"You mind if I do an experiment?"

"Uh, I don't know."

"Wait here a second please."

Aleah went back into the nursing home. She was gone for about five minutes. I had no idea what she was up to.

When she returned, she was nodding.

"That lady in there is terrified of you."

"Well, yeah. That's apparent."

"I mean, just you. She didn't look at me at all when she screamed. She was staring only at you."

"So?"

"So I found her sitting at a table tearing a picture of George Clooney out of a People magazine, and I asked her how she was, and she smiled at me and said her breakfast was mushy, and she hoped they had something better for lunch."

"Maybe she's scared of men?"

"Hello? Tearing out a picture of George Clooney?"

"Maybe she was tearing it up."

"Don't think so. She gave George a kiss while I was standing there."

"Maybe she's scared of real-life men. Flesh and blood men. Real big hairy and muscley men." The conversation was actually making me nervous.

"You're not that hairy."

"I'm pretty hairy. You should see my belly button." Okay, I was sounding stupid. Shut up, Felton.

"I don't know. I saw two male orderlies in that place, and they were both plenty big and hairy, I'm sure."

"Do you think I did something to her?"

"I'm just saying she specifically doesn't like you."

"Can't win 'em all, I guess." I felt sort of pissed. I looked down.

"It's very important to me to figure out the mysteries of life," Aleah said.

"Sometimes, it's better not to know." I continued to look down.

Aleah reached up and put her hand under my chin, raising my face so we made eye contact.

"I specifically do like you," she said. "Specifically a lot." She smiled.

"Why?" I could feel intense heat in my face and ears. I must've been blushing like a Christmas bulb.

"I don't know yet. But it's a mystery I'm interested in figuring out."

"Me too," I smiled. Then I'll write Gus to tell him why, the jerk.

"But that lady sure doesn't like you."

"Shut up!" I laughed.

We teeter-tottered home, nearly hitting the curb and nearly straying out into traffic. But we didn't crash again, which sort of sucked because I wanted another excuse to roll over to her. I did consider intentionally crashing, but I didn't want it to be forced and for me to seem like too much of a dork (after all, I'd already told her I have a hairy belly button).

When we got back to her house, we expertly slid off the bike.

"We're good," I said. Aleah and I fist-bumped. "And that was so dang fun."

"Yes. It was great," she said.

"Maybe I can stop by tonight?"

"Oh, well, actually, I wanted to say that I can't really do anything at night except for Fridays and Saturdays because that's my weekend."

"Why?"

"If I want to be a professional pianist, I have to act like one. I couldn't focus very well after last night. I kept thinking about you. I need to focus."

"No, okay. That makes sense." I felt a little sad. I don't know what I was expecting. That we'd spend every last minute with each other for the rest of our whole long lives, I guess.

"You can come in for breakfast if you want though. Daddy's probably left for school."

"Oh, crap. What time is it? Oh, shit," I said.

"What?"

"I've got weights. It's late, right? Cody's coming to pick me up."

"What's weights?"

"Weight lifting. Weights."

"You lift weights?"

"Football."

"You play football?"

"Uh, yeah. I'm a D-I prospect. That's the only reason I can even talk to you."

"What?"

I stopped my scrambling, looked Aleah straight in the eye, and said, "I like you specifically. A lot. I can't say any more without making a total dipshit out of myself, okay?"

"Very mysterious," Aleah smiled. "See you soon, my football player."

That's right! That's it! I'm not a football player. I'm her football player. I'm Aleah Jennings's football player! I'm very close to acting like a complete retard! Go! Felton! Now!

I totally bolted.

"Well, maybe you can watch me practice sometime," Aleah shouted after me.

This is turning into a great summer, I thought. I biked home bursting, without any consideration of what I might find there.

CHAPTER 24: THE DAY BEFORE WAS NO DREAMa"THE HOUSE WAS UNWINDING

It's 4:02 a.m., but we're into this thing.

Okay.

Really, I should have been prepared for it, but I wasn't. Jerri's quietness the night before and Andrew's little boy snores made me think everything was going back to normal.

But Andrew sat in a lawn chair in the driveway as I biked up to the house. Oh, no. I rode my bike up to the garage and got off. Andrew stood and spun the chair around and then sat back down so he was facing me.

"What's happening now?" I asked.

"Good news, Felton."

"Really?"

"Jerri won't let me play piano in the house."

"That's not good news."

"Yesa"and more good news. Jerri has also informed me that she's given away her entire life to us boys and she has nothing left to give."

"What?"

"She doesn't want the responsibility anymore."

I was stunned. Then I was pissed off. Not at Jerri exactly but because I had stuff to do and was tired of the drama.

"Unfortunately, Andrew, I have no time for this crap."

"It's crap, huh?"

"Yes."

"That our mother has decided that she's got nothing left to give to us?"

"Right."

"Do you know I'm thirteen, and legally and emotionally and morally, I need a parent?"

"Why don't you call your friends? Take a bike ride. Take a shower. You need to re-engage, Andrew."

"Shut up."

"That sounds like Jerri, right? I'll be your mother. Go do something with your summer, kid!"

"I need my mom, not yours."

"And I need to get my sweats on."

"I won't take this sitting down, Felton."

"You are sitting down, Andrew."

"Only so I can figure out what to do when I stand up."

"Fair enough! Great! Get busy! Go get 'em, son!"

"You're an assface."

I ran inside and changed clothes as fast as possible. I honestly didn't have time for the crap, which is harsh, I know, but I wasn't sure anything really bad was going ona"Jerri might snap out of it at any momenta"and my paper route had taken tons longer with Aleah in tow. Not that I minded. Plus, I started seriously late. Cody would be at the house any second. It did worry me that Andrew might do something stupid like overreact and call the police on Jerri, tell them she'd decided not to be a parent anymore and then we'd get carted off to some home just when things were getting good for me. I did feel bad for Andrew too. No piano? What the hell?

I figured we'd better have a family meeting or something. I decided to tell Andrew we'd talk sincerely and seriously later in the day.

As I was about to leave, Jerri yelled, "Felton?" She was obviously in the living room upstairs.

I paused for a moment and thoughtaShould I answer? I did.

"Yeah, Jerri?"

"Tell your brother to take a chill pill."

"Okay. You bet, Jerri." Chill pill? What's a chill pill?

I ran out the door into the garage. Just in time. Cody was pulling up the driveway in his truck. Andrew's chair sat empty. He was nowhere to be seen. This made me feel bad. Andrew was just a little kid after all. I wanted to tell him we'd have that family meeting, and I wouldn't have told him to take a chill pill. I opened the truck door and jumped in.

"Everything okay?" Cody asked.

"Other than my family going totally ape shit loony tune, it's great," I said.