“How about a million-dollar wish?” Matthew asked.
Ms. Rooney poked her head out of Room 113. “Alex and Emily were back ahead of you.”
Richard and Matthew hurried into the classroom.
Richard started his math work. He wrote the numbers slowly and carefully.
It was National Handwriting Day.
He wanted his numbers to look perfect.
Maybe he should wish for a million dollars.
No, that would be greedy, Richard thought. Just like King Midas.
The only thing he really wanted right now was for Drake Evans to go away.
Chapter 8
“We have to rush this afternoon,” said Ms. Rooney on Thursday, “Tomorrow is the trip. We have to finish all our work.”
Richard's pencil point was broken.
He rushed to the pencil sharpener.
“We don't have time for that,” said Ms. Rooney.
Richard sat down again.
“I have an extra pencil,” Matthew said.
Richard took the pencil. “You saved my life,” he told Matthew.
He opened his notebook.
He had to copy five sentences. He had to put in the capitals and the periods.
He was glad it wasn't National Handwriting Day anymore.
Matthew's pencil was a wreck.
It made his heading look sloppy.
Emily walked past on her way to the wastebasket.
“Hey, guys,” she whispered. ''Let's try to find out Mrs. Paris's name.”
“With an M?” Matthew asked. “My mother's name is Molly.”
“My mother's name is Lisa,” said Richard.
“Lisa,” Emily said. “That's not an M.”
Ms. Rooney tapped her hand on her desk.
Richard wrote the first sentence.
tomorrow is trip day
He erased the t in tomorrow. He made a big T.
Then he put a dot after day. Perfect.
“Guess what?” Matthew said.
Richard leaned forward. “What?”
“I don't think Drake is going on the trip,” Matthew said.
Richard reached into his desk. He gave his ruler a pat.
“Drake moved?” he asked.
Ms. Rooney walked down the aisle.
She looked at Richard's notebook.
“Nice work,” she said. “But you should have finished a lot more.” Quickly Richard wrote the next sentence.
we are going on a bus
Ms. Rooney tapped his paper, “What about the W?”
“I was just going to make it a big one,” he said.
Ms. Rooney went to the other side of the room.
“Drake is sick,” Matthew said.
Richard put a dot after bus. “Sick?” he asked.
“Very sick.”
“I wished for him to move away,” he told Matthew.
Matthew turned around again. “Maybe it's because he got wet in the snow.”
“Playing on my fort,” Richard said.
Matthew shook his head. “No, helping me out of the snow when I fell.”
The door opened. It was Mrs. Gates.
Suddenly Richard remembered. He had made lots of Drake wishes. Terrible Drake wishes.
He had wished Drake would disappear.
He had wished Drake would get sick.
He had even wished that Drake would get blisters.
''Drake must have gotten wet in the snow,” Richard said.
“I was stuck,” Matthew said.
Mrs. Gates said hello to Ms. Rooney. “Is Matthew Jackson here?” she asked.
“He certainly is,” said Ms. Rooney.
“You live on Drake's street, don't you?” Mrs. Gates asked Matthew.
“Three doors away,” Matthew said.
“Good,” said Mrs. Gates. “Will you take his homework to him?”
Mrs. Gates looked at Ms. Rooney. ''Drake can't afford to miss one minute of work.”
“I hope he'll make the trip,” Ms. Rooney said.
Mrs. Gates looked sad for a minute. “He's really been looking forward to it.” Richard started his next sentence.
we will have a great time
“I think you made a bad wish,” Matthew whispered. “Maybe something is going to happen to Drake.”
Richard put his pencil down. “Do you think it's my fault?”
“Don't worry,” Matthew said. “I won't tell the police.”
Richard swallowed.
Matthew went to the front of the room.
He took Drake's reading workbook and his notebook.
“Don't drop them in the snow,” Mrs. Gates said. “Tell Drake I hope he's feeling better.”
Richard put a dot at the end of the sentence.
He hoped nothing was going to happen to Drake.
Nothing terrible. Suppose …
Matthew sat down again. “I don't know why Mrs. Gates is sending this stuff home,” he said. “Drake may not need it anymore.”
“What do you mean?” Richard asked. Then he sighed. He knew what Matthew meant.
Richard finished his sentences.
He went to the coatroom. He put on his mittens.
