Read Online Skating with the Statue of Liberty by Susan Lynn Meyer - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Susan Lynn Meyer
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the table all started talking about Martha and girls and kissing. Leo looked annoyed. After a moment he thwacked Gustave’s leg and said, “Hey, Gus, I’ve been meaning to ask you. Why do you wear those dumb pants?”
His voice was mocking, and after he spoke, the boys all looked at Gustave’s legs. He pulled his feet under him. “French,” he said curtly.
“Sharp!” Leo sneered. “Or should I say
chic
?”
“I am surprise you know a French word,” Gustave said.
Miles jabbed Leo with his elbow and laughed good-naturedly. Leo ignored him and stood up, pulling his own pants up as far as they would go. He waddled around the table like Charlie Chaplin. “Look at me!” he said. “I’m wearing those dopey French pants. Aren’t I the cat’s meow?”
“Ooh la-la! The cat’s meow!” another boy jeered, looking at Gustave. A lot of the other boys made cat noises. Gustave reddened angrily and looked away.
Miles put down his sandwich. “Want to play Battleship?” he asked Frank with his mouth full, getting out graph paper. “Gus, it’s a two-person game. Watch, and next time you can play.” Gustave turned his back on Leo, observing the game. He had played something very similar in France.
Miles and Frank each had two pieces of graph paper. On each page, they numbered one axis and put letters on the other. Then each boy drew the outlines of ships on one piece of graph paper, keeping that piece hidden behind a propped-up book so that the other boy couldn’t see.
“B six,” Frank called out.
Miles ran his finger up to B and across to 6. It intersected with a ship he had drawn on the graph paper. “Hit!” he said sadly.
“Take that, you swine!” Frank shouted, marking an X at B6 on his blank piece of graph paper, which he had labeled
Miles’s ships
.
“Hey! I’m not the enemy, you are!” Miles said indignantly.
A few minutes later Frank glanced at his watch and got up, stumbling over his schoolbag. “I forgot. I’m supposed to go pick up an extra assignment from the math teacher. See you, fellas. Want to take over for me?” He pointed at his empty seat.
Gustave concentrated on the game. After he had sunkthree of Miles’s ships, Miles jumped up. “You win! I’m getting some of that prune pudding before they close.” He hurried to the cafeteria line. A minute or two later, Leo said something to Gustave loudly, as if he had said it before. Gustave looked up, startled.
“I
said
, do you want to learn some American, Frenchie? Want to learn what to say to an American girl?”
Gustave shrugged.
“They like you to tease them, see? So if the girls come over today, I’ll help you. I’ll say the name of some film star. Who do you think is hot stuff? Hedy Lamarr?”
That was the film star that Martha had named in geography class. “No!”
“Okay, so she’s not your type. How about Rita Hayworth? So I say, ‘Hey, Gus, how about Rita Hayworth?’ And you go like this.”
Leo let out a long, slow wolf whistle, his hands curving in and out in the shape of a woman’s body.
“You got it? Do it!”
Embarrassed, Gustave imitated what Leo had done.
“Swell!” Leo’s eyes gleamed. Then I’ll say, ‘So, Gus, how about
Martha
?’ And you say,
‘Flat!’
That means she’s pretty, like Rita Hayworth. Got it?”
Stifled laughter came from some of the boys.
“She’ll love that, Gus!” Leo insisted. “Try saying it. Come on!”
Gustave muttered it quickly, and there was more laughter. Gustave didn’t understand everything Leo was saying, and he didn’t know the word Leo was telling him to repeat, but something was definitely off.
“Great, Frenchie!” Leo reached over and slapped him on the shoulder. “The American girls are gonna love you!”
The boy next to Leo jabbed him with his elbow and muttered something that sounded like an objection, but Leo just grinned.
The table suddenly quieted. “Hey, here they come!” Leo said, smoothing his hair across his forehead. Gustave
His voice was mocking, and after he spoke, the boys all looked at Gustave’s legs. He pulled his feet under him. “French,” he said curtly.
“Sharp!” Leo sneered. “Or should I say
chic
?”
“I am surprise you know a French word,” Gustave said.
Miles jabbed Leo with his elbow and laughed good-naturedly. Leo ignored him and stood up, pulling his own pants up as far as they would go. He waddled around the table like Charlie Chaplin. “Look at me!” he said. “I’m wearing those dopey French pants. Aren’t I the cat’s meow?”
“Ooh la-la! The cat’s meow!” another boy jeered, looking at Gustave. A lot of the other boys made cat noises. Gustave reddened angrily and looked away.
Miles put down his sandwich. “Want to play Battleship?” he asked Frank with his mouth full, getting out graph paper. “Gus, it’s a two-person game. Watch, and next time you can play.” Gustave turned his back on Leo, observing the game. He had played something very similar in France.
Miles and Frank each had two pieces of graph paper. On each page, they numbered one axis and put letters on the other. Then each boy drew the outlines of ships on one piece of graph paper, keeping that piece hidden behind a propped-up book so that the other boy couldn’t see.
“B six,” Frank called out.
Miles ran his finger up to B and across to 6. It intersected with a ship he had drawn on the graph paper. “Hit!” he said sadly.
“Take that, you swine!” Frank shouted, marking an X at B6 on his blank piece of graph paper, which he had labeled
Miles’s ships
.
“Hey! I’m not the enemy, you are!” Miles said indignantly.
A few minutes later Frank glanced at his watch and got up, stumbling over his schoolbag. “I forgot. I’m supposed to go pick up an extra assignment from the math teacher. See you, fellas. Want to take over for me?” He pointed at his empty seat.
Gustave concentrated on the game. After he had sunkthree of Miles’s ships, Miles jumped up. “You win! I’m getting some of that prune pudding before they close.” He hurried to the cafeteria line. A minute or two later, Leo said something to Gustave loudly, as if he had said it before. Gustave looked up, startled.
“I
said
, do you want to learn some American, Frenchie? Want to learn what to say to an American girl?”
Gustave shrugged.
“They like you to tease them, see? So if the girls come over today, I’ll help you. I’ll say the name of some film star. Who do you think is hot stuff? Hedy Lamarr?”
That was the film star that Martha had named in geography class. “No!”
“Okay, so she’s not your type. How about Rita Hayworth? So I say, ‘Hey, Gus, how about Rita Hayworth?’ And you go like this.”
Leo let out a long, slow wolf whistle, his hands curving in and out in the shape of a woman’s body.
“You got it? Do it!”
Embarrassed, Gustave imitated what Leo had done.
“Swell!” Leo’s eyes gleamed. Then I’ll say, ‘So, Gus, how about
Martha
?’ And you say,
‘Flat!’
That means she’s pretty, like Rita Hayworth. Got it?”
Stifled laughter came from some of the boys.
“She’ll love that, Gus!” Leo insisted. “Try saying it. Come on!”
Gustave muttered it quickly, and there was more laughter. Gustave didn’t understand everything Leo was saying, and he didn’t know the word Leo was telling him to repeat, but something was definitely off.
“Great, Frenchie!” Leo reached over and slapped him on the shoulder. “The American girls are gonna love you!”
The boy next to Leo jabbed him with his elbow and muttered something that sounded like an objection, but Leo just grinned.
The table suddenly quieted. “Hey, here they come!” Leo said, smoothing his hair across his forehead. Gustave
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