Mr. Terupt Falls Again by Rob Buyea Read Free Book Online Page B

the books so I had one hand by my chin and the other down below my belt. It was easier for me to see, and I felt in control. Plus, I had myself protected now.
    “I knew I could do it,” I said.
    “We’re not there yet,” Anna said. “Don’t jinx yourself.”
    I was hurrying as fast as I could because I wanted to get to the library before anything bad happened.
    “Walk!” Mrs. Williams’s voice scared me worse than Mr. T’s stunt during silent reading. My tower of books shot out all over the place and then this little twerp came flying by us down the hall.
    “Oh, Peter. I’m sorry,” Mrs. Williams said. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I was trying to get that kindergartner to stop running.” She bent down to pick up some of the books. “Oh, heavens!” she said as she spotted my overly wet pants. “I’m really very sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you like
that
.”
    Great, I thought. Mrs. Williams thinks I wet myself out of fright. Just what I wanted.
    Anna started turning red from holding her breath. Icould tell she was about to lose it and sure enough she burst out laughing. It was ridiculous.
    I picked up a pile of books and carried them into the library. I didn’t even bother trying another tower. I left the rest for Anna. I just needed to get out of there.

W e had just finished our work with
The Westing Game
when Mr. Terupt introduced our next major task. October was a month for surprises.
    “Research, gang. I think it’s time we tackle a research project,” he said, standing at the front of the room.
    I liked it. But what would I research?
    “What do you mean, project?” Tommy asked.
    “Well, instead of simply writing papers, I thought we’d try developing PowerPoint presentations. We can share them with each other, and maybe some other people too.”
    Awesome! Classic Mr. Terupt.
    Everyone got excited and started talking about ideas, so I’m not sure if anyone else saw his spell. Mr. Terupt closed his eyes and leaned on the front table until he felt steady again. Then he continued—as if nothing had happened.
    “You can choose to work alone or with a partner,” Mr. Terupt said. He went on to explain more, but my wheels were already spinning.
    I was eager to get started right away with this new project, and I knew exactly what my topic would be. Mr. Terupt’s bouts of dizziness and light-headedness were bugging me. I didn’t like that he was having them. I wasn’t sure if there was anything to these observations or not, so that’s why I decided to research post–head trauma complications and side effects. I needed to make sure Mr. Terupt was okay.
    QUESTION

—Is there a link, between Mr. Terupt’s spells and his head trauma?

Detective Luke

L ike, Jessica didn’t give me much time to think about that research thing. She asked me if I wanted to be her partner that very day. Like I’d ever say no to her when it came to working on a project.
    “Lexie, I’ve got a great idea for the research project. Want to do it with me?”
    We were sitting at a table in the caf eating our lunches. Danielle and Anna were sitting with us, but they were busy talking about something else. Maybe that was why Jessica asked me—’cause I was just chillin’.
    “What’s your idea?” I asked her.
    “I want to research making movies.”
    Like, what was I supposed to say? I didn’t know anything about making movies, so I was quiet. I think Jessica thought my silence meant that, like, I wasn’t excited about her idea.
    “It’ll be great! You can focus on costume and wardrobe design,” Jessica said. “You can even dress up as a fancy actress for our presentation.”
    I raised my eyebrows. That was sounding better. Jessica could tell I was warming to the idea. She smiled.
    Basically, I wanted to stick with Jessica for a partner. I knew she’d do all sorts of research, and I could just sort of tag along. I wasn’t exactly using her. It wasn’t like I wanted her to do
all
the work, but she