Let's Do This!

by Disney Book Group

  “What happens to her when you’re home sick?” Zay asked.

  “Oh, I can never get sick,” Maya revealed, making Zay smile. “So, just between you and me…what’d Ranger Rick really do? Did he tip over a cow? Did he put eleven gallons in a ten-gallon hat?”

  “I think I already said too much and he’ll tell you when he wants to tell you,” Zay replied.

  “You were really best friends?” Maya asked.

  “Oh, there were never better friends,” Zay insisted, not entirely realizing what he was saying or who he was talking to.

  Maya scoffed. “Oh, I think there were,” she said. “And if Riley was coming from Texas, at least she’d tell me she was coming.”

  “Like I said, something happened,” Zay told her. Then, looking at Riley, he pointed at the spectacle she had become from the force of the water from the hose. “Your friend’s a fountain.”

  Maya looked at her best friend. Lucas still had the hose on Riley, who was flapping her arms and hands and standing on one leg—just like, as Zay had noted, a fountain.

  “Flagghhh! Flagghhh!” Riley screamed. “Wait a minute! Wait! Wait! Lucas! I lost my contact lens!”

  Lucas finally stopped spraying as Riley dropped to the ground and began searching.

  “Omigosh,” Lucas said, rushing over to help. “Riley, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to do that.”

  After a brief moment of searching, he stood up. “Wait a minute,” Lucas said. “Since when do you wear—”

  Ha! Now who had the upper hand? Riley had already slipped away to grab the bucket of soapy water, which she dumped all over Lucas’s head. He stood up with the bucket on his head, and Riley rushed him like a bull and knocked him back onto the hood of the car, right where she wanted him.

  Placing her hands on his upper arms, Riley spoke sincerely to Lucas, who still had the bucket on his head. “You were the first boy I ever liked,” she told him. “That’s a big deal for me. Are you worth it? Tell me and I’ll believe you. I want to believe you. Are you worth it?”

  From somewhere inside the bucket, a hollow but hopeful voice said, “Yes.”

  Riley took the bucket off Lucas’s head and looked into his wet, soapy eyes. But before they could talk, Farkle raced over and got between them.

  “You two have completely ruined this experiment for me!” Farkle fumed. “You are significantly over three minutes—”

  “By how much?” Riley asked.

  “A day!” Farkle yelled, ever the melodramatic one. “And you haven’t even dried the car yet.”

  With that, Riley grabbed Farkle’s feet; Lucas grabbed him under the armpits; and they set him on the hood of the car, using his backside like a towel as they swung him from side to side. It was impossible not to laugh at the whole thing. Even Farkle started to laugh along with Riley and Lucas.

  “Okay, okay,” Farkle told them between laughs. “I think it’s dry!”

  “You’re a tight little group, aren’t you?” Zay said to Maya.

  “Yeah, we are,” Maya replied happily, marching over to her friends and leaving Zay to ponder that.

  “Yeah…” Zay nodded.

  “Hey!” Maya yelled at Riley and Lucas indignantly. “Farkle’s right! This is a serious assignment! Put Farkle down!”

  Riley and Lucas stopped immediately and did as they were told.

  “Now line up right there!” Maya commanded them. “Stand up straight! Straighter! I’m gonna show you how you do this right! Open your mouths! Open ’em!”

  Riley and Lucas dutifully obeyed again, as did Farkle.

  “Amateurs.” Maya smiled, lifted the hose, and turned it on all three of them, blowing them back onto the car.

  After watching for a few moments, Zay got up and walked inside the gym. But Riley, Maya, Lucas, and Farkle were having too much fun to even realize he had left.

  Finally, everything seemed to be falling back into place, and no matter how hard Maya sprayed the hose, there was no way she could wash the smile off Riley’s face. Or off any of their faces.

  In history class the next morning, Mr. Matthews looked at his students, eager to hear the results of the car wash experiment.

  “Al washes a car in six minutes. Fred washes the same car in eight minutes. How long does it take for Al and Fred to wash the same car together?” Mr. Matthews said, smiling, especially interested in one student’s answer. “Farkle?”

