“Lump, it’s so cool how they talk, isn’t it?” Bones said. “Cat means ‘dude’!” Of course Bones had put his own happy spin on a put-down. 

“Dude? What’s that?” Gordo wrinkled his nose as if the word smelled like rotten eggs. “That just sounds freaky. Don’t say that around me.” 

Bones was extending them an olive branch and this guy was still acting like a jerk. It’s not like I was the nicest person on the planet to begin with, but nobody except for me was allowed to push around Bones. 

“Hey, doofus!” I said, stepping off the sidewalk and onto the street. “Does your underwear match your bike and T-shirt, too?” 

Gordo’s face went beet-red. “Shut up, fatso, and give us your battery pack. You know, the one you charge your flashlights with.” 

Gordo stepped off his bike and started wheeling it toward me, licking his lips like he was about to enjoy a tasty treat. I had a feeling it was going to be two knuckle sandwiches to my face. 

Bones stepped off the sidewalk, too, and stood next to me. He tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Lump, what do you do when a gorilla escapes from the zoo?” 

“What, Bones?”

“Run!”

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