Free Symby by Steven Heitmeyer

never did. A teacher finally prodded Jody into the school. His moment of triumph had dissolved, replaced by an empty feeling in the pit of his stomach. Something was wrong, he was sure of it, but there was nothing he could do. He would have given anything to have a cell phone, but his Mom had told him she couldn't afford it.
    The day passed agonizingly slowly. He prayed that she would greet him at lunch, but he sat alone, barely able to ingest a few mouthfuls. He walked into Mr. Belden's class, fretfully scanning the back of the classroom. There was no sign of her. He couldn't concentrate on his class work. His History teacher compounded his misery, calling on him and chastising him in front of the class for failing to "join the rest of us in the learning process."
    At long last, the final bell rang. Jody hurried out of the building, walking until he was out of sight of the school. When he was sure he was out of sight, he broke into a trot. He was halfway home when he pulled up abruptly. Approximately fifty yards ahead of him was a figure he instantly recognized. It was Jimmy.
    "Jeez, not now!" he exclaimed. His hopes that Jimmy just happened to be on his path were dashed when Jimmy called out to him.
    "You set me up, crip," he blared. "Now it's my turn!"
    Jimmy was still serving his suspension. It had taken the school a while to dismiss Jimmy's appeals, but ultimately the original week-long suspension had been levied.
    Jimmy moved rapidly towards Jody. Jody considered running, but he didn't think his newfound running ability would be sufficient to outrun Jimmy. Jimmy didn't waste any more time or words when he caught up with Jody. He simply pulled his fist back and launched it at Jody's jaw. The punch snapped Jody's head back. His jaw throbbed. Unbeknownst to Jimmy, the punch infused Jody with something else besides the pain. All of the years of taunting and threats unleashed a force in him that he had never experienced. He exploded in rage. Quickly recovering his balance, he wrapped his left arm around Jimmy's head and pulled it downwards as he brought his right fist up into Jimmy's head. Jimmy howled in pain and surprise. Keeping his left hand wrapped around the back of Jimmy's head, Jody repeatedly pounded Jimmy's face with his other hand. Jody kept hammering away until Jimmy went down, his arms and legs splayed. Jody stood over Jimmy, still loaded with adrenalin. Jimmy's face was bloodied, and Jody noticed something else dripping down his face. Tears mixed with the blood, causing it to thin and run faster down his cheek.
    "Don't try to get up," said Jody. "I'm going to walk away now, but if I see you get up, I'll hurt you again, understand?"
    Jimmy was in no position to argue. "All right, all right, I give," he croaked through his tears.
    Jody exploited his victory. "Don't ever come near me again, or you'll be sorry. And don't ever call me crip again, got it?"
    Jimmy nodded. "Yeah, okay, I got it."
    Jody began walking backwards towards home, keeping his eyes on Jimmy as he went. Just a few weeks ago, walking backwards would have been impossible, he reflected. Jimmy propped himself up on one arm, but obeyed Jody's command to stay put. When Jody turned the corner, he resumed walking forward. The adrenalin that had sustained him in his battle with Jimmy stayed with him for a while. He pumped his fist into the air repeatedly, finally allowing himself the luxury of imitating Rocky. By the time he returned home, though, thoughts of Missy had eroded his mood.

Chapter 11
    Jody raced to his room, ignoring Snuffle's happy blandishments. He sat down at his computer, accessed BFF.com and clicked on Missy's link. Relief flooded him when Missy answered after a few beeps. Angst returned when he realized she was lying in her bed. He guessed that she was using her laptop. Angst intensified when he heard the weakness in her voice. She smiled wanly.
    "Hi Jody, how are you?"
    "Never mind me, what happened to you?" he asked, concern in his