Following Baxter by Barbara Kerley

Author:Barbara Kerley
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2018-01-22T05:00:00+00:00

15

The Barfing Sock-Snake

When we got home from the vet, I put the ear ointment and the copy of the vet report on the Baxter Station. I pulled more blankets out of the linen closet and made his beds extra smooshy, so they would be nice and soft—because even a magical dog needs extra smoosh when he’s not feeling well.

I tucked Baxter into his bed in the lab and snuggled the blankets around him so he wouldn’t get cold.

“I’ll take good care of him tonight, Jordie.” Professor Reese smiled.

So I gave Baxter the tiniest, carefulest kiss right between his crazy eyebrows, and his kiss back landed on my chin. “Get well soon.”

Then I ran home. I wanted to tell Mom about Baxter and all the ways I’d been dependable—because usually she was the one who thought up great opportunities, but she’d been at work the whole time for this one. If I didn’t tell her, how would she know?

So I described getting Baxter to the vet’s on time and learning how to take care of his ear and then bringing him home and settling him into bed after.

“It sounds like you took great care of him, sweetie,” she said.

By the time I got done telling her everything, TJ was already back and working on his short. I went into his room.

“How was shooting hoops with Tyler?”

TJ shrugged. “Fine.”

Caveman and Zombie Cheerleader were in the middle of a battle. Caveman knocked one pom-pom away with his club, Zombie Cheerleader was bending over to pick it up, and TJ was taking picture after picture to capture it all.

“What’s his movie about?” I asked.

“Whose?” TJ snapped another picture.

“Tyler’s. In Video Club.”

TJ looked up from his camera. “It’s about this dirty sock that slides down off Tyler’s foot and slithers around his room, eating little toys on the floor. The sock gets bigger and bigger, and then it gets so big it barfs all the toys back out. Then it slides back onto Tyler’s foot again.” TJ laughed.

He turned back to the battle, lifting Caveman’s foot a tiny bit, getting it ready to kick Zombie Cheerleader in the butt.

“Oh,” I said.

Tyler’s movie sounded really funny. All through dinner, I thought about the sock slithering around the floor, eating toys and then barfing them back up.

“Are you OK, honey?” Mom asked.

I nodded. “Yeah.”

After dinner, I went into my room and grabbed my dog books. I figured I should read about microchips and otoscopes. But every time I tried to concentrate, I ended up staring out the window.

At bedtime, Mom came in and gave me a kiss. “Don’t worry, Baxter will be well soon,” and I realized that I hadn’t even been thinking about Baxter.

I’d been thinking about Tyler.

He got in trouble at school, all the time.

But he’d been so good with Baxter, petting him so nicely.

Mrs. Wilson had been so mad at him during Study Buddies that she glared her eagle eye at him.

But he’d been nice to TJ, inviting him to shoot hoops.

And his movie sounded really good.

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