hope not.â She wiped her forehead. âI really do.â
At breakfast, Jason and his parents talked even more. All about the spider.
âHe needs cork bark to climb on,â Jason said.
âWeâll buy some today,â Dad said. âCrickets too.â
âIâll dig for earthworms after lunch,âJason suggested. âA tasty treat for a tarantula.â
âGood thinking,â Mother said. She wrinkled up her nose. The subject of worms was a no-no at the table.
âUh . . . sorry, Mom,â Jason said.
âIt would be much better if we talk after we eat,â she said.
A wink came from Jasonâs father.
And Jason understood.
But gross stuff didnât bother him. Not one bit. Worms or crickets, spiders and frogs were just fine.
Any old time!
THREE
The ride downtown took forever.
Rush. Faster. Hurry . . . hurry , thought Jason.
Even the light stayed red too long.
Jitter, jitter. Jump, jerk . Jason couldnât sit still.
âExcited?â asked his dad.
âPinktoes comes home today!â Jason said.
Then he spied the pet shop sign.
His father parked the car. âHave you told your friends yet?â he asked.
âI told only two.â
âBoys?â His father was grinning.
âI told Dunkum and Eric. They promised not to tell it around,â Jason explained.
âSo itâs a secret?â
âA super-spider super-secret!â Jason said. He leaped out of the car and raced to the pet store.
Inside, a large glass tank was waiting. A tiny tan spider was perched in the corner.
Pinktoes was nowhere to be seen.
âWhereâs my spider?â Jason wailed.
The clerk hurried over. âMay I help you?â
âWhereâs Pinktoes?â
âWait one moment,â said the clerk.
Jason took off his glasses and twirled them on his finger. He jittered and jived.
âSomeone bought my spider,â he fussed. âBought him out from under my nose!â
His father shook his head. âDonât worry, son. Here comes the store owner.â
A tall man smiled at them. âWeâre getting more pink-toed tarantulas in on Monday.â
â Two more days? Thatâs way too long,â Jason said.
âSorry about the wait,â the man said. âIâll be happy to put your name on one.â
â My name?â Jason looked at his dad.
âHe means heâll save one for you,â his father explained.
âOh . . . sure, that would be great!â Jason burst out.
But he didnât feel great inside.
Nope.
Dunkum and Eric would never believe this. Theyâd think he was fooling about getting a super-spider. Theyâd say he was making it all up.
âWeâll be back on Monday,â Jasonâs father said.
âRight after school,â added Jason. âAnd not a minute later!â
His father nodded.
The pet store owner waved.
And Jason scuffed his feet to the car.
The ride home went too fast.
All green lights.
Phooey .
Jason scooted down in the front seat. He didnât want Dunkum and Eric to see him. Not without Pinktoes.
How will I tell them? he thought.
Then he had an idea. Heâd say that Pinktoes was crawling home. Heâd say that the tarantula was last seen headed this way. A big, black tarantula was on the loose. Headed for Blossom Hill Lane!
Thatâs what Jason decided.
It was a whoppinâ big lie.
But Dunkum and Eric would be scared silly.
FOUR
The car was hardly in the driveway.
Here came Dunkum and Eric, running.
Rats! thought Jason.
Dunkum called to him from behind a tree. âWhereâs your big, mean spider?â he said.
Jason glanced over at his dad. He didnât want him to hear what he was going to say.
âHello, boys,â his dad said, waving at Dunkum and Eric. Then he went inside the house.
Jason got out of the car. He stood tall.Now he could tell his made-up story.
âI thought you were buying a hairy
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