Authors: Tim Green
Unstoppable (20 page)
HARRISON SPENT MOST OF
the next day hoping Justin would cancel.
At two-thirty, though, he got a text that Justin was on his way to Mrs. Peabody's and couldn't wait to meet him at the movies. Harrison spent over an hour in the bathroom, fussing with his wig and tugging on the pant leg of his sweat suit to make it look normal draped over the plastic leg. Finally, his mom called him to dinner. They were having a quick meal of spaghetti and meatballs before Coach would drive him to the mall.
After dinner, his mom pointed to his shirt. “You might want to change, don't you think?”
Harrison looked down at the flecks of red sauce spattered across his white T-shirt and felt his face go warm. He hurried to his room and tugged a black T-shirt over his head, then hobbled out to the kitchen.
“How do I look?”
“Great,” his mom said. “Here, take a jacket.”
“Super,” said the major.
Coach said, “I'll bring the truck up closer to the garage.”
They bounced through town and out to the mall. As Coach pulled to a stop, he scratched behind his ear, the way he did in the locker room before a football game.
“You okay?” Harrison asked.
“I'm fine. You?”
Harrison reached up to touch his wig. “I guess.”
“You don't have to do this, you know.”
Harrison lifted the wig and rubbed his bare scalp. “I was thinking maybe I'll keep my hair like this, even when I'm not sick. I bet my helmet will fit better.”
“Your helmet would fit better.” Coach nodded. “That's a good point. Here, let me give you some money.”
“I've got enough for the movie,” Harrison said, replacing the wig. He still had the money he made from those weeks of helping Justin.
“Well, have a bucket of popcorn on me. It's for you and Justin, too. And buy a couple of those ridiculous extra-large sodas, on me.”
Harrison accepted the twenty-dollar bill. “I'll bring you change.”
Coach waved his hand and scratched hard behind his ear.
Harrison gripped his crutches and slipped down out of the pickup truck. He hobbled toward the entrance without looking back. He was afraid if he did, he wouldn't go in. He never heard the truck pull away.
AT THE MALL ENTRANCE,
a little girl with a braid in her long red-orange hair held the door for him and smiled up without any front teeth. A boy who looked like her older brother just stared. Harrison thanked the little girl, but before the door closed, he heard the two children giggling.
Harrison winced but kept going. He felt certain his ears looked like two steamed lobster claws and he couldn't help himself from glancing back to see half the people he passed stopping to stare, some of them even pointing. The click of the crutches gave him some comfort because he imagined the major counting out the reps of some drill and the trip to the escalators became a workout rather than a quest for the movie theaters upstairs.
When he reached the top of the escalator, the second floor was empty. He hobbled over to the ticket booth built into the wall and ordered a ticket for
Transformers
. A lone girl in black pants and a vest over her white shirt sat on a stool behind the popcorn counter reading a paperback book. She looked up and blinked at Harrison, studying his hair before blushing and looking back down. He kept going, thinking he could get Justin to buy the popcorn and drinks when he arrived. The ticket taker swung open the big door leading to all the theaters. Harrison hurried through, thanking him, and making fast for the lighted
Transformers
sign hanging from the ceiling.
As he struggled with the door, Harrison heard voices behind him. He let the door go and turned, angry at the thought that Justin might have invited someone without asking him. He patted the wig on his head, but as the two figures got closer, he realized neither one of them was Justin.
Smiling, they came to a stop right in front of him.
Harrison felt his stomach flip, then flop, and he was certain that he was about to throw up.
ADAM VARNETT'S SMILE COULD
only be outdone by Leo Howard's. Each of them took a turn glancing over his shoulder to make sure no one else was in the hallway, and each of their grins only widened.
“Hey,” Leo said. “It's Harry Johnson. The cripple. The Crip.”
Varnett laughed. “The Crip. I love that.”
“Crip, what's that you got on your head?” Leo reached out and snatched the wig off, twirling it in the air like a mini-pizza.
“Give me that.” Harrison tried to snatch it back. He leaned forward, but Leo took a drop step.
“Oops.” Varnett swept his leg right under Harrison's left crutch.
Harrison felt the crutch go. He grasped for the handle of the theater door, missed, and crashed to the floor. The two boys burst into an uproar of laughter and backed away, bouncing on their toes.
“The Crip goes down for the count.” Leo held the wig up and dropped it to the floor.
“
Down
for the count.” Varnett smacked Leo a high five.
