The Marble Queen by Blake Stephanie J

Author:Blake, Stephanie J. [Blake, Stephanie J.]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: AmazonEncore
Published: 2012-12-17T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

School Daze

SEPTEMBER 8, 1959

On the first day of school, I wore a yellow-and-white gingham dress and white socks that were trimmed with a ruffle around each ankle. I had on my penny loafers. A shiny penny poked halfway out of each pocket. (Uncle Mort gave them to me for luck.) Mama had done up my long hair in a single ponytail with a white ribbon. I was feeling pretty grown up and ready for fifth grade. While walking to school, I had made myself a promise: I wouldn’t be caught running wild on the playground. I would play quiet games with the girls in my class.

And I would ignore Daniel Coyle with all my heart.

Truth is, I was nervous, and I probably wasn’t the only one. Seems we were all early, milling around, talking about our summer vacations. I didn’t see Nancy anywhere. Little by little, the girls huddled up like sheep. I was out of place and glad to have my marble pouch with me.

The boys were setting up a game of Ringer in the corner of the school yard. There was a full fifteen minutes before the first bell, so I strolled over as if I didn’t have a care in the world.

Esau Mooney smiled when he saw me. Daniel was there, too. His hair was longer than long. He had it slicked back with pomade, but it still hung in his eyes as he bent over the ring. He didn’t have on a new outfit like the others.

I asked if I could get in the game. As always, there was a big argument about letting me throw lag. Daniel was pretending to count his marbles. He spit in the dirt at my feet, barely missing my shiny shoes. He didn’t say a word.

Anthony said, “Oh, let her play, for Pete’s sake.”

Jacob swaggered around. His jeans were rolled up at the ankles, like James Dean’s. “Listen up, men. Let’s play Bombsies today.”

“Bombsies?” I asked. “What’s Bombsies?” My breath caught a bit. Had they learned a new marble game without me?

Anthony explained, “You don’t need a cross. And you don’t have to knuckle down to shoot. All you need is a pile of marbles. You hold your arm over the ring and let your taw fall on the pile. Whichever marbles you smash, you get to keep.”

Jacob laughed. “Don’t forget to yell ‘Bombs away!’”

“Well, I’m in,” I said. It sounded too easy. Suddenly, I was coveting marbles left and right.

“Fine,” said Jacob.

I won lag and found out I would be playing against Jacob. He had two pouches of marbles with him. I found out later he’d collected more marbles than God all because of Bombsies. It didn’t occur to me to call friendlies and test this new game. How on earth did I even know I had the skills for it?

I didn’t, and that was my first mistake. Jacob and Esau had taken a trip to Nebraska, and Jacob had won a steely off his cousin. That’s a steel ball bearing.

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