Freestyle with Avery (9 page)

“Are you sure?” I asked Jason, still feeling kind of funny about the situation. “When I visited Montana, my friends and I found these abandoned wolf pups and really wanted to take care of them. But my friend’s dad told us we could get in BIG trouble, and he found a wildlife rescue group to help them instead.”

“It’s kind of risky for me to keep Ollie here, but I know that I can help him,” Jason assured me.

“So how’d you convince Bonnie to let you keep him?”

Jason looked at me and admitted, “I didn’t tell her.”

I nodded and understood. That was what the BSG did when we first found Marty, before we found out it was okay for Charlotte to keep a dog in her house after all. I watched as Ollie noticed Jason and perked up his head. “What about Frankie?” I remembered how Frankie had asked to come out and visit Ollie when Bonnie was making hot chocolate.

“Frankie knows, but he’d never say anything. It makes him feel special to have a secret to keep.”

“So what do your, um, foster parents think you’re doing out here?” I couldn’t help but ask.

Jason smiled. “Bonnie and Fred told me I could use the shed as my own private space for my birdhouses. See?” He pointed to a work table and cabinets behind it. The cabinets were full of these little birdhouses made from pieces of bark and other miscellaneous things Jason had collected. He had boxes and boxes of supplies, all labeled:
TWINE, PEBBLES, BUTTONS
, and
CHINA AND GLASS
. The birdhouses looked more like little homes for gnomes or fairies. Anyone who got to live in one of these was one lucky bird.

“Whoa, Jason … these are sooo cool! I wish I could take a picture to show my friend Isabel. She’d go crazy over them … birds are her favorite animals to draw.”

Jason looked at the ground and scraped at the dirt with his shoe. “It’s just a weird hobby. Something my grandma taught me.”

“I bet you could sell these, you know,” I told him.

Jason shook his head. “I’m not
that
good,” he said, still looking down.

I opened my mouth to tell him that he was, but a squawk came from the dim corner where Ollie was marching around. “Hey there, Ollie.” Jason slowly walked to the hawk.

“Has taking care of him been a lot of work?” I asked.

He laughed. “See that sleeping bag? I had to sneak out here to sleep for almost a week. Then I spent four hours a day sitting with him, talking to him, and trying to get him to eat by feeding him scraps of raw hamburger. I even started doing my homework out here. But it’s paid off. Ollie’s almost ready to be released. I’m probably going to do it this week.”

Jason studied Ollie very carefully, like he was trying to figure out exactly what the hawk needed. There was something really special about Jason and Ollie, like they absolutely trusted each other one hundred percent. I’d never seen a kid my own age so comfortable around a wild creature like that. “He must really love you,” I said. “I mean, since you raised him and all …” Did that sound silly? I glanced at Jason out of the corner of my eye, but he wasn’t laughing.

“No. When Ollie flies away, he’ll forget all about me and be fine on his own. Hawks aren’t like dogs. Wild birds and animals need to be free. Hawks can be devoted to their trainers, but they never love you.”

“But that’s sad.” I didn’t want to believe that this hawk would forget the boy who saved his life.

“No, it’s okay. That’s just how hawks are,” Jason insisted. “Ollie trusts me to give him food, and I trust that Ollie will stay here and not try to escape. You must be hungry, huh fella?” Jason went over to a small cage and got something out, keeping his back turned to me … like he didn’t want me to know or see whatever it was he was giving Ollie. But I had a guess.

“Are you feeding him a mouse right now?” I asked. “Can I watch?”

Jason raised his eyebrows. “Seriously? I figured you’d be totally freaked out if you knew. Mice are Ollie’s favorite.”

I shrugged. “Hey, I’m a snake owner, don’t forget. I’ve fed Walter—that’s my snake—plenty of mice before. It’s just a part of nature, right?”

“Right. And besides, it could be worse. Did you know that mother hawks chew up mice and other rodents and then regurgitate them into their babies’ mouths?”

I made a grossed-out face. “Ugh. I’ll stick to the mice-feeding, thanks.”

Jason slid his right hand into a worn leather glove. “Me too. I just close the shed door and let the mouse go. Ollie always catches it. The more practice he gets flying and hunting on his own, the sooner he can go back to the wild where he belongs.” He untied the leash that fastened Ollie to his perch then stepped behind me, put two hands on my shoulders, and moved me away from the cage. “Okay, Avery. Step back and watch. And whatever you do, don’t open the shed door.”

