You Will Call Me Drog by Sue Cowing Page B

talk again he said, “Of course my sister would deny it, I told her. She had to try to stop the secret from spreading and getting us into trouble with the government. My sister was really mad at me for breaching security, I said. Then Julie started crying and saying it was all her fault for not keeping quiet, and I felt like a cockroach in a manure pile.
    “Meanwhile my sister threatened to tell Mom and Dad. Unless of course I gave her half my allowance and took out the trash until kingdom come. But at least Julie was still my girlfriend. For about a day.”
    “How’d she find out?”
    “I had to tell her myself. Somehow my parents got wind of it, and I got the I’m-so-disappointed-in-you lecture of all time from Mom. Dad informed me that I would not be breathing the air, much less eating at home until I came clean with Julie and apologized to her and to everybody who had believed me.
    “So I went to her house and stood there until she came out. She just cried and said ‘No, no’ when I told her and asked me how I could do that to her. What was I going to say, because I liked her so much?
    “The next day I had real pains in my stomach and didn’t want to go to school, but Mom wasn’t buying it. At least I didn’t have to give my sister any of my allowance and I could eat all the french fries I wanted, but I had lost Julie, who still sat in front of me but didn’t turn around anymore.”
    “I bet Brad was happy.”
    “Not really. Turned out, she didn’t want to have anything more to do with him, either. You know, the only thing he ever said to me about it all was, ‘Well, genius. How smart was that?’ He had a point.”
    “Were the other kids all mad at you?”
    “Oh sure. Nobody likes to be fooled. But pretty soon they realized they had something big on me they could tease me about for the rest of our lives. They called me Space Cadet way into high school.
    “But it wasn’t a complete disaster, really. I finally figured out that everyone loves having a great story to hold over somebody they know. Even I thought it was funny after a while.”
    Space Cadet. I smiled and shook my head.
    Dad crossed one leg over the other knee and retied his moccasin, then leaned back, his arm around my shoulder again.
    “It could be like that for you, Parker. With this puppet business. If you let me, I’d like to figure out with you how this all happened. But for now my advice to you is, just tell the whole truth, quick and simple, and get it over with, like ripping off a Band-Aid. People like you. They always have. And they’ll forgive you. It won’t be so bad, I promise.”
    I leaned into him. “I wish I could do that, Dad.”
    “You can.”
    “No I can’t, I mean, not the way you think.”
    He pointed to my pocket. “How about bringing that puppet out now, so I can see it?”
    How could I say no? I pulled Drog out.
    “Wow,” Dad said, still relaxed and friendly. “That sure is one nasty-looking guy.”
    “Dad. He probably won’t—”
    “Ah,” Drog said. “This must be the charming Mr. Lock-wood, best known for the space he no longer occupies. What brings you to town, a sudden daddy-attack?”
    “Drog!” I yelled and tried to stuff him back in my pocket. But Dad took hold of my wrist.
    “Please, Dad.”
    “No. Let’s hear everything this ugly puppet has to say.”
    “Everything?” said Drog. “Wheee! Don’t get me started.”
    Dad tightened his grip. “I don’t see its mouth moving, Parker.”
    “It’s not, he ...”
    “It’s snot!” Drog said and cackled.
    Dad’s eyes turned a harder blue.
    “Please, Dad, let me ...”
    “Let’s face it, Daddy-O.” Drog said. “Parker and his mom, they were your practice family, no? And now you’ve got a new wife and a new kid, and you’ve got it
down
. So Parker’s just kind of an embarrassing first try, am I right?”
    Dad jerked back like he’d been punched. “No! Parker! How can you think that?!”
    “Want me to answer that?” said