Joy had forgotten her lunch at home. It was lunchtime. She was hungry.
She didn't have a meal ticket. If she had had a meal ticket, she could have had a lunch from Miss Mush, the lunch teacher. She'd have to be terribly hungry to eat a lunch made by Miss Mush. Even an empty brown paper sack would taste better. But that's how hungry Joy was.
Dameon hadn't forgotten his lunch. He had brought a lovely turkey sandwich, a big piece of chocolate cake, and a crisp, red apple. All he needed was a glass ofmilk.
104He could get that from Miss Mush. Miss Mush didn't know how to ruin milk.
Dameon left his lunch on his desk and went to the end of the milk line.
Joy didn't waste any time. She reached into Dameon's sack and took out the apple. But then she spotted the turkey sandwich. She put back the apple, took the sandwich, and noticed the chocolate cake. She put back the sandwich and took out the cake.
But then Joy had second thoughts. She put back the cake. Then she grabbed Dameon's whole lunch.
First she ate the sandwich. It was in a Baggie. When she finished the sandwich, she placed the Baggie on Jason's desk.
Next she ate the chocolate cake. It was wrapped in wax paper. She put the wax paper on Allison's desk.
She ate the apple last. She placed the apple core on Deedee's desk.
Then she put the empty sack on Calvin's desk.
Dameon returned with his glass of milk. "Mrs. Jewls, my lunch is gone!" he called.
"I wonder where it could be," said Mrs. Jewls.
"Calvin took it," said Joy. "There's the empty sack on his desk."
"Good work, Joy," said Mrs. Jewls. "Calvin, I'm ashamed of you." She wrote Calvin's name on the blackboard under the word DISCIPLINE.
"Look, the Baggie from Dameon's turkey sandwich is on Jason's desk!" Joy called.
"Very good, Joy," said Mrs. Jewls. "But how did you know that Dameon had a turkey sanawich?"
"I'm just smart," said Joy.
105Mrs. Jewls wrote Jason's name on the blackboard under Calvin's.
"And there's the wax paper from the delicious chocolate cake on Allison's desk," Joy announced. Joy had chocolate all around her lips.
Allison stood firm. She looked into Mrs. Jewls's eyes. "I didn't eat his cake," she said.
"The evidence is there on your desk," said Mrs. Jewls. "Joy spotted it." She wrote Allison's name under Jason's.
"Dameon's apple core is on Deedee's desk," said Joy.
"Very good, Joy," said Mrs. Jewls. She wrote Deedee's name under Allison's.
"Dameon, I think you ought to thank Joy," said Mrs. Jewls. "She solved the mystery."
"Thank you, Joy," said Dameon.
Just then, Louis, the yard teacher, walked in. "I have your lunch, Joy," he said. "Your mother brought it. You left it at home."
"You mean you didn't have a lunch?" asked Mrs. Jewls. "You must be very hungry."
"No," said Joy, "not really. Since Dameon didn't get to eat, he can have it."
"Thanks a lot!" said Dameon. "You are the greatest!"
He ate Joy's lunch, an old bologna sandwich and a dried-up carrot.
"Joy, for being such a good detective, and for being so generous with your lunch, you may help yourself to a Tootsie Roll pop," said Mrs. Jewls. "They are in the coffee can on top of my desk."
106Joy took one. Then, when Mrs. Jewls wasn't looking, she took another.
Calvin, Jason, Allison, and Deedee had their names on the blackboard under the word DISCIPLINE. But they were good the rest of the day, so at two o'clock Mrs. Jewls erased them.
They forgot all about the whole thing.
Dameon had a lousy lunch instead of a great lunch. But five minutes later it didn't make any difference. He couldn't taste it anymore, and he was full. He went outside to play basketball and forgot about me whole thing.
Joy had a great lunch and two Tootsie Roll pops. But five minutes later it didn't make any difference. She couldn't taste it anymore, and she was full. And at dinnertime she was hungry, just the same.
But a horrible thing happened. Joy couldn't forget about filching Dameon's lunch. And for the rest of the year, every turkey sandwich, piece of chocolate cake, apple, and Tootsie Roll pop tasted like Miss Mush's porridge.