“What are those thingies called?” I pointed to the little leather bands around each leg above the bird’s feet, both attached to what looked like a cut-up jump rope.

“Those are anklets. And the straps are called jesses. This way he can move back and forth on his perch without getting tangled, but he can’t leave the perch unless I turn him loose. Check it out.”

Jason stepped back and blew one sharp note on a whistle he wore around his neck. Ollie flapped twice, lifted off the perch, and landed on Jason’s outstretched glove.

“He loves flying, which is a good sign,” Jason explained as he smoothed Ollie’s feathers.

“Me too!” I said and then realized how that sounded. “I mean, I obviously can’t fly, but I feel like I am when I’m snowboarding. It’s the best.”

“You snowboard?”

“Are you kidding? What else would I do in Telluride? I’m going to be in the Snurfer Competition on Tuesday. I can’t wait! You’re doing it too, right?” I figured someone who named his hawk “Ollie” would definitely be a snowboarding nut like me.

But Jason shook his head. “Um, no. I’ve never been snowboarding, actually.”

“No way. You’ve never been snowboarding?” I was totally surprised.

Jason looked down and spoke so quietly I could barely hear him. “I dunno, I guess I just never had a snowboard or anything.”

Boy, did I feel stupid. It hadn’t even occurred to me that maybe Jason couldn’t snowboard not because he didn’t want to, but because he just never had the chance.

“Do you want to try it?”

Now it was Jason’s turn to give the
Are you kidding?
look.

“No, really. My dad owns ATS Sports and I bet he could loan out a snowboard for the day. And I’m no expert teacher or anything, but I’m pretty good. It’d be so much fun! How ‘bout it?”

Suddenly a huge smile burst onto Jason’s face. But before he had a chance to say anything there was a knock on the door. Jason turned pale and looked as nervous as he had back at The Sweet Life. “Jason, is Avery in there?” It was Bonnie.

“Yeah!” he called. I bit my lip as we waited for the door to open. But it didn’t. Jason looked at Ollie like he was silently warning him to keep his beak closed!

“Avery, your dad just called,” Bonnie called through the door. “Would you two come inside and call him back?”

“Be right there!” I replied. We listened tensely as Bonnie’s footsteps hesitated outside the shed door, then finally headed off in the direction of the house.
Phew
! Jason looked at me and smiled with relief. I felt the same way. We were
this close
to having Bonnie discover his mega-huge secret.

“Wow.” Jason breathed a sigh of relief. “Bonnie never comes down here. She said it could be my private place.”

I looked down at my watch. “Oh, no! I totally lost track of time. I should have called my dad as soon as I got here! I hope he’s not too worried.”

Jason straightened up the room and carefully locked up the shed before we dashed back into the house.

“Was my dad mad?” I blurted out when we got inside.

Bonnie hesitated. Ick … I really hoped I wasn’t in trouble. “He said Kazie told him you were probably here, but he does want you home soon. I told him I’d give you a ride.”

“Thanks, Bonnie.” I saw my mug of hot chocolate sitting on the counter … just as Bonnie promised. I really wanted to stay longer and drink it and talk to Jason some more, but I was probably already in hot water. Enough adventures for one night. Bonnie got her purse and Jason and I followed her to the door.

“Is it okay if I come, Bonnie?” he asked.

“Well …” Bonnie started.

Just then Frankie appeared in the door to the hallway. “You have to stay here, Jason. It’s too late to be out,” Frankie said in a serious voice. I wanted to laugh. He sounded like a parent.

“Would you mind … ?” Bonnie mouthed so only Jason and I could see.

Jason held up his hand for Frankie to slap. “Okay, buddy. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Yay!” Frankie jumped up and down and clapped. “Let’s go play Monopoly. C’mon. You’re gonna be the thimble.” Frankie grabbed one of Jason’s hands and started to lead him out of the room.

“You want to hang out tomorrow?” Jason called over his shoulder.

“Sure! You can meet Marty.”

Please don’t let Kazie and Andie still be here,
I thought to myself when we pulled into Dad’s driveway. Just in case I was in a teeny, tiny bit of trouble—the last thing I wanted was for Andie and Kazie to witness it.

“Thanks so much for the ride, Bonnie,” I said.

“You’re welcome. Stop by our place anytime. You know …” Bonnie began quietly, “I’m glad you came over tonight. Jason’s a great kid, but he’s so shy … he ends up spending a lot of time alone. It’s tough to be the new kid somewhere, and I’m glad he’s finally found a friend.”

