Alone in His Teacher's House Read online

  “You can’t punish someone for sneezing,” said Nick.

  “It’s dangerous to hold back a sneeze,” said Stuart. “My dad’s a doctor. He knows.”

  “It could explode out your ears,” said Casey. “You could die!”

  Miss Hillway raised her eyebrows.

  Marvin felt a tickle in his nose.

  It was a small tickle at first. But it slowly grew, bigger and bigger inside his little nose.

  He tried to hold it back, but it felt like it would explode out his ears.

  He sneezed.

  Miss Hillway stared at him as she slowly shook her head. “You never know when to quit, do you, Marvin?”

  Chapter 5

  Nothing In—Nothing Out

  It did not get any better for Marvin. No matter what he said or did, Miss Hillway took it the wrong way. On Friday, she called him a “hooligan.”

  “I don’t even know what a hooligan is,” Marvin said after school.

  “Don’t worry about it,” said Stuart. “Mrs. North won’t get mad at you. You’re taking care of her dog.”

  “You can do anything!” said Nick. “You’re so lucky. You’re the luckiest kid in the whole world!”

  Marvin shrugged.

  That was another problem. He wasn’t doing such a good job of taking care of Mrs. North’s dog. Waldo hadn’t eaten anything since Mrs. North left. His bowl was still full of the same old dog food.

  He unlocked his bicycle.

  “Can I come with you to Mrs. North’s house?” asked Stuart.

  Marvin looked at Stuart. Then at Nick.

  Mrs. North didn’t exactly say he couldn’t bring his friends over.

  “Sorry,” he said.

  “Why not?” asked Stuart. “I’m not going to wreck anything.”

  Marvin wasn’t worried about Stuart. But if he said yes to Stuart, then Nick would want to come too.

  “Mrs. North said she doesn’t want anyone else in her house,” he lied.

  “I just want to sit in her chair,” said Nick.

  “She won’t find out,” said Stuart.

  “I just want to turn her lights on and off,” said Nick.

  “Sorry,” said Marvin. “It’s her rule. Not mine.” He got on his bike. “I’ll see you later, okay?”

  His friends stared at him.

  He rode off. He felt bad lying to his two best friends. But he just didn’t want to take any chances.

  He glanced back. Nick and Stuart were on their bikes, a half a block behind him.

  He turned a corner and stopped.

  Nick and Stuart came around the corner, then stopped when they saw him.

  “You can’t come to her house!” said Marvin.

  “We’re just riding our bikes,” Stuart said.

  “Mrs. North doesn’t own the streets,” said Nick.

  “Well, quit following me.”

  “We’re not following you!” said Nick. “He thinks we’re following him.”

  “Just a coincidence,” Stuart explained.

  Marvin got back on his bike. Stuart and Nick followed.

  He stopped in front of Mrs. North’s house. Stuart and Nick stopped too.

  “Just taking a rest,” said Stuart. He stretched his arms and yawned.

  Marvin went into his teacher’s house and locked the door behind him.

  Waldo’s bowl was still full.

  “Oh, Wa-wa-wa-Waldo,” said Marvin, petting him.

  Waldo’s tail swept the floor.

  “You really have to eat,” he told the old dog.

  Waldo whined and nuzzled Marvin.

  Marvin petted him. “Nick and Stuart are so immature,” he said. “You’re lucky I’m taking care of you, and not them.”

  He hooked on the leash, grabbed the pooper-scooper, and led Waldo outside.

  “That’s the ugliest dog I’ve ever seen,” laughed Nick.

  “It looks like a walrus!” said Stuart.

  “C’mon, Waldo,” said Marvin.

  “Waldo?” Nick and Stuart said together.

  “Where’s Waldo?” said Nick.

  They laughed again.

  Marvin tugged on the leash, but Waldo didn’t seem to want to take a walk. He just took two steps and sat down. He looked back at the house.

  Nick and Stuart laughed again.

  “Let’s go, Waldo,” said Marvin, tugging on the leash.

  Waldo slowly got up, took a few more steps, then sat down again.

  “He really knows how to walk a dog!” said Stuart. “No wonder Mrs. North chose him.”

  “And what would you do different?” asked Marvin.

  “Did you hear something?” Stuart asked.

  “No, I didn’t hear anything,” said Nick.

  “I thought I heard someone talking to me,” said Stuart. “It must have been the wind.”

  Instead of going around the block, Marvin only managed to go to the corner and back. At least he didn’t have to use the pooper-scooper in front of Nick and Stuart. But Waldo hadn’t eaten in two days. And if nothing goes in, nothing comes out.

  He put Waldo back in the house.

  “I’ll be out in a second,” he told his friends. “Then we can do something. Okay?”

  He put the leash and pooper-scooper away.

  Waldo lay on the floor, watching him with sad eyes.

  “See you later, Waldo,” said Marvin. “Eat something.”

  He checked to make sure he still had the key, then went outside, locking the door behind him.

  Nick and Stuart were gone.

  Chapter 6

  Some Dog Food Is Eaten

  On Sunday, Waldo’s bowl was still full of food.

