Philip and the Girl Who Couldn't Lose (9781619501072) Read Free Page B

did.”
    The boys sat quietly for a moment before Emery said,
“Did you see her playing ball at lunch today?”
    “Some.”
    Emery went on. “Ryan didn’t want her to play at all
because she’s a girl. Then he let her play and picked her last. At
least I wasn’t picked last for once. Did you see what she did?”
    “Some.”
    “She hit two home runs. Ryan only hit one. I’m glad.
Ryan always thinks he’s so big. I don’t think she ever loses at
anything. If you didn’t tackle me, though, we could have beaten her
at football.”
    Philip glared at Emery, but gave up on explaining how
he hadn’t tackled him.
    Emery noticed Philip wasn’t doing much
talking. He asked, “Where did you go at lunch today? First, you
were next to me, then you weren’t. I thought you wanted to play
punch ball.”
    Philip didn’t know what to say.
He had planned to play punch
ball until he saw Jeanne join the crowd. She noticed him and gave
him a look that made him feel miserable. Philip was afraid Jeanne
would mention yesterday’s football game, and he’d much rather the
game be forgotten. So he’d quietly moved off with another group of
children he didn’t even know to get away from the children he did
know. He stood at the far end of the schoolyard and watched the
game. He’d seen Jeanne’s performance, and he’d seen Jeanne’s two
home runs, which were two more than he had ever hit during
lunchtime games.
    “ You’re not any fun today,” said Emery.
“And you weren’t yesterday. You want to play a game or
something?”
    “ I’ll play a game if you can think of
one we can beat Jeanne at.”
    “ She’s not here.”
    “ It’s no fun beating you.”
    “ Beating me? Who says you can beat me?
Tell me the last time you beat me at something.”
    Philip racked his brain, but couldn’t
remember the last time.
    “ Philip, if you’re not going to talk to
me, why did you come over here?”
    “ I’ll talk to you,” said
Philip.
    “ Well?” said Emery. “What’ll we talk
about?”
    “ Let’s talk about something we can beat
that girl at.”
    Emery frowned. “She’s better at football and
punch ball. She runs faster than us. She keeps calling me Emily. I
don’t want to talk about her. I’m going in to watch cartoons.
You’re no fun.”
    Emery got up and walked away. Philip watched
him climb the three steps to his back door, expecting Emery to
invite him inside. Emery turned to him, and Philip rose to follow
him, but all Emery said was, “I’ll see you for school tomorrow.”
Emery went inside his house, and Philip walked slowly home.
     
     

Chapter Seven
     
    One evening later in the week, Philip’s father came
up to his room after dinner. Philip had finished his homework and
lay in bed wondering how to fill up the rest of his night. It had
rained the past two days so there were no schoolyard games during
lunch, and Jeanne had mostly faded from his mind.
    “ Hey, Flipper, want to take a ride with
me?”
    “ Where to, Dad?”
    “ Down to the mall. I have to get some
paint for the basement walls. I have an exciting weekend planned
for myself.”
    “ Can I play a few of the video games in
the arcade?”
    “ I don’t see why not. Four quarters
enough?”
    “ And buy some candy at the Chocolate
Shop?”
    “ How many more conditions are you going
to set before you accompany your beloved father on an
excursion?”
    Philip smiled.
    His father sighed. “I suppose we can stop at
the Chocolate Shop.”
    Philip hopped down from his bed. “What are
you waiting for?”
    On the short drive to the mall, Philip’s father told
him what he’d done at work that day. Philip didn’t understand all
of it, but he liked it when his father talked to him as if he were
a grown-up.
    “ Tell me about your day,” his father
said at last.
    Philip didn’t want to talk much about it.
Emery had beaten him in the spelling test by one word—ninety-five
per cent to ninety percent—and all because he’d lost his lucky
green