Box of Shocks Read Online Free PDF Page B

leave the house when I’m supposed to, but instead of heading to school, I sneak off to Wally’s Burger Barn.
    Mom says that you can get food poisoning from anything you order at Wally’s. She says you can get food poisoning from just reading the menu. That’s why I have to go and order a Wally Wowzer Burger—the biggest burger south of the North Pole.
    There are rumors that Wally mixes worms in with the beef and that someone found a fish eye in their fries. If Mom knew I was chewing on a Wally Wowzer Burger and megabasket of fries, she’d probably take me to the hospital to get my stomach pumped and force me to eat arugula and kohlrabi salads for the rest of my life. I gulp down the burger and fries in less than two minutes. Sure, the beef tastes a little wormish and there may have been an eyeball or two in the soggy fries, but it was worth it!
    I fold up the wrapper, slide it into my pocket and head home. I sneak around to the back because Mom and Dad are talking to the next-door neighbors in the front yard. As soon as I get inside, I run up to my room and take my Box of Shocks from its hiding place. I carefully place the burger wrapper from Wally’s in with the spike, the piece of Halloween candy, and the picture of Mr. Creepy. As I slide the box back into its hiding place, I think about what Mom and Dad would do if they heard about all the crazy things I’ve done. I’d definitely be grounded—probably for a year or two. For sure my allowance would be cut, and they’d find a million other ways to punish me.
    But there’s no need to worry. As I put the wood panel back in place and close the closet door, I know there’s no way they’ll ever find my hiding place. No one will.
    Sometimes, I’m bursting to tell my friends all about my Box of Shocks and the crazy things I’ve done. But I can’t. I can’t take a chance on telling anyone, not even my friends. Even if only one other person knew, the secret would spread like head lice. In no time flat, everyone would know—including my parents. As long as I’m the only one who knows about my Box of Shocks, my secret is safe.
    It has to stay safe because there’s still plenty of room in the box. I’m always on the lookout for another great stunt, but during the next three months, I’ve got soccer, more swimming lessons, track and field, plus school and “Quality Family Time” to keep me busy.
    I’m looking forward to the start of summer holidays because I have big plans. I’ll be spending two whole months at Uncle Ned and Aunt Jean’s farm. Mom and Dad will be in Toronto, where Dad is teaching a course at the university while Mom takes some accounting classes. They figured it would be much healthier for me to spend the summer on the farm than be cooped up in the tiny apartment they’ve rented in Toronto. Plus, Mom thinks it’ll be good for me to spend time with my cousin Stuart. I overheard her talking to her sister, my Aunt Jean, on the phone one night. Mom thinks Stuart would be a good influence on me because he’s such a hard worker and always does what his parents tell him.
    I’m tempted to tell Mom that even though Stuart and I are cousins and even though we are exactly the same age, there is zero chance of us ever being real friends. If Stuart was in my class at school, I’d be out at lunch break shooting hoops while he’d be inside sharpening pencils for the teacher or making sure all of the toilets in the washrooms were flushed.
    I don’t say anything about Stuart to Mom though. Putting up with Stuart for two whole months will be worth it. The farm is a perfect place for me to do all kinds of crazy stunts. By the end of the summer, who knows? Maybe my Box of Shocks will be filled right up!

Five
    E very day is pretty much the same at Aunt Jean and Uncle Ned’s farm. In the mornings, I pitch bales of hay, shovel manure and do other