by Lan Dang
Chapter 5: The News Article
Eric woke up early in the morning before his alarm clock had time to ring. He got dressed in the dark, wearing his favorite pair of jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt. He hummed happily to himself as he went into the bathroom to wash his face, brush his teeth, and comb his hair. His mom’s bedroom was still closed and he knew she was still asleep. Keeping the noise to a minimum, he stopped his humming and practically skipped down the stairs and went into the kitchen to make himself a ham and cheese sandwich. He devoured it and picked up his backpack and quietly closed the door.
After retrieving his bicycle from the garage, he pedaled as fast as he could to school. The weather felt nice and he could feel the cool air against his skin and his dark hair fluttered softly against the wind. He was glad he had worn a long-sleeved shirt for it felt a bit chilly today. It was still dark, the sun was not up yet, and clouds appeared ominously in the sky. He didn’t care though; he wouldn’t let something like the weather get him down today. He was too excited and he had more important things on his mind.
When he got to school, he saw his soccer buddies lounging around the grass in front of the gate. Eric locked his bicycle and sauntered over to meet them. They saw him and waved and Eric waved in return. He could see that Jonathan had not arrived yet.
Porky grinned and said, “Well, if it isn’t our star soccer player.” He playfully punched Eric on the shoulder.
Eric grinned and replied, “You did good yourself.”
Just then, Jonathan arrived. He lived further away from the school and always complained about having to wake up so early just to make sure he wasn’t late for school. Eric was so happy to see him; he practically ran over to greet his friend.
“Hey, Jonathan.”
“Oh hey, Eric.” He glanced at their soccer team sitting happily in a group, laughing and talking. “I guess I’m the last one huh?”
“Last one for what?”
“Well, everyone looks like they got here earlier than me. I feel so slow in comparison.”
“It’s okay to arrive later than everyone else. That’s just because you live three blocks further than all of us.”
“That’s true.”
“Anyways, guess what? I found the answer to what we were getting at yesterday.”
Jonathan looked at him in a bewildered fashion.
“The answer to what?”
Eric rolled his eyes. His voice sounded very eager and excited which aroused Jonathan’s interest but clearly not his memory.
“Remember yesterday? We couldn’t find what the burglars were looking for but it was right under my nose the whole time. Well, actually right under my shirt to be exact.”
Jonathan’s eyes lit up in comprehension.
“Oh yeah. I remember now. So what is it?”
“This.”
Eric removed his necklace for Jonathan to examine. Jonathan took awhile to look at the necklace thoroughly. He examined the pendant for a long time and finally looked up to see his friend’s excited expression.
“This is a really ancient necklace. I mean it must be priceless. I haven’t seen anything like this before, not that I’m a jewelry expert or anything. It looks like an ancient relic to me.”
“I agree. I went to a whole bunch of jewelry shops before and all the clerks admit that they’ve never seen anything like it before. It’s certainly one of a kind.”
Jonathan’s eyebrows furrowed as a thought came to him.
He slowly said, “This necklace looks like it is definitely worth a lot but I don’t think this is an ordinary burglary. They probably didn’t want to sell this necklace, they probably wanted it for something….but what?”
There was a slight pause as he continued. “What if this has some sort of power to it? You know like an amulet or a charm. Maybe that’s what the burglars are after.”
“So you are saying that it has more than just monetary value?”
“I would imagine so. I mean what ordinary burglar goes through the trouble of making sure that you don’t see them when they’re in your room searching for it? Okay, maybe they don’t want to be caught but then why go through all that trouble for one simple necklace? Your mom must have a ton of more valuable jewelry lying around in her room but they decided to go after this instead. And not to mention, they opened up a new store right in front of the school that you attend and they sell video games which every boy would love to play. It is like they wanted to get to know you but not directly. Now, why go through such an elaborate plan?”
Eric contemplated over this interesting thought.
He said, “You do have a point there. It does seem a bit too elaborate for any ordinary burglary.”
Just then, the two turned their heads as the bell sounded, alarming the students to head to their classes. They looked at each other and sighed. It was going to be a long day. They headed to school reluctantly. Both had the same classes except for their electives. Jonathan had band while Eric opted for drama instead.
The morning dragged on and Eric felt himself growing more impatient by the minute. There was so much he wanted to talk to Jonathan about. He didn’t feel alone anymore. It felt like such a great relief to be able to tell his best friend everything…well except for Janet and the cat which Eric felt guilty about hiding. But he wasn’t exactly sure about what he saw anymore that night. His eyes may have been deceiving him but he was sure he never saw that cat in the neighborhood before or since then either. Jonathan would think he was losing his mind if he revealed that one minor detail so in his best interest, Eric decided the truth was worth keeping to himself instead.