The two boys jostled each other halfway down the hall, howling with laughter before hushing each other and disappearing into a horror flick.
Harrison fought back tears. He crawled to his wig and slapped it onto his head before retrieving his crutches and struggling to his feet. He noticed then that his plastic foot stuck out to the side. That's when the door at the end of the hall swung open again. Justin appeared and approached him with hesitation.
“Dude, are you okay?” Justin stared down at the sideways foot.
“I'm fine.” Harrison nodded at his mechanical leg. “Can you just twist that thing back for me?”
“Twist it?” Justin glanced at the crooked foot. “Are you shaking?”
“I fell. These crutches. Just twist it back.”
Justin hesitated, then crouched down and jerked the foot back into place so that it matched his real foot, facing forward.
“You said seven.” Harrison tried not to sound mad, but it didn't work.
“I had to walk. Mrs. Peabody said she'd give me a ride, but she only took me as far as the corner of Route 12 because she was going to Clayborn to visit her daughter. Sorry, Harrison.”
“It's fine.” Harrison fussed with his wig. “How stupid does this thing look?”
“It's dark in the movie.” Justin swung open the door. “Who cares?”
Harrison started to scold him but held off and hobbled into the dark theater, where the trailers for new movies had already begun. As his eyes adjusted, Harrison saw only about five other people scattered in the ocean of seats.
“Want to sit up front?” Justin asked.
“Sure.” Harrison didn't know if Justin was saying that to give his prosthetic leg more room or because he liked the huge screen, but after what had happened, he was just happy to have a friend. They sat and Harrison rested his jacket and the crutches on the seat next to him with his fake leg sticking out in front of them. He adjusted his wig again, then reached into his pocket and gave Justin the twenty from Coach.
“You want some popcorn and super-size sodas? It's on Coach.”
“You sure?” Justin took the money.
“Yeah. I'll wait, okay?”
Justin disappeared and Harrison tried to settle his nerves. He stared up at the screen but didn't see or hear anything other than the clip of film that ran on a loop through his head of Varnett and Leo bullying him, and him being totally helpless with his stupid wig. He pulled the wig off and threw it at the screen.
“Hey!” someone behind him shouted. “Knock it off.”
Harrison just stared at the furry clump lying on the floor in the blue light of the screen. That's how Justin found him when he returned with the popcorn. Justin set a tub in his lap and handed him a cold, damp drink the size of a coffee can.
“Good, it didn't start.” Justin plopped down and stuffed his mouth with popcorn, crunching.
Harrison could feel Justin's eyes on him. “Hey, Harrison? Are you okay? Is that your hair over there?
“Harrison, are you crying?”
HARRISON SNIFFED AND WIPED
his face on a sleeve. “No.”
“It's okay.” Justin's voice was quiet and kind. “We don't have to watch this. You want to do something else?”
“No. I'm fine.”
“Quiet down in front!” The yell sounded like the same person who scolded Harrison for throwing his wig.
“Blow it out your butt!” Justin yelled right back.
“We'll see what the manager says about that.” The voice rolled down at them from the rear seats.
They waited, but both of them knew what was coming. The opening scene of the movieâtwo spaceships plummeting toward Earth in a deadly duelâwas disrupted by the wavering beam of a flashlight that ended up in their faces.
Justin held a hand in front of his face. “What's the problem?”
“I'd like you two to come with me, please.” The manager wore a red vest and he shined the light down at their feet so they could see his bearded face and enormous barrel chest. He looked like a lumberjack.
“Why? Because of some
butt
head?” Justin's voice was loud enough for everyone to hear as he jabbed his thumb toward the man who had complained.
“Justin, stop.” Harrison put a hand on Justin's arm.
“My friend is handicapped.” Justin wasn't getting any quieter. “And you're going to harass him?”
“That's got nothing to do with you being a little loudmouth jerk. Now come on, before I call the police.” The manager's voice rumbled at them.
Harrison slipped his jacket on and struggled to his feet with the crutches. “Justin, come on.”
“Well, we're taking our popcorn. We paid for it.” Justin kept his chin up and his voice loud enough to spoil the opening scene for everyone else.
“Take your popcorn, but
leave
.”
“Harrison, you want your hair?” Justin asked, scooping up the wig before he took the soda and popcorn from Harrison.
Harrison worked his way up the aisle, crutches clicking. When Justin got even with the man who complained, he made a loud farting noise. Harrison wasn't sure if it was real or just his friend blowing on his bare arm, but either way, Harrison's face felt hot. Harrison didn't want to even look at the manager, even when the man offered him a soft-spoken apology and a pass to come back another time without Justin. He just took the pass and kept going. Justin kept right up with him and didn't stop yapping at the manager until they reached the escalator.