“Me too,” I told her. I was definitely not the new kid in Telluride, technically speaking, but for some reason having Kazie around made me feel like I was … and it wasn’t fun. But hanging out with Radley, Ollie, and especially Jason, well, that was awesome. “Tell Jason thanks for me. I’ll see you around, Bonnie!” I exclaimed as I hopped out of the car.

Uh-oh. The first face I saw when the door to my house
opened was Dad’s, and it wasn’t a happy one. But the faces behind him—Kazie, Andie, and (ugh) Farkle—were way worse. And everyone was giving me the exact same look—the one that went:
Avery Madden … tsk, tsk, tsk.
Except Kazie. She wouldn’t look at me at all.

The room was so quiet that I could literally hear the zipper buzzing as I took off my coat.
Zzzzzzzzzip.
“Hey, everybody, what’s up?” I asked. “Have a good night … ?” Rats! My happy talk wasn’t making people forget they were mad at me. If anything, Dad’s frown only got bigger.

“Avery,” he said, “why did you leave Kazie like that in the ice cream shop? Don’t you think you might owe her an apology?”

Not really,
I thought, remembering the racing joke she pulled on the way there. But I figured there was no way around apologizing, especially with Dad right there. “I’m sorry, Kazie. And I’m really sorry, Dad. I meant to call you when I got to Jason’s but I totally forgot when I saw his, um … ferret. Yeah, that’s it, his ferret, and I just forgot.” Well, that was believable … NOT! Kazie rolled her eyes and Dad glanced at Andie.

“She’s all right. And that’s what matters, Jake,” Andie told Dad quietly.

“Yeah! I’m fine. I was fine all along …” I agreed, suddenly liking this Andie lady a little bit more.

Dad nodded at Andie. “Thanks for sticking around. I think I need to have a one-on-one with my daughter now.”

“Okay. I’ll see you in the morning,” Andie said with a smile. She put on her coat. Then, my night went from
weird to weirder. She actually
kissed Dad on the cheek.
And just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse,
he kissed her right back.

Kazie groaned and made a gagging sound but I just looked away. He was my dad, for crying out loud! At least Kazie and I were on the same page about kissing parents.

“Good night, Avery. It was nice to see you again,” Andie said.

“You too,” I muttered. If she thought I was kissing her cheek she had another think coming. No way, José! Kazie stomped off and let the door slam behind her. I was just happy to see Farkle the Franken-cat leave so Marty could finally relax.

I thought it would be a relief to finally have Dad back to myself. Unfortunately, he seemed just as annoyed.

“I’m so, so sorry, Dad. I promise it was an accident. I swear on … on snowboarding!” That made a smile creep onto Dad’s face. A little one, but still, better than nothing.

“I know you’re growing up, Avery, and I’m not exactly sure what your mom’s rules are in Boston, but here in Telluride you need to let me know where you are. Especially at night. Kazie always tells Andie exactly where she is and who she’s with. I expect the same from you.”

I knew Dad was right, but I didn’t like being compared to Crazie Kazie. To tell the truth, I was sick of her name coming up all the time. Besides, it was an honest mistake. And that mistake might not have even happened if Kazie’d been nicer to me at The Sweet Life. But how was I supposed to tell Dad that?

Dad started washing the dishes in the sink and handed
them to me to dry. “So tell me about your new friend,” he said. “What’s his name … Jason? From what Kazie says, he’s kind of a man of mystery … if you will.” Dad nudged me in the arm.

I stared hard at the dish I was drying.

“Avery?” Dad prompted me.

“What?” I sounded startled. I wanted to tell Dad about Jason but the words just weren’t coming. It was embarrassing, and I wasn’t sure why. “I don’t know. He’s nice. He likes animals, like me. He doesn’t know a lot of kids here yet.”

“Kazie loves animals,” Dad pointed out.
Who cares what Crazie Kazie thinks about animals?
Why was Dad obsessed with making sure that Kazie and I liked all the same things? “She did bring Farkle. Marty must be happy to have a new friend,” Dad added with a wink. We looked at each other and burst out laughing.

“Pleeeease, Dad. Farkle and Marty? You’ve got to be kidding me. That’s like me hanging out with Anna and Joline. It’s just not gonna happen.”

Dad laughed. He knew all about the Queens of Mean. Farkle was the Feline King of Mean—that was for sure! Dad gave me a big hug. “I want you to feel completely at home here … always. Just make sure that next time you tell me before you go somewhere, okay?”