The Last Last-Day-of-Summer Read online

  Contents

  * * *

  Title Page

  Contents

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Map

  BTSFOASTG

  Always Time for a Fan

  Problematic Itch

  Welcome to Fry

  The Word Is Platypus!

  Elephants It Is

  Pausing the Best Part

  Shiny Unhappy People

  nedraW nosirP ehT

  The Highest Court in the Land

  Sylvester the Wise

  Maneuver #38

  The Unluckiest Chapter

  Manure for You?

  We Can Only Hope

  Epic. Fail.

  Your Mama Named You That?

  Witching Hour

  Last Place You Look

  O’Soiled

  Giants and Mice

  The Disappearing Downer

  Not a Mannequin Challenge

  The Big Key

  Beware of Garden Pests

  The Bad Times

  Double Take

  The Two of You

  The Missing Sheed

  The Terrible Tale of Peter Thunkle’s Missed Opportunity

  Questions. Lots of Them.

  A Condo?

  Maneuver #73

  An Easy Assumption

  The Horror

  The Battle of Fry

  Exit, Stage Left

  Maneuver #75

  UFO

  The Last Deduction of Summer

  Maneuver #3

  Appendix: Maneuvers

  Acknowledgments

  More Books from Versify

  About the Author

  Connect with HMH on Social Media

  Copyright © 2019 by Lamar Giles

  Illustrations copyright © 2019 by Dapo Adeola

  All rights reserved. For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to [email protected] or to Permissions, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 3 Park Avenue, 19th Floor, New York, New York 10016.

  Versify is an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

  hmhbooks.com

  Cover illustration © 2019 by Dapo Adeola

  Cover design by Whitney Leader-Picone

  The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:

  Names: Giles, L. R. (Lamar R.), author.

  Title: Last last-day-of-summer / by Lamar Giles.

  Description: Boston ; New York : Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, [2019] | Summary: When adventurous cousins Otto and Sheed Alston accidentally extend the last day of summer by freezing time, they find the secrets between the unmoving seconds are not as much fun as they expected.

  Identifiers: LCCN 2018034805 | ISBN 9781328460837 (hardback)

  Subjects: | CYAC: Adventure and adventurers—Fiction. | Time—Fiction. | Supernatural—Fiction. | Cousins—Fiction. | African Americans—Fiction. | Science fiction. | BISAC: JUVENILE FICTION / Action & Adventure / General. | JUVENILE FICTION / Concepts / Date & Time. | JUVENILE FICTION / Family / General (see also headings under Social Issues). | JUVENILE FICTION / Social Issues / Bullying. | JUVENILE FICTION / Boys & Men. | JUVENILE FICTION / People & Places / United States / African American. | JUVENILE FICTION / People & Places / United States / General.

  Classification: LCC PZ7.G39235 Las 2019 | DDC [Fic]—dc23

  LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018034805

  eISBN 978-0-358-04721-6

  v1.0319

  For all the legends out there.

  And their cousins.

  1

  BTSFOASTG

  First of all, Grandma’s teacup-pig calendar lied. It said the last day of summer was September 21. Everyone already knew September was a bad month with no good holiday in sight after Labor Day. Fourth of July was at least two months gone; Halloween was more than a month away.

  But the real last day of summer was the last Monday in August. Cousins Otto and Sheed Alston had known this for a while, thanks to the big red circle around the last Tuesday in August. Inside that circle, equally red and in Grandma’s handwriting, were the letters BTSFOASTG!

  When they asked about it, Grandma said, “It’s an acronym. It means ‘back to school for Otto and Sheed, thank goodness!’”

  The boys began thinking of it as an ACK!-ronym, because it meant back to alarm clocks, and homeroom, and homework. ACK!!

  In Logan County, Virginia, summer ended when school started. Tomorrow.

  And, thanks to an unfortunate headline in the latest printing of the county’s newspaper, Otto was not going to take it lying down.

