The Big Splash (25 page)

“No, you owe me a lot.”

Kevin chuckled. “All right, I'll give you that one.
Vinny, Matt mentioned that you might have known a little something about the setup. I tried to tell him no, that you would never do that to someone who knows so much about the inner workings of your … what are we calling it this week? An organization?”

Vinny didn't answer.

“Sure,” Kevin continued, “let's call it that. I told Matt that I know so much about how this organization runs, that even if Vinny didn't pride himself on his loyalty, he'd be crazy to hang me out to dry like that.”

“You're right,” Vinny said.

“I know. That's what I told Matt. But, he said he wanted to ask you anyway. ‘No harm in asking,' he said.” His and Vinny's eyes were still locked. “Was there, Matt?'

“Was there what?”

“Any harm in asking.”

“Little bit.”

“Yeah. Kinda knew there would be. Did you get any answers?”

“Not really,” I said. “He didn't admit it, but he didn't deny it either. Said my accusations were ‘unsubstantiated.'”

“Wow. Big word.”

“I know,” I said. “That's high school vocabulary.”

“Did he say anything else?” Kevin asked.

“Nope. Just gave me a sly little smile.”

“Hmm. Well, that's not really an admission of anything.”

“I know. He's pretty slippery.”

“Still,” Kevin said, “I find it hard to believe that he didn't know anything.”

“You're right. Hard to believe.”

“What do you say, Vinny?” Kevin asked. “Did you know anything? Tell the truth.”

For a second, I didn't think Vinny was going to answer. I thought they were going to stay frozen like that, eyes locked, until the end of time … or at least until the final bell of the school day. Then Vinny blinked. It wasn't much, but in the context of what was happening, it was everything. “Nothing,” Vinny said. “I knew nothing.”

“Well, he seems honest. What do you think, Matt?”

“I'm not sure you want my opinion of him.”

Kevin laughed. “Fair enough. Well, I guess I'm just going to have to go with my gut on this one. I'll
trust you, Vinny. Because after all, what's a relationship without trust?”

Vinny knew better than to answer. “Well, that's it then,” Kevin said. “You and I are fine.”

“Glad to hear it,” Vinny said. They shook hands, and everything appeared to be okay between them, but it was obvious that it wasn't. Their mouths were telling one story while their eyes were telling another.

“Matt and Liz,” Kevin said, “would you guys mind taking off? Vinny and I have a couple of other things we need to discuss.”

“I haven't gotten my turn yet,” Liz growled. Her hands started to look like claws as she took a step toward Vinny. If I hadn't grabbed her, she might have given him a new nickname, like “Vinny One-Eye.”

“C'mon, Liz,” I said. “Let's go get some air.”

“After I get my turn.” Behind me, I heard the sound of several soakers being pumped. The guards had allegiance to Kevin, but that didn't extend to his sister, or to me for that matter.

“Now, Liz. One close call was enough for today.”

She paused. “Fine,” she said, without taking her eyes off Vinny. “We'll finish this later.”

I escorted her out of the caf, and only had to drag her half the way. I took a glance back to see what we had escaped. Kevin and Vinny were talking like they hadn't missed a beat. The guards were invisible again. The lunchroom had returned to its familiar rhythm. On the surface, it appeared that everything was back to the way it was. I wasn't so sure. Something had shifted a little while ago between Kevin and Vinny, and I wasn't sure anything would be the same again.

When we got outside, Liz exploded. “I don't believe him! That son of a—”

“Whoa. Calm down. You'll blow out a barrette.”

“I just want to take his arrogant, fat face and just—” Instead of using words to finish her sentence, she gritted her teeth and squeezed her fists into tight balls. If she were holding oranges, we'd have a nice glass of fresh juice.

“Why don't you hit something? It'll help get some of your—ow!” She punched me in the arm.

“You're right. I feel a little better.”

“Glad I could help.” I rubbed my arm. I made a mental note to never let another girl punch me again. For a boy, it was a no-win situation.

“My brother is such an idiot!” she yelled, ramping back up again. “How can he pretend like nothing happened?”

“Forget about him. Come on. Let's go for a walk.” I grabbed her hand.

She looked down at my hand holding hers, then looked back up at me and smiled. I had taken her hand out of friendship, but sometime during the day we had crossed over the border of friendship and into something else. I don't think either of us knew the details of where or when; the only thing we were sure of was that it had happened. And in case my brain wasn't sure, my heart skipped a couple of beats in order to give it the message.

“Umm …,” I said, suddenly aware of the weight of my tongue. Somehow, this was much scarier than facing off against Vinny and his goons, or Jenny and her squirt guns. This felt like the opposite of the situations I was used to: I'd never want to talk my way out of this, but I was afraid that somehow, I would manage to.

