CHAPTER 14
Thursday at lunch, the six of them were sitting in the cafeteria talking about everything that had happened.
"One thing I never would have guessed in a million years," Bo said. "Your mom's a lawyer."
"She was," Jenny said. "Once Cameron and I were born she wanted to just be a mom at home, though. My dad says she was pretty tough in court back in the day."
"Really? Mrs. McCoy?" Bo said, trying to picture it.
"Oh yeah, big time," Jimmy said. "Dude, you should have been there. She comes walking in and totally takes over. Before you know it, I'm free."
"Martin, about that whole thing--," Adler said.
"Don't EVEN say a word," Jimmy said. "Only reason you had to drill us out of there was because of my big mouth in the first place."
"You got that right--ever want to wake up Jimmy," Bo said, "call him a female."
"Walter, and how are you doing?," asked Melissa.
"Oh, yeah, I'm fine thanks," Mackie said. His voice sounded thin.
"We heard about what you did," said Jenny.
"Oh," said Mackie.
"I just want you to know, I think it's totally incredible," she said.
"I do too," said Melissa.
"In fact, I hear Mr. Gustaf is having us run the mile in PE today," Jimmy said.
Mackie froze and his eyes got real wide for a moment.
"He's kidding, Walter!" Bo said. "Jimmy, you think you've done enough damage yet for 24 hours?"
"The only thing that really sucks here--after all is said and done--is you guys don't make it into the talent show," said Adler, shaking his head. "You should have been up there Saturday night."
"Aw, forget THAT--you know what really sucks?" Bo said.
"That Mr. Riggins couldn't show a little heart," Melissa said.
"That we gotta sit there and watch Allison Sturgeon and Makena do their dance routine," Jimmy said.
"That we would have discovered you in time if I hadn't talked Mackie out of using the bathroom at Fancy Freeze," Adler said.
"Nah, none of that," Bo said. "What really sucks is Hamburg and Arrington are still running around loose like nothing happened."
"True," said Jenny.
"Forgot about that," Jimmy said.
"But anyway," said Bo, "Jimmy and I were talking, and how about everyone comes over to my house after school? We have a little clubhouse downstairs--The Box--we thought we'd get going again. Jimmy's buying pizza and soda for everyone."
"I am?" Jimmy said.
"You are," Bo said.
********************************************************
The Box was a pretty comfortable place to hang out.
There was a beat up couch, a couple of stuffed bean bag chairs, an old stereo you could play your I-Pod through, and a bunch of surfing and car magazines.
There was even bright green carpeting on the floor, that Bo and Jimmy had grabbed when a neighbor was throwing it out. They had pretty much set up everything inside The Box before they built the walls, because after that there was only the one opening, where you had to climb over the top of the wall with the rope.
They all got there by 4 o'clock except Jimmy. Jenny scampered up the rope in about two seconds and shot over the top of the wall. Melissa had to work harder, but she made it over next.
Adler had trouble. He'd never liked playgrounds or climbing equipment, and he couldn't seem to get his feet in the right place on the rope. Finally, Bo grabbed the rope to keep it from swinging and Adler, with some loud grunts and groans coming out of him, made it up the wall, swung over the top and dropped into The Box.
Mackie was a different story. Bo could see right away this wasn't going to work. It seemed to be the right time for an announcement.
"When Jimmy and I set this club up a few years ago," Bo began, "we made it that you had to be able to get over the wall to be a member."
"That's okay then, I don't need to be a member," said Mackie.
"But today, March 29th, we're making our first exception to that rule."
"You are?" said Mackie.
"Walter, you are now our first honorary life member of The Box, whether you ever get over the dang wall of not. Congratulations!"
"Wow, thanks Bo!" Mackie said.
Finally Jimmy showed up, crawling in headfirst through the outside secret entrance, holding the pizzas in one arm and bracing his landing with the other. He pulled two giant soda bottles out of his backpack.
"Sorry, but had to ride all the way to Costco," he said. "Couldn't afford the pizza anywhere else."
"Whatever," Bo said. "Let's eat. And you've got to help me get Walter over the top."
Jimmy climbed the rope and straddled the top of the wall. Bo handed him the food and drinks and he passed them down to the others. Then Bo clasped his hands and gave Mackie a foot boost. Jimmy grabbed Mackie's hands from the top and between the two of them they got him onto the ridge of the wall.
Jenny and Melissa and Adler helped ease him down the other side, and he was in.
"Boy, it's nice in here," said Mackie, settling into a beanbag chair. "Except, how will I get back out?"
"Same way you got in, no problem," Bo said, as he rappelled down the rope.
"But I'm thinking," said Jenny, "I bet I could teach you how to make it. You know that rope at school hanging off the old play structure that no one uses anymore? I could teach you on it at recess, any time you want."
"I'll help too," said Melissa.
"Wow," said Mackie, not really wanting to try it, but thinking about Jenny and Melissa being there.
"Hey, can I get some lessons too?" Adler said, thinking the same thing. "I need a lot of help with it too!"
"Adler, shut up," Jimmy said.
They started eating, and soon they'd nearly finished off two extra large combination pizzas.
They were laughing and enjoying themselves, all except Adler now, who had a strained, puzzled look on his face, kind of like when he got in trouble in a chess game and couldn't figure out his next move.
"There's got to be a way," he said.
"A way, what?" said Bo.
"That you can still get in the talent show," Adler said.
"Dude, that's history, and we're past it!" Jimmy said. "You keep bringing that up, I'm gonna lock YOU in a bathroom."
"It gets transferred to the computer, right?" Adler said. "Because they put it on the school web site."
"You mean the sign up list?" Jenny said. "Yes, I think you're right. I heard someone say the whole talent show schedule was going to be online tomorrow."
"So we figure out how to get into the computer program," said Mackie, catching on. "Then all's we do is add 'The Huckabee Band' or 'Band', or whatever it was, to the online schedule."
"Precisely," Adler said.
"Whoa," said Bo.
"Old man Riggins," said Jimmy.
"When Walter did his marathon run and came up the two minutes short, Mr. Riggins assumed he was trying to sign HIMSELF up, right Walter?" Adler said.
"True--I never said anything about Bo and Jimmy."
"Plus," said Melissa, "there's a lot of acts this year--Allison said over fifteen--so it does seem unlikely Mr. Riggins would notice one more that was, um, slipped in."
"Hold on now," Bo said. "I'm having trouble wrapping my mind around this one. Going online, working your way into the school computer and changing something--"
"Is flat-out wrong, not to mention probably illegal," Jimmy said.
"I would agree with you almost any other time," Adler said. "But what happened to you yesterday--what prevented you from signing up like everyone else--that was flat-out wrong, too!"
"So you're saying you'd be just putting in a name that should have been there all along," Jenny said.
"That's all."
"Uh, just one small question," said Bo. "How the heck would you get into that computer program?"
"Well, now, why not let me and Mackie worry about that," Adler said. "Right, Walter?"
Mackie nodded.
"We'll meet you back here in The Box after school tomorrow," Adler said. "We should have some good news for you then."
