Don't Scream (9780307823526) by Joan Lowery Nixon

to speak up. “Because this is a quiet, peaceful place,” I said. “No telephones, no school, no homework, no jobs, no piano teachers, no parents telling us to clean our rooms. We cantalk if we want or just sit and watch the sailboats across the bay.”
    Mark grimaced. “It’s not Coney Island.”
    â€œOr the Atlantic Ocean,” Scott added.
    I looked at Scott carefully, hearing the touch of wistfulness in his voice. “Do you miss Galesburg?” I asked him.
    Scott looked surprised. “Galesburg? Oh, Galesburg. Yes, sometimes, I guess. It doesn’t matter.”
    â€œWhy did your parents move to Oakberry?” I asked.
    â€œThey didn’t,” Scott answered, without looking at me. He kept his gaze on the distant boats. “I live with my aunt.”
    I knew I shouldn’t pry, but when he didn’t add anything else, I asked, “Did your aunt come here to work?”
    â€œShe’s looking,” Scott answered. “She’ll come up with something soon.”
    â€œOakberry seems like a strange place to hunt for work. Wouldn’t your aunt find more job opportunities in a big city than in a small town?”
    Scott just shrugged.
    â€œWhere do you and your aunt live?” I asked.
    Lori squirmed with embarrassment. “We’re not playing twenty questions, Jess,” she said.
    But Scott turned and for the first time looked directly into my eyes. He didn’t blink. His gaze didn’t waver. I nervously sucked in my breath.
    â€œMy aunt’s name is Edna Turner,” he said in a monotone, as though his words were rolling out of a tape recorder. “We have an apartment in that big complex over on Dale Street. For reasons Iwon’t go into, I’m living with Edna instead of my parents. Edna and I don’t always see things the same way, and I guess you could say we’re happier away from each other, so we spend as little time as possible together.”
    Everyone grew very quiet, and I could feel my face burning. Mom would have scolded me for being rude. Dad would have shaken his head and said, “Jess, you have to stop letting your curiosity run away with you.” Lori was probably going to have some well-chosen words to say to me later. And I deserved it.
    â€œI’m sorry,” I said. “I sounded like I was being awfully nosy, and I didn’t mean to be. I just wanted to know more about you, Scott.”
    â€œIt’s okay,” he said quietly.
    Mark broke the tension by laughing as he tapped me on the end of my nose. “Is that what they call a nose for news? Is that why you’re on the school paper, Jess? Maybe you should get a job on one of those scummy tabloid shows on TV.”
    Lori grinned, friend to friend. “Or how about being a gossip columnist?” she said.
    I went along with the game. “Or maybe write for one of those awful newspapers they sell at the grocery checkout stands? How’s this for a lead story? ‘Is Scott Alexander all he seems to be, or is he actually a clone, put here on earth by aliens from outer space?’ ”
    Scott looked away. He didn’t crack even the smallest of smiles, and I felt worse than before.
    â€œYou’d write under an assumed name, I hope,” Lori said in a desperate attempt to make us laugh.
    While I struggled to think of something funny to answer to ease the tension, Mark scrambled to his feet. “I’ve had enough communing with nature, and I’ve got some history and government reading to catch up on. Anybody want to guide me back to civilization?”
    We all got up, brushing away clinging leaves and crumbs of dirt, and retraced our steps through the woods. No one said much, and I suffered for having ruined everyone’s good mood. I’d really goofed by being so nosy with Scott.
    Scott paused as we came to Castle Rock. As though nothing awkward had happened, he said, “I’ve been thinking