Chapter Four - Required Reading

It was Friday and I was laying on my bed on my stomach staring at the tablet I had been able to sneak out of Dad’s office. It only had minimal scratches from the few times it slipped out of my hands in the past. My feet were swinging in the air in excitement since I was watching one of my favorite movies ‘The Land Before Time’. I loved all of them, but the earlier ones were my favorite. I had my head perched on my hands and I recited the character’s lines before they even got to them. Mom and Dad told me I had until the end of summer to prepare for Grade Six and that I had a lot of catching up to do. So far we have moved twice this year, once in January and again a few weeks ago to Canada. All my classes were jumbled up and I didn’t even go to school in June. Mom and Dad had given me reams of homework, reading and assignments I was supposed to do over the summer. I hated regular homework, who wants to do homework during the summer?

My ears perked up as I heard, the door quickly swung open - my door never seemed to latch properly and would open at the slightest draught. This time however, Mom was standing right there! My feet stopped mid swing as my movie played in the background on the tablet propped up on a pillow.

“Um, hi.” I squeaked. I had been caught red handed. Worse, I had actually convinced my mom I would catch up on the readings today.

Mom furrowed her brow. “Um, hi!” She imitated, in her high accusatory pitch.

We stared at each other - the tension would have been building if it wasn’t for the cartoon dinosaurs nagging for my attention. I quickly tapped the screen to pause my movie and gave her a smile, hoping to soften whatever punishment was crossing her mind.

Mom crossed her arms and stared at me on the bed, my legs still frozen in place. “Are you finished reading?” She asked, getting right to the point.

“Not yet.” I admitted, defeated. I dropped my legs onto the bed. “I was just going to after my movie.” I bargained.

Mom glanced at the tablet and rolled her eyes when she saw the movie title now prominently displayed on the pause screen. She stepped into the room and picked it up. “I thought you weren’t supposed to have this?” She asked, making my face turn a light pink. She slipped the tablet underneath her arms, putting down a small bag she had been holding. “If I recall you dropped it down the stairs.” She remarked, running her finger over a prominent scratch on the back of it. “Besides, how many times have you watched this movie?”

I rolled over and kicked my legs off the bed, sitting up to look at Mom, and shrugged. “I don’t know.” I stated. Could you really watch your favorite movie too many times?

Mom sighed and pointed to my desk. It was the first thing they’d unpacked for me when we moved here. “Work on your reading because we’re going out later.” She informed me.

That piqued my interest. Now that I thought about it, both Mom and Dad were home today. I knew that Dad usually had to be on site on Fridays. He was an Architect, which I had always thought was a pretty cool job, but it was why we were always on the move. He worked for a big international company, and they always wanted him around to supervise whatever project he was working on. “Where are we going?” I asked curiously.

“It’s a holiday today.” She said, her tone changing to a chipper upbeat lilt and her lips lifting to a bright smile. “Canada Day!”

“What’s that?” I questioned. It sounded familiar though, and I’d noticed an awful lot of Canada themed decorations around the small town.

“I’ll explain later. For now, hop to it!” Mom instructed, waiting for me to trod over to my desk. She reached into a bag she had been holding before and produced a stuffed fluffy beaver. She placed it on the desk in front of the pile of homework I had. “Just a gift for Canada Day.” She told me. “He can keep you company while you study!”

Ever since I’d joined the Beaver Scouts, Mom had taken to the beaver like it was my favorite animal! She was always finding some reason to add another babyish feature to my room’s already childish decor. “Thanks…” I said softly, eyeing the beaver’s goofy two toothed smile.

Mom nodded, clearly pleased with her gift, and ruffled my hair. Then she left me to my studies, closing the door firmly behind her.

I looked at the bookmarked black book depicting an old man on the cover. It had to be the most boring book I had ever read! I flipped it open and had hardly read a couple of paragraphs before I started absentmindedly looking around the room, letting out a disgruntled sigh. Why did mom have to take the tablet away? The film was almost done! Now I was stuck with a horrible feeling of incompleteness, like I had an itch I couldn’t scratch. Still, it wasn’t like I didn’t know how it ended. I was practically obsessed with that film - I could probably act out the rest line for line!