  Maybe the food had gone bad. It had been in his bowl since Wednesday night.

  Marvin took the bowl into the garage and dumped it into Mrs. North’s garbage can.

  He returned to the kitchen. He found some green dish soap under the sink. He washed Waldo’s bowl. Then he rinsed it a long time so it wouldn’t taste like soap. He dried it with a dish towel, which he found in the drawer next to the sink.

  Waldo watched him.

  He filled the bowl with fresh dog food.

  “Here you go,” he said, setting it down in front of the old whisker-faced dog.

  Waldo didn’t even look at it.

  Marvin picked out a piece of dog food and held it in front of Waldo’s nose. “Yum, yum,” he said.

  Waldo turned his head away. He whined.

  Marvin sat on the kitchen floor and stroked his back. “I tell you what,” he said. “If I eat it, will you?”

  The bit of dog food was still in his hand.

  Marvin opened his mouth wide so Waldo could see. He took the bit of dog food between his thumb and forefinger and held it inside his mouth.

  He was careful not to let it touch his tongue.

  He quickly pulled out his hand, closed his mouth, and swallowed.

  “Yum, delicious!” he said.

  The dog food was hidden in his fist.

  Waldo wasn’t fooled.

  “Okay,” said Marvin. “I’ll really eat it this time. But then you have to, too.”

  Waldo watched him.

  Marvin touched the dog food with his tongue. It wasn’t horrible. It tasted a little like cereal.

  He bit into it.

  It was chewier than cereal. And a little bit gritty, like it had tiny seeds in it.

  He chewed and swallowed.

  It wasn’t gross. It wasn’t something he’d ask his mom to get for an after-school snack. But it really wasn’t too bad.

  “Okay, your turn,” he said.

  Waldo whined.<
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  “Like this,” said Marvin. He crawled to Waldo’s bowl and picked out a piece of dog food with his teeth.

  He chewed it up and swallowed. He smiled at Waldo. “Delicious!” he said.

  Waldo lay his whiskered face against the floor.

  Chapter 7

  Liver

  “Have you tried liver?” asked Dr. Charles.

  “Yes, my mom made it once. But I didn’t like it,” said Marvin.

  “I mean, for Waldo,” said the doctor.

  “Oh.”

  It was Monday afternoon. Waldo still hadn’t eaten, so Marvin called the vet on the telephone. Mrs. North had left the number.

  Dr. Charles said that Waldo probably just missed Mrs. North.

  He told Marvin what to do. Go to the store and buy a quarter pound of liver. Boil it in water for ten minutes. Then cut it up in little pieces.

  “And serve it to him on a real plate,” Dr. Charles added. “Instead of his doggie bowl.”

  That made Marvin smile. “Okay,” he said. “Thank you.”

  “Waldo’s a funny dog,” said Dr. Charles. “He’s not sick. Just love-sick. Let me know what happens.”

  Marvin hung up the phone, feeling a little bit better.

  He sat on the floor next to Waldo and petted him. “We’ll both be glad when Mrs. North gets back,” he said.

  He’d had a rough day at school.

  “Miss Hillway treats me like I’m a criminal!” he told the love-sick dog.

  Waldo pushed his head under Marvin’s hand.

  Marvin petted him. “Nick and Stuart hate me,” he said. “They say I think I’m better than everyone. I don’t think I’m better than everyone. I just have a job to do.”

  Waldo licked Marvin across the face with his big tongue.

  Marvin petted him some more, then stood up. He checked to make sure the key was in his pocket. “I’ll be back after dinner,” he promised. “With liver!”

  He tried his best to sound enthusiastic.

  His mother said she’d take him to the store after dinner to buy the liver. And then drive him to Mrs. North’s house.

  “Can I come?” asked Jacob. “I’ve never seen the inside of a real teacher’s house.”

  “Sure,” said Marvin, glad to impress his older brother.

  “Me too,” said Linzy. “I want to meet Waldo.”

  Marvin’s father went along too. “I don’t want to be a party pooper,” he said.

  Marvin smiled. After all his troubles, it felt good to have his family with him.

  He paid for the liver out of his own money. A quarter pound only cost 37c. Less than a candy bar.

  Inside Mrs. North’s house, Marvin found a pot and filled it with water. He turned on the stove. His mother offered to cook the liver for him, but Marvin said, “No, it’s part of my job.”

  He dropped the slimy meat into the boiling water.

  Jacob was walking around the house. “Cool,” he said as he went from one room to another.

  Linzy hugged and petted and rolled around on the floor with Waldo. “I wuv you, Waldo,” she said.

  The liver was stinking up the kitchen.

  Marvin let it boil for ten minutes, like Dr. Charles said. Then he plucked it out of the water with a fork and cut it up into bite-size pieces.

  He really didn’t think it would work. He had tasted liver. And he had tasted dog food.

  He liked dog food better.

  He put the liver on a regular plate and set it on the floor. His family gathered around to watch.

  “Look, Waldo, liver!” said Marvin.

  Waldo didn’t move.

  “Please, Waldo,” begged Linzy. She pushed the plate to him.