Finally, the bell rang to signal that lunch time had finally arrived. Eric was starving and excited as well. Both he and Jonathan walked towards the lunch line which was already becoming quite long.
Suddenly, someone from behind him said, “Well, if it isn’t the coach’s pet.”
Eric turned around and saw Matthew Schmidt behind him. Matthew was the same age as him, except he was taller and muscular. He had tried out for soccer but the coach had dismissed him because he kept missing their practice sessions. Matthew blamed Eric for his dismissal and his dark brown eyes glared down threateningly at his nemesis.
“Oh, hi Matthew. How’s it going?” Eric gulped and felt his knees start to shake.
Matthew grinned. “Just fine and yourself?”
Eric decided to play it cool. He was sure Matthew, although not the brightest person, knew better than to pick a fight on school ground.
“Not too bad.”
Matthew glanced at Jonathan briefly and asked, “So you haven’t read the school newspaper yet, have you?”
Eric shook his head and politely said, “No, I haven’t. Anything good?”
Matthew flashed a bright smile and Eric saw several missing teeth. He felt his confidence fade and wished the line would move along. He was beginning to lose his appetite and Jonathan, standing next to him, sensed his fear and whispered for him to keep it cool.
“Yeah, as a matter of fact. I really liked the article that was about you, the star soccer captain. You should read it.” His voice was dripping with sarcasm and his eyes seemed to pierce right through Eric with a hatred that was both intense and terrifying.
“I particularly like the part where you sucked up to the coach. I bet that’s why he gave you the position of captain. Normal people, like myself, actually have to earn that position which clearly you don’t have too because you’re the coach’s pet. You would have lost to me if everything was fair.”
He took a step closer and mocked, “Well coach says, ‘Life’s like soccer. You never know what you’re gonna get.’ ”
Eric knew it was an impersonation of Forrest Gump and it was meant to get a rise out of him but he knew better than to fall into the trap.
Matthew sneered menacingly at both Eric and Jonathan. Heads turned with
interest as the other students overheard their conversation and were curious if these were indeed the beginnings of a fight.
Luckily, Eric felt the lunch line move and both he and Jonathan ordered hamburgers, French fries, and drinks. Matthew decided to drop the conversation as he looked at the sparse menu and decided his own order. As soon as they received their food, both of them hurried away to an empty table.
“Whew! That was a close call. I really thought he was going to get nasty on me.”
“Yeah, he really needs to learn to let his grudge go. I mean it wasn’t your fault he was kicked off the team. He brought it upon himself and if he really wants to blame someone, blame the coach. He was the one who actually kicked him off, you just voiced the complaints of the rest of his team.”
Eric sighed. “None of it matters now. Soccer season is over.”
Jonathan knew it was his cue to change the subject. “So what are you going to do about your necklace?”
“What should I do? Do you think I should just hand it over to them now that I know that’s what they want?”
“Well, it would be safer. You don’t want them to actually go through with their plan to kidnap you, right?”
“Yeah, my mom would have a heart attack. She couldn’t risk losing me too.”
Jonathan chewed on one of the French fries thoughtfully and waved it at Eric. “You know what? I think before you give it to them, you should ask Janet what she knows first of all. I mean she obviously knows more about this than you do. Maybe she knows a way out that is safe for you.”
Eric thought about his suggestion. “You are right. I should think this over. I shouldn’t be too hasty about it.”
Jonathan bit his lip and asked, “Do you think Janet is in on their elaborate plan? You know, like they have her and her father pretending to be the good guys rescuing you, so they can gain your trust.”
Eric shook his head, vehemently. “No, Janet isn’t like that. I know her. She isn’t that type of person. I mean she couldn’t even look me in the eye because she knew her dad was lying to me. Besides, she just happened to be at the right place and the right time when it happened. I was lucky she was there. I should be grateful, not insinuate she is part of that burglary.”
“Hey, it was just a suggestion, although you do know Janet more than I do. But whatever the case is, say she doesn’t know who the burglars are and she is completely innocent as you claim, maybe you should still talk to her. It wouldn’t hurt.”
Eric took a bite of his hamburger and chewed thoughtfully before swallowing. “That’s true. Janet may be the key to this mystery after all.”
The rest of the day was uneventful and Eric couldn’t wait to talk to Janet. His curiosity was getting the better of him. He waited outside the school gates and his heart leapt when he saw her coming out with a stack of the school newspapers. She was carrying such a heavy load that Eric ran up to her and caught some of the papers before they fell.
“Oh thanks.” She looked up and recognized Eric.
“Hey, Eric. I didn’t know it was you.”
“Hey, Janet. Mind if we go home together today? You look like you need help carrying all of this.” He pointed to her huge pile of papers.
“No, I don’t mind at all. Actually, that would be a big help. Thanks again.”
