Ironman by Chris Crutcher Read Free Book Online

other day, your parents could use a little work on their restraint, too. Tell ’em this is a family project. Kind of a Be Nice to Mr. Skunk Week.”
    â€œThey ain’t gonna like this.”
    â€œTell ’em it’ll get you through Anger Management quicker. An’ it’ll keep you all out of the principal’s office.”
    â€œYou might be getting a telephone call.”
    â€œDial 1–800-MR-NAK.”
    You might think that cohabitation with a skunk is a bit of a strange assignment for anger management, Lar. I sure did, but hey, I’m new to this business. And I’m stuck with it because Redmond ain’t budging. That’s not without its irony, either, because it’s pretty hard to imagine Redmond and Mr. Nak on the same planet, much less in the same school.
    Gotta get a late-night run in, so I’m signing off. Don’t worry, if things get too strange, I’ll tone them down for the novel. We don’t want any of that truth that’s stranger than fiction in here, do we? I mean, is this a mainstream epic, or what? Play your cards right and you can make me fabulously wealthy.
    Ever your loyal fan,
The Brew

CHAPTER 4
    Lion pushes through the side door to the Industrial Arts wing of Clark Fork High School fifteen minutes before the bell signals the beginning of first period, to find Noboru Nakatani nearly disappeared beneath the hood of a 1964 Mustang. He resists the urge to announce his presence with a blast of the horn and gently drums the hood with his fingernails instead. “Hey, cowboy, what’s happening?”
    Nak backs out from under the hood, stepping down from the front bumper, wiping his hands with a grease rag. “Shoe Fairy had to give these boys a little hep with this engine,” he drawls. “They like to tore it up yesterday, got so frustrated. I swear the young’uns in this class think ever tool’s a potential hammer.” Nak places his foot on the front bumper. “What’s on your mind thismornin’, Lion man?”
    â€œBrewster show up?”
    â€œOh, yeah, he showed.”
    â€œWhat’d you think?”
    Nak smiled. “I think he figured he come face-to-face with the Hole in the Wall Gang when he walked in the room, but he’ll do all right.”
    â€œThink so? You think he belongs there?”
    â€œYou think he don’t? Those kids ain’t a whole lot different from any who’ve been roughed up pretty good. They’re a little raw, but I’m bettin’ they got all the same workin’ parts as the fancier models.”
    â€œSo you think Bo will make it okay?”
    â€œI think he’ll make it just fine. What is it you’re worried about?”
    Lion shrugs. “You know how some kids just get under your skin? He seems hungry for something I’ve got, but I don’t know what it is for sure.”
    â€œBest be findin’ out,” Nak says back. “You might have to step up.”
    â€œWhat do you mean?”
    â€œI mean most kids ain’t good at tellin’ what they need because they don’t know. Whenever we see it, that’s the time to act.”
    Lion thanks him and disappears through the doorway leading down the long breezeway toward the main building: Best be findin’ out. You might have to step up.
    Nak sneaks back under the hood of the Mustang, humming “Tumbling Tumbleweeds.”
    OCTOBER 24
    Dear Larry,
    Getting a little testy there this morning, weren’t you, Lar? Especially with the guy who said anyone who intentionally desecrates an American flag is a traitor to his country and ought to be treated the same as a person giving away national secrets in wartime. Your “freedom of expression” argument was good, and I liked your idea that people who really believe in the Constitution know that everybody’s rights are protected, not just those who agree with us. What I’d really like to have in my own