Rooster by Don Trembath Page B

“All right,” he said. They waited. The time for action was now.
    â€œPercival, put those paper towels right back where you found them or you can walk home. Roseann, when you come to this bowling alley, you keep your fingers out of your mouth or you don’t bowl. Is that understood?” It was Elma. She had joined him from the table in the lounge, where she had been observing the night’s activities. “Now what’s the matter with the score card? Is someone cheating? If you cheat, you don’t come back. That’s the rule. No exceptions. Now look how much time you’ve just wasted. You could have been bowling instead of standing around doing nothing. You have half an hour left. Get to it.”
    She turned and went back to her table. She did not even make eye contact with Rooster.
    The rest of the evening went without further incident. Percival returned the paper towels. Roseann’s score was revised. The Strikers finished their game, returned their shoes and boarded the Common House bus when it arrived to pick them up.
    â€œSee? That’s how you do it,” said Elma, packing up her books after the bus left the parking lot. “Be tough. Be firm. Establish the ground rules early and stick with them. And if you have to, be nasty.”
    Rooster nodded. “You’re good at that.”
    â€œIf you let them take over, they will. Clamp down on them. They can be just like everyone else if you discipline them enough.”
    â€œWho says they want to be like everyone else?” said Rooster.
    Elma gave him a curious look. “Who doesn’t?”
    Rooster watched her leave, then thought about that question all the way home.

9
    â€œY ou did what?” said Puffs the next day at school.
    â€œI had to,” said Rooster. They were eating their lunch in the cafeteria. “I was in a pinch.”
    â€œA pinch? You do this to one of your best friends because you’re in a pinch? Couldn’t you say you were in a vice at least?”
    â€œWhatever. Elma was all over me about my lack of preparation for my big debut at the bowling alley.”
    â€œUh-huh.”
    â€œSo I had to do something to get her off my back.”
    â€œI get all that.”
    â€œSo I figured what better way than to tell her that Jayson likes her.”
    Puffs shook his head. “See, that’s the part I don’t understand.” He stirred his soup with his spoon. “Why would you do that to a friend?”
    â€œIt shut her up in a second, that’s why. One minute she’s going on and on about this stupid hero cycle. The next thing she’s got little Jaysons dancing in front of her eyes and has to sit down ’cause she’s feeling faint.”
    â€œI just want to know how you’re going to get out of it without hurting her,” said Jolene, dipping her spoon into her yogurt cup.
    Rooster took another bite of his sandwich. “I’m going to ask Jayson if he can do me a favor.”
    Jolene and Puffs exchanged a long glance, then spoke simultaneously. “Are you kidding?”
    â€œI have no choice. I thought about it last night after I got home. I have to ask him to come down to the bowling alley and hang out for a while. Talk to her. Laugh at something she says. I didn’t say he was madly in love with her. I just said he likes her.”
    â€œAnd then what?” said Puffs.
    â€œWell, then, ideally, she’ll decide that she doesn’t like him and dump him.”
    â€œJayson is God in the jock world,” said Jolene. “There’s no way that’s going to happen.”
    â€œIt happened three times last year.”
    â€œThose weren’t jocks. They didn’t understand him.”
    â€œNobody understands him. That’s the point. Elma won’t understand him. What will she think the first time he sits down and eats an entire loaf of bread while waiting for his lunch? Or he gets that tattoo of a