𝘏𝘦𝘺, 𝘋𝘰𝘭𝘭

Chapter Two

Gordie POV

At the news, Adelaide started choking on air, and we all looked at her in concern and Chris hit her on the back and asked her,

"You okay, Dolly?"

She looked up at him, her brown eyes watery and nodded her head. We all looked at Vern motioning for him to continue, and he began,

"Well I was under the porch, digging, you know..."

We all understood what Vern meant right away. At the beginning of the school-year he had buried a quart-jar of pennies underneath his house. He drew a treasure map, so he could find them again. A week later his mom cleaned out his room and threw away the map. Vern had been trying to find those pennies for nine months. Nine months, man. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Vern told us how his brother and Charlie Hogan had seen Ray Brower, a kid our age's body by the Black Harlow Road in their boosted car. Teddy's face lit up with realization and said,

"I know the Back Harlow Road! It comes to a dead end by the Royal river. The traintracks are right there! Me and my dad used to fish for cossies out there!"

But Adelaide and Chris' face said something different. Adelaide said,

"Jesus Christ, Verno. If they would have known you were under the door they would've...would've...hided ya!"

Chris turned toward Adelaide and said,

"Yeah, Dolly's right, they'd be pretty pissed."

While they were still concerned that Vern would get hided, I just thought out loud,

"Could he have gotten all the way from Chamberlain to Harlow? It's really far!"

Chris and Adelaide looked at me and Chris said,

"Sure. He must have started walking on the train-tracks..."

Adelaide cut him off, and continued,

"...And just followed them the whole way."

They stole glances at each other when they thought the other one wasn't looking. Teddy and I looked at each other with the,

"Please-just-bang-already-or-so-help-us-look."

Before either of us could vomit before the unadmitted love birds, Teddy said,

"Anyways, the train must have come along and oh smacko!"

All of us looked down in gloominess as we all knew Ray Brower. Then suddenly Teddy said,

"Hey, hey guys! I bet you anything that if we find him we'll get our pictures in the paper, and even be on TV!"

Adelaide said,

"Sure!"

Teddy got all hyped and said,

"We'll be heroes!"

And Chris responded with,

"Yeah!"

We all turned to Vern, who looked very distraught, and he said,

"I don't know. Billy will know how I found out."

I responded with,

"He's not gonna care. 'Cos it's gonna be us guys who find him. Not Billy and Charley Hogan in a boosted car. They probably pin a medal on you, Vern."

Vern's face lit up, and with a smile he said,

"Yeah, you think so?"

And I said,