“Huh? Bury it?” Andy pulled the can away, as if protecting it from Evan.
“You heard me,” Evan said firmly. “It’s just too dangerous to mess with, Andy. Take it home and bury it in your back yard, okay?”
Andy stared down at the can. She didn’t reply.
“Bury it,” Evan repeated. “Take it home and bury it. Promise?”
“Well …” Andy hesitated. Then she said, “Okay. Promise.”
* * *
Evan woke up with a bad sore throat the next morning.
His mother worried that he might be coming down with the flu. So she kept him home from school. Evan spent the day reading comic books and watching MTV. His sore throat disappeared by midafternoon.
He returned to school the next day, feeling refreshed and ready to see everyone.
The good feeling lasted until he stepped into Mr. Murphy’s science class near the end of the day. Evan had to walk past the hamster cage to get to his seat.
As he neared the cage, he peered in.
That’s weird, he thought. Where’s Cuddles?
When did Mr. Murphy get a rabbit?
A rabbit?!
He stopped and leaned closer to the cage.
Familiar black eyes stared up at him. A familiar pink nose twitched at him.
It was Cuddles, Evan realized.
Cuddles had grown as big as a rabbit!
Evan leaned over the hamster cage, staring at the giant-sized Cuddles, as the bell rang. He turned to see that the other kids had all taken their seats.
“Evan, I see you’re examining your victim,” Mr. Murphy said from the front of the room.
“I—uh—” Evan couldn’t think of a reply. “Victim?”
Mr. Murphy angrily narrowed his beady black eyes at Evan. “You’ve been overfeeding Cuddles, Evan. Look how fat he has become.”
Evan knew that Cuddles’s weight problem wasn’t his fault.
And it had nothing to do with overeating.
Cuddles had grown to triple-hamster size because of Monster Blood.
“When I find Andy, I’ll strangle her!” Evan muttered.
“What did you say, Evan?” Mr. Murphy demanded.
Evan could feel his face turning bright red. He hadn’t meant to talk out loud.
“Uh … nothing,” he replied, totally embarrassed. He slunk to his seat.
Andy has gone too far this time, he thought bitterly. She promised she’d bury the Monster Blood. She promised!
And now she’s turned Cuddles into a freak! And Murphy thinks it’s all my fault!
“Please stay after school,” Mr. Murphy told Evan, “so we can discuss Cuddles’s diet.”
Evan heard some kids snickering. He knew they were laughing at him.
He saw Conan and Biggie at their seats in the back. Conan was twitching his nose, puffing out his cheeks, pretending to be a fat hamster. Biggie was laughing his head off.
Evan stared at the hamster all through class. Cuddles appeared to grow right before Evan’s eyes. With each breath, the hamster seemed to puff up wider and taller.
Its black eyes were as big as marbles now. They stared back at Evan, as if accusing him.
When the hamster moved to its water tube, the entire cage rattled and shook.
Please don’t grow anymore! Evan pleaded silently, staring at the shaking cage. Please stop right now, Cuddles. Okay?
The hamster breathed noisily. Wheezing gasps. Evan could hear Cuddles panting all the way across the room.
