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“No, I can see how you reached that answer but I’m afraid it is incorrect. It shows you were thinking.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Hardlick,” said Angeline. She was glad that she’d be out of this classroom and away from Mrs. Hardlick in a couple of days. Even though she had discovered how to get along, it was beginning to drive her crazy.
The birds sang, the leaves crackled, and the garbage truck came screeching around a corner, nearly hitting a parked car.
“Hey, slow down,” urged Gus as he held on to the dashboard.
Abel turned and looked at him absentmindedly. “Sorry,” he said.
“Will you watch the road!” Gus shouted back at him. He buckled his seat belt. It was something he rarely did, since he had to keep getting in and out of the truck to collect the garbage.
“Sorry,” Abel said. “I wasn’t paying attention. I was thinking about—”
“Stop!” yelled Gus.
Abel slammed on the brakes. The truck screeched to a sudden halt, causing garbage to fly out over the top of it and onto the street.
Gus shook his head and sighed. “You just missed that dog,” he said. “Did you even see it?”
“Sorry,” said Abel. “I guess I was thinking about Melissa.”
“No kidding,” said Gus. He unfastened his seat belt, and he and Abel got out of the truck to pick up the garbage that had fallen out. Most of it had fallen out of the garbage bags, so they had to pick up each bit of garbage off the street.
Abel picked up a milk carton and an empty can of peas. “Beautiful day, don’t you think?” he asked.
“Lovely,” muttered Gus as he tried to pick up a broken jar of tomato sauce without cutting himself. Actually, he was glad to see that Abel had a woman on his mind.
“Did I tell you about Melissa?” Abel asked.
Gus laughed. “You haven’t stopped talking about her.”
“Well, I just think she’ll make a good teacher for Angeline, that’s all.”
“Oh, I see!” said Gus. “You’re just worried about Angeline having a good teacher!”
“That’s right!” Abel insisted. “Why? What else did you think?”
Gus smirked. “Oh, nothing.”
“What? Did you think I was in love with her or something?”
“Why would I think that?” asked Gus. “You’re only looking for a good teacher for Angeline.”
“That’s right,” said Abel.
“One that’s beautiful,” Gus added.
“Yes,” said Abel. “No. Oh, you don’t understand.”
Gus laughed. They picked up the remainder of the garbage off of the street, then started to get back into the truck.
“Other side,” said Gus. “I’ll drive.”
Gary Boone stared sadly at his shoes. It was recess again, and he had nothing to do. He didn’t even like looking at Mr. Bone’s fish anymore. They reminded him of Angeline. Everything reminded him of her. He wondered if he’d ever see her again. He hadn’t told even one joke all day.
Suddenly two hands covered his eyes. “Guess who?” said a familiar voice from behind.
He didn’t have to guess. He knew who it was, although he couldn’t believe it. He felt so happy he almost burst into tears. He couldn’t speak for a moment, then said, “Jim Nasium.”