  * * *

  “Wake up!” Otto said. He finished tying his sneakers with jerky, irritated motions and stretched one leg across the gap between their beds, nudging Sheed’s mattress with his toe; he’d allowed his cousin to snooze long enough, given the circumstances.

  Sheed said, “Ughhh! Stop.”

  Otto had risen with the sun, eager and upbeat, like most mornings. As was his habit, he padded downstairs in socked feet, eased Grandma’s front door open, and plucked the latest issue of the Logan County Gazette off the porch. There was usually some mention of him and his cousin in the folds of the daily paper, some new clipping to collect. The county folk loved reading about their local legends.

  But what he saw on that morning’s front page would never benefit from his admirable scrapbooking skills.

  He’d stomped back upstairs, got dressed in tan cargo shorts and his favorite T-shirt. It was green with big white block letters that read STAND BACK, I’M GOING TO DEDUCE! There was work to do.

  “Come on, Sheed. It’s the last day.”

  The angry air from Sheed’s nostrils puffed the sheet over his face into a tent. “I know. That’s why I want to sleep.”

  “You only want to sleep because you haven’t read this morning’s newspaper.”

  “I don’t read any morning’s newspaper. What are you even talking about right now?” Sheed burrowed deeper under his covers, like a mole in dirt.

  All around, on haphazardly aligned shelves the boys had fastened to the walls themselves, amidst the model cars and their made-up superhero drawings, were souvenirs from all the adventures they’d experienced throughout the season. A mason jar holding a shiny, pigeon-size husk from a Laughing Locust. A lock of banshee hair that sang them to sleep whenever the moon was full. And many more things unique to—​or drawn to—​the strange county in which they lived. Of all the trophies, it was the two Keys to the City awarded to them by the mayor of Fry that filled Otto with the most pride. Until today.

  He smacked Sheed’s shoulder with the rolled-up newspaper, then peeled back his blanket. “You don’t really want to waste time sleeping on our last day of summer—​our last chance to have one more adventure before you-know-what starts.” Otto refused to say the S-word. “Do you?”

  “Yes!” Sheed covered his head with a pillow.

  Otto yanked the cord that zipped their blinds to the top of the window frame, flooding the room with bright sunshine. Sheed threw his pillow. Otto dodged it easily.

  Sheed said, “Fine. I’m up. What’s with you?”

  Now that he had Sheed’s attention, Otto unfolded the offensive newspaper for his cousin to see. Sheed read it. Then groaned. Then smacked his forehead. “I can’t believe you woke me up for this.”

  Otto turned the paper so he could reread the worst news ever, unclear why Sheed wasn’t more upset. The headline read: EPIC ELLISONS RECEIVE THIRD KEY TO THE CITY!

  “They broke the tie,” Otto said, his gaze flicking to their meager pair of keys; they somehow seemed duller in this morning’s light.

  The Epic Ellisons—​a.k.a.
twin sisters Wiki and Leen—​were the county’s other adventurers. Some might say they were rivals. Not Otto, though. In his mind, the Ellisons were clearly the inferior duo. Otto might have to talk to Mayor Ahmed about handing those keys out willy-nilly. But in the meantime . . .

  “Come on.” Otto grabbed his notepad and tiny always-there pencil. “The Legendary Alston Boys never sleep late!”

  “That nickname’s stupid,” Sheed said, not meaning it. “This Legendary Alston Boy does sleep late whenever his annoying cousin lets him.”

  “Exactly.” Otto slipped on his backpack, cinching the straps tight against his shoulders. “Like I said. Never.”

  * * *

  Sheed rounded the corner into Grandma’s kitchen and found Otto shoveling a final spoonful of cereal into his mouth. He still wasn’t happy being dragged out of bed so early, but had somehow managed to get dressed despite feeling all yawny and stiff. He’d put on jeans that were spotted with permanent grass stains and ripped at the knees, red high-tops, a white T-shirt, and his favorite purple Fry Flamingos basketball jersey (given to him by Fry High School basketball star #00, Quinton Sparks, after Sheed and Otto got rid of the ghost haunting the Flamingos locker room last fall). He flopped into his usual seat while combing a plastic wide-toothed pick through his (admittedly small, but growing) Afro, fluffing it out as far as it would go. First a ’fro. One day, dreadlocks. A solid plan, if he said so himself.

