It was Wyatt and he was wearing overalls.
‘No way,’ I said to myself. Did Wyatt really just save the day? Had he seriously turned over a new leaf? Like, for real?
Wyatt acted like it wasn’t a big deal. ‘That was crazy, huh? Did you ever get that box of erasers to the front office like I asked you to?’
I shook my head in disbelief. Even though Wyatt saved us, it didn’t change the fact that members of his red ninja clan were trying to hurt us.
‘Those were your ninjas!’ I said, ignoring his question.
Wyatt nodded, setting his hands on his hips like he was disappointed. ‘I know, I know. What a bunch of jerks, right?’
I stared at Wyatt for a moment, my mind completely blown. ‘Are you kidding me?’
‘What?’ Wyatt said, annoyed.
‘Those guys are on your team!’
Scratching the back of his head, Wyatt said, ‘Too bad they were wearing their masks or else we’d know who it was.’
‘It was Jake!’ Naomi said. ‘Jake didn’t have his mask on!’
‘Jake?’ Wyatt asked, looking a little more than confused as he walked across the room. ‘Man, I’ve had problems with that kid since … well, since he joined my clan.’
Biting my lip, I stared toward the direction Jake and his wolf pack ran off in.
‘Wait,’ Wyatt said suddenly. ‘You don’t suppose …’
I glanced at Wyatt, waiting for him to finish.
‘You don’t think he’s the bandit, do you?’
I looked back at the exit and saw my string leading out the door. ‘No. He came in after we followed the bandit back here.’
‘You …’ Wyatt said softly. ‘Followed the bandit back here? Did you see the bandit?’
Naomi stepped forwards. ‘For all we know, the bandit is you. The gum was taken out the exit door, and the string was also cut out there! And then who happens to use that door to save us?’
Wyatt put his hands up. ‘I can tell you right now that I’m not the bandit. Remember? I was sitting with Chase the first day the bandit even struck!’
I looked at Naomi, nodding. She folded her arms and scowled at the floor.
‘But,’ Wyatt continued, ‘Jake just happened to be back here after you lost the bandit? Doesn’t that sound too coincidental? I mean, look around! Why would he hang out in the kitchen?’
‘I don’t know,’ Naomi said. ‘Why are you hanging out in the kitchen? And wearing those ridiculous overalls?’
Wyatt pulled the denim straps on his shoulders proudly. ‘I’m volunteering my time back here. I was out taking the rubbish, which is why I was outside.’
‘Volunteering?’ I asked.
‘I’m the vice president now,’ Wyatt sighed. ‘I’ve got to do things like this to look good.’
I chuckled.
Naomi pressed her lips together and looked at me. ‘He’s got a point. Why would Jake and his wolf pack even be back here?’
It didn’t make sense, that’s for sure. Jake and his red ninjas had no reason to hang out in the kitchen at all, so the fact that they suddenly appeared right after we lost the bandit was something to think about.
But if the red ninjas were the ones behind the thefts, then Wyatt would have to have something to do with it too, wouldn’t it? How would the leader of the red ninjas not have a clue about what his clan was doing?
If Wyatt was in on it, then that meant he was playing me, right? But how can Wyatt be in on it if he’s the one who suggested it was Jake in the first place?
Seriously! It felt like my brain was crying! I was beginning to feel like all of this was a little too much to handle on my own. Naomi had been by my side the entire time, but even she warned me about getting involved in the first place.
Maybe my friends were right. Maybe I shouldn’t have taken on this case when I did. No one else in the school seemed to care. Maybe I shouldn’t either.
I sat at my seat in the cafeteria when the careers fair started. All around me were other students laughing and having a good time with their mentors. Even Brayden looked like he was having fun with the guy in the wolf costume.
Zoe was mixing glasses of lemonade with her mentor. Faith was looking at a laptop screen with hers. I swear, if I saw a ninja mentoring some other kid in this room, I was gonna lose it.
‘Howdy, kiddo!’ Miko said as he flopped his huge red feet towards me, each step slapping the ground like an oversized flapjack.
