Living Rough by Cristy Watson Page A

to tie his shoelace.
    The two guys were coming straight for us. Now that they were closer, I recognized the ballcap one of them was wearing. They were definitely from Beaker’s gang.
    â€œI think…what if…,” I stammered, “we get an ice cream?” I felt dumb as soon as I said it. “I’ll even pay.” I hoped Taz and Bowman couldn’t tell my nerves were heating up.
    â€œDid someone say Blizzard?” asked Taz. “I’m in!”
    Great. That would be the end of my cash, and I’d be broke for the weekend. Again. But it would mean we’d be heading away from Beaker’s brutes.
    â€œLike you ever turn down free food,” said Bowman, yanking out Taz’s earbuds. Taz gave him a look, but Bowman just laughed.
    The Dairy Queen was only a block from our school. As we turned around, I glanced over my shoulder. I could still see the two guys. They weren’t as tall as Taz, but they were chunky like Bowman. They were way bigger than me. When they saw we’d changed our route, they did the same.
    In minutes we were at the restaurant. I was about to tell Taz and Bowman that Beaker’s boys were behind us, but the two guys stayed on the sidewalk instead of following us inside. The one with the blue Mohawk leaned against the window and watched us through the glass.
    A cold draft rippled down my neck.
    We had barely sat down when Bowman started in on me. “Are you gonna finish telling us what that guy wanted?”
    â€œOkay.” I leaned in. “So, this dude asks me if I’m Dylan Manning’s brother. When I say yeah, he tells me that Beaker wants to see us—the three of us. Like he knows we hang out.”
    â€œWhat do you mean, he wants to see us?” Taz sat up and scanned the restaurant.
    â€œI don’t know exactly.” I poked at my sundae with my spoon, but I didn’t take a bite. “He asked if we want to earn some quick cash.”
    â€œGo on,” said Taz. He looked more interested than worried.
    â€œI think he has some kind of job for us,” I said.
    â€œSo, what are we waiting for? Let’s go find him,” said Taz, already out of his seat.
    Bowman grabbed his arm. “Hang on. We gotta figure this out. You don’t mess around with these guys.”
    â€œYou’ve got a point,” I said. “So how about we just…skip it?”
    The gang had been cool with my brother. That didn’t mean they’d be cool with us. They didn’t make a habit of hanging out with grade nines. Dylan had never wanted me around, so what did Beaker and his gang want with us?
    â€œYeah,” said Bowman. “But we can’t blow them off. They’ll think we’re dissing them. Besides, I am into earning some cash. Maybe we should check out what they want before we decide. Aren’t you always saying you’re broke?”
    I nodded.
    â€œThen what are we waiting for?” asked Taz.
    My gut said this was a bad idea. So I don’t know why I said, “The dude wants to meet at nine tonight in the park.”
    â€œThen let’s make sure we’re not late,” said Bowman.
    By the time we were ready to head home, the gang guys were gone. But I had this rumble in the pit of my stomach, and I kept looking over my shoulder as we walked through the park. A sharp bite of wind followed us.
    I just wanted the meeting to be over.