  “Don’t pick your hair at the table,” Grandma said. She faced the stove, never needing to actually see them to know they were breaking some rule or another. “Now, go on and eat.”

  Sheed ceased his grooming, wedged his pick tight into his thick hair, so only the handle protruded, and dug into a bowl of Frosty Loops. Otto’s foot tapped the tile floor impatiently. Sheed decreased his eating speed by half, just to annoy his cousin.

  When Sheed finally finished, Otto was on his feet, bouncing and fidgety. “Ready?”

  “I guess.”

  “Hurry up, then.”

  The skin around Grandma’s eyes crinkled as she narrowed her gaze in their direction. She said, “Boys, why you always got to be at odds? One fast, one slow. One say east, t’other say west. Stop all that foolishness.” She poked the teacup-pig calendar, her finger right on BTSFOASTG! “That time’s going to fly by before you know it, so go on and enjoy your day, and each other.”

  But Grandma was wrong. The time wasn’t going to fly by, and they would not be enjoying the day because things were about to get stranger than usual in Logan County.

  The Legendary Alston Boys just didn’t know it yet.

  2

  Always Time for a Fan

  On top of Harkness Hill, the best view in the county, the boys lay in the grass, Otto on his stomach with his backpack resting nearby, his tiny notebook and pencil in hand, and Sheed on his back, calling out shapes in the clouds.

  “That’s a hippo. For sure,” Sheed said, pointing skyward.

  “Focus. We need a plan,” said Otto, busy reviewing the OAAO.

  Otto’s Awesome Adventure Options

  Gravity holes

  Frog storms

  T. Treasure at B. Cave

  Bottomless pit

  Machen house RT

  “I’m enjoying the day. Maybe that should be the plan.”

  Ignoring that nonsense, Otto tried to determine which Awesome Adventure represented the best opportunity for another Key to the City. “We can look for the Triptych Treasure in Bosch Cave.”

  “That sounds hard, yo. I’d rather look at the clouds.”

  Otto sighed heavily.

  Otto’s Awesome Adventure Options

  Gravity holes

  Frog storms

  T. Treasure at B. Cave

  Bottomless pit

  Machen house RT

  “Fine,” he said. “What about closing the reality tear in the old Machen house?”

  “That sounds scary. Everyone who even steps foot in that yard disappears.”

  Otto’s Awesome Adventure Options

  Gravity holes

  Frog storms

  T. Treasure at B. Cave

  Bottomless Pit

  Machen house RT

  Frustrated, Otto closed his notebook and pushed onto his knees, staring Sheed down. “Everything we do is hard and scary. That’s why we do it.”

  “Now I’m confused,” Sheed said, unblinking. “I thought you did it for more keys, so you can brag to Wiki Ellison.”

  “There can be multiple reasons. The point is we only have one day left, and we’re wasting it.”

  “What’s wrong with a day off?” Sheed’s pointer finger shot toward a particular cloud in a jerky stabbing motion. “That’s a sloth!”

  “You’re a sloth!” Otto chewed his bottom lip and stomped away.

  From there on Harkness, he could see the county end to end. Big and green, with wide fields of high grass that swept back and forth with the breeze, turning the blades into gentle waves. Grandma’s house was less than a mile away, a canary yellow island to the west. Beyond it was the town of Fry. Fry only had two intersections and three traffic lights (the third traffic light was a spare, acquired in a buy two, get one free sale; it got mounted in Butler Park, regulating foot traffic between the swings and slide). Also visible on the far side of Fry was the Gnarled Forest, where the ash-white trees never grew leaves, and the Eternal Creek, which had no beginning or end. Other points of interest included Sunshine Cemetery, the FISHto’s, and the many other things, mundane and strange, that made up Logan County. All of it lay before them. All of it full of potential. All of it just out of reach once they returned to D. Franklin Middle School tomorrow morning.

