"See you tomorrow then," Jake said giving Ragmop one last pet and picking up his bike. "Bye, Art."
"Art," Arthur liked the sound of that.
Chapter Four
Jake looked at his watch and frowned; he was late. He was supposed to go straight home from school or at least call home; he’d forgotten to do either. With any luck, his mom would be too busy to notice. Oh well, at the worst, she would ground him for a day.
Jake couldn’t help thinking about Arthur on the way home. Jake knew that a lot of kids whispered about Arthur behind his back. They called Arthur a loner and weird, but Jake knew Arthur was shy and self-conscious about his birthmark. There was no reason Arthur shouldn't play for the team. In fact, if Arthur could shoot under pressure as well as he did today, then he would be a big asset to the team. Arthur certainly had skill with the ball, and he was tall, very tall. Arthur would make a great "Big Man." All he needed was to learn the rules and to get some practice playing with a team.
A few minutes later Jake bicycled into his driveway. "Cole! What are you doing here?" he asked. Cole was Jake's big brother and a college freshman. Cole had moved into the dorms at the beginning of the school year and now only came home on weekends.
"Hey, Runt. Did you forget? I live here," Cole quipped. "By the way, you're in big trouble. Mom’s been stressing about where you've been for the last hour. Better get in there and grovel."
"I ran into a potential 'Big Man' for the team, and I forgot to call," Jake said.
"Whatever, you play and you pay. Hope the dude is worth it," Cole teased making a lazy lay-up that circled the rim of the basket finally dropping in.
Jake rolled his eyes and went inside hoping to make it to his room before encountering his mom.
"Jake! Where have you been?" His mom called from the kitchen where she was working on dinner.
"Sorry, Mom, I got distracted at the park," Jake said. "I think I found a new 'Big Man' for this year's team."
"Isn't that the coach's job?" she asked. "Nevermind, who is it?"
"The Smith kid; Arthur. You know, the one with the birthmark? You should see him shoot hoops."
"Well, I'm glad you found someone for the team, but you really should have called," she said. "You know I worry. So, you said the Smith kid? The one whose father died?"
"Yeah, He's tall, and he can shoot, but he's shy. I want him to try out for the team, so I stopped to talk to him."
Jake’s mom suddenly sneezed, "Have you been around a dog?" She asked suspiciously.
"Arthur has a dog. Its name is Ragmop. She's part Komodor and looks like a mop."
"Ugh! Dog hair! Hurry up and get a shower. Put your clothes in the laundry room and then start your homework. Let's see how much you can get done before dinner," she said sneezing a few more times.
"Okay Mom," Jake said thankful that she hadn't grounded him.
"Before you go, tell your brother to come in and set the table," Mom said.
Chapter Five
Jake worked on his history assignment while his mom finished dinner. It had been three days since Ms. Bartlett had called on him and that meant that he was probably at the top of her list. He was pretty sure she kept track of who she called on and only deviated from her list when she knew someone had not read their assignment. She was almost psychic about homework, somehow always spotting the slackers. In his opinion, it was better just to do the homework.
Doing his history assignment brought Chad to mind. For whatever reason, Chad had it in for Arthur. He was mean to Arthur every day. Jake would have busted him in the mouth by now, but Arthur seemed to accept that abuse was his lot in life; it just wasn’t right.
Jake was sure that making the team would help Arthur as much as it would help the team. At some point, though, Arthur would have to stand up to Chad and his buddies. Wyatt was meaner than Chad if that was possible, but he didn't understand why Stan, who was a nice guy most of the time, continued to hang out with Chad. Of course, Stan and Chad had been best friends since kindergarten. What was wrong with Chad these days anyway? In the past year, Chad had changed and now no one wanted to be around him, except for Wyatt who was worse. In fact, Charlie told him yesterday that Chad and Wyatt were stealing some of the younger kid's lunch money.
***
"Dinner is ready!" Jake's mom called out. Laid out on the table were all of Cole’s favorite foods. His mom was thrilled that Cole had come home in the middle of the week to have dinner and Jake knew his mom missed Cole more than she let on. He didn't mind, Cole's favorite foods were some of his own favorites as well.
"So, Cole, what’s the occasion?" Dad joked. "You didn’t get thrown out of school, did you?"
"He got homesick," Jake said punching Cole on the shoulder.
"Ow!" Cole said punching Jake back. "Amusing Dad. No, I didn't get thrown out of school. I guess I was a little homesick for Mom’s home cooking," he said smiling at Mom who fondly ruffled his hair.
"So, what is new at school?" Jake asked interrupting Cole's mother-son lovefest.
Cole said, "Don't worry, Dad. I am studying every day, but also I’ve joined a new organization. It’s an anti-bullying movement. At college, just like high school, lots of kids are bullied or cyberbullied. Our group is working to educate people about it and to try and stop it."
"That’s great son," Dad said looking proud. "Glad to hear that you're taking a stand."
"Sounds cool," Jake said. "By the way, where are you sleeping tonight? Mom redecorated your room. It's now a sewing room."
"I'm sleeping in your bed, Runt."
"I don't think so," Jake said.
"Now boys," Mom said. "Jake, let your brother have the bottom bunk for tonight."
"Sheez, Mom!" Jake complained. "Why do I always have to sleep on the top?"
"Because you're the runt," Cole teased tousling Jake's hair.
"Mom!"
Chapter Six
Jake lay on the top bunk when his brother finally came to bed. "I’m not going to put you out of your bed, Runt. I’ll take the top bunk," Cole said.
"It’s okay. I’m already up here," Jake said. "I am glad you came home tonight."
"Well, I have to leave early to make it back to school on time, so I’m going to get some shut-eye."
"Good night," Jake said.
"Good night, Runt," Cole said.
The events of the day had unsettled Jake. He tossed and turned and tossed some more.
"Dude, you’re flipping around up there like a dolphin! What’s going on?" Cole complained.
"I can't seem to get to sleep."
"Why not?" Cole asked.
"Stuff on my mind," Jake said.
"What stuff? Spill it, little bro."
Jake sighed, "Some kids at school are picking on other kids; younger or that look or act differently."
"Bullies you mean?" Cole asked.
"I guess," Jake said.
"Do I know them?" Cole asked.
"Chad Martin and Wyatt Daily."
"Martin? His dad owns the shoe factory, right?"
"Yeah, that’s him."
"Have