Young Scrooge Read Free Page A

pencil and leaned toward me over her desk. “Responsible for him?”
    I nodded. “You know my dad died last year. And Mom … well … One day she took me aside. And she said, ‘You’re the man now, Rick. I want you to take care of Charlie. From now on, I want you to look after Charlie and be responsible for him.’”
    Miss Dorrit didn’t say anything for a long moment. She just kept her eyes on me. She appeared to be thinking hard. “So you don’t play tricks on Charlie or push him around or give him a hard time?”
    â€œNo,” I said. “Well … not too often.”
    That made her smile. But the smile didn’t last long. “Did you ever think of treating the other kids you know, the kids here in school, the way you treat Charlie?”
    â€œNo,” I answered. “Never.”
    She blinked. “But wouldn’t it be better if you treated your friends the way you treat your little brother?”
    I shrugged. “I like to have fun,” I said. “I like to goof on people. You know. Joke around.”
    Miss Dorrit tugged at her ponytail. “Rick, what if your brother had a bad stuttering problem?” she said. “Would you make fun of him?”
    â€œMy brother doesn’t have a stuttering problem,” I said.
    She sighed. “I know. But what if ?”
    â€œI don’t know,” I said. “It’s pretty funny to imitate it. I probably couldn’t resist.”
    She narrowed her eyes at me. “You couldn’t resist making fun of a stuttering person because…?”
    â€œBecause it’s funny. I like to be funny and make people laugh. My dad always said I had a good sense of humor.”
    â€œBut what if your humor makes someone cry ?” she said.
    I shook my head. “I don’t get it. Why would someone cry at a joke?”
    Miss Dorrit sat back in her seat. She started tapping the pencil on her desk again. “Rick, I don’t think I’m getting through to you.”
    â€œSo can I go?” I started to stand up.
    â€œNo. Sit down. We need to finish this. I need to make you understand.”
    I dropped back onto the chair with a groan. “You want me to apologize to Josh?” I said. “Okay. I’ll go get him. I locked him in his locker. I’ll go pull him out and apologize.”
    Miss Dorrit jumped to her feet. “You what ? You locked him in his locker?”
    I nodded. “Yeah. It just kind of happened.” I couldn’t keep a smile from creeping across my face.
    She ran out of the room. I could hear her out in the hall rescuing Josh. When she came back into the room, she was breathing hard.
    â€œThis is just what I was talking about,” she said. “This is what I’m trying to get you to realize, Rick. A lot of kids don’t think you’re funny. They think you’re really mean.”
    That word mean echoed in my ear.
    â€œHuh, me?” I said. I couldn’t keep the surprise from my voice. “Me? Mean? Because I like to kid around?”
    Miss Dorrit settled back in her chair. “There are some things you need to learn, Rick. You tried out for a part in Mr. Pickwick’s Christmas play, remember?”
    â€œYes, and I was the best actor there,” I said. “The others who tried out were total wimps who muttered onto their chins.”
    She locked her green eyes on me. “Well, don’t you wonder why you didn’t get a part? Don’t you wonder why Mr. Pickwick made you the stage manager instead of letting you act?”
    I returned her stare. “Because he’s a jerk?”
    She groaned. “Rick, it really isn’t a good idea to call your teachers names. Especially in front of another teacher.” She shifted in her chair. I don’t think she was enjoying our talk. I know I wasn’t enjoying it.
    â€œRick, you didn’t get a part in the play because the other kids