Schuler

1
Natalie Schuler
ENGL 10600
Brittany Biesiada
02/18/2015
T is for Truth
It was a gloomy spring day in the town of Westberry. An April showers bring May
flowers kind of day. School was in session at Westberry Elementary School. It was almost recess
time for the fifth graders. They were anxiously awaiting to resume their daily dodge ball
tournament. Just a few more math problems and then they were free for thirty minutes. You see,
everyday at recess, a big group of kids get together and play dodge ball. It has become such a
huge hit that they organize tournaments. These kids lived for recess.
Lucy was looking up at the clock. Waiting for the recess bell to ring any second. She was
counting down in her head, fivefourthreetwooneding! Every single fifth grader
rushed out the doors, pushing and shoving each other to freedom. They didnt care that it was a
gloomy, chilly day, they just wanted to play dodge ball. Several of them went to the toy tub to
grab the balls. Lucy opened up the lid, only to find ten deflated dodge balls. All with the same
exact hole in them. Some evil person had ruined their dodge balls. Everyone was in disbelief.
Im going to get to the bottom of this. Whos with me? said Lucy through her tightly
gritted teeth.
Ill help you Lucy! exclaimed Tommy.
None of the other dodge ball kids wanted to help. They just sat along the wall pouting.
Lucy was a very determined little girl. She was the smartest girl in their class. Dressed like she
was thirty years old, and wasnt afraid of anything. Tommy liked to talk, a lot. He was known to
not hold his opinions back. He was smaller for his age. He had brown hair and cute, brown,
teddy-bear eyes. Now before we move on, lets talk. There were four types of kids at recess. The

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dodge ball players. The dodge ball watchers. The girly-girls. And the loners. The dodge ball
players all got along with each other. They enjoyed socializing and having fun together. The
dodge ball watchers simply just sat there and watched. Some of them watched because they were
afraid they would get hurt, others because they didnt think they would be good at it. The girlygirls were obviously all girls. They were afraid they were going to break a nail or ruin their hair
if they played. And last but not least, the loners. The loners didnt have many, if any, friends.
They were quiet and dreaded recess time.
Lets go find that sixth-grade bully Tommy. I think he did it, said Lucy.
Russell!? Youre going to talk to him?! Lucy, he could really hurt you, replied Tommy
in a worried voice.
I dont care. I want to find this crook and I think its him, exclaimed Lucy.
O-o-okay. Let me, let me go with you. To-to-to protect you! stuttered Tommy.
Put your big boy pants on and lets go find him! yelled Lucy.
They finally found Russell at the monkey bars, teasing younger kids. Russell was
classified as a loner. He didnt have any friends because he was a bully. Most of the kids were
terrified of him. He was tall for his age, making him appear scarier. Not only was he just tall, he
was the tallest kid in school. He had dirty blonde hair, and dressed like a slob. His clothes were
always wrinkly and looked dirty. He also had a bad odor, like he hadnt showered in days.
Hey Russell! I need to talk to you, yelled Lucy.
Well, hi, there little girl. Nice glasses, nerd, replied Russell.
Maybe you need glasses to make you a little smarter. Do you know anything about our
dodge balls? questioned Lucy.
Ha ha. What do you want to know about them? said Russell in an evil voice.

