Read Online Sammy Keyes and the Art of Deception by Wendelin Van Draanen - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Wendelin Van Draanen
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at the Vault, the more it seemed like that whole scene had been living theater, too.
An act.
Where some people were actors and some were just there.
Me, I'd been like the washerwoman.
Only I hadn't exactly used a fish.
And the truth is, I didn't like being a part of the act. My mother's into acting, I'm not. What did I care who the Squirt Gun Bandit was or why he'd crashed in on the reception? I felt like I'd been dropped into the middle of a soap opera.
I just wanted to get off the stage.
SEVEN
I didn't run into Casey again at the Faire. Or Heather. And Marissa looked for Danny all afternoon, but she never saw him, either.
What we
did
see a lot of was art. No sloppy splotters or modern stuff like that, but there were a few booths selling Southwest art, sort of like Austin Zuni's. Indians and buffaloes at a Renaissance Faire seemed pretty out of place though. Even more so than the Star Trek booth we saw.
Marissa found a picture of a princess at a wishing well that she really liked, but I didn't see anything that did anything for me. Not like
Whispers
had, anyway.
I tried to talk to some of the artists about their work, but mostly they told me about
how
they painted or sculpted or cut things out of wood. When I asked what masters they'd studied or admired or what they were thinking about when they made a certain piece, they didn't seem to have much to say. It was weird—like they were bored. Miss Kuzkowski had told us to go out and feel art, but how was I supposed to do that when the artists were acting like they didn't really feel it themselves?
Anyway, we spent so much time at the Faire that it was pretty late by the time Marissa and I got back to whereshe'd locked her bike near the Senior Highrise. And since I didn't think it was too hot of an idea for us both to go back up the fire escape, I asked how she wanted to work getting her stuff back.
“Can you bring the costume and my other clothes to school on Monday?”
“Yeah, but how are you going to ride your bike in that dress?”
“Watch me,” she said, swinging her leg over.
Now, she was trying to sound cheerful, but I could tell that she was feeling pretty bummed. So I said, “I'm sorry you didn't meet up with Danny.”
She shrugged. “No big deal.”
“Liar.”
She shook her head and said, “I was being an idiot, huh?”
Now, what I was thinking was, No kidding! but what I
said
was, “You were just excited.”
She scowled at me. “You have no idea how lucky you are.”
I knew where she was going with this, so I said, “Don't even start with that again, okay?”
“Guys like Casey don't come around every day, you know.”
“I
said
—”
“I know, I know.” She crammed big folds of the skirt under her legs. “And no, I won't tell anyone about …,” she leans over and whispers, “the kiss!”
Before I can punch her, she laughs, “Hee-hee!” and pedals off with a wave.
I watched her until she was out of sight, then headed for home. And when I slipped through the apartment door, the first thing I noticed was a great big bouquet of flowers on the coffee table, and a great big frown on my grams' face.
“Wow!” I whispered, because I don't think our apartment had ever seen fresh flowers before.
Grams was on the couch with her arms crossed, just staring at them. “They refuse to take them back.”
“Uh-oh,” I said, sitting beside her. “I take it they're from Hudson?”
“What a ridiculous waste of money!”
“Is that why you're mad? Because he spent a lot of money?”
“Yes!” She crossed her arms tighter. “No! I'm mad because he thinks he can bribe me into
not
feeling mad.”
I put my arm around her. “Grams, you're being kinda stubborn, don't you think?”
“No! No, I am not!” She looked at me, her eyes all big and flashing. “I didn't
want
to meet him for lunch, but I did. I didn't
want
to hear him out, but again, I did. Do you call that being stubborn?”
“Noooo.”
“But just when I was starting
An act.
Where some people were actors and some were just there.
Me, I'd been like the washerwoman.
Only I hadn't exactly used a fish.
And the truth is, I didn't like being a part of the act. My mother's into acting, I'm not. What did I care who the Squirt Gun Bandit was or why he'd crashed in on the reception? I felt like I'd been dropped into the middle of a soap opera.
I just wanted to get off the stage.
SEVEN
I didn't run into Casey again at the Faire. Or Heather. And Marissa looked for Danny all afternoon, but she never saw him, either.
What we
did
see a lot of was art. No sloppy splotters or modern stuff like that, but there were a few booths selling Southwest art, sort of like Austin Zuni's. Indians and buffaloes at a Renaissance Faire seemed pretty out of place though. Even more so than the Star Trek booth we saw.
Marissa found a picture of a princess at a wishing well that she really liked, but I didn't see anything that did anything for me. Not like
Whispers
had, anyway.
I tried to talk to some of the artists about their work, but mostly they told me about
how
they painted or sculpted or cut things out of wood. When I asked what masters they'd studied or admired or what they were thinking about when they made a certain piece, they didn't seem to have much to say. It was weird—like they were bored. Miss Kuzkowski had told us to go out and feel art, but how was I supposed to do that when the artists were acting like they didn't really feel it themselves?
Anyway, we spent so much time at the Faire that it was pretty late by the time Marissa and I got back to whereshe'd locked her bike near the Senior Highrise. And since I didn't think it was too hot of an idea for us both to go back up the fire escape, I asked how she wanted to work getting her stuff back.
“Can you bring the costume and my other clothes to school on Monday?”
“Yeah, but how are you going to ride your bike in that dress?”
“Watch me,” she said, swinging her leg over.
Now, she was trying to sound cheerful, but I could tell that she was feeling pretty bummed. So I said, “I'm sorry you didn't meet up with Danny.”
She shrugged. “No big deal.”
“Liar.”
She shook her head and said, “I was being an idiot, huh?”
Now, what I was thinking was, No kidding! but what I
said
was, “You were just excited.”
She scowled at me. “You have no idea how lucky you are.”
I knew where she was going with this, so I said, “Don't even start with that again, okay?”
“Guys like Casey don't come around every day, you know.”
“I
said
—”
“I know, I know.” She crammed big folds of the skirt under her legs. “And no, I won't tell anyone about …,” she leans over and whispers, “the kiss!”
Before I can punch her, she laughs, “Hee-hee!” and pedals off with a wave.
I watched her until she was out of sight, then headed for home. And when I slipped through the apartment door, the first thing I noticed was a great big bouquet of flowers on the coffee table, and a great big frown on my grams' face.
“Wow!” I whispered, because I don't think our apartment had ever seen fresh flowers before.
Grams was on the couch with her arms crossed, just staring at them. “They refuse to take them back.”
“Uh-oh,” I said, sitting beside her. “I take it they're from Hudson?”
“What a ridiculous waste of money!”
“Is that why you're mad? Because he spent a lot of money?”
“Yes!” She crossed her arms tighter. “No! I'm mad because he thinks he can bribe me into
not
feeling mad.”
I put my arm around her. “Grams, you're being kinda stubborn, don't you think?”
“No! No, I am not!” She looked at me, her eyes all big and flashing. “I didn't
want
to meet him for lunch, but I did. I didn't
want
to hear him out, but again, I did. Do you call that being stubborn?”
“Noooo.”
“But just when I was starting
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