Fish in a Tree: Chapters 10-16

"But here’s the thing. I will sometimes give you a topic but not very often. And I will never ever—even if an evil sorcerer threatens to turn all my correcting pens to clear ink—correct your work.”

Wow. I wonder if he’s delirious. No correcting? Anything we want? This is too good to be true; I know something is coming.

Jessica is sitting next to Suki and staring at Shay like their separation is a great injustice.

“Can you believe it?” Shay asks. “How pathetic is that? Hey, Albert,” she calls, “is that supposed to be a fashion statement?”

“What’s the matter?” she asks him. “Don’t you have any money for shoes?”
“Quite the contrary,” Albert begins.

“But given the choice of buying new sneakers that I will outgrow in three months or a chemistry set that I can use for an undefined amount of time, this seemed the clear choice. They’re in fine shape except for being just a bit short.”

“I think it curious that you worry about what I have on my feet when three of you are wearing red shirts. Not a wise color. Red is the color of stop lights and signs, bad wounds, warning lights, and the most severe of sunburns. It represents red alerts and high fevers. Red numbers show a loss in accounting. Red represents danger.”

I ask, wondering if he’ll tell me to strap myself to a rocket and light the fuse.

It’s a dragonfly with brilliant greenish-blue wings and tiny goggles over its eyes.

Keisha covers her mouth and tries to squelch the sound.

“These flowers are a gift, and if that’s how you’re going to treat a gift—with a complete lack of respect and gratitude—then you, Keisha Almond, will be the only girl without flowers.”

‘‘You can do anything to the box to figure it out except open it. There are four numbered boxes that will rotate from group to group. You have ten minutes with each box, so be sure that you write down your guesses. At the end, we’ll open them up to see what each object is.” He claps once, loudly. “Any questions?”

“Whoa, Ally. I can give you new spark plugs. Change your oil. Even rebuild your carburetor. But the writing? No can do. When it comes to that, my brain is like gears with no grease. Parts grinding together. Seriously. It ain’t pretty.”

“If I’m talking like that, then I’m the one talking like that. And besides, do you really think that Cookie Monster would turn down a cupcake? I mean, it isn’t broccoli or nuclear sludge or something. You could tell him it’s a big, tall cookie with frosting on it. He’d suck it down like a vacuum cleaner. I bet you he would. You want to bet me? Do you?”

“If I’m talking like that, then I’m the one talking like that. And besides, do you really think that Cookie Monster would turn down a cupcake? I mean, it isn’t broccoli or nuclear sludge or something. You could tell him it’s a big, tall cookie with frosting on it. He’d suck it down like a vacuum cleaner. I bet you he would. You want to bet me? Do you?”