  “They were snapping towels at each other!” Farkle insisted. “I said, ‘The car’s not even dry yet!’ They went…”

  Farkle held up an imaginary hose and pretended to spray it in one direction, then turned around and acted like he was getting squirted, doing his best impression of Riley getting blown backward, flapping her arms, and hanging on to the car for dear life. “‘Whoa…she’s a fountain!’ ‘Flagghhh! Flagghhh!’” Farkle screamed, just like Riley had.

  “So, not three minutes, twenty-five point seven seconds?” Mr. Matthews asked.

  Farkle’s face fell in agony. “I was wruhh,” he said softly.

  “Excuse me?” Mr. Matthews said.

  “I was wruhh,” Farkle repeated.

  “Well, it takes a big man to admit when he was wruhh,” Mr. Matthews said with a smirk. “There is no answer to this equation. Except on paper. Except in a math class—which this isn’t.”

  “Is there an answer in life?” Lucas asked eagerly.

  “Ah.” Mr. Matthews nodded at Lucas. “And now we’ve arrived at the secret.”

  “Lucas’s secret?” Riley asked.

  “Bigger than that,” Mr. Matthews replied.

  “Riley, sometimes things come out when they’re supposed to come out,” Lucas told her.

  “As long as you’re not different than I think,” Riley replied. “Because…I think a lot of you.”

  “I used to be different than I am now,” Lucas acknowledged.

  “What happened?” Riley asked.

  “I came here.” Lucas smiled and locked eyes with Riley, and she smiled back as her heart began to beat in double time. She knew that he was being honest with her—that he’d always been honest with her. Not telling her about his past wasn’t his way of hiding who he’d been before. It was his way of becoming a new person—the person Riley knew. The person Riley liked.

  “And there’s your answer, Yogi,” Mr. Matthews said to their classmate. “There’s the secret of life.”

  Riley looked at her father, wanting to hear how he would explain it, eager for confirmation that she’d learned what he’d expected them all to learn.

  “People change people,” Mr. Matthews told the class. “No matter what I teach you in here, learning from the people you care about is more important than the words on any page. That’s why I let you talk in here sometimes. That’s why it’s interesting. Mr. Babineaux might’ve appreciated that, if he was here.”

  Hey, yeah. Where is Zay? Riley thought.

  “Where’s your friend, Mr. Friar?” Mr. Matthews asked, reading Riley’s mind—as he had a tendency to do.

  “I don’t know,” Lucas replied, suddenly looking irritated. “I can’t always be responsible for him.”

  “Sure you can,” Mr. Matthews told Lucas sincerely. “But maybe in a different way now.”

  “Look,” Lucas said to Mr. Matthews. “Zay’s mouth gets him in trouble. He thinks he’s tougher than he is, maybe. But he’s my friend, and I care about my friends. Riley, you understand that better than anyone.” He turned to look at Riley, and then, out of nowhere, he raised his voice and demanded, “What was I supposed to do?”

  Riley looked at the ground. Was this the other side of him? The side that got him into trouble in Austin? The Lucas he used to be?

  “I’m sorry I got mad,” Lucas said softly. “I’m working on it, okay?”

  Riley looked from Lucas to her dad. Was there more to this secret of life—and to the secret of Lucas—than she thought? Had New York really changed him? Had she really changed him? And if Zay showed up again, would he someho
w change Lucas back? It seemed like there were more secrets for her still to figure out—secrets she wasn’t sure she could, or even wanted to, figure out.

  In the hallway outside class, Joey Ricciardella was leaning against a locker, arms crossed, staring angrily off into space while Zay tried to talk to him. Zay was big, but Joey was huge and looked even bigger and badder with his tough-guy black jacket, slick black hair, and sideburns.

  “So, I’m new here, y’know?” Zay told Joey. “Just trying to fit into what should be my crowd, y’know? Seeking out my kind of people, y’know? I’m sensing you know what I’m talking about. Look at you. You know what I’m talking about.”

  Zay gave Joey’s shoulder a little slap, which Joey did not appreciate. He glared down at the point of contact and then furrowed his dark eyebrows at Zay.

  “That’s why I’m not in my extra math class,” Zay explained. “’Cause right away, I knew you didn’t fit in with these people, either. You know, these car washers. I’m gonna run with you now.”

  Zay slapped Joey on the shoulder, harder that time, and then leaned against the lockers next to him, like they were best buddies now. “You’re welcome,” Zay concluded.

