WONDER
Chapter 8
Hearing Aids
August
At school, the "war" went on into February. Only one or two kids spoke to Jack and me. We got a lot of notes.
There were notes to Jack:
You smell like cheese.
Nobody likes you.
And notes to me:
Freak.
Get out of our school.
It was worse for Jack than it was for me. They took his bag or stole his homework. But, in March, things got better. Some of Julian's friends weren't helping him any more. Then, Julian told a really stupid story.
"Jack found a hit man, with a machine gun," he told people. "He came after me, and Miles, and Henry."
This was the end of the war for most people. They stopped playing the plague game, too. One day, I was talking to Maya and Ellie. Maya had a bag with a picture of an Uglydoll on it.
"Did you know," I asked, "that they used pictures of me to make the first Uglydoll?"
For a minute, they thought it was true. Then, they looked at me and laughed. "You're so funny, August."
The next day I found a very small Uglydoll on my chair with a nice note.
“To the best August doll. Love, Maya.”
People were nice about my hearing aids, too. I have never heard very well, and now I needed hearing aids. But they were horrible. My ears are very small, so the hearing aids can't go
inside. They go around the back of my head, so now I cannot wear my hat any more.
"I'm not wearing these, Mom," I said.
"Wait," said the doctor. "I'll turn them on."
Wow! The hearing aids were great. I could hear everything.
The day I wore the hearing aids to school for the first time, I was worried. But it was OK. Summer was happy because I could hear better.
"You look cool, like a secret service agent," Jack told me.
Via was in the play at her school. She told Mom and Dad only a week before it started. With my new ears, I heard everything.
"Why didn't you tell us before?" asked Mom.
"I don't say anything in the play," said Via. "You don't need to see it."
"But Justin has a big part," said Mom. "Can't we see him?"
"No. I don't want you there," she replied.
Then, they started talking quietly, and I couldn't hear them.
Later, at dinner, I asked, "Are we going to see Justin in a play?"
"Dad's going," said Mom. "It's not a play for children, so you and I are going to stay home."
"I don't believe you," I said. "We're not going because Via doesn't want me there. She doesn't want her friends to see a freak."
I ran to my room and shut the door.
After an hour, the door opened, and Via came in. "August," she said. "Come quickly. Mom needs to talk to you."
"I'm not going to say sorry," I said.
"It's not about you!" said Via. "It's about Daisy. She's very sick." Via was crying.
In the kitchen, Daisy was on the floor. Mom was next to Daisy, and she was crying, too.
"I'm taking Daisy to the vet," Mom told me. "And I don't think she's coming back. She's old, and she's very sick. You need to say goodbye, August."
The taxi was in the street, and Mom carried Daisy out.
"Goodbye, Daisy," said Via, kissing her.
"Goodbye, little girl," I whispered in her ear.
The taxi drove off, and Via hugged me. We were both crying now.
I went to bed every night and thought about Daisy. It was hard without her. I cried a lot, and Via cried, too.
A few days later, Via came home with three tickets for her school play. "I want you all to come," she said, and she hugged me.
It was my first time at Via's big new school. I sat between Mom and Dad and looked at the program. There was a big picture of Justin, and another one of Miranda.
"Why isn't there a picture of Via?" I asked.
"Justin and Miranda have important parts in the play," said Mom. "Via is an understudy."
"What's an understudy?"
"Sometimes an actor gets sick. Then, they have an understudy to take their place."
The play started. Justin came out with his violin, wearing old clothes and a hat.
"This play is ‘Our Town’, by Thornton Wilder," he said. "The town is Grover's Corners. We begin with a day in our town. It's morning on May 7th, 1901."
I knew that I was going to like this play. It felt adult, and not for kids.
A little later in the play, there was a girl called Emily. I knew that Miranda was playing Emily. But I couldn't believe it - it wasn't Miranda, it was Via!
I loved the play, and Via was wonderful. At the end, everyone was clapping. Then, Justin and Via came out. Everyone stood up and clapped for a really long time.
After, we went to find Via. She was in a big group, and everyone was smiling and laughing.
"Wow! You were wonderful!" Dad told Via.
He gave her a big hug. Then, Mom hugged her. Mom was so happy that she couldn't speak.
"It was a surprise to see you," said Dad to Via.
"I know," said Via. "Miranda got sick, and I was her understudy."
Then, there were lots of people around us, and for a minute I lost my family. "Via?" I shouted. "Mom!"
"August!" said a voice behind me.
I turned. It was Miranda.
"Good to see you, August," she said, and she hugged me hard.