CHAPTER 4
An hour later, Evan finished his biology reading. He answered his chapter questions and packed his books for school. Then he carefully slid a magazine out of his desk drawer.
It was Skate Stunts, a skateboard tricks magazine Ryan got in the mail. Whenever Ryan finished reading an issue, he let Evan borrow it. It was the only chance Evan had to read up on new tricks.
It made him nervous to keep anything skateboard-related in the house, so he hid the magazines well. He made sure his door was closed, then flopped down on his bed and looked through the magazine.
There were some amazing tricks in this issue. The skateboard pros always made the tricks look easy. Evan read about a trick called “The Eggplant.” It was a hand-plant trick. As a boarder approached the lip of a ramp, he had to plant his hand on the spine. His back hand stayed on the board, between his legs. Then he extended as far as possible before landing and riding away.
Evan pictured himself trying the trick in front of his friends. Then his bedroom door burst open.
“What are you reading, Evan?” a stern voice boomed from the doorway.
His heart pounding, Evan sat up. He stuffed the magazine underneath his pillow.
“You should see the look on your face,” Chris said. He pointed at Evan and laughed. “I think you jumped about five feet in the air.”
“You’re not even a little bit funny,” Evan said. It took him a moment to settle down. He’d been so sure he was busted. Chris came into his room. He was holding a bright orange piece of paper.
“Did you see this?” Chris asked. He showed the paper to Evan.
Evan was still mad, but the flier caught his eye. It showed a cartoon skateboarder high in the air. The paper read, “1st Annual Skate-Off: Shaffer Skate Park.”
“Let me see that,” Evan said. He stood up and snatched the paper from Chris’s hand. The flier said there was no entry fee and all ages were welcome. The competition was on a Saturday next month.
“Where did you get this?” Evan demanded. “Mom and Dad will freak if they find this in the house.”
“Relax,” Chris said. “I found it in the mail and grabbed it before anyone saw it. Are you thinking of signing up?”
“No way,” Evan said, tossing the flier aside. “It’s too risky. Besides, I don’t even have a skateboard anymore.” But the truth was, it did sound like fun. He wondered if Ryan and the other guys knew about the competition.
Chris shrugged. “I guess you’re right,” he said. “I just thought you’d want to know about it.” Then, he turned and limped back out of the room.
After Chris left, Evan picked up the flier. He looked at it once more before crumpling the paper. He tossed it perfectly into the garbage can.
Maybe I should take up basketball, Evan thought.