“No homework,” said Ms. Rooney.
Richard walked outside with Matthew and Emily.
“Maybe Mrs. Paris's name is Milly,” said Emily.
“Milly, Tilly, Silly,” said Matthew.
Emily and Matthew laughed. But Richard didn't laugh. He was thinking about Drake Evans.
He sat on the steps to wait for Holly.
Suddenly he knew what he could do about Drake.
He ran back to the classroom.
He hoped the door wouldn't be locked.
Chapter 9
Richard raced down the hall.
Holly was coming out of her room. “Let's
go.”
“I have to get something,” Richard said.
“He never remembers anything,” Holly said to her friend Joanne.
Richard turned the knob of Room 113.
Ms. Rooney was still inside.
So was Dawn Bosco. She was washing the blackboard.
“Your books were all over the floor,” said Ms. Rooney.
“Sorry,” Richard said. He went back to his desk.
Ms. Rooney had picked up all his books.
They were on the desk in a neat pile.
“Time to go,” Ms. Rooney told Dawn.
Richard looked in his desk. He didn't see his D.T. ruler.
He pulled everything out of the desk.
It was gone.
He had to find it.
He had to make a D.T. wish. A good wish for Drake Evans.
“Good-bye, Ms. Rooney,” said Dawn. She waved at Richard.
“Hurry, Richard,” said Ms. Rooney.
“I can't find my—” Richard began.
4Trip tomorrow,” said Ms. Rooney. “You don't need anything.”
Richard went back down the hall.
Holly was outside. “Thanks a lot, Richard,” she said. “You almost made us freeze to death.”
He followed them down the street.
As soon as they crossed Linden Avenue he stopped to look in the A&P store window.
It was just the same. A bunch of pea soup cans.
He caught up with Jill and Emily.
“You were right,” Jill told him. “That dog hasn't been out for two days.”
Emily smiled. “Beast has powerful wishes, I guess.”
“Not anymore,” Richard said.
Jill looked a little worried. “Do you think the dog is going to be outside?”
“Maybe.” Richard wondered if he'd ever see the ruler again. He scooped up some snow. He threw it at a tree.
“Yes,” he told Jill. “I think that dog will be out there.”
Jill shivered. “I guess I'm going the long way.”
“You have to be brave,” Emily said.
“That's right,” said Richard.
They star
ted down the street.
He hoped Drake was brave. Poor mean, fat Drake.
Sometimes he was a little mean to Drake too.
“There's the fence,” Jill said.
They slowed down a little.
“Do you see the dog?” Jill asked.
Richard shook his head.
“See,” said Emily. “Richard's wishes are still powerful.”
Richard looked at the fence. Maybe Emily was right. Maybe he could make wishes even though the ruler was gone.
He wished that Drake would be all right.
He wished that he wouldn't move away.
He wished that he weren't sick.
He even wished that he didn't have blisters.
Then he made a wish for Jill.
He wished that the dog would be inside the house.
“All right,” said Jill. “I'm being brave.”
They walked toward the house with the fence.
Suddenly the dog began to bark.
He jumped up against the fence.
The three of them stopped.
“Yikes,” said Emily.
They rushed back down the block.
They started for home the long way.
“I guess my power is gone,” Richard said.
Chapter 10
Today was the trip. On the way to school Richard looked for Emily and Jill.
They were nowhere in sight. Maybe they had gone on ahead.
In the hall he stopped under the painting of James K. Polk.
He opened his brown paper bag lunch.
His mother had made him a special trip lunch. Peanut butter and jelly. Two chocolate chip cookies. A banana. A small can of grape drink.
All his favorites.
Slowly he walked down the hall to Room 113.
Everyone was running around.
Wayne O'Brien was feeding the fish.
Alex was watering the plants.
Matthew was sitting on the floor. He was eating a cookie. “I couldn't wait,” he said.
Even Ms. Rooney was rushing.
She was calling people's names for attendance.
Richard sat down at his desk.
He didn't take his jacket off. They would be getting on the bus any minute.
He looked around. Jill and Emily weren't there.
He hoped they weren't absent.
He hoped the dog hadn't gotten out.
He wished he were absent.
He didn't want to find out what had happened to Drake Evans. It was all his fault.
He leaned forward. “Matthew?” he asked.
