moment.
Joe:
“So…”
Mod beat
him to the punch.
Mod: “So
you made Dozz and Fleez’s target list. How’d you manage that?”
Joe: “Mod
— I’m sorry man! That got way out of hand. I have no idea why they took it
that far and why they took it out on you. It should’ve been me instead of
you. I went to help you too, but Kate was already there so fast. I’d take it
all back if I could.”
Mod
smiled and laid his ukulele on his lap. He looked out at the town sprawled
down below him. Joe looked too and noticed how empty everything looked today.
The people and cars were sparse today, but that made the bright blue sky above
even more striking as it met with tiny skyward buildings in the distance.
Mod:
“It’s alright, man, seriously. My reputation took a hit … well, not really
since I don’t even have one. But — you know, this is good.”
Joe: “I
fail to understand how.”
Mod:
“Well, Joe, you’re heavy-handed friends have actually done me a little favor.”
Joe: “I
still don’t see how.”
Mod:
“I’ll tell you. Before today you could ask most people in the halls what my
name was and not one would know it.”
Joe:
“That’s not true.”
Mod:
“Psshaw. Only you, Kate, and a handful of others know who I am.”
Joe: “And
that’s not a bad thing.”
Mod: “Not
for you maybe. You have a girlfriend and now you’re famous. I don’t have any
of that.”
Joe:
“You’re only in ninth grade. You have plenty of time to get a girl and a
little popularity.”
Mod: “I
need that now! I don’t want to be a nobody forever. Or stay here stuck in
this town. I want my renown, as the heroes of yore called it, to be high. I
have a shot now. Thanks to Fleez and Dozz the whole school will be talking
about today’s lunchroom circus and me by proxy.”
Joe: “But
they’ll be talking about how you were humiliated.”
Mod: “The
point being that they’re talking about me. All publicity is good publicity,
Joe. They know how I look. Now we just have to get them to remember my name.”
Joe:
“They said that they won’t stop. They’re going to humiliate you every day
unless I do something.”
Mod:
“Like what?”
Joe: “I
don’t know.”
There was
a silence between them that lasted a while.
Mod:
“I’ll be ready for whatever they throw at me, and don’t worry, I have a plan.”
Mod
smiled and that somehow made Joe uneasy. He wasn’t sure if Mod was being
honest and he honestly needed to think of something to get the bullies off of
Mod’s case. He nodded his head anyway.
Joe: “Is
Kate here with you?”
Joe felt
the need to whisper those words.
Mod:
“No. I had her drop me off here and she went back to school, saying something
about a test.”
Joe was
almost relieved. He still had no idea what to say when he saw her, but he did
want to see her. He and Mod hung out at the clock tower for the better part of
the day, laughing and reminiscing about the past.
Chapter
18
Old Faces
It was
nearing night by the time Joe dropped Mod off. He didn’t see Kate’s car in the
driveway so he opted to go straight home instead of stopping in. The drive
home was quiet and would have been peaceful if not for Joe’s own nagging
thoughts. He parked his car near the curb in front of his house and walked up
the sidewalk to his front door. He fumbled around in his pockets for his keys
and thought he’d lost them until he remembered he’d had them in his hand the
whole time.
Joe: “I’m
such a dummy!”
His
parents must’ve left the air conditioning turned on, because it was much colder
inside the house than out. Tonight was their dance night and Joe knew that
they’d be learning some foreign dances, but didn’t know which ones.
He
quickly pieced together a sandwich from the leftovers of the beef roast that his
mom had cooked yesterday. He walked through the house chomping greedily. He
was particularly
Joe:
“So…”
Mod beat
him to the punch.
Mod: “So
you made Dozz and Fleez’s target list. How’d you manage that?”
Joe: “Mod
— I’m sorry man! That got way out of hand. I have no idea why they took it
that far and why they took it out on you. It should’ve been me instead of
you. I went to help you too, but Kate was already there so fast. I’d take it
all back if I could.”
Mod
smiled and laid his ukulele on his lap. He looked out at the town sprawled
down below him. Joe looked too and noticed how empty everything looked today.
The people and cars were sparse today, but that made the bright blue sky above
even more striking as it met with tiny skyward buildings in the distance.
Mod:
“It’s alright, man, seriously. My reputation took a hit … well, not really
since I don’t even have one. But — you know, this is good.”
Joe: “I
fail to understand how.”
Mod:
“Well, Joe, you’re heavy-handed friends have actually done me a little favor.”
Joe: “I
still don’t see how.”
Mod:
“I’ll tell you. Before today you could ask most people in the halls what my
name was and not one would know it.”
Joe:
“That’s not true.”
Mod:
“Psshaw. Only you, Kate, and a handful of others know who I am.”
Joe: “And
that’s not a bad thing.”
Mod: “Not
for you maybe. You have a girlfriend and now you’re famous. I don’t have any
of that.”
Joe:
“You’re only in ninth grade. You have plenty of time to get a girl and a
little popularity.”
Mod: “I
need that now! I don’t want to be a nobody forever. Or stay here stuck in
this town. I want my renown, as the heroes of yore called it, to be high. I
have a shot now. Thanks to Fleez and Dozz the whole school will be talking
about today’s lunchroom circus and me by proxy.”
Joe: “But
they’ll be talking about how you were humiliated.”
Mod: “The
point being that they’re talking about me. All publicity is good publicity,
Joe. They know how I look. Now we just have to get them to remember my name.”
Joe:
“They said that they won’t stop. They’re going to humiliate you every day
unless I do something.”
Mod:
“Like what?”
Joe: “I
don’t know.”
There was
a silence between them that lasted a while.
Mod:
“I’ll be ready for whatever they throw at me, and don’t worry, I have a plan.”
Mod
smiled and that somehow made Joe uneasy. He wasn’t sure if Mod was being
honest and he honestly needed to think of something to get the bullies off of
Mod’s case. He nodded his head anyway.
Joe: “Is
Kate here with you?”
Joe felt
the need to whisper those words.
Mod:
“No. I had her drop me off here and she went back to school, saying something
about a test.”
Joe was
almost relieved. He still had no idea what to say when he saw her, but he did
want to see her. He and Mod hung out at the clock tower for the better part of
the day, laughing and reminiscing about the past.
Chapter
18
Old Faces
It was
nearing night by the time Joe dropped Mod off. He didn’t see Kate’s car in the
driveway so he opted to go straight home instead of stopping in. The drive
home was quiet and would have been peaceful if not for Joe’s own nagging
thoughts. He parked his car near the curb in front of his house and walked up
the sidewalk to his front door. He fumbled around in his pockets for his keys
and thought he’d lost them until he remembered he’d had them in his hand the
whole time.
Joe: “I’m
such a dummy!”
His
parents must’ve left the air conditioning turned on, because it was much colder
inside the house than out. Tonight was their dance night and Joe knew that
they’d be learning some foreign dances, but didn’t know which ones.
He
quickly pieced together a sandwich from the leftovers of the beef roast that his
mom had cooked yesterday. He walked through the house chomping greedily. He
was particularly
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