Free Lunch by Rex Ogle
Author:Rex Ogle
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Epub3
Publisher: Norton Young Readers
ON SATURDAY, THE APARTMENT COURTYARD IS BUSY. THESE little kids, Ryan and Vanessa, are building with big plastic blocks on the sidewalk. Vanessa’s mom is watching while she sits in a folding lawn chair, reading a book. Kids my age are chasing after one another, playing a game of hide-and-seek freeze tag. Ford is gripping two of my fingers with his five tiny fingers. In his other hand, he is holding his favorite red fire truck.
“Play fire trucks?” he asks me, except Ford always pronounces “tr” like “f.” So instead of saying “truck,” he’s says the F-word. I try not to laugh.
“Yeah, go play,” I say.
He joins Ryan and Vanessa. I stand guard. Vanessa’s mom gazes up from her book, giving me a nod. I give it back.
Benny runs past me, chased by Brad. Brad tackles him, shoving his face into the dirt, saying, “You’re it, goober.”
Benny dusts himself off, and asks, “You gonna play with us? You can be on my team.”
I want to, but I look at Ford. He seems so small and fragile. Like he could break. “I can’t. I have to watch my brother.”
Vanessa’s mom says, “I can watch him if you want.”
I shake my head no. “Thanks though.”
Benny shrugs, rejoining the others. I hate that I can’t join my friends. That I have to skip fun ’cause my parents left me in charge. With Mom and Sam gone, Ford is my responsibility. If anything happened to him—
I try not to think about that. I have crazy nightmares about a kidnapper showing up and stealing Ford. Sam and Mom practically murder me, saying it’s all my fault. And it is, ’cause I wasn’t watching Ford when I should have been. I don’t know why I dream about stuff like that, but I do, and I wake up feeling real awful.
“Woo-woo-woo-woo,” Ford says, making his fire-truck sounds. “Watch out for my fire truck!” Except he doesn’t say truck. He says the other word.
Vanessa’s mom drops her book.
I try not to crack up. Vanessa’s mom doesn’t think it’s as funny as I do. I shrug, saying, “Sorry. He has a lisp.”
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