Jasper John Dooley, NOT in Love by Caroline Adderson, Ben Clanton Read Free Book Online Page B

Jasper’s head.

Chapter 13

    Isabel thought it was wonderful to sit in the hall on a piece of newspaper with Jasper. The newspaper was because they were dripping with jam. Everybody who walked by stopped and said, “Oh, my goodness! What happened? Call an ambulance!”
    And every time Isabel crowed out, “It’s not blood! It’s jam! Ha ha ha ha!”
    Jasper did not think it was wonderful. He thought it was sticky and embarrassing. His shirt was pasted to his body with jam. Yuck! Sharing the newspaper meant he had to sit right up against sticky Isabel. Yuck! And Isabel kept leaning even closer to him with her tongue out, trying to lick the jam off his face.
    Yuck, yuck, yuck!
    Finally, Mrs. Kinoshita came. She stared down at them with crossed arms. “To the bathroom. Now. Clean yourselves up. Don’t jam up my office.”
    Isabel and Jasper obeyed her right away.
    When they got back from the bathroom, Isabel ran straight to the big chair in Mrs. Kinoshita’s office, the one across from her desk. She climbed up in it and swung her feet. She loved the office! She’d been there so so many times.
    â€œWelcome back, Isabel,” Mrs. Kinoshita said. “Hello, Jasper.”
    â€œSit beside me, Jasper John,” Isabel said, patting the place beside her. “There’s lots of room.”
    The times Jasper had been to the office he had tried not to sit in that chair. He didn’t like it when his feet didn’t touch the ground. He told Isabel, “I prefer to stand.”
    Mrs. Kinoshita folded her hands on her desk. She liked to get to the bottom of things. “So what happened out there?”
    â€œJasper asked me to get married at recess,” Isabel said, pushing her wet hair off her face.
    â€œI did not!” Jasper said.
    â€œThen why did you want me to meet you behind the bushes?”
    â€œSo I could dip your hair in jam.”
    â€œAnd why did you want to do that, Jasper?” Mrs. Kinoshita asked.
    Isabel answered. “I guess he likes girls with red hair. And I like boys with red hair. That’s why I dumped the jam on him.”
    â€œShe came into the boys’ bathroom to clean up,” Jasper said.
    â€œIsabel,” Mrs. Kinoshita said. “I told you not to do that anymore.”

    â€œI just wanted to be with Jasper,” Isabel said. “Are you going to make us stay in at lunch? Can we stay in together? We were both bad together so I think we should stay in together.”
    â€œWe weren’t bad together,” Jasper said. “First I was bad, then you were.”
    â€œStaying together would be more of a reward than a punishment, Isabel,” Mrs. Kinoshita said. “You will stay in separately. After you finish eating lunch, Jasper will go to the classroom. Isabel, you will come here and sit with me.”
    Isabel stuck her bottom lip over her toothless place.
    â€œAnd before you go back to your class, both of you need to choose a clean top out of the Lost and Found.”
    â€œJasper!” Isabel sang. “We get to play Dress Up!”
    Jasper tucked in his chin and crossed his eyes.
    He asked, “Can I have my jam back?”

    Dad was waiting for Jasper and Ori after school. Jasper came running. “Where’s Mom?”
    â€œI came home early. You’ll never guess what I found.”
    â€œWhat?” Jasper asked.
    â€œMom. Asleep on the sofa. She’s had a hard few weeks, you know.”
    â€œI know,” Jasper said.
    â€œJasper had a hard few weeks, too,” Ori said. “But his life is going to be so much easier now!”
    They all walked home — Dad, Jasper and Ori.
    â€œExplain,” Dad said.
    Jasper said, “I had to stay in at lunch.”
    â€œBecause he dipped Isabel’s hair in jam,” Ori said.
    â€œIs that what you wanted that jam for, Jasper?” Dad asked.
    â€œYes. To make her NOT in love with me. But it didn’t work. It