Freaked Out by Annie Bryant

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    When they were finished, there was a ceremony. Dillon walked up to his teacher and bowed. The teacher pulled off Dillon’s blue belt and tied the red belt around his waist. Dillon bowed again. The class stood at the edge of the mat watching until each person got a new belt. Maeve was so glad. Flunking in front of this crowd of parents and friends would have been too embarrassing.
    Dillon stepped off the mat, bowed a final time, then hurried over to where she sat. “What did you think, Maeve? Want to take lessons?”
    â€œFabulous, Dillon. I had no idea you could do that.”
    â€œIt’s not something I talk about a lot. This is kind of…you know…private.” Maeve was surprised at how serious Dillon’s voice sounded.
    â€œThank you for letting me watch.” Dillon had shared an intriguing side of himself Maeve might never have known about had she not run into him. She felt kind of special.
    â€œI’ll go with you to watch Sam,” Dillon offered.
    â€œOkay. Do you ever teach the younger kids?”
    â€œI’m ready to do that now. I wanted to get my red belt first.”
    â€œIs black next?”
    â€œYes, first degree black, then there are more advanced degrees. I’ll stay with it and go as far as I can.” Maeve could see it now. Dillon and Maeve in Hollywood. Mr. and Mrs. Kung Fu.
    Dillon held out his hand and together they ran back to where Sam was going to test at one end of a big gym.
    â€œLook, Mom, Dad, Dillon got his red belt,” Maeve said. “It was awesome to watch. Much different from a karate movie. We came back to watch Sam. Is he up next?”
    â€œAlmost. Come up here and sit down,” her father said. “Talk to me, Dillon. Tell me why you decided to take a martial arts class. What do you think? You think an old guy like me could take this sport on?”
    Maeve looked at her mother. Mom shrugged, smiled, and then hugged Maeve to her while Dad and Dillon visited. Maeve was glad for her father to get to know Dillon. She was glad to learn something she didn’t know about Dillon. Maybe he was two people, the goofy guy who teased her all the time, who loved the cheers from the Abigail Adams basketball fans, and this poised, serious fighter guy.
    She liked both.
    Sam waved as he ran out to his mat to test. They watched him go through a scaled down version of Dillon’s test. But Maeve could see something happening to Sam when he got on the floor and performed his moves for the tester. Sam was growing up a little bit. Maeve was proud of her pesky little brother. She’d tell him so when they got home.
    Dad invited Dillon to go to lunch with them, but Dillon said his family was expecting him home.
    Family. Maeve liked that word. She also liked the idea of Family Day, which had been surprisingly fun and not at all boring. And Maeve now had new hope that her own family would be back together again someday.
    CHAPTER 8
Basketball Rules!
    C harlotte had planned to meet Isabel in The Sentinel office before school on Monday. She was still polishing her feature article on the Lake Rescue experience, and Isabel needed to put finishing touches on two cartoons.
    â€œBefore I forget to tell you, Charlotte, Isabel…” Jennifer Robinson, editor of the school newspaper said. “You two did a great job on the seventh-grade page. Ms. Knowland couldn’t be here this early this morning, but she sends her congratulations. She said your idea, Charlotte, of having seventh-grade reporters was excellent.” Jennifer pushed up her funky purple glasses and smiled.
    â€œYou’re going to ask me to write something else, aren’t you, Jen?” Charlotte said. She appreciated the compliment, but she was also suspicious of Jennifer’s motives.
    Jennifer grinned. “Uh-oh, you’re getting to know me too well. That was fast. Riley said to tell you he couldn’t have a music review done this time, and Maeve must