Read Online As Easy as Falling Off the Face of the Earth by Lynne Rae Perkins - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Lynne Rae Perkins
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“But that’s not saying much. Delwyn is a man who likes to—how should I say it—he likes to rise to the occasion.
“Like driving you home all the way to Wisconsin. Nothing could make him happier. Unless maybe it’s picking up three hitchhikers, getting a cat down out of a burning building, and rebuilding someone’s transmission with nothing but a fingernail clipper along the way. Mainly I think he just wants to make sure everything’s okay.”
Del called to Arvin to give him a hand, and Arvin started to head over. Then, turning and smiling his big smile, he said, “Oh, yeah. Watch out for damsels in distress, or you might never get home.”
Pete had something he wanted to say, too.
“It’s true that Del is an unusual person,” he said. “He has his own rules. You know how Thoreau talks about the guy who marches to the beat of a different drum? Well, Del marches to the beat of, like, I don’t know, a harmonica or something.
“What I’m saying is, sometimes it might seem like he’s out of his mind. Maybe he is, in a way. I mean, who isn’t, right? But don’t worry. You’ll be okay.”
Then he said, “Hey, I better go help those guys.” And off he went.
But Beth materialized beside Ry like the third visitation, the Ghost of Christmas Future.
“Do you think Del is nuts?” Ry asked her.
“Who said that?” asked Beth.
“Pete,” said Ry.
Beth snorted. “I guess he should know, right?”
“Not exactly,” said Ry. “He said that Del marches to the beat of a harmonica.”
Beth tilted her head back and let out a “Ha!”
“Okay,” she said. “That I’ll buy. That’s actually pretty good.”
Ry told her how he had heard Del’s idea through the kitchen window. And how he didn’t know what to think about it.
“Are you worried?” she asked. “Because you don’t need to be.” She seemed about to go on, to say something more, when Del approached and said, “Worried? What are you worried about?”
Flustered, Ry said, “I’m worried about my grandpa. How he’s not answering the phone.”
“Let’s go find out what’s going on,” said Del.
“I already told him about your idea,” said Beth. Just to keep things simple.
“What if something happened to him?” said Ry. “What if—?”
“Then we would have to go find your parents,” said Del.
Ry looked at him. Trying to tell if Del was serious. He couldn’t tell.
“I don’t even know exactly where they are,” he said. “There are, like, a thousand islands down there. And I don’t have any money. It would be impossible.”
“Uh-oh,” said Beth. “Those are magic words to Del. But I don’t think even you can drive to a Caribbean island, Del.”
“We’d have to get to San Juan,” said Del. “Then we’d have to borrow a boat.”
“San Juan,” said Beth. “Hmm…isn’t that where Yulia lives?”
“It’s just a hypothetical situation,” said Del. “It’s pretty unlikely that it would ever actually come up.”
Maybe that piece of the conversation made driving to Wisconsin seem completely reasonable. Because then the talk went from whether they should go, to which vehicle they should take. Not the double-decker; there were only two of them. Del decided on a Willys. He had two. They were really old Jeep station wagons. He had modified them in a number of ways, one being that he made them longer in the back, so that two sleeping bags could fit there, stretched out full length. And he decided that, if they were going, they might as well get started. Before Ry knew it, Del had thrown the sleeping bags in and they were saying good-bye.
Beth took Ry’s head between her hands and kissed him on each cheek. She was that kind of person. She also gave him a little peck on his bruised eyebrow.
“Makes you look like a tough customer,” she said. Then she took his right hand in both of hers and shook it.
“Don’t worry,” she said, still holding on. “I’m betting everyone is fine. I bet it’s just a
“Like driving you home all the way to Wisconsin. Nothing could make him happier. Unless maybe it’s picking up three hitchhikers, getting a cat down out of a burning building, and rebuilding someone’s transmission with nothing but a fingernail clipper along the way. Mainly I think he just wants to make sure everything’s okay.”
Del called to Arvin to give him a hand, and Arvin started to head over. Then, turning and smiling his big smile, he said, “Oh, yeah. Watch out for damsels in distress, or you might never get home.”
Pete had something he wanted to say, too.
“It’s true that Del is an unusual person,” he said. “He has his own rules. You know how Thoreau talks about the guy who marches to the beat of a different drum? Well, Del marches to the beat of, like, I don’t know, a harmonica or something.
“What I’m saying is, sometimes it might seem like he’s out of his mind. Maybe he is, in a way. I mean, who isn’t, right? But don’t worry. You’ll be okay.”
Then he said, “Hey, I better go help those guys.” And off he went.
But Beth materialized beside Ry like the third visitation, the Ghost of Christmas Future.
“Do you think Del is nuts?” Ry asked her.
“Who said that?” asked Beth.
“Pete,” said Ry.
Beth snorted. “I guess he should know, right?”
“Not exactly,” said Ry. “He said that Del marches to the beat of a harmonica.”
Beth tilted her head back and let out a “Ha!”
“Okay,” she said. “That I’ll buy. That’s actually pretty good.”
Ry told her how he had heard Del’s idea through the kitchen window. And how he didn’t know what to think about it.
“Are you worried?” she asked. “Because you don’t need to be.” She seemed about to go on, to say something more, when Del approached and said, “Worried? What are you worried about?”
Flustered, Ry said, “I’m worried about my grandpa. How he’s not answering the phone.”
“Let’s go find out what’s going on,” said Del.
“I already told him about your idea,” said Beth. Just to keep things simple.
“What if something happened to him?” said Ry. “What if—?”
“Then we would have to go find your parents,” said Del.
Ry looked at him. Trying to tell if Del was serious. He couldn’t tell.
“I don’t even know exactly where they are,” he said. “There are, like, a thousand islands down there. And I don’t have any money. It would be impossible.”
“Uh-oh,” said Beth. “Those are magic words to Del. But I don’t think even you can drive to a Caribbean island, Del.”
“We’d have to get to San Juan,” said Del. “Then we’d have to borrow a boat.”
“San Juan,” said Beth. “Hmm…isn’t that where Yulia lives?”
“It’s just a hypothetical situation,” said Del. “It’s pretty unlikely that it would ever actually come up.”
Maybe that piece of the conversation made driving to Wisconsin seem completely reasonable. Because then the talk went from whether they should go, to which vehicle they should take. Not the double-decker; there were only two of them. Del decided on a Willys. He had two. They were really old Jeep station wagons. He had modified them in a number of ways, one being that he made them longer in the back, so that two sleeping bags could fit there, stretched out full length. And he decided that, if they were going, they might as well get started. Before Ry knew it, Del had thrown the sleeping bags in and they were saying good-bye.
Beth took Ry’s head between her hands and kissed him on each cheek. She was that kind of person. She also gave him a little peck on his bruised eyebrow.
“Makes you look like a tough customer,” she said. Then she took his right hand in both of hers and shook it.
“Don’t worry,” she said, still holding on. “I’m betting everyone is fine. I bet it’s just a
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