Even before Ty Hackett strolled over I was feeling shaky. I was sitting on the school field with the lunchbox out in front of me, and Stinky inside it. I reckoned that he needed a bit of fresh air before the test, what with being cooped up in my bag all morning. The holes I’d made in the lunchbox were small, but big enough for air to get in.
Ty Hackett, short for ‘Tyson’, was this big freckly kid with huge shoulders and a flat nose from being in so many fights. His hobbies included shooting birds with his pellet gun and tying crackling fireworks to the tails of cats. In short, he was no animal lover. So when I saw him walking up to me and Stinky, I got very nervous.
‘What you got to eat?’ he grunted. ‘I’m hungry.’
‘Nothing.’
‘So what’s in there?’ he demanded, pointing at the lunchbox.
‘It’s empty,’ I said, but before I could do anything, he stooped and snatched it up.
‘Hey, give it back!’ I shouted. Ty had this big evil grin on his face though, and nothing now would stop him from opening it.
But very quickly the smirk was wiped from his face.
He flung the box and howled like when Dad treads barefoot on Lego.
Stinky, somersaulting, tumbled heavily on to the grass.
I jumped to my feet.
Ty Hackett was hopping about crazily.
‘It bit me!’ he yelled, wide-eyed. ‘Your lunch just bit me!’
But I had other things to worry about.
‘Stinky!’ I called. ‘Come back!’ But he was scampering across the field, away from Ty Hackett, towards the school building. One moment I could see the grass shaking as Stinky pelted through it, the next he was gone.