  But Joey had clearly heard enough. He turned and looked into Zay’s eyes, grabbed him by the shirt, and—

  “Oh, not again…” Zay said nervously as Joey lifted him off the ground and slammed him against the lockers.

  “I’m up in the air,” Zay said out loud, astonished that Joey could pick him up so high. “Luucaaaassss!”

  Inside the history classroom, everyone suddenly heard someone yelling Lucas’s name—and Lucas knew exactly who it was.

  “Oh, not again…” Lucas groaned, getting up from his desk and turning to Mr. Matthews. “I’ll be right back, sir.”

  “Lucas?” Mr. Matthews was clearly worried.

  Riley was worried, too.

  “I’m okay, sir,” Lucas assured the teacher, moving toward the door with calm purpose.

  “Lucas?” Mr. Matthews said more forcefully.

  “I’m okay, sir,” Lucas insisted, and Mr. Matthews nodded and waved him toward the door. Lucas turned to look at Riley, Maya, and Farkle and added with a smile, “If I manage to not come back expelled, you have all changed me.”

  With that, he walked out the door—and Riley couldn’t help wondering if he was also walking out of her life. She didn’t want history to repeat for Lucas. What if he got angry again? What if they hadn’t changed him?

  “Dad?” Riley looked at her father, desperate for some reassurance.

  In response, he walked toward the back door of the classroom, following Lucas. Riley and her friends got up and trailed close behind.

  In the hall, Joey still had Zay pinned up against a locker, and he looked like he was about to strangle him.

  “I did it again,” Zay managed to choke in Lucas’s direction. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay, Zay,” Lucas told his old friend with an understanding smile as Joey finally let go of him. “Get outta here.”

  But Joey leaned back against Zay so he couldn’t go anywhere, and stared at Lucas. He smiled, like he was the one in charge, and then clucked at Zay, nodding to say he was allowed to leave. As Zay stepped aside, Joey leaned against the locker, got comfortable, and stared at Lucas some more.

  “Are you kidding me?” Joey said to him in a thick Jersey accent, staring down at his giant knuckles, turning them every which way, examining them. “I had a neck in my hand. I liked it. I miss it. You my new neck?”

  “Are you the one?” Lucas asked, undeterred, as he walked right up to Joey. “Because there’s one in every school, isn’t there? So in this school, you’re the—”

  “Yeah.” Joey smiled a devilish smile. “It’s me.”

  “Daddy?” Riley whispered to her father as they watched from the end of the bank of lockers. “Are you gonna stop this?”

  “Not yet,” Mr. Matthews told her, putting one arm protectively around his daughter and the other arm around Maya.

  Riley looked at Lucas, who seemed to have grown another foot and at least a few more muscles. He wasn’t backing down from Joey at all. There was intensity on his face she’d never seen before. He didn’t seem to care that Joey Ricciardella was pretty much the most dangerous kid in school.

  “I couldn’t help but notice your pointy boots,” Lucas said to Joey, looking down at the spiky black leather. “Back in Texas we appreciate a nice pointy boot.”

  Then Lucas quickly stomped on Joey’s foot and knocked him back against the lockers, getting right up in his face and grabbing his arms so he couldn’t move.

  “They can end a fight real quick,” Lucas told Joey, low and fast, with a hard and determined look in his eyes. “Unless somebody knows how to put his heel on the soft part where all of your toes are.”

  “Ow.” Joey winced, a confused look flashing across his face. It was probably the first time he’d ever said “ow” in his whole life.

  “Now I’m sure you’d like to throw a punch,” Lucas told Joey. “Except I got both your wrists. And I’m as strong as a horse. I don’t even work at it. I just am.”

  “The way I see it, all that matters is what happens after you let go,” Joey replied, unfazed.

  “Yeah,” Lucas said calmly, not afraid. “I know it’d be simpler to just start takin’ shots at each other, but I’m gonna tell you something, and you really need to hear this. In the end, you’re gonna be the one on the floor, and I’m gonna be the one who walks away.”

  “Ooooooo,” Maya said softly—but this time, Lucas had gotten to her in an entirely different way than usual. Lucas had shown that he was the bigger person—the better person—just like Riley knew him to be.

