Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5 Chet ran screaming out of the water. "Dewey! Dewey!" He made it to the bank and searched the water for Monty and Sid, but they were gone too. They'd been eaten! Chet was the only one left! He was about to run up to Main Street for help, but then Dewey came up sputtering. "You idiot," Dewey said, looking around. "You kept me under too long! That wasn't the

plan!" Who was Dewey talking to? And what did he mean about a plan? Sid came up out of the water, gasping for breath. Where was the shark? And why was Sid laughing? "We got you!" Sid shouted at Chet. He held something up. A chipped gray tile. The fin. Chet's head started to spin. He felt like he might throw up. They'd tricked him! Monty was standing on the bank on the other side of the creek. "I can't believe you fell for that!" he laughed. Chet couldn't talk. His heart seemed to be stuck in his throat. Why would they do that? "You should have heard yourself!" Monty shouted. "You screamed so loud! Your mama probably heard you all the way in California." Chet's cheeks were bright red. His hands were shaking. How could he have thought these guys wanted to be his friends? They just wanted someone to pick on. That was the only reason they'd invited him to the creek.

Chet grabbed his clothes and got dressed. "Hey!" Sid yelled. "Don't be sore!" They all scrambled out of the water and ran over to him. "We were just joking around with you!" "We didn't mean to scare you so bad." "We always do pranks!" But Chet wasn't listening. His heart was pounding and his cheeks burned. He laced up his boots, stood up, and stormed away.