`For heaven’s sake Julie, I thought you had more sense. If one more person speaks you’ll all do page forty four of your English book in silence. I’m going to look after Todd.’

`But Mrs. Cratty,’ Muggins said.

Gee! Muggins is clever!

`Okay, that is it. Silence! Page forty four. No more talking. Absolute silence! If anyone else talks, it is a letter home to their mum.’

Mrs. Cratty gave us her worst look. Then she walked out to find Todd.

Mrs. Cratty came back later. She didn’t want to discuss the matter further. She didn’t smell the bits of roo poo, but she did notice that the floor was dirty, so we all had to clean up Muggins’s mess.

Boy, I was angry! Just to make things worse, Mrs. Cratty looked around the class and said, `Davy and Simon, swap places with Todd and Tim, on opposite sides of the class, and up the front.’

I was shattered. This was going to be the worst term yet.