R. Stine - Red Rain

Maybe he was still angry about Daniel trying to take his room from him. Maybe he just didn’t want new bruvvers.

He’ll get over it, Samuel thought, watching Daniel and Ira ignore each other. Daniel will win him over-one way or the other. He’ll be true blue, that boyo.

And Derek? Samuel looked for him, but Derek had a doctor appointment and didn’t come to school till lunchtime.

Samuel and Daniel ran into him on their way out of the lunchroom. Derek wore baggy cargo jeans and a red-and-white New York Rangers sweatshirt. His eyes went wide, and his mouth opened in surprise when he recognized them.

“How’d you get into this school?” He managed to find his usual bluster. “This used to be a good school.”

“It’s our first day,” Samuel said. “We’re in your class.”

Derek bumped Samuel’s shoulder with a pudgy hand. “You got any money? Mom forgot to give me my lunch money.”

“We don’t have any,” Samuel replied. “We already had our lunch.”

“Let’s see,” Derek said. He grabbed Samuel by the pants, spun him around with surprising strength, and began to dig into his pockets.

Samuel squirmed. “Boyo, stop!”

Daniel moved quickly. He stepped up behind Derek and, with a powerful tug, hoisted Derek’s heavy backpack off his shoulders.

Derek let go of Samuel and spun around furiously. “Hey, jerk! You almost ripped my arms off.”

“Sorry, boyo.” Daniel held the backpack above his head. “You want it? Jump for it.”

Derek uttered a low growl. He narrowed his bulldog eyes and glared at Daniel. “ You jump for it.” He lowered his shoulder and bulled into Daniel, sending him crashing against a metal locker.

Daniel giggled. Holding the backpack high, he quickly regained his balance.

Derek rushed at Daniel, both hands outstretched. He grabbed for the backpack-just as Daniel let go of it. Derek couldn’t stop his momentum and slammed headfirst into the wall.

The collision didn’t faze him. His big belly heaving up and down beneath the Rangers sweatshirt, he grabbed the backpack off the floor and grinned in triumph. Slowly, he slid it onto his back. “You dudes should be careful. I can mess you up totally.”

Samuel felt a tremor of fear. Please, Daniel. Don’t be Daniel. Let it ride.

Daniel raised both hands as if in surrender. “Truce?”

Samuel took a step back.

“Okay, truce.” Derek’s reply after thinking about it for a while. “You’re both new here, so you don’t know what’s up. I’ll give you a break today.”

“Truce,” Daniel repeated. He stuck his hand out for Derek to shake.

Weird, thought Samuel. What’s up with the handshake routine?

“Truce,” Derek said. He stomped away without shaking hands.

The bell clanged above their heads. Lunchtime was over.

Samuel turned to find Ira, Ethan, and several other kids watching the whole confrontation. “What was that about?” Ira asked Daniel.

Daniel’s smile made his dimples appear to grow deeper. “You’ll see, boyo. You’ll see.”

Samuel wasn’t in on his brother’s secret, either. But all was revealed just before the final bell that afternoon. Miss Montgomery dismissed the class. And as the kids all gathered their books, stuffed their backpacks, and scurried from the room, Mrs. Maloney came charging into the classroom.

Her gray eyes gazed around the room and came to a stop on Derek, who was standing in the front. Arguing with a short, red-haired girl. “Derek, could I see you for a moment?” she called.

The girl hurried away. Derek eyed the principal warily as she approached. The classroom was nearly emptied. Samuel and Daniel watched from the doorway.

“Yes, Mrs. Maloney?” Derek suddenly being very polite.

She frowned at him. Rubbed her short salt-and-pepper hair. “Derek, I received a disturbing note this afternoon. About you.”

His mouth dropped open. “Huh? Me? Who sent it?”

Miss Montgomery stood up behind her desk and looked on.

Mrs. Maloney’s eyes locked on Derek, studying him. “It wasn’t signed. But it said I would find something interesting in your backpack.”

Samuel glanced at his twin. He recognized the eagerness on Daniel’s face. The anticipation. He’d seen it before.

Derek’s blue backpack was on his desk. He stared hard at it as if it would reveal some secret.

“Is there something interesting in your backpack, Derek?” Mrs. Maloney asked softly, almost in a whisper.

Derek shook his head. “No way. Just my stuff.”

“Nothing in there I should know about?”

“No. No way. Unless you mean a Snickers bar and some Starburst?”

Mrs. Maloney let out a long whoosh of air. “I’m sure you’re telling the truth. But why would someone send me that note?”

Derek shrugged.

“Why don’t we just empty out the backpack and settle the whole thing.” Mrs. Maloney kept her voice low and friendly.

“No problem.” Derek lifted the pack and started to unzip it. “I don’t get it. I totally don’t.”

Holding the pack by the sides, he upended it and shook it hard, spilling the contents onto the desk. Books. Folders. A pencil box. An iPod. A cell phone. A Snickers bar.

Samuel squinted across the room, studying the contents. As soon as he saw the silvery watch slide onto the cover of a textbook, he understood.

Mrs. Maloney raised her hands to her cheeks. “Well, my faith. That is interesting,” she said softly. She picked up the watch and slid the shiny band through her fingers. “Derek? How did my watch get into your backpack?”

Derek’s face had gone pale. His mouth was working up and down, but he didn’t make a sound. He shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“Do you want to think about it?” Mrs. Maloney remained calm. No sign of anger or even surprise.

“I. . never saw it. Really.” Derek’s eyes down, shoulders slumped. Looking guilty as hell. “I don’t know how it got there. Really.”

“But it did tumble out from the bottom of your backpack, right?”

“Yes. But-”

“Derek, why don’t you gather up your belongings here and follow me to my office for a talk. Do we need to call your mother? What do you think?”

She raised her eyes to the door and saw Samuel and Daniel standing, watching the scene intently. “What are you two lads lingering there for? This is no business of yours. Go on now. Don’t miss the bus on your first day.”

“Okay. Bye,” Samuel said, turning to leave.

“See you tomorrow,” Daniel said, then quickly added, “Good luck, Derek.”

“We have work to do, Sammy.” Daniel pressed his forehead against the window glass as the school bus bounced along Noyac Road, the tall trees along the side making the shadows dance in his eyes.

Samuel shifted the blue canvas backpack in his lap. He knew how impatient Daniel could be. He hoped maybe he would take his time, get to know the terrain, enjoy their new family, their new home at least a few weeks before setting things in motion.

“You gave that lug Derek a good lesson, Daniel.”

Daniel tapped Samuel’s knee with his fist. “Derek is dead in the pasture. The flies are already circling him.”

Samuel laughed. But he could see the growing intensity on his twin’s face.

“Work to do, Sammy.”

“What’s your hurry, Daniel? Haven’t we got it made here?”

“We’ve waited a long time,” Daniel murmured, gazing at a deer chewing tall weeds by the roadside. “A long time, boyo.”

“But look at us now. We’re in Heaven.”

Daniel turned away from the window. He shook his head. “Sammy, it may be heaven but there’s a devil on our cloud.”