8 Take Me to Your Leader

Chapter 8 Take Me to Your Leader I don't love Andrea! I don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't, don't! Boy, when you say the word "don't" over and over again, it really sounds weird. Dr. Brad took a shiny metal thing out of his desk drawer. It was attached to a string, and he dangled it in front of my face. He began swinging it back and forth. "A.J.," Dr. Brad said, "I vant you to look at zees very closely." "Why?" I asked. "Do you know vut hypnosis ees?" asked Dr. Brad. Sure I knew what hypnosis was. I saw it on TV once. This hypnotist guy had some lady stare at a shiny watch, and he put her

in a trance. Then he made her dance around like a chicken, and everybody laughed. "Are you gonna hypnotize me?" I asked. "Isn't zees shiny?" Dr. Brad said. "Stare at it as it svings back and forth. Your eyelids are feeling a leetle heavy, no?" "Heavy…" I mumbled. "Stare at zee shiny object as it svings back and forth… back and forth… back and forth," said Dr. Brad. "You are feeling sleepy, A.J., no?" "Sleepy…" I mumbled. "Stare at zee shiny object as it svings back and forth… back and forth… back and forth," said Dr. Brad. "Soon you vill be in a hypnotic trance."

"Trance…" I mumbled. "You vill do everyzing I say," said Dr. Brad. "Everything you say…" I mumbled. "And ven I snap my fingers, you vill vake up," said Dr. Brad. "Wake up," I mumbled. The truth is, I was totally yanking Dr. Brad's chain. I wasn't in a trance. I wasn't hypnotized for a second. I was just playing

along. "I am from the planet Zorg," I said in my best robot voice. "Take me to your leader." Then I got up off the couch and danced around like a chicken. "Most amusing, A.J.," said Dr. Brad. "I knew you vere not in a trance all along." "How did you know?" I asked. "Eet ees very hard to hypnotize geniuses," Dr. Brad said. "Oh no!" I said. "Does this mean I'm a genius? Are you gonna send me to Dork School?"

"Time vill tell," he replied. "I vill complete my report at zee end of zuh day. You vill know first zing in zee morning. You can go back to class now."