  And Sheed couldn’t be bothered to get his head out of the clouds.

  Maybe I need a new partner, Otto thought.

  “Well, hello, young men!”

  Otto spun at the sound of the new voice. Sheed hinged up at his waist, shielding his eyes with one hand and squinting into the sunlight. The approaching silhouette was string-bean slim and taller than most, thanks to the stovepipe hat propped crookedly on his head. He stepped quickly, his skinny arms and legs whipping him forward with almost boneless ease. Tipping his head toward them, the hat’s brim slashed a shadow across his face, dividing it diagonally, leaving a single crystal blue eye, half a nose, and a split grin visible.

  “Who are you?” Sheed said, getting his feet under him.

  Otto, shorter and wider than his cousin, gravitated to Sheed’s side. Both of them angled slightly away from each other for a better view of their flanks, in case something dangerous tried to sneak up on them. Maneuver #24.

  “I’m a fan!” The man offered his hand. “You two are the Legendary Alston Boys of Logan County, correct?”

  Otto relaxed. “Yeah. We are!”

  “You dispersed the Laughing Locusts before they devoured the county crops!” he said. “You solved the Mystery of the Woman in Teal!”

  Sheed stiffened. “How do you know that?”

  “Doesn’t everyone in Logan County know you two?”

  Yes, Otto thought, proud of their reputation, they do!

  Sheed, always a killjoy, said, “You’re not from Logan County.”

  Otto cringed at how rude his cousin was being. To a fan!

  The man remained gracious. “Oh, but I am. I’ve just been away for some time. “ He offered his hand again. “I’m honored to meet you.”

  Otto, wanting to make up for Sheed’s lack of manners, broke formation and shook. “Hi.”

  Sheed followed suit, though with less enthusiasm. “Hey. Mr. . . . ?”

  “Flux! Did I accidentally overhear you’re concerned about this being your last day of summer?”

  Sheed said, “Not real—”

  “Yes!” Otto said. “Absolutely!”

  Mr. Flux said, “That just won’t do. Time gets away from me, and I’m just a simple man. I can’t imagine what it must be like for a couple of heroes like you. It must seem like there just aren
’t enough hours in the day.”

  “You don’t seem simple.” Sheed noticed a canvas sack slung over the man’s shoulder.

  Otto said, “Thank you for your concern, Mr. Flux. Indeed, we could do a lot more good for the county if we had more time.”

  Mr. Flux’s smile grew to a width that threatened to split his head in two. “Oh! Oh my goodness! I may be able to help you, if only in a small way. With a gift.”

  Even though Otto liked Mr. Flux, or rather, he liked that Mr. Flux liked them—​fans were awesome—​he knew to be cautious when strangers offered help, either by gift or effort. As Grandma said often, nothing good is free or cheap. Otto stepped forward, polite though a little disappointed to decline the present. “No, sir. You don’t have to give us anything. Our grandma says we shouldn’t take stuff for doing right.”

  Mr. Flux paid him no mind. Stooped on one knee, his arms lost in the mouth of his bag while he searched. Finally, he sprang upright. “Here.”

  Balanced on the man’s palm was a camera. Bulky, with a strap to hang around your neck and a slim slot along its front, it was the kind of device that seemed ancient. Like Grandma’s not-flat TV with the rabbit ear antennas.

  Sheed relaxed a bit. Otto fought to hide how unimpressed he was by the gift.

  “I don’t know if it will be much help to you,” said Mr. Flux, “but a camera like this is special. It will capture the best time of your life. Doesn’t that sound wonderful?”

  It did, Otto agreed, but he couldn’t believe the old-school camera even still worked.

  Not wanting to embarrass Mr. Flux when the gift was an obvious piece of junk, he accepted the offer, grabbed the camera by its strap. “Thank you. We’ll put it to good use.”