I smiled tightly, not even trying to make it look genuine. ‘Sup,’ I said nodding once in the clown’s general direction.
Miko sat next to me. After a moment, he spoke again, but using his normal voice. ‘So hey, there’s this kid I keep seeing around here. His left calf muscle is bigger than his right one, and I mean like, scary big. Like that was the only part of his body that he decided to work out.’
‘Oh, Brian?’ I asked.
The clown stared at me. ‘Um, if Brian has a monster hiding in his left leg then, yes, Brian. What’s his deal?’
‘He broke the right pedal off his bicycle at the beginning of the year,’ I explained. ‘He keeps saying he’s gonna replace it, but I think he likes the attention. Plus he keeps going around telling everyone he’s super ripped, even if it’s only in one calf.’
‘Seriously,’ Miko said, shaking his head. ‘If he kicked me with that leg, I’d probably have to go to the hospital.’
I laughed.
Miko took notice that my guard was down. ‘Want to hear a joke?’
‘Hit me,’ I said.
‘Knock, knock,’ Miko said.
Wonderful. A classically boring knock-knock joke. ‘Who’s there?’ I asked.
‘Banana.’
‘Banana who?’
Miko snickered, covering his nose. ‘Banana you glad I didn’t say ban … wait, I messed that up. Let me start over. Knock, knock.’
It was easily the worst joke I’d ever heard, and the fact that he messed it up should’ve made it less funny, but it got me, and I laughed out loud. It was actually kinda nice to take my mind off Jake, the wolf pack and the Buchanan bandit.
Miko sighed and leaned back against the table. He pulled a can of soft drink from one of his oversized pockets and popped it open, letting it fizz over a little. It was an orange soft drink, which happened to be my favourite in the entire history of canned beverages.
‘What’s your deal?’ I said. ‘Did you lose a bet or something?’
Miko looked a little annoyed. ‘Why? Because I’m a clown?’
I nodded. ‘Yeah. Did your friends bet you wouldn’t go through with it?’
‘Actually,’ Miko said, ‘all my friends are clowns too.’
I let out a short laugh. ‘Yeah? That’s something I’d like to see,’ I said sarcastically. ‘You should get all your clown buddies to perform on Friday. That’d be totes cool.’
The clown raised his eyebrows. ‘I didn’t lose a bet. I chose this job.’
‘But why?’ I asked, sitting forward. ‘That’s what I don’t understand! Why would you choose such a lame job?’
‘Because I love doing it,’ Miko said after a pause.
‘Typical answer,’ I said.
‘If you’d quit being such a thick toenail for a second, maybe you’d see that I was telling the truth,’ Miko said.
‘You love wearing too much make-up and an outfit that looks like you’re just wearing a tent?’ I joked.
‘I love performing and I love making people laugh,’ Miko said. ‘I love see someone genuinely laugh until they cry. Making people happy, even if it’s just for a second, is the reason why I do this. But more importantly, if I didn’t love doing it, I’d be doing something else.’
I stopped to think for moment. Miko was right, and I felt bad. ‘I’m sorry,’ I said. ‘I’ve just got a lot on my plate right now.’
‘Yeah?’ Miko said. ‘What could a sixth grader possibly be stressing about?’
I looked Miko in the eye. ‘Just because I’m in sixth grade d
oesn’t mean my life is all rainbows and gumdrops. Just ’cause I go to school all day and play video games all night doesn’t mean I’m not dealing with some things.’
It was Miko who apologised this time. ‘Sorry, man,’ he said softly. ‘You’re right. Problems are problems, no matter who you are.’
I nodded. ‘Thanks,’ I said, feeling embarrassed. ‘So this clown thing …You really love doing it, huh?’
‘Sure do,’ Miko said without missing a beat.
I sighed. ‘I can see that in you, I really can. I’m actually a little jealous that I can’t make that kind of decision.’
‘What kind of decision?’ Miko asked.
‘Y’know, just to live life without caring what anyone else thinks,’ I said, gesturing to everyone in the room. ‘As a sixth grader, I feel like my entire life is sometimes controlled by what’s cool and what’s not.’