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Did you pop them? questioned Lucy.
No! I think dodge ball is stupid. Why would I pop them? defended Russell.
Do you know anything about who popped them? asked Lucy.
Look kid. If I did, I wouldnt tell you. Just leave me alone, replied Russell.
Feeling frustrated, Lucy and Tommy went and sat at a picnic table to try and think of who
else would do such a thing.
Hey, Tommy, who is that kid that always sits and just watches us play dodge ball?
questioned Lucy.
Jake? replied Tommy.
Yeah, why does he always watch us? said Lucy curiously.
He told me he thinks sports are dumb, replied Tommy.
Maybe he did it then. He knows we always play, but he never does. Maybe since he
thinks sports are dumb, he did it just to make us mad, said Lucy.
Well, then, lets go ask him Lucy! exclaimed Tommy.
They found Jake sitting in his normal spot, but this time reading a book. Jake was very
quiet. You never knew what he was thinking or feeling. He would be classified as a dodge ball
watcher, and somewhat of a nerd. He wears glasses and always dresses like he is going to
church. He was very proper and liked to correct everyone.
Hi Jake. My name is Lucy. What are you doing? asked Lucy.
Im reading. Cant you see? replied Jake.
Why are you reading? questioned Lucy.
Because I want to.
But normally you watch us play dodge ball. Hows come you dont read all the time?

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Its kind of hard to read when there is so much action going on.
Why dont you join in and play with us?
I dont like sports. I dont see the point in them.
Then why do you sit here and watch us everyday?
Because I want to. If youre planning on asking me if I popped all of your balls, then
just do it.
Oh, so you do know about it?
Yeah. I know that they are all popped.
Well, did you do it?
Did I do it?! What kind of question is that? Just because I sit here everyday, you think I
did it. How stupid are you people?
Hey, hey, hey! Dont call us stupid, chimed in Tommy.
You also said you dont like sports, that gives us a reason to think it was you, implied
Lucy.
Look, I said I didnt like sports. But I said I like watching you play. It wasnt me so just
leave me alone, muttered Jake.
So the two people that Lucy and Tommy thought it could be, were not the evil ball
poppers. Now they were back to the drawing board. By this time, recess was over but the
mystery was not. Tommy and Lucy lived three houses down from each other, so they planned to
meet after school and try to solve this mystery.

Tommy, I dont have any idea who this could be. It's not Russell, the bully. It wasnt the
kid who watches us play everyday. Who in the world could it be? asked Lucy.

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It has to be somebody that doesnt play dodge ball, said Tommy.
Thats what I think too. But who?? questioned Lucy in an angry voice.
Wait! You know that really rich girl? said Tommy eagerly.
Taylor? said Lucy in an uneasy voice.
Yeah! She kept staring at me today. It was really weird.
Tommy, we have to stay focused. We cant be talking about your girl problems.
No, there just has to be a reason why she was staring at me. She kept smiling really
weirdly too.
Well, then maybe you should go talk to her about it.

Tommy and Lucy talked a little more before they parted ways for the night. They had
plans to meet up at school the next day to pick up where they left off. But before they did,
Tommy decided to go talk to Taylor.
Hi Taylor. How are you today? asked Tommy. He decided to start with normal
questions before he got to the big question.
Im better now. How are you? replied Taylor.
Im alright. Its just that someone popped all of our dodge balls. It made me sad because
I was so looking forward to playing dodge ball at recess, explained Tommy.
Who would do such a thing? That sounds awful, said Taylor in a sweet voice.
I dont know. Lucy and I tried asking Russell, the bully, and Jake, the kid that always
watches us, but neither of them acted like they knew anything about it, replied Tommy in a
disappointed tone.
Why do you play dodge ball anyways, Tommy? questioned Taylor.

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Its fun! Ive gotten really good at it. I get a lot of people out! exclaimed Tommy.
But you could do anything else. Everybody likes you, admitted Taylor.
Yeah, but when I play dodge ball, Im with my friends. Its a really good time, replied
Tommy.
Well, maybe it was a good thing that all of the balls got popped. So you can make new
friends. Like me, said Taylor confidently.
Lucy had snuck up on them to listen to their conversation. What Taylor had just said
bothered Lucy. She got this pit in her stomach that something just wasnt right. Should she butt
in or just stay quiet and keep listening? She decided to stay quiet.
Thats true. But I really wanna play dodge ball again, said Tommy.
Well I hope you find the person who did this. That is just terrible, but until then you can
hang out with me and my friends, suggested Taylor.
Thanks for the offer, but I need to go find Lucy. Bye Taylor.
Lucy had ran to a nearby bench, acting as if she had been there the whole time Tommy
was gone.
Hey Lucy. You thought of anyone else who might have done it? asked Tommy.
I dont know. How was your talk with your new friend, Taylor? asked Lucy in a highpitched, mocking voice.
She was nice and told me I could hang out with her, replied Tommy.
Hey Tommy, what if it was her? questioned Lucy.
Taylor? No way. She told me that she hopes we find out who did it. Why would she say
that if she did it? said Tommy in a puzzled voice.
She could have said that just as a cover up.

