Richie chuckled. The dog was distracted from the stick and barked furiously. Jason looked at her nervously and sighed.

- I hate summer!
- You're weird.

Jason and Richie were the strangest pair of friends. Absolutely different, both in interests and temperament. Jason "botan" who hates sports in any way, who loves to learn, and Richie who loves to learn machines is an athlete who hates his studies, is quite a popular person in school. Richie looked like a muscular, well-formed teenager. They met when he intervened and hung on a pair of idiots who taunted Jason in his first week at Haven High School.

By all accounts, Richie simply took pity on skinny grunt and did not think about anything more, until Jason offered to pull him up in math as a response service. Richie who never received higher grades “D +” raised her to “B” next semester thanks to Jason's help.

- Yes, I'm crazy, and I have nothing to do on the street!
- Hey, dog, stick there! - Richie turned to the dog, who furiously barked at the squirrel, noticing it in a tree. Here is a stupid brute.
- Maybe we go somewhere? - Jason suggested. I have some money. We can go to the movies or wherever ...
- Nope ... we were going to play baseball with friends. If you want, come with me, look at the game. - grinned the guy. I will give you a ball with an autograph after the match, and you can earn lots of money when I become a famous player, and you sell it at auction.
- ... Yeah. He wants to be a baseball star this week.

Richie changed his plans for the future, like other people socks.

- Always thinking about your friends, huh?
- Well yes. Here I am shit.
- Who will be there?
- Aw, don't worry man, the main thing will be me there. And always cover your back if that.

It was very sad. Richie spun in a circle of students who were major problem providers for Jason. Of course, as long as they are together, no one will risk poking, pushing and kicking the “loser”, but Richie could not spare a friend from the flat and nasty jokes of his friends. Jason didn’t need it at all, especially today, the day hasn’t been so in the morning.

- I pass. He muttered deafly, thrusting his hands deeper into the pockets of his trousers.

By this time, the dog still brought Jason a stick and was now running around the boys, frantically wagging his tail.

“Jason, don't be so weak.” Said Richie, taking the stick from his dog, waving it over his head, forcing the poor dog to simply go crazy, running from side to side. You should not allow other people to mock yourself.
- And what do you want, what would I do? Fell on them with fists?

Richie sighed and looked at his friend: They think that I hold you beside me like a ridiculous toy.

- Come on?
- I what? - on the face of Richie appeared irritated grimace.
- Do you perceive me as a clown?
- No dude. Have I ever given you a reason to think so? - Lai dog became choking and Richie threw a stick. Watch it. - he began, serious. You want the girls to pay attention to you, right?

Jason did not immediately find out what to answer, embarrassed by the turn of the conversation on a slippery topic.

- Ha! He exclaimed vaguely.
- I'm talking about real attention with consequences, do you want? So behave like a man, stop pretending to be a rag, about which any dibil wipes his feet with pleasure.
- It's easy for you to talk ...

Richie’s smug grin appeared again on Richie’s face.

- Yes Yes...But you also want girls to go crazy over you right? Just like for me ...

Jason rolled his eyes. He had his own opinion about two-thirds of the stories about sexual exploits and the skill of a friend, given that they were the same age.

- Behave yourself ... do what they are waiting for ... impress them ... They will never like a guy who spends the whole day at the computer, they just won't pay attention to him. First we play baseball in the park, and then we get girls who scream in the stands looking at our game.

Jason sighed. He knew at least one girl who was unlikely to sit in the dirty stands in a local park for the pleasure of watching the crowd at a baseball game.

- Oh well. - having made some decision, said Richie.

He pulled the stick out of the dog's mouth and handed it to Jason.

“Hmm ...” the boy mumbled in bewilderment.
- I can not take it with me to the park. He will pester everyone, stop us from playing, rush for the ball. So you have to distract him.
- But I...
“Just take the stick,” Richie said irritably.

Jason reluctantly extended his hand, and his friend shook his head.

“Shit, man, I treat you very well, but you can't do that.” You have to stop being afraid of your own shadow! Step over fear, all right? All right ... see you.

Jason silently watched him go down the alley towards the park. The dog curled and yelled, pushing his thin legs trying to reach the end of the wood that the boy clutched awkwardly in his hand.

He probably first thought about friendship with Richie, and whether they are friends at all. Richie didn't want to hear about Jason's interests. As soon as the boy started talking about his own hobbies, he stood for a minute or two, and then dismissed this “shit,” as he said. And now Jason sadly thought that he did not seem to be joking at all.

Feeling that offensive tears were wrapped around his eyes, he swung his head and threw the stick towards the impasse with all his might, hoping that the dog would again see the squirrel there. His cast came out so weak that it caused a new tide of dull longing and frustration in himself. The dog rushed forward as soon as possible and soon brought the stick back to the boy, who was plunged into his own sad thoughts. It became very quiet around, Jason looked at the tall old trees surrounding the narrow alley, like guards. He heard that something more than the light noise of foliage from the wind in the crowns. Long shadows from the trunks stretched across the asphalt to the feet with unusual mysterious curved spots.

Jason aimed at these trees with dense foliage and threw a stick there, hoping that the dog would find there something more interesting than a skinny little boy, he missed, and the stick flew at all to where he expected. She, tumbling, jumped over the holes in the asphalt, flew over a pile of rubble and stopped in front of a small abandoned house, standing in the depths of a cul-de-sac.

The dog rushed in that direction, sewed a nose on the ground, squeezed a piece of wood in its mouth, and already jumped back, and then froze and turned its face toward the house. The dog's tail stopped dangling from side to side, his ears pressed to his head, and threatening uterine grunts escaped from his throat.

The interested Jason carefully walked around the pile of rubble and moved to the house. He thought about what the dog might have noticed.

... another dog or stray cat.

The dog let out a stick from the mouth and began to hoarsely dumbly to bark, and these sounds were not at all like playful barking, stunning Jason a minute ago. Then the dog did what made the boy froze in place. He suddenly fell to the ground, hiding his head in his front paws and howling plaintively. He began to crawl back on his belly, and then he jumped up and ran away with a screech. He flew past Jason with a blurry hairy spot and disappeared around the bend of the street.

Just now the boy paid attention to the unnatural silence around, the shadows of the trees surrounded him like a huge palisade. An icy chill ran over the boy’s skin, and he crawled in spite of the heat. For some reason, he suddenly felt terrible.Silence seemed lead enveloping the space, enclosing the boy and the abandoned ... Read more →