I started going every day for hours, no matter what. I ran up while lightning shot across the sky and thunder rumbled down, the rocks, dirt, and rail ties slick with huge rain. I ran up it when the sun was burning hot, burning a hole in the back of my head, blinding me (even though I'd purchased some mirrored honky lifeguard shades). I ran up when the clouds were so low I was in fog at the top, sweating in the stillness and stinky humidity. It didn't matter what was going on with the weather. Nothing else mattered. I ran and ran and ran.

Once, I ran up with that leather pouch of hippy rocks and crystals that dumbass drummer Tito had given me to help me relax (which made me a freak in the eyes of my classmates), and I dumped them in my right hand and whipped the whole handful down the M so they disappeared. (I threw the pouch in the weeds.) Because I didn't want to be at home (Andrew had, in fact, started asking Jerri "hard" questions. Jerri had, in fact, begun to scream like hell at Andrew), I'd stay out there for hours every day.

Every now and then an old couple or some family with kids or some tourist from another part of the state would show up and climb while I ran. Always, always, always, whoever was there would say, breathing hard, "I can't believe you can run up and down this hill. It's amazing."

I'd nod, smile, keep running. Meep meep.

Mostly, though, I was alone out there. And that was good. No ghosts to freak me out with their pirate/zombie wailing about the past. Nothing to do but what I loved doing. I felt like an adult. It felt perfect to be out there. So much so, I began protecting the whole afternoon.

CHAPTER 31: ALEAH AGAIN.

One early morning in the middle of July, at the end of the paper route while we were slowly rolling home, sort of zigzagging our bikes and crossing real close, Aleah said, "I'm considering changing my schedule, Felton."

"Why's that?" I asked, pedaling past her.

"You know, summer isn't that long."

"Already seems like forever," I said.

"Well, summer term at the college ends at the end of the month. Daddy is aching to get back to Chicago."

I hit the brakes and skidded to a stop. Then Aleah stopped a few feet ahead of me. She turned back and stared.

"You're leaving at the end of July?" I asked, my stomach sinking.

"Maybe not exactly at the end. But pretty soon. Daddy's got article deadlines in August, so he wants to get back to work with his co-author. You knew we were leaving."

"Yeah, but I just figured it'd be lateraLike the day before Gus comes back, right before school starts."

"No," Aleah shook her head.

"Oh, no."

"That's what I'm saying, Felton. I want to change my schedule so I'm awake during the afternoon so I can see you more."

"But I'm not around in the afternoon," I said, feeling dizzy.

"Where are you?" she asked.

I got off my bike, and rolled it up to the curb, and then dropped it and sat down.

"I just do stuff, Aleah."

She followed me over to the curb, put her kickstand down on her Walmart mountain bike, and then sat down next to me.

"Can't you change your schedule a little?" she asked. "I want to see you more."

"I can't. It wouldn't be right."

"Why? Do you need to drive around with your football friends?"

"I don't. I don't do that during the day."

"What do you do?"

"I practice."

"With your football friends?"

"No. Alone. I practice running, I guess. Or maybe it's more just moving?"

"Oh my God. You're so weird, Felton. You practice moving?

"Yes." I looked down between my knees because it did sound dumb.

"Why?"

"I don't know. You knowaWhy do you practice?"

"I know if I'm good at piano, I can play in front of a thousand people who'll light up like Chinese New Year. They'll shout and scream, and there will be all kinds of fireworks blowing up everywhere. Practicing for that makes sense!"

"Yeah." I clearly didn't practice running up a hill so crowds would clap for mea"although I liked it when hikers were astounded by my running. I moved because I liked to move, I guess. "But is that why you play piano, Aleah? Because of Chinese New Year?"

"I guess. So I can perform for biga" She thought for a moment. "AlsoaAlso because I know everything when I'm playing. Everything makes sense."

"That's it!" It hit me. While running on the Mound, I knew everything I needed to know. I knew everything. And whereas hippy crystals never helped me nor whispering Gus's name in fourth grade, knowing all I needed to know completely helped. "Me too, Aleah. Everything makes sense. So I have to move in the afternoon."