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Youre crazy, Lucy. It wasnt Taylor. She is too nice.
This made Lucy mad. Tommy was teaming up with Taylor. Tommy didnt realize it, but
Taylor was trying to steal him away from her. Taylor didnt want Tommy hanging out with
Lucy. Lucy had never been very fond of Taylor. Yes, she was nice sometimes, but Lucy just got
a bad feeling around her. She was rich, got whatever she wanted, and a lot of the other girls were
jealous of her. She always had the newest clothes and toys. Lucy, being the determined girl she
was, decided to go and talk to Taylor herself and leave Tommy behind. Lucy was trying to think
of what to say to her. She started getting nervous, not knowing exactly what was going to come
out of her mouth.
You did it! Youre the ball popper! accused Lucy.
What are you talking about? replied Taylor.
You popped all of our dodge balls just so that you could talk to Tommy! I know it was
you. You just wait until Principal Polly hears about this! yelled Lucy.
Look, I dont know why you are trying to accuse me, but you need to get your facts
straight. I didnt pop your balls just to talk to Tommy. If I wanted to talk to him, I just would
have gone up to him.
Now Lucy was starting to question herself. Maybe Taylor didnt do it. Maybe she was
just mad because Taylor was trying to steal Tommy away from her. She left Taylor and found an
empty bench to sit and think. Lucy was starting to second-guess her detective skills. Tommy
joined back up with Lucy after she was done talking to Taylor.
Its her! I was eavesdropping and after you walked away, she turned to her friends and
laughed. And then, I heard her whisper, Theyll never find out. Lucy, we have to do something
to get her to admit it! exclaimed Tommy.

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Now Lucy was fired up. Taylor had just lied to her. She talked it out with Tommy and
sent Tommy to talk to Taylor. After all, Taylor was nicer to Tommy than she was to her.
Taylor, I know you popped our dodge balls. Why did you lie to both me and Lucy?
questioned Tommy, in a disappointed voice.
I dont know. I guess I just wanted to talk to you and thats the only way I could,
replied Taylor, avoiding any eye contact with Tommy.
You could have just came up and told me you wanted to talk to me. You didnt have to
destroy our dodge balls just to get my attention, said Tommy sternly.
Im sorry Tommy, said Taylor in a whiney voice.
Dodge ball is really important to me. You lied to me, saying you didnt do it. You even
said that whoever did it was terrible. I just dont get why you did that, replied Tommy in a very
angry voice.
I dont know why I did what I did either, Tommy, said Taylor.
Havent your parents told you its better to tell the truth the first time and get in a little
trouble, than to lie and get in a lot of trouble?! exclaimed Tommy.
Yeah, but slowly said Taylor.
No buts. I hope you learned your lesson from this, Taylor. Always tell the truth the first
time, fired back Tommy.
I have. I wont lie again. Thanks for the lesson Tommy, said Taylor.
Tommy went and found Lucy. Tommy apologized to Lucy for saying that Taylor was too
nice to pop the dodge balls. The dodge ball mystery was finally solved. Taylor learned her lesson
that it is better to tell the truth and get in trouble than to lie and dig herself into a deeper hole.

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The dodge ball kids got new dodge balls and were back to their daily dodge ball tournaments.
Tommy even talked Taylor into playing dodge ball one day.