on the wall above Sis’s window, only a few feet away. Even though I been lookin’ for one of these suckers all night long, it still make me break into a sweat like a snowman in a heatwave.
Sis cooler than that. She break into a big, knowin’ grin and nod
Ah-haaa
like it be jus’ the confirmation she expectin’.
Well, you is certainly correct, isn’t you, Marshall the First?
We blink at the bug and it stare back at us, unflinchin’. Red-eyed.
Mustaph lookin’ at it all serene, like it some pretty butterfly landed on his hand.
I feel relief.
You think it gonna pounce?
asks Sis.
No
I answer.
That what I’m sayin’. They is sneaky. Wait until you sleepy, then suck you nice and easy
.
Sis shivers.
What we gon’ do?
Go get yo’ fry pan. Slow and smooth. Don’ scare it off. If it creep close enough, we splatter it, yeah?
I was right. I am not a nutjob. I am a sane boy. Other people see it now, with their own eyes. That be three of us. Soon it be a lot more.
Mum and my social worker and Subo, the fat Maths teacher, might figure I got me anger issues, but right about now, I’m sweet with that. If that sucker come near me, I will rip off its head.
Sis come back with a fryin’ pan, a carvin’ knife and a broom.
Bug watches us. It got two bug eyes stickin’ outta the side of its head, unblinkin’, like blobs of blood. Proboscis like Satan’s snout. Antennas twitchin’ away, like it knows for sure we there. Spiky brown hairs comin’ outta its side, in need of a good shave. Big, flat, brown, stripy body. Flat . Even now I know enough that it in need of feedin’. Its body kinda transluscent, so’s you can see it ain’t got no blood in it. Just a empty sachet, waitin’ to be filled up. Ain’t movin’ a inch. Six legs taut against the rough concrete – ready to run, or pounce. Vibin’ us out.
Outta the corner of my eye, I see another sucker, down by the side of the window. I nudge Sis. We say nothin’, but roll our eyes roun’, and there be another one, down the other side.
Three of ’em. Bugs like to hide out durin’ the day – that’s why we ain’t been seein’ ’em – but this mob mus’ be gettin’ hungry. Or greedy.
What we gon’ do?
ask Sis.
What we gon’ do? We gon’ do what you always gon’ do when you got three ugly bugs on all sides givin’ you the evils. We gon’ attack.
Mustaph the tallest, and Sis hand him the broom. I tool myself up with the fry pan.
Sis and Mus don’ say a word. She gesturin’ with her eyes,
one, two, three
, from one of the Megas to the next, then at the end of Mustaph’s broom. They doin’ their silent talkin’. It clear in my mind that Sis want Mus to knock these suckers off of their perches in quick succession. She look to me and then at Bug Number One, like it my job to squish it when it drop. Then she point her thumb at her chest and look up to Bug Number Two. She give the evil eye to Bug Number Three, and raise her eyebrows at Mus. A team, see?
Mus gonna knock ’em down one at a time. I get to smash the first one. Lickin’ my lips with the anticipation.
Sabretooth whinin’ and trottin’ on the spot like he awaitin’ instruction of his own. I put the flat of my hand to his direction. Clever dog know that mean he got to be still.
Bugs still be vibin’ us out, like they waitin’ to see what we gon’ do. Me and Sis waitin’ for Mustaph to make his move. Mustaph give a silent sigh. You can see all his muscles relaxin’ and his breathin slowin’ almost to a halt. Me, I broken into a nasty sweat, heart hammerin’ inside my chest like it want to be let the hell out of there. Sis narrows her eyes like she psychin’ herself into a state of maximum aggression.
Bam! Mustaph swing the broom faster than a bolt of lightnin’. Whack! Right on the back of Bug Number One. For a moment that bug don’t do nothin’, jus’ flinch a bit. Out the corner of my eye, his two crew take off faster than a pair of bag-snatchers. Bam! Mustaph
Sis cooler than that. She break into a big, knowin’ grin and nod
Ah-haaa
like it be jus’ the confirmation she expectin’.
Well, you is certainly correct, isn’t you, Marshall the First?
We blink at the bug and it stare back at us, unflinchin’. Red-eyed.
Mustaph lookin’ at it all serene, like it some pretty butterfly landed on his hand.
I feel relief.
You think it gonna pounce?
asks Sis.
No
I answer.
That what I’m sayin’. They is sneaky. Wait until you sleepy, then suck you nice and easy
.
Sis shivers.
What we gon’ do?
Go get yo’ fry pan. Slow and smooth. Don’ scare it off. If it creep close enough, we splatter it, yeah?
I was right. I am not a nutjob. I am a sane boy. Other people see it now, with their own eyes. That be three of us. Soon it be a lot more.
Mum and my social worker and Subo, the fat Maths teacher, might figure I got me anger issues, but right about now, I’m sweet with that. If that sucker come near me, I will rip off its head.
Sis come back with a fryin’ pan, a carvin’ knife and a broom.
Bug watches us. It got two bug eyes stickin’ outta the side of its head, unblinkin’, like blobs of blood. Proboscis like Satan’s snout. Antennas twitchin’ away, like it knows for sure we there. Spiky brown hairs comin’ outta its side, in need of a good shave. Big, flat, brown, stripy body. Flat . Even now I know enough that it in need of feedin’. Its body kinda transluscent, so’s you can see it ain’t got no blood in it. Just a empty sachet, waitin’ to be filled up. Ain’t movin’ a inch. Six legs taut against the rough concrete – ready to run, or pounce. Vibin’ us out.
Outta the corner of my eye, I see another sucker, down by the side of the window. I nudge Sis. We say nothin’, but roll our eyes roun’, and there be another one, down the other side.
Three of ’em. Bugs like to hide out durin’ the day – that’s why we ain’t been seein’ ’em – but this mob mus’ be gettin’ hungry. Or greedy.
What we gon’ do?
ask Sis.
What we gon’ do? We gon’ do what you always gon’ do when you got three ugly bugs on all sides givin’ you the evils. We gon’ attack.
Mustaph the tallest, and Sis hand him the broom. I tool myself up with the fry pan.
Sis and Mus don’ say a word. She gesturin’ with her eyes,
one, two, three
, from one of the Megas to the next, then at the end of Mustaph’s broom. They doin’ their silent talkin’. It clear in my mind that Sis want Mus to knock these suckers off of their perches in quick succession. She look to me and then at Bug Number One, like it my job to squish it when it drop. Then she point her thumb at her chest and look up to Bug Number Two. She give the evil eye to Bug Number Three, and raise her eyebrows at Mus. A team, see?
Mus gonna knock ’em down one at a time. I get to smash the first one. Lickin’ my lips with the anticipation.
Sabretooth whinin’ and trottin’ on the spot like he awaitin’ instruction of his own. I put the flat of my hand to his direction. Clever dog know that mean he got to be still.
Bugs still be vibin’ us out, like they waitin’ to see what we gon’ do. Me and Sis waitin’ for Mustaph to make his move. Mustaph give a silent sigh. You can see all his muscles relaxin’ and his breathin slowin’ almost to a halt. Me, I broken into a nasty sweat, heart hammerin’ inside my chest like it want to be let the hell out of there. Sis narrows her eyes like she psychin’ herself into a state of maximum aggression.
Bam! Mustaph swing the broom faster than a bolt of lightnin’. Whack! Right on the back of Bug Number One. For a moment that bug don’t do nothin’, jus’ flinch a bit. Out the corner of my eye, his two crew take off faster than a pair of bag-snatchers. Bam! Mustaph
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