obviously didn’t work, but the
report was due today, so I did the best I could. But I’m not giving up,” he
said quickly. “Promise you won’t laugh?”
“Promise,” I said.
“I’ve set up a radio receiver on as wide a band as I can get,”
he said, grinning. “And the vidcam. So far the visits have all been on Fridays,
so they should come tonight. Want to stay up with me and watch?”
“Sure,” I said. “Sounds cool.”
He blurted, “Thanks for sticking up for me today.”
“No problem. I know you’d do the same for me.”
“Except I never have,” he said, his round face earnest. “It’s
always you protecting me, either here at school, or at the playground, or on
the street.” He stuck out a skinny arm, frowning at it. “I don’t think I could
protect a kitten,” he finished morosely. “I wish you’d show me what you learned
at that foster home. Then I could smash that Jason a good one.”
“Maybe some day,” I said.
“They taught you cool stuff.” He made a fist. “All I ever learned was how to read before kindergarten.
I feel like I’m an alien,” he burst
out.
I laughed. “I think we all do. I know I did when Pearl and
David first adopted me, and the kids at school made fun of my red hair.”
“I don’t think it’s weird.” Fred looked critically at me. “I
think it’s nice,” he added, with his shy smile. “In fact, I liked it when you
came. And it was a lot redder then.”
I grinned back at him. “Sometimes I think I’ll dye it green,”
I said, which made him grin. “You could, too, and I bet Pearl and David would
love to do theirs as well. Then we could really be an alien family.”
Fred laughed, his real laugh, and I knew he was all right
again.
Then he surprised me, asking shyly, “Uncle David and Aunt
Pearl said I shouldn’t ask, unless you wanted to talk about it. But I keep wondering.
What was it like? Your foster home?”
Before they brought me home, Pearl and David told me about
Fred. Though I was the oldest, Fred had been their kid first. His mom, Aunt
Pearl’s sister, and his dad had been volcanologists, and they’d been filming a
volcano when it erupted and killed them. So Fred came to live with them, and he
was so unhappy they decided to adopt him a brother or sister close to his age,
or in his grade, whichever happened first.
We’d all liked each other right away. He almost never talks
about his former life,
Pearl had said, “We think it best if you let him bring it up
if he wants to.” They’d obviously said the same to him.
“I was in several, actually,” I said. “The best one was the
one where I got to study martial arts. They had a bunch of foster kids. All we
seemed to talk about was getting a family, and what kind of family we’d pick if
we could. I got exactly what I hoped for,” I added, and Fred smiled happily.
I waited for him to talk about his old life, but he just
sighed, and settled back in the seat. “We do have an alien family,” he said,
sounding content.
“You mean you and me, because we’re orphans?”
“And David draws cartoons all night, and Pearl chases bad
guys.” He sighed. “Or maybe Jason and his gang are the aliens. I don’t know. I
just don’t fit in at school.”
“Do you really want to fit in with them?” I asked. “I mean,
wouldn’t you rather they learn to be your kind of normal, than you dumb down
and act like them?”
The bus lurched to a stop, and we grabbed our stuff and got
out.
“Yeah. But that’ll happen when pigs fly out of my nose,” Fred
grumped, settling his books with one hand and his glasses with the other. “I
think I’ll go to the library before dinner, and see if the books on
astrophysics that I requested are in yet.”
“Okay,” I said, leading the way to the apartment. “I guess
I’ll just get started on my homework. And tonight, we’ll listen for aliens.”
Fred seemed pretty cheerful again as we went inside. David had
a snack in the oven. As he got
report was due today, so I did the best I could. But I’m not giving up,” he
said quickly. “Promise you won’t laugh?”
“Promise,” I said.
“I’ve set up a radio receiver on as wide a band as I can get,”
he said, grinning. “And the vidcam. So far the visits have all been on Fridays,
so they should come tonight. Want to stay up with me and watch?”
“Sure,” I said. “Sounds cool.”
He blurted, “Thanks for sticking up for me today.”
“No problem. I know you’d do the same for me.”
“Except I never have,” he said, his round face earnest. “It’s
always you protecting me, either here at school, or at the playground, or on
the street.” He stuck out a skinny arm, frowning at it. “I don’t think I could
protect a kitten,” he finished morosely. “I wish you’d show me what you learned
at that foster home. Then I could smash that Jason a good one.”
“Maybe some day,” I said.
“They taught you cool stuff.” He made a fist. “All I ever learned was how to read before kindergarten.
I feel like I’m an alien,” he burst
out.
I laughed. “I think we all do. I know I did when Pearl and
David first adopted me, and the kids at school made fun of my red hair.”
“I don’t think it’s weird.” Fred looked critically at me. “I
think it’s nice,” he added, with his shy smile. “In fact, I liked it when you
came. And it was a lot redder then.”
I grinned back at him. “Sometimes I think I’ll dye it green,”
I said, which made him grin. “You could, too, and I bet Pearl and David would
love to do theirs as well. Then we could really be an alien family.”
Fred laughed, his real laugh, and I knew he was all right
again.
Then he surprised me, asking shyly, “Uncle David and Aunt
Pearl said I shouldn’t ask, unless you wanted to talk about it. But I keep wondering.
What was it like? Your foster home?”
Before they brought me home, Pearl and David told me about
Fred. Though I was the oldest, Fred had been their kid first. His mom, Aunt
Pearl’s sister, and his dad had been volcanologists, and they’d been filming a
volcano when it erupted and killed them. So Fred came to live with them, and he
was so unhappy they decided to adopt him a brother or sister close to his age,
or in his grade, whichever happened first.
We’d all liked each other right away. He almost never talks
about his former life,
Pearl had said, “We think it best if you let him bring it up
if he wants to.” They’d obviously said the same to him.
“I was in several, actually,” I said. “The best one was the
one where I got to study martial arts. They had a bunch of foster kids. All we
seemed to talk about was getting a family, and what kind of family we’d pick if
we could. I got exactly what I hoped for,” I added, and Fred smiled happily.
I waited for him to talk about his old life, but he just
sighed, and settled back in the seat. “We do have an alien family,” he said,
sounding content.
“You mean you and me, because we’re orphans?”
“And David draws cartoons all night, and Pearl chases bad
guys.” He sighed. “Or maybe Jason and his gang are the aliens. I don’t know. I
just don’t fit in at school.”
“Do you really want to fit in with them?” I asked. “I mean,
wouldn’t you rather they learn to be your kind of normal, than you dumb down
and act like them?”
The bus lurched to a stop, and we grabbed our stuff and got
out.
“Yeah. But that’ll happen when pigs fly out of my nose,” Fred
grumped, settling his books with one hand and his glasses with the other. “I
think I’ll go to the library before dinner, and see if the books on
astrophysics that I requested are in yet.”
“Okay,” I said, leading the way to the apartment. “I guess
I’ll just get started on my homework. And tonight, we’ll listen for aliens.”
Fred seemed pretty cheerful again as we went inside. David had
a snack in the oven. As he got
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