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It was happening at last!
    Aliens were contacting me!
    “Coordinates found,” the first alien voice said. “Western Hemisphere. North America. The United States. New Mexico. Bitter Lake, New Mexico.”There was a brief pause. “Fifteen seventeen Woodlawn Drive.”
    I couldn’t breathe. That was my address!
    “Coordinates set,” the second alien replied. “Will now attempt contact.”

7
    I pressed the headphones to my ears, listening.
    “We will land at that location in ten, nine, eight, seven…”
    I leaped to my feet. The aliens were coming to my house! In five seconds!
    I wanted to run to the window. But the cord to my headphones wouldn’t reach that far. I didn’t want to miss a word they said. But I didn’t want to miss seeing them land in my backyard, either.
    I hopped from foot to foot, too excited to think. What should I do ?
    “We have arrived,” the first alien said. “I am looking at human specimen now. What a geek.”
    I heard the voice through my headphones—and right behind me at the same time. I whirled around.
    “He’s not worth the trouble,” Sophie was saying into a walkie-talkie. She was standing in my doorway, staring into my room. “Let’s go to Disney World.”
    Will stood next to her, holding his own walkie-talkie and laughing. “You fell for it!” he cried. “You’re so dumb!”
    Sophie cracked up in giggles. “You’re right, Will—your brother really is a weirdo!”
    I should have known. Will had found a channel on his walkie-talkie that my antenna picked up. Another one of his stupid tricks.
    “Beat it, brats.” Summer appeared and slammed the door in their faces.
    Will pounded on the door. “Hey!” he shouted. “You don’t live here! You can’t slam the door on me!”
    Summer opened the door. Then she nodded at me. I knew just what to do.
    “Well, I can!” I snarled, and I slammed the door again.
    I ripped the headphones from my head and tossed them on the floor. Then I collapsed onto my bed.
    “Are you okay?” Summer asked.
    “Yeah.” I sighed. “I don’t get it, Summer. There are thousands and thousands of people in the world who believe in alien life-forms. So why don’t I know any of them?”
    Summer sat in my desk chair. “Most kids are intoother stuff, I guess,” she said. “Like sports or music. But all you ever talk about is aliens. Maybe if you had just one other interest—just one…”
    I sat up. “Summer, I’ve been reading a lot of scary things lately. More and more people are saying that aliens are coming to Earth—soon. Really soon. I think they might be coming here.”
    Summer sighed. “Ben, you need another hobby.” She climbed to her feet. “I’ve got to go home now and do my homework. But after dinner I’m going to come over and pull you out of this room. I’ll bring Jeff if I can tear him away from the TV.”
    “Okay. See you later.”
    She opened the door and spotted Will and Sophie huddled in the hallway.
    “Why don’t you two get a life?” she snapped. I heard her stomp downstairs and out the front door.
    A few minutes later, Mom’s car pulled into the driveway. She poked her head into my room and saw me lying on my bed. “Ben, what are you doing? Don’t you feel well?”
    “I’m okay,” I replied.
    “Why don’t you go outside and take a walk or something?” she suggested. “It’s a nice day, and you need more fresh air. I worry about you, always sitting at that computer day and night—”
    “Mom—” I protested.
    “It’s not healthy,” she went on.
    “I don’t feel like walking,” I said.
    She frowned, and I knew that look on her face. She can be very stubborn when she wants to be.
    She opened the door wider and stalked over to the bed. She pressed her hand on my forehead.
    “You’re not sick, so I want you up,” she ordered. She grabbed me by the arm and pulled me to a sitting position. “Why don’t you go outside and ride your bike or something?”
    “I’ve got homework to do,” I