Morty Takes a Wooden Nickel

Morty Takes a Wooden Nickel

Chapter One Ben landed a jump and banked a turn at incredible speed on his new Leaping Tiger skateboard. “ It's like gliding on ice! " he exclaimed. " Ben owns the place now, " Fred stated matter-of-factly. " Yeah, " Morty mumbled as he concealed his hand-me-down skateboard behind his back. That night at dinner, Morty summoned the courage to talk to his parents about his beat-up skateboard.

" I need a new board, " Morty announced before shoveling a heaping forkful of vegetables into his mouth. “ Mine has a million miles on it, and the wheels are junk. " " If you'd like a new skateboard, you can save up for it, " Mother responded. " Never mind, " Morty grumbled, but all through dinner he daydreamed about riding his own Leaping Tiger board. After dinner, Morty closed his bedroom door and pulled a dusty wooden box from under his bed. On his eighth birthday, Grandpa had given him his precious nickel collection. Morty had promised to take good care of it. “ I was about your age when I started collecting them, " Grandpa had said.

Morty opened the box, removed the booklets, and started counting the coins. Some of these are really worn out. I hope they're still worth five cents, he thought. Later in the evening, Morty phoned Ben and asked, " Happen to know of anyone who likes old coins?" " What, are you into coins now?" Ben questioned. " Not really, " Morty replied. “ I'm going to sell my collection to get a new board. " " Try posting something online, " Ben suggested. " I'm sort of banned from the computer until my grades improve, " Morty confessed. " What about putting up a sign in the library?" Ben said. “ Maybe the type of mouse who likes old books would also like old coins. " " Brilliant! " Morty said. As he started designing his flyer, he felt a twinge of guilt but pushed it out of his mind.

Chapter Two The next morning, Morty arrived at the library clutching his advertisement. The librarian was reshelving books. " I'd like to sell my coin collection, " Morty said. “ May I put this sign up on the community board?" " What kind of collection do you have?" the librarian inquired. " I have eight hundred eighty nickels, and some are practically ancient, " Morty said. The librarian scratched his chin thoughtfully. “ Go ahead and post your flyer, " he said. " I have a penchant for old coins--if you bring them by, I'll take a look. " Morty sprinted home, grabbed the collection, and returned to the library. He placed the hefty box in front of the librarian.

" Let's see what we've got here, " the librarian murmured. He lifted the lid and gently opened the booklets containing the coins. “ That's a rare one, " he whistled. “ Wow, some of these are in mint condition! If you don't mind my asking, why are you selling this fine collection?" " To make some money, " Morty replied. He avoided mentioning Grandpa--he didn't want to think about how this would make him feel. " You must need money desperately to part with a treasure like this, " the librarian said. " I do, " Morty muttered. “ Well, " the librarian said, “ I can give you two hundred fifty dollars for all of it. " Morty couldn't believe his ears. " That's great! " he squeaked, wondering how a box full of crummy old nickels could be worth so much.