2. Running Late

RUNNING LATE 2 Sam's heart slammed in his chest. The merry-go-round spun and spun! The speed plus the force made Sam's sneaker squeeze his foot tighter and tighter! He shouted, "SOMEONE HELP!" But the playground was empty. Sam's mind raced. I'm going to be thrown from this thing! I can't stop it!

But then— CLANK-CA-CLANK! The rusty merry-go-round shuddered and slowed! Sam crashed into the wood chips. His shoelace was released. He staggered to his feet. He had never been dizzier. The school could have hurled me, Sam thought. But it didn't. The school has never let me go without a fight before... Sam was confused— but he was also late! He raced toward the school. He bounded up the steps and hurried inside.

"Sam Graves!" Ms. Grinker barked as he ran into the classroom. "You're late. Our head hall monitor should never be tardy." Sam felt his face grow red. Everyone was staring. A few students chuckled. "I'm sorry," Sam said quickly. He made his way to his desk, next to Antonio and Lucy. "Hey, buddy. You're never late," Antonio whispered. Lucy added, "What happened?" Sam was about to explain, but Ms. Grinker shot him a look.

"Students: a reminder!" said Ms. Grinker. "Tomorrow is the annual Kickball Showdown. As always, the game will have five innings. Two teams will take turns kicking and fielding. The team that scores the most runs wins." The class began buzzing. Everyone loved Kickball Showdown. Ms. Grinker continued, "Our class will compete against Ms. Armstrong's third-grade class. The entire school will watch from the bleachers."

"I am pumped," Antonio whispered to Sam. "I have been practicing my diving face-first slide. I'm going to steal a base!" "I'll believe it when I see it," Lucy said, smiling. "You might just trip and splat!" "No way!" Antonio said. "It will be the perfect slide in front of the whole school!" Sam's heart pounded. The whole school, he thought. Kickball Showdown means the whole school will be in one place!

That morning, for the first time ever, Eerie Elementary had simply let Sam go. And tomorrow, the whole school would be gathered in one place for the big game. Sam was certain both things were part of one big Orson Eerie evil plan. Sam gulped. He no longer felt excited for Kickball Showdown. Now, he felt afraid...