1981 Page #4

$250!

A guy at the mall offered me

a job Saturdays.

It's not a problem!

We'll find a way.

$250!

Where are you going?

- Biking by the river.

- What river?

- There's a river?

- Who with?

- Kids from school.

- Are they bums?

- No.

- What about your homework?

Don't have any.

Some school. And you had

to learn longhand overnight!

Can't wait to see your marks!

Your new pals better not smoke!

It's already 7!

Yeah, time flies.

Your dad's gonna see

that March comes damn quick!

- 9 o'clock!

- 8.30 and not a minute later!

Now are you gonna call Jean-Marie?

Guys, never stop hitting

the trail of life.

Makes your problems vanish.

I forgot all about my dumb question.

What is it, Crunchy?

Anne Tremblay smokes?

Isn't she the class wiz?

She's a little slut.

Last summer

she played spin the bottle

with Minville.

Minville even slipped her

the finger.

- Minville?

- Yeah!

- He fingered her?

- Yeah.

Her and Nathalie Grandbois!

He fingered 'em both?

Yeah.

- At the same time.

- No, you idiot!

Where'd you hear that?

I was there.

- I played it with them.

- Sure.

Spin the bottle with them?

I guessed as much.

Why?

What were you doing

while he fingered her?

Fingering the bottle!

F*** you, Marchand!

Fingering's no big deal.

No big deal?

I thought about stuff

at night in bed.

First of all,

I'd have to ask my cousin

what fingering a girl meant.

I knew the guys would bring it up.

I kind of knew where it happened.

But it was all a little vague.

And which finger did you use?

Ricardo, call the man

about a paper route tomorrow.

I've told you 10 times.

Still, the damn Playboys

were the real priority.

I didn't tell you, but...

they kept bringing it up.

I didn't know what to dream up.

Finally I promised to deliver

for Halloween.

I was sure they'd forget by then.

But it was me who forgot.

So I promised them for Saturday

behind the store.

But Saturday it poured.

So I said the next Saturday.

The next Saturday,

the guys wanted to look at Walkmans.

So we put it off another week.

If I sensed they were going

to ask, I changed subject.

You have to go home?

My Mom always insists

that I be back for 8:30 about.

Deep down,

I didn't care about the Playboys.

I had a way bigger problem.

If you played bottle

with Anne Tremblay,

why didn't she say hi in the park?

Why didn't she say hi?

Yeah.

Because.

Because why?

Cause I didn't say hi either, dimwit!

At school does she ever say hi?

He was getting on my nerves!

When you're a liar,

you recognize other liars fast.

Especially beginners.

And he sure wasn't hard to spot.

Why are you asking?

No reason.

Just curious.

Curious about what?

Nothing.

At my last school we didn't do that.

Things were different.

What things were different?

When you played spin the bottle...

Say you frenched, and then met,

like two days later,

or the year after,

you at least said hi.

You did?

Yeah.

Everyone?

Yeah, it's normal.

If you french someone,

you become friends with them.

Maybe not at your school,

but that's what we did.

We didn't pretend nothing

happened. That's just dumb.

I don't believe you.

- How could you be sure?

- About what?

About those who'd done it?

That everyone said hi?

No, that everyone who said hi

had frenched.

Look, it's as if at your old school,

everyone who said hi had

frenched. It's impossible.

No, when I say everyone,

I mean in my class or my grade.

Not the whole school.

It's still impossible.

Did you say hi just to girls

from your grade you'd frenched?

You couldn't say hi to others?

No, I mean people

who'd played bottle

and who said hi after frenching.

Didn't those who hadn't frenched

say hi too?

- Sure.

- You see, it doesn't work!

How could you tell

if they'd frenched or not

if those who hadn't also said hi?

Because we knew who'd frenched

and who hadn't.

But how could those who hadn't

played be sure?

Just forget it.

See, I told you, it doesn't hold!

I explained it badly.

Anyway, I think it's weird.

I'm having one more.

- You?

- No.

If I tell you something,

promise not to blab?

See,

Anne Tremblay doesn't talk to me

because of this summer.

I didn't want to go steady.

She's been mad ever since.

That's all.

She wanted to go steady?

Yeah, but...

I didn't.

Why didn't you want to?

It was boring.

All she did was roller-skate.

Every Sunday she asked me

to go with her.

I didn't want to.

Why not?

I just didn't.

Oh no?

Well, if he didn't want

to go roller-skating,

I knew somebody who did.

Stop it, you're so handsome.

My little playboy!

You look real sexy in that outfit.

The girls will be all over you!

You know, I'm a bit jealous.

You'll come get me at 5 when it ends?

Yeah.

Can you even skate?

Easy, I've done it before.

Done it before, my ass!

If I'd skated before,

I wouldn't have listened to Mom.

I wouldn't have worn

my confirmation shirt

or my skin-tight pants.

I would've had my own skates,

not these clunkers,

or had to practise for an hour

in the john.

But it didn't really matter.

Anne Tremblay wasn't there.

Or the week after.

Or the week after that.

But after a month, pow!

S he came...

dressed exactly like me.

You won't believe it, but as soon

as I spotted her, I went over and...

Not true, she didn't come.

The week after, ask her...

Cause I stopped going.

Caramel!

Mom?

I have to bring an object

that means something to me.

For show and tell in class.

Your closet's full of stuff.

Not old junk,

it has to be something important.

What do you want me to say?

I don't know.

Take your new cap.

No way!

Who's asking,

the crazy longhand lady?

- Damn!

- What did you say?

Darn!

Nadia?

Are you ready?

What's your object?

- There's nothing.

- You, Mr Packrat?

Can we leave food outside

in case Caramel comes back?

There's nothing in your room?

I bet if I look,

I'll find lots of stuff!

It has to be interesting,

not just anything.

Like, if I had a Walkman,

that would...

Give your Oneman a rest!

We're not buying you one!

But this counts towards my mark.

They cost more than a car.

You don't have to pay $300

to get a good mark.

Nadia's braces cost $4000!

What? It's true!

You should be ashamed!

We didn't buy them for fun!

You were whining you couldn't

buy a microwave because of it.

I was not.

I heard you say that on the phone.

No, I said we couldn't buy a microwave

till we paid for Nadia's braces.

- What's the difference?

- I dunno, I don't care!

You're going to need braces too.

We'll have to fork out again,

and we'll never get a microwave.

So forget your Oneman!

- Walkman!

- You still won't get it.

So how can I buy myself stuff?

Work! I told you 100 times

to call about delivering papers.

OK.

Nadia, slowly.

I can't understand.

Caramel's not used to here.

We should look for him.

He'll be OK.

You should get ready.

Here.

Take this.

What do you mean?

Renato gave you them.

Your cousin's important, right?

But I'll look dumb with marbles.

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