The story so far ... After spotting a car in the ditch based on a message from a clothesline, Ben stops his bike to investigate the accident. He discovers an older girl, not injured but very upset about her stalled car. Ben gets his neighbor to pull her out with his tractor while he stays at the house and watches his little daughter Rosie. When Ben finally gets home, he is still focused on the clothesline message and debates whether it was just a coincidence or a real message. He decides he must return to the clothesline and see if there is another message.
Nate and I biked again on Thursday. It had rained the night before and was much cooler. We rode in silence for a while. "Wanna race?" he looked back at me with a grin on his face. We'd been riding about ten minutes.
"No. I just want to keep a steady pace. Besides, your bike is much faster."
"Okay. Suit yourself. Ready for our last game tonight? Jax told me they're gonna kill us." Jax was Nate's cousin and lived in the neighboring town. "Besides, they're undefeated. We don't stand a chance."
"You never know. We've been doing a lot better. I mean, we won our last two."
Just then, we got to the fork in the road. "Let's go down this side road again." I did not say anything about wanting to see the clothesline.
As we got close to the farm, I noticed again the horses in the field munching away on the grass. One was a deep brown and the other had white patches. As we passed, they looked up at us without moving. But as we got closer, they bolted across the field. They ran so smoothly.
"Wish we could ride those horses, Ben. Do you think they'd mind if we just hopped on and took a spin?" Nate smiled over at me.
As we rode on past the house, I saw that once again, the clothesline was full of shirts and jeans. "Somebody's dryer is still broken," Nate laughed.
`I slowed down to study the clothesline. Tuesday when I told Nate about the girl in the ditch, I didn't mention the clothesline message. I knew he'd laugh at me and say I was nuts.
"Let's see what else we can figure out about these people." I said to Nate. He pulled up next to me and put down both feet.
"More Franklin Construction shirts. Lots of jeans, socks, boxers. No women's clothes this time. Not much new."
"There's one that says Alaska and has a snowy mountain. Do you suppose they took a trip up there? Or used to live there?"
"That one" Nate pointed, "says Capital Insurance. The slogan says think of us first. The slogans are mostly just an advertising gimmick."
The only words that popped out at me were think first. I was trying to see other words when Nate zoomed past me. "Come on, slug. Let's put the pedal to the metal and get to my house. Mom said she'd make up pancakes when we got back."
I shifted gears and pedaled hard. But in my head, I kept repeating, think first.
Parker, our worst player, came to the game after missing the last three. I was secretly relieved when he hadn't showed up, especially since we won two. Coach put him at second base, my usual starting position. Now that really made me mad, but I knew better than to spout off. I grumbled, walking out to right field, the worst spot.
Baxter's Bowl was off to a good start, scoring twice in the second inning. Parker missed a throw to second, and the kid rounded third and scored. Their star homered in the third. They led 6 to 1. I figured Coach would put me back at second. I'm not great, but I don't miss catches like Parker. Not to mention, he can't hit a thing.
Fourth inning, Parker was still at second. I was getting so mad; it was hard to hold it in. He should've been our permanent benchwarmer.
I knew Coach always wanted to let everyone play. But it wasn't easy for me, stuck in right field. Parker didn't even act like he wanted to play. Maybe his dad made him. I wouldn't understand about that because my dad never even came around.
Parker struck out in the 4th. Finally in the 5th, with us trailing by three, Coach pulled Parker and put me at second. "About time." I said loud enough for everyone to hear, looking right at Parker. He put his head down and walked slowly to the bench, dropping his glove along the way.
Evan hit a double and Dexter brought him home. "This is how it should be." I said slapping Dexter's hand as he touched down on home plate. Nate hit a homerun, and we won the game. We all cheered to end the season with a win, especially against an undefeated team.
"Ben," Coach called to me just as I was about to take off on my bike. "Come here." I was surprised he'd called me back.
"What's up?" I asked, still feeling good from our win.
His face was very serious. "Listen, your remark to Parker was uncalled for."
"What remark?" I looked away from him knowing what he was talking about.
"When I put you in, and you shouted, "About time'."
"But he was losing the game for us..."
"Don't interrupt." Coach looked at me angrily. "It is not for you to decide who plays what. Parker deserves the same chance all of you get. How do you think he felt when you made your comment? This team is not just about winning, but how we treat each other." He gathered the last of the bats and put them in the bag. "Besides, his grandma and grandpa were here all the way from Kansas. You need to THINK FIRST before you speak."
I walked back to my bike, stung by Coach's words, even though I knew he was right. My comment was meant to hurt. I never stopped to think how Parker would feel, and with his grandparents there too.