“Let's go downtown and get a soda,” Liz said.

“School's not over.”

“It's Friday. Live a little.” She smiled at me. I relaxed. She had a knack for making the hard stuff easy. It was something that I had always loved about her.

“You're the boss,” I said.

“Damn straight.”

“Hey! Where are we going?” came a voice from behind us. It was Kevin. My first reaction was to try to drop Liz's hand, but it was already too late. There was no way he didn't see it.

Liz looked at me and smiled again. She held my hand tighter.
“We,
as in Matt and I, are going to get a soda.”

“Is that right?”

“Yeah. Why don't you go hang out with your ‘organization' buddies and leave Matt and me alone?”

“What if I don't approve?”

Liz laughed. “It's so cute that you think that matters.”

“It may not matter to you, but it'll matter to him,” he said, pointing at me.

“Please,” I said, finally finding my voice. “Nothing's changed. You're still too slow and clumsy to scare me.”

“Yeah,” Liz piped in. “Plus now, it's two against one.”

“Whoa. Fine. I give up,” Kevin said, raising his hands in mock surrender. “You guys are pretty tough. Any openings in your crew?”

“You couldn't handle it,” I said. “Plus, you'd have to leave the one you're already in.”

“Yeah. We don't allow dual membership.”

Liz and I laughed. Kevin just stood there looking at us, a weird little smile on his face. Liz got there first, gasping a little when she realized what the smile meant. It took me a second, but I caught up.

“You serious?” I asked.

“Maybe,” he answered.

“Looks like we have some stuff to talk about over sodas.”

“Good deal.” Kevin's smile was warm and full of relief. “Last one there has to pay,” he said, then pushed me to the ground.

My hand slipped out of Liz's as I went down. “What the hell … ?”

Kevin was already off and running. “Race you!” he yelled over his shoulder.

Liz looked at me on the ground. She was laughing. “Matt. I'm sorry.”

“For what?”

“For this.” She took off running.

“Hey!” I sprang up and ran after them, smiling and
laughing the entire time. For the first time in a while, I felt like a kid again. The whole weekend stretched out in front of me like a forest full of trails, each leading someplace wild and uncharted, but full of promise. Everything seemed possible on a Friday, twenty dollars in my pocket, and the early afternoon sun warming my face as I raced my friends to see who was buying.

many people contributed to this book getting written that it's hard to narrow it down to the few who will fit here (and prevent it from sounding like an '80s power ballad) … but I'll give it a shot …

Thanks to my agent, the amazing Stephen Barbara, whose patience, instincts, and insight has been invaluable. To my editor, the fantastic Susan Van Metre, who “got it” from the get-go. Her enthusiasm, deft touch, and spot-on notes made this story hum. When she liked it, I knew it was right. I'd also like to thank Howard, Jason, Chad, Scott, Nathan, and everyone at Amulet for their hard work and boundless creativity. This has been an incredible experience because of you.

To my mom, dad, and sister, Laura, for their honest notes and constant love and support. I wouldn't be here without you. To my big Italian family (Nonnie!!), who never thought I was crazy for wanting to write and always accepted me for who I am. (Grandma, Grandpa, and Pop … I miss you …) And to Frances, Garret, and the rest of my family on the West Coast, thank you for always believing in me.

To my friends Melissa and Peter, Steve and Sarah, Will and Sara, Joe, John and Melannie, Aya, Regan, Johannah and Anthony, Mark, and Dr. Cole, whose belief in me never wavered, even when my belief in myself did.

To my daughter Emily, whose birth scared me into finishing the book, and whose smile and personality helped me get through some of the rough days. And finally to my wife, Teryse: If I tried to write down every way in which you supported me, I'd need a whole other book. Love ya, T …

grew up in southern Connecticut and still considers middle school to be the toughest time of his life. He currently lives in northern Massachusetts with his wife, Teryse, daughter, Emily, and son, Matthew. He has been writing and editing for television animation for more than a decade. He developed, and writes for,
WordGirl
on PBS, for which he received an Emmy nomination.
The Big Splash
is his first novel. His latest novel,
Sidekicks,
follows the lives of two superhero sidekicks as they juggle school and the demands of saving the world. Find out more about Jack D. Ferraiolo at
www.jackferraiolo.com
and
www.bigsplashbook.com
.

and designed by Chad W. Beckerman. The text is set in 12-point Adobe Garamond, a typeface based on those created in the sixteenth century by Claude Garamond. Garamond modeled his typefaces on ones created by Venetian printers at the end of the fifteenth century. The modern version used in this book was designed by Robert Slimbach, who studied Garamond's historic typefaces at the Plantin-Moretus Museum in Antwerp, Belgium.