Read Online Earthman Jack vs. The Ghost Planet by Matthew Kadish - Free Book Online
Authors: Matthew Kadish
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fight?”
“I didn’t want Anna to get punished,” said Jack.
“And did you get what you wanted?”
Jack was quiet for a moment. “Yeah,” he said, suddenly
impressed.
“There you go,” said Shepherd.
“But the detention–” said Jack.
“Consequences of your actions,” replied Shepherd. “There
will be consequences for everything you do. Always. But it’s how you deal
with those consequences that matter. Will you allow them to take over your
life? Play the victim to them? Or will you take more action, and use them as
an opportunity to get more of what you want?”
For the life of him, Jack couldn’t imagine how he could use
detention to get something he wanted. But despite all that, for some reason, a
lot of what Mr. Shepherd was saying started to make sense.
Jack looked up and met Shepherd’s gaze. Suddenly, his cold
stare didn’t seem so menacing anymore. It was almost as though he were looking into Jack, and could tell what he was thinking. And in that strange
moment – it felt like the two of them had reached some kind of understanding
about each other.
After a second or two of silence, Shepherd got up and walked
to his desk. He took a notebook out of his drawer, sat down, opened it, and
began to scribble.
“Time’s up,” he said. “You may go.”
Jack glanced up at the clock above the classroom door. He’d
only been in detention for, at most, ten minutes – not even close to the full
time. He looked back at Shepherd, confused.
“Unless,” said Shepherd, noticing the look on Jack’s face,
“you want to stay longer?”
“Nope!” said Jack, hopping up and heading for the door. He
wanted to get out of there before Shepherd overcame his sudden generous mood.
He was halfway out of the room when Shepherd’s voice rang out again.
“Jack…”
Jack turned, afraid Shepherd had changed his mind. But
instead, he said:
“Try and stay out of trouble. Or you’ll come to realize
some consequences are far worse than others.”
Chapter 6
Because River Heights was not a very
big town, there were not many options available for young teens when it came to
a popular Earth custom known as “hanging out.” Most shops were limited to the
bare necessities – grocery stores, hardware stores, and restaurants. The
closest mall was a 30-minute drive into the neighboring town of Whitecreek, and
for kids without a car, that meant it was unreachable without parental help.
That made the school the unofficial social spot after
classes had ended. Most kids enjoyed joining various clubs or sports teams as
a way to socialize with their friends. And though Jack might have been curious
about possibly playing on the soccer team or maybe even joining the school band
to learn an instrument, the idea of staying at school any longer than he
absolutely had to just did not appeal to him.
That is where Big Jim’s Pizza Palace came in.
Big Jim’s was a worn-down one-story building directly across
the street from the high school. Its décor was gaudy, its sanitation was
questionable, and its pizza was – even by high school standards - bad. But it
had the distinct advantage of being close, which was probably the only reason
the place was still in business at all.
Indeed, Big Jim’s was the de-facto hang out for most of the
student body. After the final bell rang, it was off to Jim’s to shoot some
pool, grab a bite to eat, or just sit around and do homework at someplace that
wasn’t home.
Because both Matt and Chunk didn’t live too far away from
Jack, they usually waited for him at the pizza shop until he was out of
detention so he wouldn’t have to make the trek back to Eagle Hill alone. When
Jack entered the joint a full hour and fifteen minutes early, he fully expected
them to be surprised.
Jack scanned the room looking for his friends. The walls of
the place were covered with a faux wood paneling, which must have passed for
fancy sometime
“I didn’t want Anna to get punished,” said Jack.
“And did you get what you wanted?”
Jack was quiet for a moment. “Yeah,” he said, suddenly
impressed.
“There you go,” said Shepherd.
“But the detention–” said Jack.
“Consequences of your actions,” replied Shepherd. “There
will be consequences for everything you do. Always. But it’s how you deal
with those consequences that matter. Will you allow them to take over your
life? Play the victim to them? Or will you take more action, and use them as
an opportunity to get more of what you want?”
For the life of him, Jack couldn’t imagine how he could use
detention to get something he wanted. But despite all that, for some reason, a
lot of what Mr. Shepherd was saying started to make sense.
Jack looked up and met Shepherd’s gaze. Suddenly, his cold
stare didn’t seem so menacing anymore. It was almost as though he were looking into Jack, and could tell what he was thinking. And in that strange
moment – it felt like the two of them had reached some kind of understanding
about each other.
After a second or two of silence, Shepherd got up and walked
to his desk. He took a notebook out of his drawer, sat down, opened it, and
began to scribble.
“Time’s up,” he said. “You may go.”
Jack glanced up at the clock above the classroom door. He’d
only been in detention for, at most, ten minutes – not even close to the full
time. He looked back at Shepherd, confused.
“Unless,” said Shepherd, noticing the look on Jack’s face,
“you want to stay longer?”
“Nope!” said Jack, hopping up and heading for the door. He
wanted to get out of there before Shepherd overcame his sudden generous mood.
He was halfway out of the room when Shepherd’s voice rang out again.
“Jack…”
Jack turned, afraid Shepherd had changed his mind. But
instead, he said:
“Try and stay out of trouble. Or you’ll come to realize
some consequences are far worse than others.”
Chapter 6
Because River Heights was not a very
big town, there were not many options available for young teens when it came to
a popular Earth custom known as “hanging out.” Most shops were limited to the
bare necessities – grocery stores, hardware stores, and restaurants. The
closest mall was a 30-minute drive into the neighboring town of Whitecreek, and
for kids without a car, that meant it was unreachable without parental help.
That made the school the unofficial social spot after
classes had ended. Most kids enjoyed joining various clubs or sports teams as
a way to socialize with their friends. And though Jack might have been curious
about possibly playing on the soccer team or maybe even joining the school band
to learn an instrument, the idea of staying at school any longer than he
absolutely had to just did not appeal to him.
That is where Big Jim’s Pizza Palace came in.
Big Jim’s was a worn-down one-story building directly across
the street from the high school. Its décor was gaudy, its sanitation was
questionable, and its pizza was – even by high school standards - bad. But it
had the distinct advantage of being close, which was probably the only reason
the place was still in business at all.
Indeed, Big Jim’s was the de-facto hang out for most of the
student body. After the final bell rang, it was off to Jim’s to shoot some
pool, grab a bite to eat, or just sit around and do homework at someplace that
wasn’t home.
Because both Matt and Chunk didn’t live too far away from
Jack, they usually waited for him at the pizza shop until he was out of
detention so he wouldn’t have to make the trek back to Eagle Hill alone. When
Jack entered the joint a full hour and fifteen minutes early, he fully expected
them to be surprised.
Jack scanned the room looking for his friends. The walls of
the place were covered with a faux wood paneling, which must have passed for
fancy sometime
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