"You're so weird, Felton Reinstein. It completely stuns me. I mean, *move'? How weird."

"I know. Don't tell anyone."

"You're weirder than me," she sort of whispered, staring.

"Shhhh." I gestured with my hand.

"It hurts my heart. I just love you." She shook her head.

I nodded.

Then we kissed for about twenty-five years, I think.

CHAPTER 32: THE MOUND AGAIN.

I bought an iPod with my paper route money, and I started carrying my school backpack filled with fruit from Kwik Trip and protein shakes and water bottles, and I'd go up therea"and being up there became the best home I ever had. When the weather was good, I'd stay forever. I'd run myself totally out of energy, and I'd sweat and sweat (thankfully, Jerri had purchased a giant jug of laundry detergent in May, so I could clean the pee-stinker clothes) and then drink water and eat and take naps and listen to rap Cody gave me. I'd just relax, breathing, growing my body hair, running like the Road Runner, getting largely muscled (weights helped too), thinking about life and whatnot, but mostly not thinking at all. All the while, I'd look over all three states, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Illinois, far below me.

You're an adult, and this is what you do. Meep meep.

Aleah did take some nights off practicing. She even drove around with me, Cody, and Karpinski a couple times. Karpinski thought she was really hot, which wasn't surprising. What was surprising? Aleah liked Karpinski. That stunned me.

"Oh my God, he's funny!" she said.

"Really?"

CHAPTER 33: MUSCLEY BARBARIAN.

Oh my God. It's 5 a.m. There's every possibility that Grandma is going to wake up and find me awake and then give me the business about not going to sleep. Like I'm trying to stay awake. I'm not!

I'm very muscley.

Very bruised but very muscley.

I worked so freaking hard!

Because if I wasn't running the big M, I ran pass patterns with Cody. If I wasn't running pass patterns or running the big M, I lifted weights, getting closer and closer to the school record maxes that jerk Ken Johnson set for all backs and receivers. My shirts got super tight. My stomach muscles got ripply. Extremely muscley, like a barbarian.

Toward the end of the second week of July, Coach Johnson said, "Reinstein, you're putting on weight. Not fat, son. Don't worry about that. You've got no fat. You're carrying a lot more muscle though. Let's get you on the scale."

Cody, Karpinski, and I all followed Coach down the stairs from the weight room to the locker room. Down there, I pulled off my shoes and T-shirt and got on the scale. Coach adjusted the measures, sliding the stuff around. When it all balanced, the little arrow pointed at 182.

"Yes, sir!" Coach said. "What that's? Fifteen pounds in a month? Fourteen pounds? Big."

"You're going to be 185 by your birthday party," Cody said.

Then Karpinski said, "Too bad youra"

"Not in my locker room, Karpinski," Coach said.

"Is so tiny and useless," Karpinski whispered.

"Shut up, FishButt," I said like Arnold Schwarzenegger, "or I'll break you in half."

Barbarian!

CHAPTER 34: I HAD TO BE A BARBARIAN.

Or a warrior, seriously. I lived with Andrew. I lived with Jerri. I tried, but I couldn't just run away.

As the month wore on, Andrew worked to drag me into his Jerri battles. I had to fight him off. Once, he woke me up in the middle of the night, his little head hovering over me in the dark.

"She's a liar, Felton. She's a crazy old lady liar. You have to help me."

"What?" I was scared, didn't know what was happening.

"She won't tell me why you freak her out, Felton."

"Who?"

"You. You do. Help me. You have to ask her, Felton. You have to."

I woke up enough to know what was going on.

"No. I won't ask her anything."

"Why won't anybody help me?" Andrew whimpered.

Jerri didn't leave her room. Andrew wanted to fight her. He wanted me to fight alongside him. I wanted nothing to do with it.

"Get out of here," I told him.

CHAPTER 35: DID I SAY BARBARIAN?.