Chapter 16 - Return Home

For the rest of their spring vacation, Max, Larissa, XL, and Anna enjoyed other attractions in the city. At the mall they played indoor mini-golf. They drove bumper cars. They rode all of the rides at Galaxyland. And they swam several times at the huge indoor waterpark. Outside the mall, they also visited museums and watched a star show at the planetarium.

XL was very happy that his family liked doing things together. Beeba's family was like that too, so no doubt they were having fun this week too. But XL knew that some kids at his school rarely had vacations with their family, like Derek and Jake. Typically their parents would fly south for a tropical vacation in the winter, leaving their children with grandparents or other relatives. That might be O.K occasionally, if they had vacations together at other times, like in the summer. But XL knew that didn't happen either, especially for Jake. He didn't get along well with his parents and they didn't like taking him anywhere. XL suspected that's Jake's bullying arose because of the way he was treated at home.

Fortunately, XL and Anna had parents who loved to spend time with them, and they had a nice week together. But before they knew it the week was over, and they had to return home. XL and Anna would have to go back to school.

On the long ride home, XL and Anna spent part of their time watching movies. For a while they pulled out their sketch books and drew cartoons. Anna continued her cartoons of her super-hero, Know-it-All.

"Look at this," said Anna. "I found some questions from kids on an advice blog. I am pretending that Know-it-All is the expert who answers everyone's questions. Do you want to see her answers?"

"Sure," replied XL.

"O.K., here's the first one, from a boy about your age: Dear Miss Know-it-All, my parents argue all the time. It really makes me sad. What should I do? - Frustrated."

"And here's the advice," Anna continued: "Dear Frustrated, sometime when leaving for school while your parents are arguing, yell at them, and be sure to slam the door when leaving. Let them realize that they have bigger problems than just themselves! - Miss Know-it-all"

"I don't think that will help," said XL. "Worse, his parents will be on his case when he gets home!"

"I'd like to see you suggest anything better," said Anna. "Here's another one: Dear Miss Know-it-All, there is a man who parks his car a block from school sometimes, and he offers candy to the children as they walk home. My mom says I shouldn't take candy from strangers but I love candy. What should I do? - Puzzled."

"Every kid knows the answer to that," said XL.

"Well, just in case not, here is my expert answer," replied Anna. "Dear Puzzled, This guy could be a creep who lures children away to hurt them or kidnap them. Don't take a chance. Tell your parents and your teacher. They will take action to have the matter investigated. - Miss Know-it-All"

"I agree with that," said XL.

"Here's the last one," continued Anna. "It's from a teenage girl: Dear Miss Know-it-All, I have gone to a movie theatre a couple of times with one of the guys from school. Yesterday he invited me to his house, when his parents won't be there. He says we can cuddle on a sofa and watch a movie, with no one to get in our way. I feel uneasy about being alone with him, but I have no other friends and I don't want to lose this one. What should I do? - Worried"

"Dear Worried, don't accept the invitation. You don't know him well enough to be sure of his motives, or if you can trust him. Ask yourself, what might he want to do with nobody around that he couldn't do at the theatre? Don't put yourself in a situation where you might be pressured into something you regret later. It's better to get to know each other as friends, so you know his character and personality and vice versa. So do your dating now where other people are around. Have patience, you have a long life ahead of you. Don't be stuck on this one guy. Find other friends. - Miss Know-it-All"

"That sounds very good, Anna, said XL, "It's much more thoughtful than Miss Know-it-All's first answer. How did you figure that out?"

"I've been doing some reading about relationships, love, dating, and marriage," she replied.

"We'll, I'm glad that I don't have to bother with dating at my age," said XL. "It seems complicated."

They continued their ride home until evening, watching scenery out the windows occasionally, and listening to music. At last they arrived on Saturday evening. Everyone was tired, so after they all helped to unpack the car, then soon went to their beds.

XL had a good night's sleep and awoke early on Sunday. It seemed that he always awoke early, no matter how late he stayed up. He quietly played video games until his dad awoke, an hour later.

"Dad," XL asked Max, "when can I take Saucer 1 to Waskesiu to continue my investigation for Florence?"

"You will have to wait a few weeks," answered Max. "Saucer 1 is being modified by my company. I got news after the search and rescue trials that the elevator is too short to carry a stretcher, so it will be made a bit longer. Also we will add retractable cutting blades so it can be lowered through bush. If it all works out, our company may be able to sell a new model for rescue missions."

"How about driving by car to Waskesiu?" asked XL.

"We just got back from a long drive," answered Max. "You will have to wait."

XL thought about what he might do in the meanwhile. He had one more day before school resumed, and he knew that Beeba would be home already too. He phoned Beeba, and Beeba invited him to his home.

XL discovered that Beeba had invited Derek to his home as well. There was a large grassy field behind Beeba's house, and when XL arrived, Beeba and Derek were there throwing a Frisbee back and forth between them. XL was a little bit surprised to see Beeba playing with Derek, because Derek wasn't someone that Beeba usually played with. However, Derek lived nearby so it may have been convenient for Beeba. Also, Derek was in need of a friend other than Jake, who was always getting Derek into trouble. So it was nice that Beeba had invited him.

XL had brought his new Super Flying Disk toy gun with him, because he liked playing target practice with Beeba. Beeba had a Super Disk shooter too, but Derek did not.

The Super disk Shooter gun had a cartridge containing foam disks, each one about 3 cm in diameter. There was a spring mechanism in the gun. To shoot, XL would pull a lever to stretch the spring and then press the trigger, which launched a spinning disk from the front of the gun. Typically Beeba and XL would play together shooting boxes to see who could hit one from the longest distance.

When Beeba saw that XL had brought his Super Disk shooter, he was thrilled. "Hey, let's shoot disks!" he said. "Derek can play too. He doesn't have a gun, but he can borrow our guns. We can take turns, so each of us will get a turn with each gun."

XL was worried. He had visited Derek's house once, and he saw in Derek's room that all of his toys were wrecked. He knew that Derek used to have a disk gun. In fact, he used to have two of them, but they were both wrecked. He felt uneasy about letting Derek use his own toy gun.

What should XL do?

Choice A	Let Derek use XL's disk gun.
Choice B	Play with the Frisbee instead.

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