Matthew wiped some crumbs off his mouth. “That was the best,” he said.
“What about Drake Evans?” Richard asked.
“Did anyone see Emily this morning?” asked Ms. Rooney. “Or Jill?”
Richard shook his head. He thought about the dog.
“Look out the window,” Ms. Rooney told Dawn.
Richard tapped Matthew on the back. “Did you give Drake his homework?”
Matthew shook his head. “No. I gave it to his mother.”
Just then Emily and Jill rushed into the room.
“I was getting worried,” said Ms. Rooney a little crossly. “Where were you?”
Emily took a deep breath. “There's a big dog …”
“I knew it,” Richard said.
Mrs. Gates popped her head in the door. “The bus is here,” she said. “Let's go.”
Richard stood up. He could see his old class walking past behind Mrs. Gates.
He didn't see Drake Evans, though.
“The dog was barking and jumping,” Jill said.
Maybe something had happened to Drake.
Something terrible.
“The dog didn't bite you, did he?” asked Ms. Rooney.
Jill shook her head. “She wanted to play. That's what the man who owned her said.”
“We'd better line up,” said Ms. Rooney.
Everyone went to the side of the room.
Jill was still talking. “That dog is going to have puppies,” she said. “And the man is going to give me one.”
“Lucky,” said Matthew.
“Yes,” said Jill. “I'm going to name it Tyran-nosaurus.”
The class went into the hall.
They passed the picture of James K. Polk.
“Why were you late?” Richard asked.
Emily grinned. “The dog's name is Mamie.”
“Funny name for a dog,” Richard said.
“Funny name for Mrs. Paris,” Matthew said. “It starts with M.”
Emily shook her head. “No good. We stopped to ask her.”
“That's why we were late, jill said.
Ms. Rooney opened the big brown door.
The class started down the path.
Richard went to the end of the line.
He hid behind the door. Maybe he could miss the bus.
Matthew looked back. “Hurry up, Beast,” he yelled.
Ms. Rooney looked back too.
“Richard Best,” she said. “This is no time to dillydally.”
Richard hurried down the front path.
“Hurry,” Matthew said again. “Don't you want to be seat partners with me?”
Ahead of them Emily climbed up the big steps of the bus. “Yikes,” she yelled. “Where's my Christmas purse? The red one with the green zipper?”
Emily dashed back toward the big brown doors.
Alex climbed on the bus. Then Jill. Then Matthew. Then it was Richard's turn.
Andrew Bock from his old class yelled, “Hey, it's Beast. Hi.”
“Hi,” Richard mumbled. Then he looked up.
Drake Evans was sitting in the middle of the bus.
“Am I glad to see you,” Richard said.
Drake looked surprised. “Hi,” he said.
“Were you very sick?” Richard asked.
Drake shook his head. “No. I had an upset stomach.”
“Move along,” Ms. Rooney said.
Richard walked past Drake. He took a seat next to Matthew. He leaned forward. “Did you have blisters?”
“Are you crazy?” Drake asked.
“Are you going to move away?” Richard asked.
“You're crazy,” Drake said. “I knew it.”
Richard sat back. “I don't think that ruler thing worked,” he told Matthew.
Emily raced back onto the bus. She sat down behind Richard, next to Dawn. “Whew,” she said. “I thought my Christmas purse was lost. It was on the floor, though.”
“Everything gets lost around here,” Dawn said. “My ruler was lost for a week. Sometimes Jim, the custodian, puts things in the wrong desks.”
Richard looked at Matthew. Then he knelt up on the seat. “You're not D.T.,” he told Dawn. “You're D.B.”
“D.T.,” Dawn said. “Dawn Tiffanie.”
Richard looked out the window.
He thought about a dinosaur. The dinosaur didn't have a ruler in his paw anymore.
It was a good thing, Richard thought.
He was glad his wishes didn't come true.
The bus began to move. It turned the corner.
It passed the A&P store.
In the window were stacks of candy bars.
The sign said:
MINNIE'S MINT BARS
Minnie, thought Richard. M. Maybe Mrs. Paris's name was Minnie.
In front of him Drake turned around. He made a beast face at Richard.
Richard grinned. “Ruff-a-roo,” he said.
Text copyright © 1985 by Patricia Reilly Giff Illustrations copyright © 1985 by Blanche Sims
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