was one of Uncle Arvie and his wife, Julia.
âOh, Heartfoot,â he said. âOh, oh, Heartfoot.â He hugged the picture and kissed it.
â Sheâs not in heaven,â I was glad to report. âAunt Juliaâs fine!â
âOh, Heartfoot.â He put the picture back and turned suddenly. âPlease,â he begged. âThree pleases.â
âWhat?â
Uncle Arvie held up four fingers, looked at them, and then pushed one back down. Three fingers wiggled.
âThree what?â I asked. It looked as if Uncle Arvie wanted three things, but I had no idea what he might want. âFood?â
âNodââ
âMoney?â
âNod, nodââ
âClothes?â
âNod, nod, nodââ He waggled his fingers in my face.
âNail clippers?â
âNod!â Uncle Arvie glanced pitifully at his fingers.
âMaybe Iâll understand in the morning,â I said. âYouâll be here in the morning, wonât you?â Some ghosts stay; some donât.
âYin!â he said.
âGood. Then maybe we should get some sleepââ
âStamp!â Uncle Arvie agreed. He lay down on my desk, with his long legs sticking straight out in the air over the edge, as if they were held up by something invisible. Soon he was snoring. Bo wiggled out from beneath the blanket, sniffed the air, and whimpered.
âWell, Bo, we have a new ghost! Try to be brave.â I patted Boâs head until he closed his eyes.
There was no more wind. All was quiet except for the snoring of Uncle Arvie and Bo. The curtains hung straight against the window, and outside I could see the black sky and bright stars.
I found a star, and on it I wished: âUncle Arvie is a great ghost, donât get me wrong. But still, I wish forââ I thought about what Uncle Arvie had called my father. âI wish forâfor my pepperoni.â
Uncle Arvie was thrashing this way and that in his sleep. He was still wearing his boots, clothes, and red hat. I was surprised that ghosts slept with their clothes on. I had thought maybe they had special white robes to sleep in.
Maybe tomorrow I could figure out what Uncle Arvie meant by âthree pleases.â Maybe I should tell my mother that his ghost was visiting. No. She would say that Uncle Arvie was in heaven. That there was no such thing as a ghost.
3
F IRST P LEASE
I was so scared. I was running down a railroad track, faster and faster, and there was a terrible noise behind me. I turned, expecting to see a train barreling down on me, but it wasnât a train. It was a gigantic Tyrannosaurus rex wearing a wig made of spaghetti. Someone was shouting, âDinosaur! Dinosaur!â
I sat straight up in bed. What a nightmare. What a relief to be safeâ
âDinosaur! Dinosaur!â
Floating up near the ceiling was Uncle Arvie, calling me. Bo quivered underneath the blanket.
âDinosaur!â
âIâm awake,â I said.
âGood carpet!â
I looked down at the old, soiled carpet on my floor. It was not a good carpet at all.
Uncle Arvie stretched his arms wide and breathed deeply. âGood carpet, Dinosaur!â
âGood morning ?â I guessed.
âGood carpet!â
Bo thumped his tail, and the blanket flopped up and down. There was a knock at my door. âDennis? You awake?â
My heart wobbled. Would my mother be able to see Uncle Arvie? What would she say? Should I warn her?
âYouâre up early for a Saturday, arenât you?â she said. Bo bounded out of the bed and leaped up against her, wagging his tail and barking. âEasy, Bo, easy,â my mother said. âLooks like heâs ready for a walk, Dennis. Guess youâll have to get up.â
Uncle Arvie was standing behind my mother, smiling at her. âMacaroni,â Uncle Arvie said. âFeather macaroni.â
âDid you hear that?â I asked
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