I frowned, my wandering mind stumbling upon a bad memory. Just two weeks ago, the family that lived next door - the Warrens - had invited us around to their house for a welcome barbeque. I’d been pretty shy, still pretty shaken up about the whole incident with the Beaver Scouts, but eventually Dad had told me off for being clingy and sent me to hangout on a rusty old swing set with the neighbor boy - Bradley. “You boys are around the same age.” he’d observed sipping casually on his beer as he laughed and joked with Mr Warren “Why don’t you go play?”

At first, I’d stayed pretty quiet. Bradley was ten or so as well I guessed, but he was much bigger than me - his stocky frame towering above my itty-bitty form. Although his short cropped black hair and steely gray eyes were plenty menacing, I soon discovered that Bradley was actually pretty nice. I broke out of my shell as we prattled on about Pokemon and Duck Tales; and since I’d watched it again only that afternoon I made sure to tell him plenty of details about The Land Before Time. That’s when he’d said it - seven words that sounded like seven ominous gunshots in my ears: “I think I’m too old for that.”

Punctured like a balloon, my face had fallen at once. Too old? If he was too old, then what did that make me? Clearly, Bradley had assumed I was just a little kid - just like Taylor and the kids at the Beavers. I’d been devastated, barely holding back tears. Desperate to escape, I’d stuffed down my burger and told my mom I wasn’t feeling well. I’d spent the rest of the evening back home camped out under my bed sheets - watching The Land Before Time.

Returning to the present, I shook my head defiantly, as if I could cleanse the bad memory from my brain through sheer force of will. I looked down at my book, but I barely made it three words this time before my mind started to wander again - this time falling on the brown Beaver vest hanging from the back of my door, a singular square achievement badge stitched to the left pocket. I sighed. As sad as it sounded, the kids at Beavers were still my only friends in Canada. After the incident at the Barbeque, I hadn’t even spoken to Bradley - slinking into the house in shame whenever I caught sight of him over the garden fence.

The Beavers were different though. I remembered the session a week ago, when Taylor had announced we would be spending the hour playing outside on the community center jungle gym. We had to spend a few agonizing minutes listening to some boring safety rules, but then we were let loose - free to run, jump and climb over the hodge podge of vertical bars, rope bridges and high towers. Laurie soon cajoled me into playing a pretend game, insisting that I play the role of Ducky and he of Littlefoot as we explored the ‘jungle’ of the playground. I’d introduced him to Land Before Time just the week before, and from the way Zach complained about it it sounded like he was just as obsessed as I was - if not more. “If I have to hear that theme music one more time…” the cub scout had seethed, grumpy as ever. When was the last time I’d played pretend? The end of fourth grade perhaps? After that, everyone seemed to have decided they were much too mature to pass their recess that way - instead insisting on soccer, or basketball, or baseball - all games I was never any good at.

At Beavers, there wasn’t any judgment. Even Zach seemed to accept me, in his own begrudging crabby way. After the play session was over, he’d been the one to present him with my first badge - ‘Vertical Skills One’. I’d been amazed that earning badges could be so easy, but I’d still felt an overwhelming wave of pride when mom had helped me sew it onto my vest. The badge was as much a testament to fun playing with my friends as anything else.

Forcing my thoughts back to the present, I sucked in a deep breath and concentrated on the book again. I really hadn’t even gotten that far into it. After some time had passed, I felt like I was making progress - but then I caught myself reading the same sentence three times in a row!

I rubbed my eyes like I was trying to adjust them, distracted by the sun beaming through my window and lighting up the wall. I scoffed at the wallpaper that was still up in the room; cutesy teddy bears sleeping on clouds or playing with stars. The four walls were covered with it from floor to ceiling. Mom had assured me that we would redecorate when I returned from Beaver’s that first night. I was already pretty shook up about being treated like a little kid and was not at all prepared to see what was essentially a nursery for my room. That still hasn’t happened though. In one corner, I’d used a marker to fill in some of the stars. Mom kind of freaked out about it - but we were going to take it all down anyway, so what was the big deal?

