Alibi Junior High Read Online Free

From now on you don’t leave this house at night without my permission. You hear me?”
    “I hear you.”
    “I still don’t understand how you got covered in dirt.”
    I lean forward. “Turns out there was someone out there. I had to hide under a bush.”
    Jenny glances toward the window. “You mean someone’s watching us?”
    “I’m not sure. No, I don’t think so. I don’t know.”
    “Cody, I’m confused.” She runs her hands through her hair. “Was there or wasn’t there someone outside last night?”
    “There was.”
    “Well, who was it?”
    “Andy.”
    “Our neighbor? He’s watching us?”
    “No, I don’t think he’s watching us. I think we both just happened to be outside. It was weird.” I think about the way he moved quietly around me. “He’s really good, too.”
    Jenny stands up and walks to my window. “Cody, the guy’s an Army Ranger , he’s spent the last six years in Special Ops, of course he’s good.” She shakes her head. “Sneaking around in the middle of the night like that—you’re lucky you didn’t get yourself killed. What were you thinking? No more. You hear me? No more. ”
    “Okay, I hear you.”
    “I hope so. Now, get yourself ready for school. You’re running late.”
    I take a shower and get dressed.
     
     
    I join Jenny in the kitchen. She’s making pancakes. I forgot how good pancakes smell. I can’t remember the last time I’ve had them. I think it was about a year ago at that little place in Switzerland.
    She gives me an approving nod. “Well, you’re looking better.”
    “Thanks.”
    “Hungry? Want some pancakes?”
    “Definitely.”
    She brings two tall stacks to the kitchen table and we attack them. I guess we were both hungry. Jenny keeps shoveling pancakes into her mouth but it doesn’t stop her from talking. “So, you nervous?”
    “About Andy or my dad?”
    “About school. After all, you’ve never been to a real school before. I know your dad’s done a fantastic job teaching you, but this is going to be different.”
    I shake my head and almost laugh. “School? Why should I be nervous about school? Thanks to Dad my English and math skills are on a college level. I speak five different languages. I have two black belts. I’ve been to every corner of the globe and I’ve been in more dangerous situations in any given month than most of those kids have been in their whole lives.”
    I give her a dismissive wave. “Trust me. Going to school with a bunch of small-town kids is not something I’m worrying about right now.”
     
     
    A m I standing at the right corner? Jenny said the bus stops at the end of the street. This is the end of the street, right? I check my watch again. I’m not early; I’m right on time. Shouldn’t there be other kids here by now? What if I missed the bus? What if it came early?
    Wait, here comes somebody.
    It’s a girl—cute, with long black hair and strange clothes. She’s loudly chattering away on her cell phone. It’s like listening to a truck full of broken dishes driving down a dirt road.
    She stops and stands about ten feet away from me and continues ranting into her phone, complaining about some guy she met and how he used to talk to her but now he doesn’t and she thinks this girl named Penny, who she calls ‘Bad Penny,’ had something to do with it because apparently she’s responsible for everything that goes wrong with this girl’s life, and she hates her, she really does, she just hates her.
    We make eye contact and I blurt out, “Hi.” But she doesn’t say anything to me, she just continues talking into her phone. It makes me feel incredibly stupid for saying anything to her and annoyed that she couldn’t have at least said hi back to me.
    She glances my way again.
    “I take back the ‘hi.’”
    “Excuse me?”
    “I take back the ‘hi.’”
    “What’s your problem?”
    “Normally when someone says ‘Hi,’ the proper response in return is ‘Hi.’ I said ‘Hi,’ you