I rolled my bike out of the stand and hopped on. It felt good to ride in the cool evening air. But the coach's words came back again and again, "think first... think first. Suddenly I stopped my bike. Those were the very same words I saw on the clothesline. Was it another message? Or just my imagination?
Nate and I biked again on Thursday. It had rained the night before and was much cooler. We rode in silence for a while. "Wanna race?" he looked back at me with a grin on his face. We'd been riding about ten minutes.
"No. I just want to keep a steady pace. Besides, your bike is much faster."
"Okay. Suit yourself. Ready for our last game tonight? Jax told me they're gonna kill us." Jax was Nate's cousin and lived in the neighboring town. "Besides, they're undefeated. We don't stand a chance."
"You never know. We've been doing a lot better. I mean, we won our last two."
Just then, we got to the fork in the road. "Let's go down this side road again." I did not say anything about wanting to see the clothesline.
As we got close to the farm, I noticed again the horses in the field munching away on the grass. One was a deep brown and the other had white patches. As we passed, they looked up at us without moving. But as we got closer, they bolted across the field. They ran so smoothly.
"Wish we could ride those horses, Ben. Do you think they'd mind if we just hopped on and took a spin?" Nate smiled over at me.
As we rode on past the house, I saw that once again, the clothesline was full of shirts and jeans. "Somebody's dryer is still broken," Nate laughed.
`I slowed down to study the clothesline. Tuesday when I told Nate about the girl in the ditch, I didn't mention the clothesline message. I knew he'd laugh at me and say I was nuts.
"Let's see what else we can figure out about these people." I said to Nate. He pulled up next to me and put down both feet.
"More Franklin Construction shirts. Lots of jeans, socks, boxers. No women's clothes this time. Not much new."
"There's one that says Alaska and has a snowy mountain. Do you suppose they took a trip up there? Or used to live there?"
"That one" Nate pointed, "says Capital Insurance. The slogan says think of us first. The slogans are mostly just an advertising gimmick."
The only words that popped out at me were think first. I was trying to see other words when Nate zoomed past me. "Come on, slug. Let's put the pedal to the metal and get to my house. Mom said she'd make up pancakes when we got back."
I shifted gears and pedaled hard. But in my head, I kept repeating, think first.
Parker, our worst player, came to the game after missing the last three. I was secretly relieved when he hadn't showed up, especially since we won two. Coach put him at second base, my usual starting position. Now that really made me mad, but I knew better than to spout off. I grumbled, walking out to right field, the worst spot.
Baxter's Bowl was off to a good start, scoring twice in the second inning. Parker missed a throw to second, and the kid rounded third and scored. Their star homered in the third. They led 6 to 1. I figured Coach would put me back at second. I'm not great, but I don't miss catches like Parker. Not to mention, he can't hit a thing.
Fourth inning, Parker was still at second. I was getting so mad; it was hard to hold it in. He should've been our permanent benchwarmer.
I knew Coach always wanted to let everyone play. But it wasn't easy for me, stuck in right field. Parker didn't even act like he wanted to play. Maybe his dad made him. I wouldn't understand about that because my dad never even came around.
Parker struck out in the 4th. Finally in the 5th, with us trailing by three, Coach pulled Parker and put me at second. "About time." I said loud enough for everyone to hear, looking right at Parker. He put his head down and walked slowly to the bench, dropping his glove along the way.
Evan hit a double and Dexter brought him home. "This is how it should be." I said slapping Dexter's hand as he touched down on home plate. Nate hit a homerun, and we won the game. We all cheered to end the season with a win, especially against an undefeated team.
"Ben," Coach called to me just as I was about to take off on my bike. "Come here." I was surprised he'd called me back.
"What's up?" I asked, still feeling good from our win.
His face was very serious. "Listen, your remark to Parker was uncalled for."
"What remark?" I looked away from him knowing what he was talking about.
"When I put you in, and you shouted, "About time'."
"But he was losing the game for us..."
"Don't interrupt." Coach looked at me angrily. "It is not for you to decide who plays what. Parker deserves the same chance all of you get. How do you think he felt when you made your comment? This team is not just about winning, but how we treat each other." He gathered the last of the bats and put them in the bag. "Besides, his grandma and grandpa were here all the way from Kansas. You need to THINK FIRST before you speak."
I walked back to my bike, stung by Coach's words, even though I knew he was right. My comment was meant to hurt. I never stopped to think how Parker would feel, and with his grandparents there too.
I rolled my bike out of the stand and hopped on. It felt good to ride in the cool evening air. But the coach's words came back again and again, "think first... think first. Suddenly I stopped my bike. Those were the very same words I saw on the clothesline. Was it another message? Or just my imagination?
