WHEN YOU THINK ALL IS LOST

If I can just get my leg behind this branch, I thought, my body will be completely hidden from the bad guys.

You are not going to believe how I found myself hiding on top this wall. But take it from me, it’s crazier than a mean and gorilla-sized Micky Mouse.

Can you see that? Nuts, isn’t it? You won’t believe me, but I’ll tell you anyway. Truth is stranger than fiction.

Rough men are after us. By us, I mean my buddy John Calhoun and me. I’m Alan Richardson, and John is my best friend, even if he is a little geeky. It’s okay with me, as I’m a little weird myself.

I use big words sometimes, grown-up words, and I know tons of vocabulary. But, I ask you: Are any of us normal?

What’s normal anyway? I know I’m not. I suspect you aren’t either.

I equate normal with boring. There’s one. Equate is just a fancy word meaning to make equal. If you knew that, then accept my sincere apology. If not, there’s a new word for you.

Anyway, I’m fourteen, in ninth grade and so is John. High school in Central Florida, can you dig it? Here’s a look into one Florida freshman’s life. So, get ready-I’m going to tell you what happens, as it happens. Then maybe you’ll see how insane my life is.

We’ve been running through neighborhoods, taking shortcuts through peoples’ yards, and I guess someone thinks we are doing something wrong. We aren’t, but cutting through yards is a lot faster than using roads in this neighborhood. Plus, we’ve been running and not walking because we’re on a mission. We need to be there, we need to arrive.

If we don’t get to Wendy’s house by two-fifty, then we won’t be there when the girls show up, and that’ll ruin everything. See, John and I need to already be there when they arrive–the girls, I mean. If we are there being casual and sitting on the sofa, it will seem like we have been there since school got out. It will also seem like John and I are close, personal friends of Wendy’s, and have the inside track on all things relating to our friend-Ms. Wendy Gifford. That, in turn, will cause these gorgeous females to want to talk to us, get to know us.