In the hallway after English, Janey asked him about his puffy eyes. Danny told her his allergies were acting up.

“Oh,” she said, and then she waved the review packet Ms. Rait had given them in the air. “How are you coming with Ms. Rait? You got all this down?”

Danny frowned. “I don’t know. She said it’s gonna be close. I swear though, it’s like there’s this little part of her that’s still hung up on me missing a few days back in the beginning.”

“Well, I’m sure you’ll be fine. You’re texting like a fiend.”

“That’s easy. I’ve read books, too. Only chapter books, but still.” Danny shrugged. “Anyway, she said she’s gonna give me a practice test to take. Then, we’ll know.”

“I can help you study.” Janey smiled apologetically. “We spent half the day yesterday at the creek when we probably should have been studying.”

He waved a hand. “I can’t study all the time. I think I heard somewhere that’s not good for you.”

“From who? Cupcake?”

“Probably.”

They both laughed.

“This weekend, we’ll study,” Danny said. “Next weekend, maybe we’ll go to the bonfire.”

“What bonfire?” she asked.

Danny told her about Bug and how Cupcake said the bonfire was great.

“I’ve seen that kid.” Janey stopped where she’d peel off to her next class. “He’s scary.”

“Yeah. All the guys go, though. Think about it.”

“Okay. See you at lunch.”

That afternoon at football practice Danny felt like he was losing his mind. Markle ran for his third touchdown in a live goal-line period, and he exploded up from the pile of bodies in the end zone.

“Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!” Markle screamed, his ugly face red and contorted behind the facemask, his fists clenched. “That’s what I’m talkin’ about! Let the big dog eat!”

When Markle did that thing where he pretended to be spooning food into his mouth from an imaginary bowl, Danny had to turn away. He couldn’t block out the sounds of his teammates joining the fray with Markle, though.

“Yeah, Markle!”

“Yeah!”

“Go Big Dog!”

“Yeah!”

“Eat!”

Unfortunately for Danny, turning away meant he also heard Coach Willard talking with Coach Kinen.

“Wow. Kid can carry the rock, Coach,” Coach Willard muttered to Coach Kinen. “Where’d we find him?”

Coach Kinen shook his head in disbelief. “He was here all along. Right under our noses. He didn’t run anything like this in camp. Sure stepped up his game though.”

Coach Willard turned toward the huddle to give the offense the next play. Danny looked away quickly and kicked at the turf with his toe.

“Danny,” Coach Kinen barked. “Come here.”

Danny looked up and tried to read Coach Kinen’s face as he approached. It told him nothing. When he got close enough, Coach Kinen put an arm around Danny’s shoulder and turned him away from the action.

“How’s that foot?”

“Hundred percent, Coach.” Danny put as much positive energy into his voice as he could.

“Really?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Cuz you look like you’re favoring the other foot to me.” Coach Kinen’s look penetrated Danny’s soul.

Danny blinked. “I don’t think so.”

“Hmm.” Coach Kinen stopped and turned them both around so they could watch Markle burst through the line, break to the outside, and snag a bullet pass from Jace for another touchdown. The players went crazy.

Coach Kinen scratched his leathery neck. “Well, I’m not sure if it makes sense to rush back and take a chance that it’s still not healed.”

Danny’s stomach heaved. He tasted vomit burning the back of his throat but swallowed it down. “But Coach. You said . . .”

Coach Kinen looked at him in the unfriendly way coaches look when being questioned by a player. “I said what?”

Danny’s tongue froze.

He didn’t know what to say.