“So much for the movie.” Harrison took the wig from Justin and jammed it in his pants pocket as they rode down.
Justin raised the tubs of popcorn in the air. “That was just to get you out of your cave. I heard that one stunk anyway. Did you see how many people were there? The place was empty for a reason.”
They reached the first floor in the middle of the food court and Justin set their popcorn down on a tabletop. “Let's eat this stuff, right?”
“Then what? I don't want to call Coach and tell him we got kicked out.”
“We can just hang out. Window-shop. I don't know.”
Harrison looked around. “I don't want to stay here.”
“Oh.” Justin glanced at the wig hanging from Harrison's pocket, then his bald head. “I get it. Okay. It's getting cold, but there's some benches outside.”
Justin held the heavy glass doors for Harrison. They sat down on a bench beside the entrance.
Justin blew hot air into his hands and said, “Maybe you should put that thing on your head, just to stay warm.”
Harrison pulled the wig from his pocket and plopped it on like a hat. “Is it straight?”
“Here.” Justin fixed it and offered Harrison some popcorn.
They hadn't sat on the benches for more than five minutes before Justin pointed at the door. With a mouthful of popcorn, he said, “Look.”
BECKY WAS WITH HER
mom and dad and little sister. They were talking and laughing together before they stopped in front of the bench.
“How are you feeling, Harrison?” Doc Smart asked.
Harrison's hand drifted to his wig. “Good. Thanks.”
“Were you guys at the movies?” Becky wore jeans and her hair was pulled back into a ponytail. She was as pretty as ever.
“We walked out of
Transformers
,” Justin said before Harrison could even think of a response.
“I heard this one wasn't as good as the last. We went to
Space Dogs
, for my little sister. Do you guys need a ride to town?”
Harrison looked at Justin, who shrugged. “Sure.”
They got in with Becky's family. Becky climbed into the back of the Suburban and her little sister sat between Justin and Harrison in the second row. Becky and her family talked about
Space Dogs
. The conversation was normal and natural, and Harrison began to relax.
“Dad,” Becky said, “can these guys come over for a little?”
Her dad glanced at her in the rearview mirror. “Sure. It's early.”
They pulled into the circular driveway of the enormous house and got out.
“Want to hang in back?” Becky asked.
“Isn't it a little too cold?” her mother asked.
“Look at those stars, Mom,” Becky said. “It's not cold.”
“Nine o'clock,” Doc Smart said, offering his wife a hand up the front porch stairs.
“Thanks, Dad.” Becky nodded to Harrison and Justin and they followed her.
Next to the fish pond was a swinging bench. They sat down, Harrison in the middle, and stared at the sky. Becky sighed and put her hand on Harrison's arm.
“If you two want to be alone . . .” Justin said.
“Don't be ridiculous.” Becky gave Harrison's arm a squeeze. “Look at that Milky Way.”
They sat for a minute, just looking, before something thrashed in the water. Harrison jumped.
“It's just the fish.” Becky leaned forward to look.
“What are they doing?” Harrison asked.
“They fight sometimes. Usually it's when we feed them.”
“Can we see?” Justin stood up.
“There's a light on that post.” Becky pointed to a post near the walkway leading to the pond.
Justin flipped it on and the water came alive with a flurry of orange and white as the fish teemed back and forth in a frenzy. “Oh my God. Are they attacking that white one?”
“They do sometimes.” Becky peered into the water.
“Look, Harrison. Look at that big white one.” Justin's eyes were wide with excitement. “Awesome.”
Harrison studied the big white Koi that Becky had shown him weeks ago. “What's wrong with it? It looks different.”
“They eat at his fins,” Becky said. “But he's okay. My dad says he'll live.”
The big, sleek fish was spotted with gray and thinner than it had been. Instead of the sweeping fins that billowed like silk, jagged stubs stuck out from its sides and back.
The horror of it filled Harrison. “Yeah, I get it.”
He leaned hard on his crutches and swung them for all he was worth, clacking down the path and circling the house to the driveway. When he hit the pavement, he really took off, swinging his prosthetic like a wildman, but without any of the quick precision the major demanded.
It wasn't long before he heard their footsteps slapping the pavement behind him.
“Harrison!” Becky shouted. “Don't go!”
He never slowed down and he never looked back.
