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Marvin pushed his luck. “That’s not fair!” he exclaimed. “We were going to ride our bikes down Suicide Hill!”
“You won’t be riding your bike for a week,” said his mother.
Marvin went back outside and told his friends the bad news.
“Why? What did you do?” asked Stuart.
“Nothing,” said Marvin. “My mom’s just in a bad mood.”
He told them good-bye, then went up to his room. He felt awful. He was glad he wouldn’t have to ride down Suicide Hill, but he felt bad for calling Linzy a stupid pest. More than that, he felt terrible for being so afraid.
He wasn’t just afraid of Suicide Hill. He was afraid to ride his new bike.
It seemed so big. And it had hand brakes. He had never used hand brakes before. He also didn’t know how to use all the different gears.
What made it worse, he was the one who had asked for a new bike. He’d begged for a new bike. His parents had said it was very expensive. They said he already had a bicycle, but he’d called that a “baby bike.” He wanted a mountain bike. He said Linzy could have his old bike.
And in the end, they bought it for him.
That was ten days ago, and he still hadn’t ridden it. Just thinking about it made him sick to his stomach.
At least he wouldn’t have to ride it for a week. He wished he still had his baby bike.
2
Monday
“You’re so brave,” said Casey Happleton. She sat next to Marvin in Mrs. North’s class. She had a ponytail that stuck out the side of her head, instead of the back.
Marvin shrugged and smiled. He didn’t know why Casey thought he was brave, but he was glad she did.
“Judy and I are going to come watch you,” said Casey.
“Watch me what? When?”
“Saturday,” said Casey. “When you ride your new mountain bike down Suicide Hill.”
Marvin felt as if he’d been kicked in the stomach. He tried not to show it. He didn’t want Casey Happleton to think he was scared. “Who told you that?” he asked.
“Judy,” said Casey. “She said you would have ridden down last Saturday, but you got in trouble for calling your sister a stupid pest. Now you can’t ride your bike for a week.”
Marvin didn’t know how Judy Jasper knew so much about his life.
“Stuart told her,” said Casey.
Marvin never told Stuart he’d ride down Suicide Hill on Saturday. He just told him that he couldn’t ride his bike for a week.
“Marvin,” said Mrs. North. “Have you been listening to anything I said?”
He looked at his teacher. “Um, I’m not sure. What did you say?”
Mrs. North gave Marvin the Look.
At recess, Marvin asked Stuart why he told Judy that he had called his sister a stupid pest.
“She asked me,” said Stuart.
They were playing wizzle-fish tag.