Eric hoped this rare act of kindness wouldn’t arouse her suspicion. It was the first time he had ever offered help to her or even suggested that they go home together since they were practically next door neighbors. Had their roles been reversed, he would have thought it odd that in all the years they had attended school together, that this was the first time they were talking publicly together at school. But Janet was not that type of person. It dawned on Eric that she had character and never judged anyone, not the way he did.
The two divided up the papers evenly and slowly started to ride their bicycles home. When they were a safe distance from the noisy students and traffic that incurred before and after school, Eric decided that it was now or never. He had to get information from Janet.
“So Janet, I really liked that article you wrote. It highlighted the main points of our interview.”
Eric bit his lip. He hated to lie. He never had a chance to read it and he hoped she wouldn’t ask any specific questions about it but he had to start the conversation. There was no better way than to boost her already oversized ego.
“Oh really? That’s good. I mean an article is only as good as the source and you are a good source. You’re the very reason that the article’s so good. You should be getting the credit, not me.”
“Oh no, you wrote the article. You’re a good journalist, you deserve the credit.”
She laughed. “You are so modest. But don’t worry, we both get credit because both of our names are in that article.”
He cleared his throat. “So as a source, you aren’t supposed to lie, right? You should tell only the truth.”
She looked at him, puzzled. “That’s an odd question, but you are right. The source should be honest or the article becomes a lie.”
“So if I had a source, do you think I should confront this source and ask them for the honest truth?”
She smiled and said, “Well, I would but I’m rather different from you, Eric. I was born a natural journalist with an inquisitive mind and rather talented writing skills. I want to inform people and I want to make a difference in people’s lives, a little bit of self-advertisement here.”
Her smile widened revealing a row of straight, white teeth. Eric was taken aback. He had never noticed it before but Janet had a really attractive smile and charm about her.
“So do I. That’s why I have to ask you to tell me the truth.”
She stopped pedaling and Eric stopped as well.
“What are you talking about?”
“Janet, I heard what you and your dad were saying the morning after the burglary. I need to know the truth. My life may very well depend on it.” He looked at her with his eyes, pleading for her to tell him what she knew.
She stared at him in shock for a moment but quickly regained her composure. She looked him in the eye and asked, “So what exactly did you hear? That conversation between I and my dad was supposed to be private. You weren’t supposed to eavesdrop. That’s rude, you know.”
Eric nodded his head. “I think the rule on manners can be broken if lives are at stake. Besides, I didn’t even hear much. I only heard about how your dad was preventing you from telling me the truth and that you made a promise not to reveal my true identity and that you and your dad were here to protect me.”
He looked inquisitively at Janet feeling that there was some sort of invisible wall dividing them. He could tell that she was struggling internally, debating whether the advantage of telling him the truth would outweigh any possible disadvantages.
Instead, she shook her head.
“I knew it was too good to be true. It was strange that today, in front of the entire school, you were willing to come up to me to help me out. Normally, you would never have bothered to do anything of that sort. But I wanted to believe that maybe you just wanted to do something nice for a change. Boy, was I clearly wrong.”
Before he could open his mouth to defend himself, she continued.
“I mean I know I am not at all like Kathy Whittaker. I’m not the type of girl who could be a magnet for guys or make other girls turn green upon envy but I don’t think I deserve this kind of treatment. I just thought after being neighbors for so long, that we could possibly be friends. But I guess I was wrong.”
Janet started to bite her lips and her voice cracked as she said, “Do you honestly think I would just tell you everything just because you helped me carry some papers and offered to ride home together? You must think I am the most gullible person in this world.”
Tears filled her eyes and she was shaking with anger and sad
ness. Though she tried to wipe her tears before they started to roll down her flushed cheeks, one tear managed to escape as it slid down her face. Eric felt guilty and he didn’t know how to comfort her. He knew it was a mistake to have asked so bluntly and he should have listened to Jonathan before acting alone.
Janet was clearly embarrassed to be caught crying in front of him. She sniffled and quickly picked up her papers and grabbed her bicycle off the ground and sped down the street.
Eric stared at her, feeling awful inside.
He shook his head and said, “I would never be able to understand girls no matter how hard I try. They are way too complicated.”
He was starting to feel grateful that he had no sisters but he wouldn’t mind having a brother, especially an older brother to guide him in matters like this.
As he gathered the other half of the papers and picked up his own bicycle, he started to think about what Janet had told him. She was right. His act of kindness was a façade to make her want to reveal the truth to him. He wasn’t doing it because he genuinely wanted to help her. That would have been different and the result may have turned out a lot better than this. He was certain now that making Janet want to talk would be a lot more difficult than he thought. It was okay considering he had the way home to mull about his dilemma.
