The Tracks by Sally Royer-Derr (little readers TXT) 📕

But Tommy was skinny. I would share what I had with him, which wasn’t much. I moved quickly through the woods, snagging my backpack on a sticker bush. I pulled it and swore when the material ripped. Stupid bush!

I hurried down to the tracks. Tommy wasn’t there. Odd. He was always there before me. Maybe he got hung up with something at school. I dug into my shorts pocket and retrieved a ponytail holder. The back of my neck was sweating. I scooped up my hair in a high pony on top of my head to get it as far away from my neck as possible. A couple stubborn dark wisps tickled the side of my face. There were always a few that refused to cooperate.

I looked behind me to see if Tommy was sneaking up on me. He did that last week, and I’d screamed so loud. He said I screamed like a girl. Well, duh. I was a girl. He wasn’t behind me, or in front of me. I sighed. Maybe he was busy today. Disappointment raced through me. Coming here by myself was one of my favorite things to do. But I liked hanging out with Tommy. He was the only friend I had here. I guessed that wasn’t true. I had some friends, but I felt different around Tommy. I felt like I could tell him anything. I trusted him.

Sticking out my arms, I closed my eyes and placed one foot in front of the other on the track like a balance beam. The sun beat on the back of my bare legs, its heat propelling me forward. One time I was walking just like this, with my eyes closed, and the track had rumbled beneath my feet. My eyes had flown open to see a train coming toward me in the distance. A real train barreling in my direction. I jumped off the track and landed on the rocky ground close by. In a few moments, the train flew past me, its intensity blowing my hair back, plastering it to my head. I could barely breathe as I felt the tremendous power in front of me. I was grateful to have heard that rumbling. But it didn’t stop me from following the tracks in my self-imposed darkness.

I opened my eyes and saw Tommy. He sat on top of the Millers’ white fence a few yards away. He waved, a slow grin spreading across his slightly tanned face. He was here.

Hopping off the metal track, I moved over to where he sat. “Hey.” I climbed up the fence and perched at the top next to him.

“Why’d you bring that today?” He motioned toward my backpack. “More drawing?”

“No.” I pulled out the sodas and crackers. “I thought we might like to have a snack.”

Tommy nodded. “Cool. Thanks.” He popped open a soda and yelped when it fizzed up over his hand. He looked at me, his eyes full of amusement. “Oh, nice joke. I didn’t even see it coming.”

“I didn’t…” I told my brother not to touch the two sodas in the fridge because I was taking them for me and my friend. Stupid me. He must have shaken them up before he left for work. Or, maybe they got bumped as I walked. I preferred to blame Sam. I shrugged. “My dumb brother, Sam.”

“That’s why I’m glad I’m an only child.” Tommy wiped the wet foam on his shirt. “Doesn’t matter. There’s still some left. Be careful with yours.”

I popped the tab and held the can of soda far away from me. When it stopped foaming, I took a sip. Its sweetness trickled down my parched throat. I tore open the white cellophane wrapper, and we munched on the crackers.

“I want to show you something today,” Tommy said. “I think you’ll like it.”

“Okay, show me.”

“I don’t have it with me. We’ll have to go farther into the woods.”

Curiosity bubbled inside me. I was one who couldn’t wait for surprises. At Christmastime, I’d always find my presents, unwrap them, and rewrap them before my parents noticed. I’d been doing that since I was seven. Wasn’t too difficult. They always hid them in the same place. In their bedroom closet under a pile of coats.

I had no clue what he wanted to show me. But I did know I wanted to see it. Now.

“Let’s go.” I jumped off the fence, brushing cracker crumbs off my shirt. “I’m ready.”

“Okay.” Tommy joined me on the ground. “We’ll have to go farther down the tracks. Into the woods where it gets thicker. Near the stream.”

“A stream?” I asked. “I didn’t even know there was a stream. How far is it?”

“Maybe a twenty-minute walk.” Tommy ran a hand through his sun-streaked hair. His bangs fell long on his forehead, grazing his brow bone, just above his eyes. “It’ll be worth it. I promise.”

“I guess,” I said. If he said it was an hour walk, I’d have gone. Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it made me get up and move.

We walked. I drained the last of my soda and put the empty can in my backpack. The warm afternoon sun continued to beat down on us, and I wished I’d brought another drink along.

“We should ride bikes together sometime,” I suggested, breaking the silence between us.

“Nah.” Tommy shook his head. “I don’t ride bikes anymore.”

“Why?”

“My bike’s broken.”

“Aren’t you going to fix it?”

“No,” he said. “I’d rather walk.”

I was surprised by his answer. I would have thought an adventurous kid like him would like to ride a bike. I was wrong. I looked at him. “That’s kind of weird.”

“Not really.”

“Well, if my bike was broke, I’d fix it.”

“That’s you, Emily. Not me.”

“I guess.”

We were in the woods now. Green, leafy trees