20,000 Nerds Under the Sea by Jeff Miller Read Free Book Online Page A

couldn’t stop eating it. I had a package and a half this morning, so I figured I’d take it with me. It’s pretty much red sugar-slime.”
    â€œAnd I’m the one that gets to stick his hands in it? Lucky me!” said Neil.
    â€œListen, I’ve got the slender, unblemished hands of a professional hand model and we all know it,” said Biggs. “I can squeeze out of these ropes. I just need a little help.”
    Neil rolled his eyes and stretched out his fingertips, fishing a hand into his friend’s pocket. He found something in the shape of a half-used toothpaste container.
    â€œGot it!” Neil said. He carefully plucked the candy goo from Biggs’s pocket, making sure not to drop it on the wet floor. Neil passed the slimy toothpaste tube to Sam, who was able to squeeze some out onto Biggs’s arms, which were tied behind his back.
    Neil could feel his friend squirm.
    â€œAlmost out . . . just a few more seconds . . .”
    Neil was starting to worry about the location of his other friends. If this isn’t a mission, then where is everyone else? Are they locked up somewhere, too?
    â€œYes! I’m out!” said Biggs, untying the knots around Sam’s hands. “Now don’t waste any more of that candy goo—that’s precious stuff.”
    Once Sam was free, the two squirmed to help Neil. He was happy to get the heavy bag off his sweaty head.
    â€œLet’s see if there’s a light,” said Sam.
    But the room was windowless and completely dark. Its floor was covered with an inch of cold water that sloshed back and forth. Neil reached his arms in front of him, feeling for a light switch or doorway leading out. He tried listening for any noises outside the room.
    â€œWhere are we?” asked Biggs. Neil could hear him licking the last traces of candy from his arms.
    â€œSomewhere where people can’t find us, I bet,” said Neil. He heard the faint sound of footsteps coming from above. His brain raced to think of a solution. “If we’re still out at sea, maybe there’s a way we can get in touch with Reboot.”
    â€œNot sure how,” said Biggs. “Isn’t his boat designed to be basically untraceable?”
    â€œYeah, good point,” said Sam.
    Neil swallowed hard. He needed to think of a way out.
    â€œOh, my phone!” said Sam.
    Sam’s phone!
    â€œYou have yours? Mine died on Reboot’s boat,” said Biggs.
    â€œI turned it off to save the battery. With any luck there’s still some juice in it,” Sam said.
    Neil could hear Sam fidgeting with her phone, and he watched the screen blink on. Her phone beeped with several incoming messages.
    â€œYes! This is gonna work!” Neil shouted.
    â€œIt’s Corinne. She texted last night,” Sam said.
    â€œWhat’d she say?” asked Neil.
    â€œUh-oh,” Sam said.
    â€œWhat ‘uh-oh’?” Neil said, worried. “What are we ‘uh-oh’-ing?”
    â€œThis thing must’ve gotten damaged. Waterlogged or something,” Sam said. She shook the phone furiously, but it didn’t help. Tiny drops of water clung to the inside of the phone screen.
    She did her best to read the message, but it was clouded with condensation. “She says she’s sorry we had better things to do, so everybody left early.”
    Neil felt guilty—like, actually guilty. His friends had traveled all that way to meet at the convention—andthen they were kicked out. All while he had the time of his life. The current situation seemed like fair payback.
    Buzzzz.
    With a defeated beep, Sam’s phone died.
    â€œWelp, that settles that. Guess there’s no calling anybody,” said Sam.
    The cold water at their feet rushed forward as the boat’s engine cut off. The floor stopped vibrating as the three paused in silence, unsure of what might happen next.
    A metal hatch jerked open with a rusty squeak.