Bus Trouble
Chapter 1
“Thomas, breakfast is ready,” called his mom from down stairs. ”Coming,” Thomas called back from upstairs. This year, Thomas was moved from bus 3 to bus 15. Thomas was unsure about his new bus. Thomas liked his old bus better. It had all of his friends that were close to him, like his best friend Joey that was his best friend since preschool. What if they didn't like him, Thomas thought.
”Thomas you don't want your breakfast to get cold,” Then Thomas rushed down stairs just thinking about it. When he saw the sight, his mouth watered. His mom had made blueberry pancakes for him. ”Thank you mom!”
“You're welcome, have a good first day of school.” After he finished, he got dressed and watched television until it was time to go on the bus. It was time to go. The bus stopped in front of the house. Thomas took a deep breath, and walked on.
Chapter 2
As he stepped onto the bus, the driver said, “You must be Thomas, find a seat.”
“Okay,” mumbled Thomas. He found the only open seat and studied the people on the bus. He must have gotten too into listening to their conversation.
“Hey, did you see the new kid, he looks so weird?” he heard another boy say. Thomas completely lost it, every person on his new bus hated him. Why did he have to move to a new bus this year?
As he looked in another direction he noticed one kid that was simply reading over all of this noise. He had white skin and blue eyes. He looked like he was reading a seven hundred page book.Thomas wanted to say Hi, but he did not want to bug him.
Suddenly, when the bus stopped a kid from the other seat behind Thomas switched seats. He turned around, looked Thomas in the eyes and said, “Alright, you little wimp, for as long as you are on this bus you have to do everything I say.” Thomas didn’t say a word. The other boy went back to his seat with his friends and said, “I scared that little brat out of his mind”. The bus had just stopped at the school. He felt a shove behind him, then someone said, “Go little rat.” Thomas quickly ran off the bus until no one was behind him.
Chapter 3
Thomas rushed to his classroom faster than he has ever ran before. When he finally made it to his classroom, Miss June said, “Boy Thomas, you look like you just came back from gym.”
“Yeah, I just like to get to class fast, that’s all.” Luckily there was none of those jerks from the bus in my class, and luckily my best friend Joey was in the class, thought Thomas.
Later that day at lunch, I got to talk with my friend Joey. “So how did it go on your new bus?”
“Horrible.”
“Like about how horrible?”
“Bully horrible.”
“You should get someone to help you.”
“It’s more like two or three people, or maybe even five.”
“Then you have to do it.” Thomas paused for a second, he couldn’t do that I mean it’s like the whole bus. Then they went outside for recess.
As they rushed to the playscape Thomas realized something, if those kids from the bus were in his grade, they could pick on him at recess. When he is at recess he has to keep an eye out for those kids.
As they got outside it started to rain and they called off recess.
Chapter 4
“Bus number 15, please report down stairs,” the loud speaker blared. “Bye Thomas, see you tomorrow,” said Miss June behind him.
Thomas rushed down stairs to board the bus. As he went on the bus to look for a seat, he felt someone one pull his shirt! The person pulled him into a seat! Thomas quickly turned around to see who did this. It was that jerk from the bus in the morning. He glared at Thomas and said, “You have to do everything I want right?!”
“NO!” yelled Thomas, “You're just a jerk and no one likes you!”
“You will regret that,” he said as he pushed him down onto the seat and into the window.
Thomas felt paralyzed for a moment, he felt like he should crawl under the seat, but he slowly got up and turned around.
Thomas heard a different voice then, “Jack, this is some good soda.”. Then I saw Jack with a soda bottle and he was sharing some with his friends. Then, Jack spilled some soda on the seat and angrily said, “Thomas, clean this up!” He felt like he really didn’t have a choice. He tried to clean the mess with his shirt. When he finished his shirt had a big stain of dry soda.
Then the boys were going through his backpack ripping papers, smashing books, and disintegrating homework. It was over, his school days were over, Thomas thought. He felt like curling up into a tiny faded ball. Finally it was Jack’s stop . He got off and looked back over his shoulder to say, “See you tomorrow, loser.”
Chapter 5
Thomas was glad Jack was gone, but he still worried about the boys that were left. Luckily they didn’t do anything, it looked like they just followed around everything he did when Jack was there.
It was his stop, finally. “Bye Thomas, I will see you tomorrow,” the bus driver said after he got off.
Thomas started to wonder if he should tell his mom or not. Maybe just one more day, he will tell her if he does it again.
As he opened the door, his mom greeted him with a, “How was your first day honey?”
“Good,” I said grumpily.
“Do you want a snack or something?”
“No, I want to go down stairs to do something,” Thomas replied even though he was kind of hungry.
He went downstairs to escape by playing on his Play Station. But, beating the world high score on Xtream Skate Boarding didn’t help him get that big jerk JACK on the bus out of his mind.
Soon his mom yelled, “Thomas, dinner is ready, get it while it is fresh off the grill.” Even though he wasn’t that hungry, he would eat anything his mom made.
Tonight she made grilled chicken and salad with barbecue sauce. The first bite he took sold him, it was one of the best dishes she made. “Mom, you should be a chef or enter a TV bake show,” Thomas said excitedly.
By the time Thomas finished his dinner, his mom said it was time for bed. So Thomas went upstairs, did what was left of the pieces of his homework, brushed his teeth, and went to bed.
Chapter 6
Thomas got up not feeling that great. He knew that every time he got on the bus JACK would be waiting there.
But Thomas decided that today he was ready for anything he would do. He walked downstairs for breakfast and his mom had made her delicious French toast and soup, like she always does on Tuesday.
As Thomas stepped out the door he noticed that the bus was right on schedule. He wasn’t thrilled to be getting on though; what if JACK kept bullying him?
Then Thomas stepped on and had the feeling someone was going to pull him into a seat like JACK did the last time. And then it happened. He turned around quickly and then I said in astonishing voice, “JACK!!!!!!”
“AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH” JACK laughed. “THOMAS! we meet again,” JACK sneered. Out of the blue he grabbed me by the arms and pushed me back into the window. It felt like a wrecking ball just smashed him through the wall.
Then Thomas thankfully heard a voice, not that loud, but strong, “STOP!”
Thomas and JACK turned their heads and looked. “Oh, it’s you, what do you want?” JACK sneered
“Why do you have to pick on him? He is just like every kid on this bus!.”
“Well he’s new so-”
“It's STILL NOT OK TO DO THAT,” HE INTERRUPTED “I’m telling the bus driver once I get off,” he sneered.
Thomas remembered the brave kid that stood before him from somewhere. Then he realized it was that kid who was reading that book on the first day of school.
“PLEASE, PLEASE don’t tell the bus driver,” JACK begged.
It was time to line up to get off the bus. That boy spoke up and actually told the bus driver everything.
Someone actually stood up for me, thought Jack. He made sure to thank him.
Later that day at recess Thomas saw Jack sitting on a bench by himself. He decided to go over and talk to him. Shyly he said, “Hi.”
Jack responded back in a low, sad voice, “Hey, I am so sorry, I lost all of my friends so I have no one to play with and no one to be my friend.”
“I will be your friend,” Thomas said cheerfully.
“Really,“ he said, surprised.
Thomas thought of something, he came from getting pushed into windows, to really playing with Jack and talking to him normally. He never had thought this would happen like this, all it took was one boy who stood up for him and helped to show him how important it is to be a friend and to do the right thing.