I reached forward across the desk and touched the wall paper. It was smooth and soft to the touch. My old bedroom had a harsh textured painted wall I had kind of hated. I thought I would definitely like another wallpaper when we redecorate, just something more mature.

I picked up my book again, determined to at least finish a chapter this time. At this rate I was going, I’d be in Grade Seven before this book was done!

I had finally gotten into the swing of things when my door swung open for the second time that day. Mom was once again holding a paper bag in her hands, but this time I could tell that she had bought a new outfit for me. Mom smiled at me - at least this time she’d caught me actually reading.

Mom put the bag on the bed and I instinctively got up, guessing she’d want me to try it on - whatever it was. “Coop, which box are all your old clothes in?” She asked.

I looked at the unsorted boxes. I didn’t really understand why Mom insisted on packing all my old clothes and toys when we moved. Sure, I still fit into most of my old stuff but it was all so babyish that I wouldn’t wear them - at least not by choice. In fact, the boxes were exactly where that blue ‘hug it out’ shirt had wound up. “It’s the big one by the closet.” I told her.

“I thought I told you to put these things away?” Mom asked, although it wasn’t like there weren't moving boxes all over the house.

I just shrugged smugly. “I thought you wanted me to read?”

Mom smiled at that. “Good answer.” She praised and ruffled my hair. She opened the box and started digging, pulling out and inspecting outfits to consider. I went over to the bed and peered into the paper bag, hoping mom hadn’t gotten anything too bad. All I could see on top was a white fabric with the red maple leaf printed on it however. That didn’t bode well, but It seemed appropriate for Canada day at the very least.

Mom herself had on regular jeans with a white blouse bearing a similar pattern. “So are we going to match then?” I asked, supposing she must have been looking for a pair of jeans. If Canada day was anything like Independence Day then Mom was probably going to go all out. Matching with Mom wouldn’t be too bad. I’d certainly been in worse positions in the past!

“Not quite.” Mom smiled, turning around to unfurl a pair of dungaree overalls. My eyes bulged out in horror. They were totally goofy-looking, not to mention babyish! The brass buckles, the little pouch pocket on the bib, the red and white stripes; they were like something a toddler would wear!

“No, mom!” I whined, instinctively backing away. “Not again!” It was the same outfit mom had made me wear on Independence Day last year. The memory was practically seared into my brain. I’d been just fine at the event itself, but someone had taken pictures for the town newspaper, and at the meeting the next week the whole cub scout troop had made fun of me!

“Come on, sweetie.” Mom enticed, laying the outfit out neatly on the bed and patting the place beside her as if to entice me over. “Red and white works just as well for Canada Day as Independence Day. Why shouldn’t you wear it again?”

“Well..” I began, desperate for any excuse “It probably doesn’t even fit anymore.”

Mom glanced at the tag. “Seven boys - that’s your size, right?”

“But Mooom…” I begged afresh, adopting my best pouty frown and puppy dog eyes “I’ll look silly.”

“Nonsense.” Mom insisted “You looked just as cute as a button last year!”

“People made fun of me…” I admitted, puffing up my cheeks and crossing my arms like a grumpy toddler.

“Oh, sweetie.” Mom sighed, getting up and caressing my face with the soft palm of her hand. “You can’t let what those nasty boys said keep getting to you. They’re a thousand miles away!”

I flinched away, shyly kicking at the carpet. “What about my new friends?”

Mom gave an encouraging chuckle. “If anyone says anything about some silly holiday outfit, then they’re not worth being your friend. Got it?” I nodded, though I was hardly convinced. Mom clapped her hands together, clearly wanting to move on from the difficult conversation “Do you need my help, or can you do it yourself?”

“I can do it!” I squeaked. Just about the only thing more embarrassing than having to wear the stupid dungarees was having my mom help me, after all.

“Good boy.” Mom praised. “There’s a white t-shirt hanging in the closet. We’re leaving in ten minutes, okay?”

I nodded, letting out a disgruntled sigh as I watched her stride out the door.