The Jungle Club by Micaela Jones

After the first day of school ended, Samantha Morris was standing outside the school's front doors when she discovered that her friend, April Jin, was in the same club as she. Both of the girls were excited to begin their meeting, but they had to make themselves wait for the time to start.
            "What time is it?" April asked.
            "It's 3:10. We still have until 3:15," Samantha sighed after she looked at her watch.
            "Who else do you think is in the club?" April asked. Samantha only raised her shoulders up as an answer. 
            A boy named Ian Tolstoy walked outside with two other boys named Tyler Kekoa and Jamal Taylor.
            "What are you guys doing here?" April asked.
            "We're a part of the Jungle Club," Tyler replied.
            "You are?" Samantha pointed her finger at them.
            "Yep!"
            "Awesome! Us too!" April exclaimed.
            "Yeah!" All three boys cheered.
            "Jason is in too! He'll be out in a minute," Jamal added.
            "Hey, guys!" Abbie Hoffman appeared with Brenda García and joined the group.
            "Hey, Abbie! Hey, Brenda" The rest of the gang exclaimed.
            "You in the club, too?" Abbie asked.
            "Yeah, we're just waiting for Jason," Ian replied. 
            "Hey, guys!" Jason Petersen ran out the door, "Sorry for the long wait!"
            "No sweat, man. We got plenty of time left," Jamal assured his spectacled friend.
            "This is gonna be so cool! I wonder what kind of animals we'll get to learn," Tyler wondered.
            "I really hope we get to learn about wild animals like... Polar bears!" April said.
            "Or zebras," Samantha added.
Then Ian mentioned, "Or wolves."
            Jamal added, "Or koala bears."
            Abbie listed, "Or beavers."
            Then, Brenda said, "Or owls."
            Then, Jason said, "Or lizards."
            Finally, Tyler had his turn to mention a fantastic animal but was distracted by something catching his eye, "Or... A kangaroo?" 
            "Actually, I think kangaroos are my top favorite animals," Abbie shared.
            "Well, we might learn that one first, Abbie, 'cause look!" Tyler pointed at a bright red kangaroo sniffing on the ground in front of them. Everyone's eyes widened with surprise. 
            "Why is that kangaroo here in America?" Jason asked.
            "And how did it get here?" Brenda added.
            "Let's get closer!" Abbie nearly ran to the kangaroo, but Samantha caught her arm.
            "Wait, Abbie... It's a wild animal. My dad said it's not safe to go anywhere near it," Samantha explained.
            "Samantha's right, Abbie," Jason agreed, "The kangaroo could hurt us or run away if we get any closer."
            "But, he could get hurt if we don't do anything! There are cars everywhere!" Abbie looked up at the sniffing creature again, but it wasn't sniffing anymore.
            "Oh, no!" Abbie gasped. "He's hopping away!"
            "What do we do?" Jason asked.
            "Follow it!" Ian began running on the kangaroo's path.
            "But what about the club?" April asked.
            "We got more important things to worry about! Let's catch that roo!" Jamal joined Ian on the chase, followed by Tyler and the rest of the gang. 
            With all their might and strength, the kids ran to meet up with the kangaroo. When it stopped on the side of the road, the kids began to slow down, catching their breaths. 
            "Finally, he's stopped," Jamal said but spoke too soon. The minute the children stopped running, the kangaroo started hopping again.
            "Here we go again!" Brenda cried. Once again, the chase was on! Before they realized it, everyone was following their hopping friend in the woods.
            Soon, they all suddenly stopped once they discovered something else as strange as finding a kangaroo at school. In front of the kids’ eyes stood a treehouse built upon a small meadow with a river bridge.
            "Who do you think lives there?" Tyler asked.
            "Let's find out," Ian led the group towards the bridge. Everyone was amazed at the bright colors of Koi fish swimming gently through the water. When they reached the other end, they headed for the entrance with a sign that read, "New Members Enter."
Confused, Brenda asked, "Could that mean us?"
            "I don't think so. Everyone knows the club is at school," April replied.
            "Well, there's only one way to find out, so..." Tyler suggested, "Let's go in!"
One by one, everyone went inside. To their ultimate surprise, the kids discovered the kangaroo's whereabouts.
            "There he is!" Abbie cried.
            "We got him!" Jamal exclaimed.
            "You certainly did!" A friendly voice came from upstairs. The kids turned their heads and found a woman with long braids and a light hat.
            "Who are you?" Jason asked.
            "I'm Wendi," the lady introduced herself, "And I believe I know who all of you are, and why you're here."
            "You do?" the kids asked.
 "Yep!" Wendi gladly replied. She went to each of the children and guessed their names.
"You're Ian..." 
 "You're Samantha..." 
 "You're April..." 
 "And Jason..." 
 "And Tyler..." 
 "You're Abbie..." 
 "You’re Brenda..." 
 "And You're Jamal!" 
            Everyone's eyes & mouths opened wide at the kind lady's guesses.
            "You were following this kangaroo, weren't ya?" Wendi laughed.
            "We found him at school today," Tyler explained.
            "We wanted to make sure he didn't get hurt," Abbie added. The whole group nodded in agreement.
            "I see that," Wendi observed, "And it's great that you all cared for him... And wanted to protect him."
            "We were supposed to be at a club a while ago too, but we had to take care of the kangaroo," Brenda replied.
            "Aaaaaaaah-AaAaAa-Aaaaaaaah!" Another voice burst through the air.
            Above everyone's heads, a man wearing a T-shirt and khaki shorts swooped down by rope and landed in front of the kids barefoot.
            "Who are you?" Samantha asked.
            "Name Simon! You meet Wendi! You meet Hopper!" He pointed at the kangaroo.
            "We're so glad you all could make it here," Simon rejoiced and talked like a normal person. But, the kids were confused.
            "You are?" Jamal asked.
            "Why?" April asked.
            "All of you are in a club, right?" Simon said. 
 The kids nodded, "Yes."
            "Well..." Simon paused, "Wendi and I... Welcome you... To... THE JUNGLE CLUB!"

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