‘What you think is cool,’ Miko said, correcting me. ‘That’s where the difference is, and it’s a huge difference.’
I looked at the clown, confused. ‘What do you mean?’
Miko sat quietly for a second, observing the other students. And then he answered. ‘Be inspired by the things you love – not by the things you think you should love.’
‘Huh?’ I said.
‘Like, I remember when I was your age, I was really into comic books – superhero comics especially,’ Mike said.
I nodded. ‘Right. Me too.’
‘Well,’ Miko said, ‘I kind of got made fun of for it because I’d always have a stack of comics in my backpack. While other dudes were writing notes to girls, I had my face buried in the latest issue of my favourite comic.’
I kept nodding. ‘What’s that got to do with—’
‘Can I finish?’ Miko asked, a little annoyed.
‘Sorry.’
‘After being made fun of for a while, I took a little break from comics. Nobody was ever really mean, but they still said things, y’know? Jokes about when I’d grow up and get a girlfriend or something.’
I totally understood. ‘Even a tiny comment can ruin my day.’
‘Exactly!’ Miko said. ‘All that happened was that someone shook their head at me and called me immature. That’s all they said, but that was it for me. I stopped reading comics for years because of that.’
I sat forward, resting my elbows on my knees. ‘Man …’
‘I know, right?’ Miko said. ‘It took a few years before I realised that I really missed reading comics. Like, a lot.’
‘That’s lame though,’ I said. ‘You shouldn’t have stopped reading them in the first place if you loved them so much! Who cares what other people think? Comic books are harmless, and if they bring a little bit of joy to you, then read ’em! But that’s not even talking about just comics! Like, you shouldn’t be ashamed about anything you love, especially if … oh … I get it.’
Miko pointed at me and smiled. ‘Bingo.’
‘Whoa,’ I whispered. ‘You just blew my mind.’
Miko chuckled.
‘I just wish it were that easy,’ I added, watching the kids in the cafeteria.
Miko sighed. ‘It never is.’
I met Zoe outside the side doors of the school. Since we live pretty close to each other, her dad gives me a ride home too. She was sitting at a picnic table under the shade of a giant tree.
‘Whatcha doing?’ I asked, setting my book bag on the table.
‘Texting,’ Zoe replied. ‘Faith is coming over later tonight for dinner. Oh! Ask your parents if you can come too! It’ll be fun!’
Zoe was my cousin. Every Sunday our families get together for brunch, usually taking turns to host each week. Every now and then, we all hang out on a weeknight too, so I’m sure my parents would let me go to Zoe’s for dinner.
‘I’ll ask,’ I said, staring at the table, watching the shadows of leaves as they trembled in the breeze.
Zoe set her phone down and folded her hands. She wanted me to know I had her full attention. ‘What’s the matter?’
I didn’t say anything.
‘It’s this thing with Wyatt, isn’t it?’
Again, I didn’t say anything.
‘Look at how you’re acting,’ Zoe said. ‘It’s clearly affecting you.’
‘It’s not just Wyatt,’ I said finally. ‘It’s also the gum bandit. It’s Jake and his wolf pack. It’s all the homework I haven’t done yet. It’s Miko and his life lessons. It’s whatever Sebastian is planning with Wyatt. It’s Faith. It’s Naomi. It’s just … it’s everything at the same time right now. All of it. The whole world seems to be resting on my shoulders.’
‘I think that maybe you’re taking on too much this time,’ Zoe said. ‘I mean, I understand that you feel like you need to do something about the bandit, but really, I think it’s Wyatt that’s dragging you down the most out of all that stuff.’
‘I know,’ I admitted.
‘It’s not easy hanging out with people like that,’ Zoe said. ‘At least not when you’re complete opposites, y’know? I used to have this friend here, I mean, she still goes here, but we hardly ever talk anymore. I think I’ve said maybe one word to her this entire year.’
‘What happened?’ I asked.
‘She fell in with a different crowd,’ Zoe said, shrugging. ‘At first it was alright, but the more I hung out with her, the more I felt myself changing too. She was never a negative person before, but after she started hanging out with these kids, she suddenly became all drama. Drama drama drama. All she ever did was talk smack about pretty much everyone, and complain about everything. She just became so … ugly on the inside.’
