Booked Read Online Free

weeks.

Only
    ONLY. Three. Weeks.
    but Dallas is in one.
    Â 
    ONLY your stomach is shattered
    and your dream’s undone.
    Â 
    ONLY not playing soccer
    makes the pain seem severe.
    Â 
    ONLY your eyes can’t conceal
    tear after tear.
    Â 
    ONLY your ship is sinking
    and you’ll miss all the fun.
    Â 
    ONLY. Three. Weeks.
    but Dallas is in one.

The End
    when a horse breaks
    its leg,
    the bone shatters
    the nerves, the living tissue
    can’t heal
    â€™cause there’s not
    enough blood supply.
    There is no recovery
    from that type of
    damage.
    Â 
    It’s over.
    they may as well
    put you down.

TV Therapy
    Mercy General has six
    ESPN channels, but
    this does not impress your dad.

This Sucks
    T ottenham is playing Arsenal but you switch to
    H
awaii Five-O,
’cause watching
fútbol
will only
    I rritate you, remind you of what you’re missing. Room
    S ervice brings you cold soup, and just before
    S teve’s mother’s murderer is revealed, Dad turns it off.
    U ncool, Dad, you say.
You’re not going to binge on
    C
op shows or ESPN all day,
he says. Dad, the boredom is
    K illing me.
Maybe you should read,
he adds, and
    S lides his dictionary closer to you.

New Rules
    You get five TV minutes
    for each page read.
Does it have
    to be
your
book?
It does not.

Mom kisses you goodbye
    Sleep tight,
Nicky,
she says, and
    they both walk out.
    He stops
    at the door, turns around,
    like he forgot something,
    and just stares
    at you.
    Â 
    Books are fun, Nicholas,
he says,
    they’re like
    amusement parks
    for readers.
    Â 
    Yeah, well, maybe
    they would be fun
    if I got to pick
    the rides
    sometimes, you answer, your eyes
    Â 
    glued to
    the W
s.

The Next Morning
    The nurse asks if she can get
    you anything. Bacon, eggs,
    and french fries, please, you reply.

Breakfast
    Thirty minutes later, she
    returns with buttered wheat toast,
    cherry yogurt, and Coby.

Conversation with Coby
    Hey, Nick. What’s up?
    The sky.
    Â 
    I saw your mom and dad in the lobby.
    Yeah, they never leave. It’s annoying.
    Â 
    I think they were arguing.
    Why you say that?
    Â 
    â€™Cause your mom wasn’t talking, and your dad didn’t look happy.
    He never looks happy.
    Â 
    True. I was gonna come earlier, but my mom said you needed your rest.
    What I need is some real food.
    Â 
    True.
    Pernell’s an idiot. I shoulda done something.
    Â 
    . . .
    . . .
    Â 
    Sorry about that tackle. I was going for the ball.
    Yeah, I know. I woulda scored. We woulda won.
    Â 
    I don’t think so.
    You got booked?
    Â 
    Yeah, ref threw me out.
    Sorry about that.
    Â 
    How’s the stomach?
    It’s feeling better. The food’s disgusting.
    Â 
    That sucks.
    Yeah . . . How’d you get here?
    Â 
    My dad.
    Really?
    Â 
    Yeah, he’s coming to the Dallas Cup.
    . . .
    Â 
    Sorry you can’t come, Nick.
    Good luck.
    Â 
    I’ll bring you something back.
    Bring me a jersey or a ball.
    Â 
    I’ll get my dad to buy us some swag. Definitely.
    Coby, you miss him a lot?
    Â 
    Not really. We talk all the time, and I see him every summer.
    Oh.
    Â 
    I know it’s kinda hard right now, but you’ll get used to it.
    . . .
    Â 
    Hey, Man U is playing Arsenal. Let’s watch.
    Can’t.
    Â 
    Huh?
    Can’t watch TV, uh, right now.

Dear Skip
    Mac
    Â 
    You can find me here—
    Â 
    I’m
    Â 
    imprisoned,
    Â 
    trapped
    Â 
    by a
verbomaniac
    Â 
    and locked
    Â 
    far
    Â 
    from fun,
    Â 
    from freedom.
    Â 
    Will you
    Â 
    PLEASE bust me out?
    Â 
    Save me from
    Â 
    this madhouse of
    Â 
    Boredom and
    Â 
    Weird Words.
    Â 
    Bring a decent book
    Â 
    ASAP.
    Â 
    PS. Please make it a thin book with a lot of white space on the page. Thanks!

Rapprochement *

    In the middle of Scrabble
    the nurse comes in
    to take your
    blood pressure
    for the third time
    today.
    Â 
    Out of nowhere
    Mom starts crying
    and