Two Under Par Read Online Free PDF Page A

“You know, he scared off two men from the Big Brothers organization in record time. One afternoon was too much for both of them.”
    â€œLarry,” Aunt Bonnie said in a tone that meant: Please be quiet . Wedge could picture her disgusted look.
    But Uncle Larry went on. “For a while he told the kids at school that his father was an Arctic explorer. Then it was a high-wire performer in France, or something. Last I heard, it was an oil tycoon in Dallas. You can’t really blame him, though—sometimes dreaming gets you through a rough day. Or a rough night.”
    Wedge had heard enough. Eavesdropping wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. It was a different kind of hurt, but it was more painful than the dentist’s drill. He felt dull. His head was hazy. At first he thought he’d go outside as he had pretended to. But he knew they’d just keep talking about him. And that would be just as bad as (if not worse than) hearing every uncomfortable word. Because then he’d end up imagining what they were saying.
    Wedge knew one way to end their talking. He simply waltzed in on them as if nothing had happened and caught them by surprise. “I ran out of brownies,” he announced.
    Aunt Bonnie turned with a start. “Oh! Wedge!”
    Uncle Larry stuffed a whole brownie into his mouth, then loudly smacked his lips like a popgun going off.
    And King started muttering. “Uh. The garden is really beautiful.”
    â€œThank you,” Aunt Bonnie replied. Wedge felt as if he were on “The Twilight Zone.” As if he had been here before. Mr. Saunders, his science teacher from last year, called it déjà-vu. “But we’re fighting a losing battle with our weeds,” Aunt Bonnie continued. “They’re definitely strong willed.”
    They all laughed. Except Wedge. He was thinking of his losing battle.
    Because Wedge was there, they only talked about polite things now—grocery prices, the weather, lawn care. And that was perfectly fine with Wedge. He hung onto the adults the way a barnacle does to a boat—never letting them out of his sight or his hearing range.
    King and Wedge stayed for dinner. Wedge was on his best behavior. Afterward, Uncle Larry brought out dusty old photo albums and they looked at Sally’s and Bonnie’s baby pictures. Baby pictures, Wedge thought, are the last thing I want to see.
    â€œWe better get going!” Wedge said suddenly, rising from the depths of the sofa, remembering his note. “Sally’s going to call me! She told me she would! She could be trying right now!”
    King put Wedge’s bike in the trunk. Aunt Bonnie and Uncle Larry waved good night.
    â€œThe day turned out okay after all,” King said to Wedge in an optimistic voice.
    â€œSays who?” Wedge whispered back. Wedge swallowed hard as he got into the car. It seemed small and dark and like a prison. He was dreading this night more than he had ever dreaded anything in his entire life.

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6. Sally’s Call
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    S ilence filled the car, barely leaving enough room for its two passengers. Wedge didn’t feel like talking. King was at a loss for words. As they drove the short distance through the growing darkness, the day’s events played back in Wedge’s head like a broken record. Over and over. This was definitely one of his worst days. Ever. And the fact that it was almost night didn’t help things.
    There was something about nighttime that Wedge didn’t like. He wasn’t afraid of monsters hiding in the shadows or ghosts watching from around corners, anymore. But he was less sure of himself at night. His confidence faded with the light.
    It was after ten o’clock. Wedge had been waiting by the upstairs extension phone ever since he and King had arrived home. All the while he waited, he held the note Sally had written him. It smelled of lilacs. Just like Sally. It was the perfume she always wore.