Alone at 90 Foot by Katherine Holubitsky

a reason. They were not drawn up simply to amuse me and Mrs. Lofts. You must also understand that, when student behavior is inconsistent with these rules, action must be taken. By doing this, we are attempting to teach you responsibility. Responsibility to yourself and to those around you. With that in mind, you are all suspended from the library for one week.”
    With this shocked expression, Danny looked up from the floor and at all of us. “But Mrs. Z! It had nothing to do with them!”
    Shh, Danny. Shh. Holding my finger to my lipsI shook my head. Never mind. She’ll really blow.
    â€œMr. Kim! As far as I’m concerned, it had everything to do with them! An enthusiastic audience is as much a part of the play as the actor! Now, all of you, off to your next class!”
    I was right. She blew. We all slunk out.
    You might think we would be mad at Danny. But we weren’t. We felt sorry for him. We knew why he did it. Something Mrs. Z didn’t know. Or if she did, she didn’t care. We knew his brother, Wilson, had run away from home. Wilson was seventeen, three years older than Danny. He’d been to school off and on through junior high, but since he’d turned sixteen, not at all. Wilson had done some pretty manic things in his lifetime. Like fed the hose through their neighbor’s window when they were gone for a weekend. And turned it on. Set his bedroom on fire when he was mad at his mom. Tied Danny to a tree in the Canyon because he did so well in school. And left him there. Crashed Darla Miller’s party and annihilated her dad’s wine collection.
    Now he was charged with assault and theft. Which was the reason he had run away. Wilson and a friend had knocked two kids to the ground, roughed them up and stolen their bikes. The police found the mangled frames four days later in the Capilano River.
    Danny’s parents fretted day and night over Wilson. First it was maybe if they put him in basketball, he would get along better with the other kids. Then, maybe if he went to private school, he would get better marks. Maybe if they bought him designer clothes, he would have more self-esteem. Maybe if they bought him a computer, he’d develop an interest. Maybe a car would get him away from his friends in Lynn Valley. Maybe, if they took him to Paris, the cat-poisoning incident would blow over. Maybe, maybe, maybe. Yes, Danny? Oh, ninety-nine-point-nine percent is good. Very good, dear. But what about your brother, Willie? Maybe if we take him to Bishop’s for his birthday, just the three of us, he would appreciate what we do for him. Your birthday, Danny? Oh sure, you can have a couple of kids over for pizza. But we’ll be going out.
    Danny couldn’t compete. No matter what he did, or how well he did it, Wilson always had one up on him. All Danny really wanted was to be noticed. Today, Mrs. Z noticed him.
    I was making Hamburger Helper for Dad and me when he got the call. I knew it was Mrs. Z, because Dad said hello, then was quiet while he looked over at me. Frowning.
    He continued frowning, in silence, for some time. “Thank you for calling, Mrs. Zimmerman. It will be dealt with,” was all that he said.
    Dealt with? What’s there to deal with?
    â€œDad, look, I can explain,” I said, before Dad had even hung up. “Danny snapped and we were just trying to calm him down.”
    â€œBy disturbing everyone in the library? By preventing the serious students from getting their work done? Don’t you think that’s just a little bit — “
    â€œRude?” I said, jumping right in. “Yes, definitely. It would be rude, inconsiderate and disrespectful. If it were the case. But like I said, we were only trying to help Danny.”
    â€œCouldn’t you have picked a more thoughtful way? For instance, one in keeping with library rules?”
    I knew Dad wasn’t really as mad as he was pretending. Mrs. Z had got him all hyped