  He had been changed. Maybe his secret was that he’d gotten into a fight in Austin. Maybe he had done it to protect Zay then, too, because he had thought that was the only way to settle things. But he knew better now.

  “He’s gonna be a veterinarian,” Riley said with a smile, looking proudly at Lucas.

  “So I’m gonna do you a favor and let you keep your reputation,” Lucas continued as he finally let go of Joey’s wrists, “and I’d like you to let me keep mine. Otherwise we’re gonna be twenty and still be in middle school. You want that?”

  “I am twenty,” Joey replied before turning and walking away, leaving everyone thinking it was no wonder he was so big and tough!

  Once Joey was gone, Zay rushed over to talk to Lucas. “So, I could’ve taken him, right?” Zay said with a sheepish smile.

  “Sure.” Lucas shook his head, trying to understand. “Why do you keep finding yourself in these situations?”

  “Well, I like knowing you have my back,” Zay explained, making his way over to the bench in the middle of the indoor quad. He was about to sit down, but then he moved over to make a little extra space for Lucas. When Lucas didn’t approach, Zay turned and looked longingly in his direction, eyes pleading with him to sit down. Finally, Lucas obliged.

  “So what are you doing here, Zay?” Lucas asked as he took a seat on the bench.

  “Well, maybe I missed my best friend, all right?” Zay gushed, full of drama, waving his hands around for emphasis. “Maybe I had a best friend in Texas and he moved away and I missed hanging out with him and I convinced my entire family to pack up everything we own and—”

  “Your dad got transferred?” Lucas interrupted with a knowing grin.

  “Yeah, same as you.” Zay nodded and shrugged.

  “Look, I’m glad you’re here, buddy,” Lucas said, turning to face Zay. “But I don’t wanna have to keep being the same guy you knew back in Texas.”

  “Yeah.” Zay smiled and put an arm around Lucas, who responded by putting his arm around Zay. “I’m not so sure you are.”

  With that, the two old friends stood up and headed back into history class.

  Riley could not have been happier about the way that had all turned out. Not only had Lucas survived; he had been brave, strong, and s
mart—and not angry at all. Mostly, he had made her proud—of him, of her dad, and even of herself and her friends.

  “People change people,” Riley said, smiling at her father, Maya, and Farkle.

  “Secret of life,” her dad said, smiling back.

  As they followed Lucas and Zay back to class, Riley could tell that her dad was just as proud as she was of Lucas, Riley, and their friends—and, yeah, of himself.

  Later that night, Riley and her family were sitting around the dinner table. Maya was there, too. It was the perfect time for Riley and Auggie to play a little joke on their parents—to teach them a lesson about how they could change the same old boring meal into something different.

  “I can drive Daddy crazy in eight seconds,” Riley announced coyly.

  “I can drive Mommy crazy in six seconds,” Auggie fired back, accepting his sister’s challenge, before launching into the question of the night: “How long does it take Auggie and Riley to drive Mommy and Daddy crazy together?”

  “You feel like a movie?” Mr. Matthews asked his wife, paying no attention to Riley or Auggie.

  “Love to,” Mrs. Matthews replied, setting down her fork, getting up from the table, and tossing her napkin aside.

  Mr. Matthews got up, too, and they both headed straight for the door.

  “Hey!” Riley protested. This wasn’t going according to plan at all.

  “What?” Auggie demanded.

  “You can’t just get up in the middle of dinner and walk out on them before they drive you crazy,” Maya added.

  “We can do whatever we want,” Mrs. Matthews replied with a giant smile. “See, we couldn’t when we were kids. But that’s why we became parents.”

  “Well, what do you call that?” Riley demanded of her father.

  “Secret of life,” Mr. Matthews replied with a sly smile.

  Riley looked at Maya, who looked back at Riley, who looked at Auggie. It was so annoying. Her dad had done it again. He had taught Riley a lesson when she was trying to teach him one!

  “There’s lots of ’em,” Mr. Matthews finally added.

  As their parents each put an arm around the other and walked out of the apartment, Auggie seemed to think it was the funniest thing ever. Riley did not. How could she? Not only had they left right when she and Auggie were supposed to launch their crazy dinner plan; but they had abandoned their own kids—the very kids who were responsible for changing them, for turning them into parents. Parents who could do whatever they wanted!