  Waldo sniffed at it.

  Then he stood up, stuck his head over the plate, and ate a piece of liver.

  Marvin and his family cheered.

  Waldo ate another piece, then another. He didn’t stop until the plate was empty.

  Then he waddled over to his dog food bowl and ate all his dog food too.

  “All he needed was an appetizer,” said Marvin’s mother.

  Marvin was so happy he almost cried.

  He washed and dried the pot, knife, fork, and plate.

  Linzy had to use the potty.

  Of course! thought Marvin. She couldn’t go anywhere without needing to go to the bathroom. He smiled. He knew the kids in his class would be glad.

  Chapter 8

  Where’s Waldo?

  Tuesday morning Marvin woke up with a start. He couldn’t remember if he had locked Mrs. North’s front door!

  He remembered his family getting ready to leave. Then Linzy had to go to the bathroom. And Jacob was in a hurry because there was a TV show he wanted to watch. And Linzy had to hug Waldo three more times.

  He got dressed quickly and rushed through breakfast.

  He just couldn’t remember.

  As he rode his bike to Mrs. North’s, he felt a knot in the pit of his stomach.

  He dropped his bike in front of her house and ran to her front door.

  He tried the knob.

  It was locked.

  But that didn’t mean anything, he realized. The robbers could have locked it after they left.

  He unlocked the door and stepped inside.

  Everything seemed to be in order.

  Except Waldo wasn’t there to greet him.

  “Waldo!” called Marvin. “Oh, Wal-do!”

  The TV was still there. The VCR. There were no open drawers. Nothing seemed to be missing, except—

  “Waldo!” Marvin called again.

  He looked around the kitchen and the living room, then entered Mrs. North’s bedroom. Something smelled funny.

  Waldo had thrown up on the floor.

  Marvin just missed stepping in it.

  He could see pieces of liver and dog food. It looked like Waldo had thrown up everything he had eaten.

  “Waldo!” Marvin called.

  He looked under the bed.

  Waldo lay there.

  “There you are! You old whisker-faced dog!”

  Waldo didn’t move.

  “Waldo!” he shouted. “Wake up, Waldo! Wake up, you stupid dog!”

  But already he knew that Waldo would never wake up.

  Chapter 9

  Do Something!

  He didn’t know what to do.

  Waldo was dead. He threw up the liver and died.

  Do something!

  Should he call 911?

  Do something! The words kept repeating inside his head. Waldo is dead. Do something!

  Should he get him out from under the bed? How would he even do that? Pull him by the tail? And even if he could get him out from under the bed, then what?

  He called home.

  It rang eleven times. His parents had already left for work.

  Do something!

  “I never should have given him liver,” he said.

  He couldn’t just leave Waldo there. Could he? Just go to school as if nothing happened?

  He walked around the house. He looked at himself in the bathroom mirror and noticed for the first time that he was crying.

  He wiped his eyes on his shirt sleeve.

  He walked quickly back to the phone.

  He called the vet.

  There was a recording. The office was closed until 10:00. But it gave another number to call in case of an emergency.

  Marvin didn’t know if it was an emergency. Waldo was already dead.

  He dialed the emergency number anyway. Dr. Charles had said, “Let me know what happens.”

  A woman answered the phone. “Hello.”

 
“Hello,” said Marvin. “This is Marvin Redpost. I’m taking care of Mrs. North’s dog, Waldo. I mean, I was. Dr. Charles said to let him know what happened. Well, he died. And I don’t know what to do! I can’t take him to a cemetery because—”

  “I’ll get my husband,” said the woman.

  Dr. Charles came on the line.

  “Waldo is under the bed,” Marvin told him, trying not to cry. “He won’t move. He threw up all his liver and dog food. I’m just here by myself.”

  “I’ll be right over,” said Dr. Charles. “Try to calm down. What’s the address?”

  Marvin thought a moment. “I don’t know,” he said. “I know how to get here, but I don’t know the address.”

  “Okay, then just tell me how to get there.”

  Marvin tried to think. “I don’t know how to tell it,” he said. He got an idea. “Wait, I’ll go outside and check the street sign.”

  He set down the phone and started out the door.

  Then he got a better idea. He had been bringing in Mrs. North’s mail. He took an envelope back to the phone and read the address to Dr. Charles.

  “You’re doing just fine,” said Dr. Charles. “I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”

  “He’s in there. Under the bed,” said Marvin, pointing to Mrs. North’s bedroom.

  He waited in another room until Dr. Charles was finished. He didn’t look until after Waldo’s body was inside Dr. Charles’s van.

  “Did the liver kill him?” Marvin asked. “Maybe I didn’t cook it right?”

  Dr. Charles smiled. “It wasn’t because of anything you did, Marvin. Waldo was just a very old dog,” he said. “His time had come.”

  Marvin watched the van drive away.

  He cleaned up Waldo’s throw-up and flushed it down the toilet. As Dr. Charles suggested, he poured a little vinegar over the spot to get rid of the smell.

  He checked to make sure he still had the key, then locked the door behind him.