‘What did you do?’ I asked.
‘I tried to stay friends with her,’ Zoe replied. ‘My parents said that she probably needed someone positive in her life, but after a little while, I just couldn’t do it anymore. This one time she texted me to ask if I had been invited to someone’s birthday party – I guess she saw a bunch of pictures posted online or something. When I told her I wasn’t invited, she said, Good, I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t the only one. LOL.’
‘Wow,’ I said, floored.
‘Yeah,’ Zoe said, nodding. ‘Seriously, I’m alright with not getting invited to parties. I get it. Sometimes they’re just for a certain group of friends, or maybe even family. But that text made me feel like I was being left out on purpose. It made me feel sick. I sometimes wonder if she wanted me to feel bad so she wasn’t alone.’
Zoe’s dad pulled up. He honked twice and waved.
‘You’re right,’ I said, grabbing my book bag. ‘I’m done with Wyatt.’
Zoe didn’t say anything. She didn’t have to. I could tell she was proud.
Instead, she punched me in the arm the way buddies do. But Zoe liked to mix it up sometimes, and this time she threw a really hard punch. I winced, laughing the pain off and acting like it didn’t hurt, but I’m pretty sure it was going to bruise.
The next morning was the same story – the gum bandit had struck again, and only the students knew. If any of the teachers overheard conversations in the hallways, then maybe they were aware of the stealing spree, but if they had heard, they sure didn’t show any signs of knowing.
Here’s the weird thing though – almost everyone was chewing on gum.
That’s right. As I made my way through the students in the hallway, it was easier to count how many kids weren’t chewing on gum. It was like there was more of it since the bandit started on Monday. Maybe kids were so afraid of getting their gum stolen that they chewed on it instead of leaving it in their bags.
Suddenly, Wyatt appeared by my side. It’s creepy how good he is at that.
‘What’s the plan for today?’ he asked.
‘What do you mean?’ I replied.
‘I mean, how are we gonna bust this bandit?’
‘Look, I’ve been thinking a lot about it, and I think I’m just gonna give up on the whole thing.’
Wyatt looked angry. ‘But you can’t! Not
when you’re this close! I mean, not when we’re this close!’
‘How do you think we’re close?’ I asked.
‘Jake!’ Wyatt yelled. ‘Jake was there in the kitchen yesterday! He has to be the bandit!’
‘But if it’s Jake, then maybe I should quit pressing the issue,’ I said. ‘Seems like he’s playing the role of the new bully in school, and that’s not exactly a show I’d like to be a part of.’
‘But if you bust him, you can be the hero!’ Wyatt said. ‘Again!’
I stopped in the middle of the hallway. ‘If it’s so important to you, why don’t you bust him?’
Wyatt stumbled over some words, but stopped immediately. He stepped closer to me and whispered as if he were telling a secret. ‘Because I’m the vice president, and that’s enough attention for me. I’ve become happy being the guy who’s behind the scenes. Y’know?’
‘And here I thought you’d settle for nothing less than the lead,’ I said, suspicious.
Wyatt grinned, placing his hand on my shoulder and pushing me along. ‘Seriously,’ he said quietly. ‘I’m trying to be a better person, and I see this whole situation as my test. If I can help bust the bandit and make it so that you’re the hero, then I feel like the universe will reward me for it. I think it’s called karma.’
‘So you think if you do good things, then good things will happen to you?’ I asked.
Wyatt nodded.
I sighed, still feeling unchanged about the situation. I brushed his hand off my shoulder, and continued to walk without him.
‘I’m out,’ I said confidently. ‘There’s something about all this that’s making my skin crawl, and I need to trust my instinct.’
Wyatt didn’t follow me. He remained perfectly still in the middle of the hallway. I knew he was staring daggers at me, but I didn’t care. I had made my decision.
I was feeling great about my decision to leave the bandit behind. It was more trouble than it was worth, and the whole thing would blow over anyway. Everyone would forget that the bandit even existed after the week was over.
Buchanan Bandits Page 7
