Songs That Won the War Page #7

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you be talking to him?

What?

All the junk

come from the Lipnickis' yard.

Oh, no!

No! Oh, man, I warned you, Stu!

A walking, talking broadcast

station, that's what she is!

Oh, man, I fold.

They're halfway across

the lot. What are we doing?

Stall them a minute.

I gotta think.

Simmons!

Simmons, you better

get your butt down here!

Stu, it's kind of important

you come out here now!

I admit it.

I shouldn't have been there.

Yeah.

So I screwed up.

Yeah.

All right, let's not make

a big thing out of this.

So, now what?

I don't know. I'm not going

out there to fight them.

Oh, Stu!

You're not thinking

of handing it all back?

This is our house! Maybe the

only one we're ever gonna have.

Don't you think

we ought to fight for it?

Don't you recall a damn thing

Daddy's taught us?

He finds out we been fighting,

he's gonna be real disappointed.

Well, maybe

this ain't the time.

But haven't you considered that

maybe he's never gonna find out?

He's lying in that hospital, on

machines that're breathing for him.

Don't you say

one more word!

You just better not talk

like that no more!

He's gonna be fine!

He's always fine!

Okay, Stu, I'm sorry.

Name one time

he didn't turn out fine.

You're right. I'm sorry.

I... I didn't

mean that, really.

We'll figure another way,

that's all. No fighting.

Oh, Stu!

I think you ought to join us out

here on the patio right quick!

Stu! Oh, Stu!

Come here, twerps!

Ow! Let go my ear!

Ow!

Shut your face, freckles!

Stuart Simmons,

meet Arliss Lipnicki again.

Billy there says you all been

mooching of'n our property.

This is our stuff. Your daddy

took it from our old house.

Seen bird houses

built better than this.

Probably fall to pieces

in the first good wind.

Bitching lock.

Where'd you get it?

It's my dad's.

Come from the war.

Come on, give it back.

Ah, goody gumdrops. I think I'll

just take it home and play with it.

Now, come on. Give it back.

That there's our stove,

tell you that right now.

Them boards and rusty nails

is our'n, too.

Well, if it's just them

few things,

we'll dismantle them

and give them back.

Stu?

Trespasser wants to give

us back our ruined boards

with 10 million scratches

and dog piss stains.

Afraid I'm gonna have

to lay claim to this here

piece of crap fort.

Hell, you don't

need to claim it.

You guys can come

visit any time.

Yeah!

Shut up, Billy,

you little dip.

Hey, cool fort!

God, what the hell

did they do to your head?

Same thing

I'm gonna do to you!

You got five seconds to

tell me an idea I like better

than seizing this place

for our own.

Four, three, two.

We'll dare you for it.

Cool, Arliss! A dare!

What kind of dare?

Any kind you say.

But if we win,

we keep the fort.

If you lose?

It's yours. Lock and key.

It's fine by us.

See you at the quarry.

If we win, do we get to own

the fort and say who's in it?

That's what we get to do.

If I got the key,

I'd have it be everyone's

and we'd have a big party with

Ring Dings, Little Debbies,

Rocket Pops

and Yoo-hoos and...

Shut up, Billy,

you little broken record!

Thank you, now I'm starving.

And I mean starving.

God!

I'm scared.

Hold on, a**hole!

I am holding on!

Water's calm now, but she gets

real ugly when she empties.

Oh, man.

You sure

you swum down there?

You ain't psyching me out,

are you?

I told you I did.

Man!

What are them noises?

It's draining, I guess.

It'll stop sooner or later.

Stu, let's nix on this.

We can find another lot.

Look, it's real simple.

You and Leo's gonna swim to

the other side and tag it.

First one back to the ladder claims all.

Either side yellow-bellies,

it's a forfeit.

Y'all got that?

Oh, my God! What is that?

There ain't no way

across here.

Well, we'll find out,

won't we?

What's going on?

You never been down here,

have you?

You swimming across here

is a bunch of dick.

It ain't as bad as it looks.

Simmons ain't afraid

to swim it.

That moron's crazier

than you.

You swim it!

Fine! I will!

Willard, go down there.

I ain't going down there.

Don't you knuckle on me. You

want them to think we's chicken?

They can think whatever they

like, I ain't going down there.

Ebb?

Why? You chicken, big fellow?

Ula?

No way!

Hey, where'd Leo go?

You ready?

On your marks, get set...

Hold on. Look here.

I'm gonna give you

one last chance to back out.

Give me the word, and we'll

think up a different deal.

For your sake.

You forfeit?

Lidia, count us down.

On your marks.

You know there ain't no way.

Get set. Go.

You psycho?

Stu! Stu, come on!

You're gonna make it, Stu!

You're halfway there!

Stu, come on!

Don't get in the middle!

Stay out of the middle!

Come on, Stu, swim!

Stu! Come on, please, Stu!

Stu, come on,

you can make it, Stu!

Swim!

Swim, Stu!

Come on, swim!

Come on, Stu!

You can make it, Stu!

Come on, Stu! Stu!

Stu! Stu, come on!

Come on, Stu!

You can make it. Come on!

I can't believe

that lunatic made it across!

I taught him

how to swim like that.

Boy, I psyched you out.

You thought we was really

gonna swim it. What a cretin.

Hey! The fort's ours!

Have it. We never wanted your

cruddy old fort in the first place.

I told you I'd get you

through this mess.

Hey, the lock.

Go get it yourself, why

don't you. I dare you.

Come on, Stu, forget the key.

We got the fort.

Come on, Billy.

She's right.

Let's get out of here

before somebody gets hurt.

So we deposited Billy on firm

ground and went to visit Dad again.

Stu thought he looked better.

Elvadine said a prayer for him.

I'm here, honey.

Do you even know who I am?

Lois.

Stephen.

That's me.

That's me.

Hey, Mom!

Stuart!

Lidia. Y'all are to

come in here now.

Something wrong? Ma?

Your daddy just died.

No.

No.

It wasn't painful.

His heart

just quit pumping.

He's gonna be okay. He

cannot die. He's on machines.

Son, they took him off.

Well, tell them

to put him back on!

Honey, he's gone.

He's... They can't now.

I'm sorry.

Why'd they take him off, Ma?

Because it cost too much?

No.

You understand, don't you?

I understand that everybody

just give up on him!

Nothing could've kept

your father away from you,

given he had a choice.

I bet he's up there right now

in heaven, looking down on us.

He's gonna be able to look out

for us the rest of our lives.

Well, I sure as hell hope he does

a better job than when he was alive.

Don't say that, Stu!

Why not? You thought

he was a deadbeat.

I never said that. For all's I

know, he could've been an angel.

Maybe he's looking down

on us now.

Maybe he died in that war and God

sent him back for one last visit.

For what?

To get our hopes up?

To promise us

he'd stay forever?

And we's gonna have

a big house

with a tire swing,

a vanity and a picket fence?

And then just leave? Again?

What the hell kind of

loused-up angel is that?

He didn't mean

to leave, honey.

No, he didn't mean it. I think

God just took him on home.

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