Summer on the Short Bus Read Online Free Page B

on my shoulder and our eyes meet. For an instant I forget I’m the lead float in the freak parade.
    â€œI think so.”
    â€œGood. You had me worried for a minute.” He flashes a quick smile that makes my insides somersault.
    â€œAll right, everybody,” Rainbow says. Her distinct voice ripsthrough my divine moment. “Dr. Pete is going to take good care of Cricket. You’ll all have a chance to meet her after she rests up a bit. Now, everybody up to the mess hall!”
    There’s a brief round of cheers before the campers begin bumbling, rolling, and crutching their way up the hill toward the mess hall.
    â€œYou okay?” Fantine asks over her shoulder as she pushes Hannah Montana across the dirt. I nod, and she offers a smile that’s a little easier to read this time. “Good,” she says, honoring her word at giving me a second chance. “I’ll check on you a little later. You guys take good care of her. She’s not used to country life.”
    â€œWe will. You ready over there, Quinn?” Pete asks as he wraps his arm around my shoulder and pulls me against him. I really don’t think this level of assistance is necessary, but if it means Quinn will play human seat belt on the other side of me, I’m all for it.
    â€œI’m ready.” As hoped, Quinn repeats Pete’s motion on my other side, securing his right hand around my waist. Under the circumstances, I know I shouldn’t be enjoying this, but I just can’t help myself.
    â€œWell, a smile like that is a good sign. You must be feeling a little better,” Pete says, as the three of us lumber up the hill toward the first-aid office.
    â€œYeah,” I say. “Maybe a little.”

    For the last half hour I’ve been laying on my aching, swollen ass with an ice pack on my head and a Lohan-size dose of Advil in my gut. My Hollywood heartthrob bailed about two seconds after we got here—thanks a lot, Quinn.
    â€œTheriously, Pete,” I say as he shoves the thermometer under my tongue again. “I don’t have a feeva.”
    â€œShhh,” he says. “I’m still a med student. I haven’t mastered thermometer-in-the-mouth language yet. It’s a lot harder than it looks.”
    I’m too doped up on the graham crackers and warm apple juice Pete’s been plying me with to give him a hard time. So instead I just flip him the bird.
    â€œYou’re a spunky one, Cricket.” His grin widens into a full smile as he pulls the thermometer from my mouth. “You were right. No feeva,” he says, tossing the protective sleeve into the trash. “I think you’re stable enough to return to work, so long as you promise you’ll come back if your pain worsens or if you feel dizzy or light-headed, okay?”
    I nod, though I have no intention of doing anything other than locating a cell signal. I slide my feet back into my tennies, make a quick adjustment to my ponytail, and fast-track to the door, when Pete offers up one last comment.
    â€œIt will change your life if you let it.”
    â€œHuh?”
    â€œThis camp,” he clarifies. “I know it’s a different summer job than lifeguarding or working at the Gap, but what we do here . . . well, it really means something. It’s like we’re part of something bigger than ourselves. If you allow yourself to enjoy it, and really experience what it’s all about, I think you’ll have one of the best summers of your life.”
    Oh please! The Gap?
    â€œLook, Pete, if that’s what works for you . . . great. But the only thing I’m looking to change this summer is my father’s mind about leaving me here. Otherwise, I intend to remain exactly the same person I’ve always been. Thanks for the ice.”
    â€œNo problem,” he says easily enough. “Just remember you promised to come back if you need to.”
    â€œRight,” I call over my