Dave Casler
PO Box 98
Ridgway, Colorado 81432
Young Adult Novels by Dave Casler...
I've been told by publisher after publisher that there's no market for Young Adult novels. I think they're wrong! So I'm putting my novels on-line for you. Forget the publisher! Read to your heart's content--it's free! And, I'd like to hear from you, too! Contact Page.
You're reading About Dan. Be sure to check out About Phillip here.
Dan is a normal kid who loves his soccer. Except everything goes wrong. Everything.
About Series Home
About the About Series
Index to All Chapters
Here are all the chapters, disguised as asterisks. Hover your mouse over an asterisk to see the title of the chapter. Click on the asterisk to go straight to that chapter.
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(About Dan Home) (Last) (Next)
The Unexpected Voice
After 30 minutes, his computer suddenly made a noise that sounded like a telephone dial tone. Dan was startled and lost his train of thought. The dial tone was faint but unmistakable. Then he heard the distant phone ring and a voice answered. Dan strained to hear.
"Hi, Joyce, this is Maria. Do you have time to talk? I'm just so overwhelmed. I need some adult conversation!"
Adult conversation indeed! The sound seemed to be coming from inside the computer, rather than from the speakers. The modem is malfunctioning.
"Oh, Maria, not right now. But I really want to talk with you. Can you call later tonight, say around eight o'clock?"
"Oh, thank you Joyce! I just really need to talk. I'll call you back at eight."
There were some clicks and then the computer went silent. Did Phillip make a mistake? Of course, he and Peter had tried so many different things that perhaps the modem was hopelessly fouled up. Should I tell mum? But then she'd make him disconnect the modem, he was sure of that. Why haven’t I heard this before? It had been nearly a week since Phillip had been over. I guess the computer’s not been on when mum’s used the phone. There was nothing he could do about it right now.
At seven-thirty, he was done with his paper. "Mum," he yelled through the door. "Can I use the modem for a few minutes?"
"Not very long," came the reply. "I need to use the phone this evening."
The e-mail from his father consisted of two words.
No problem.
He composed a quick reply and attached his paper. He wondered what sort of comments his father might send. He had another e-mail to send also.
Phillip, the modem works fine, but I can hear all the telephone calls my mother makes. How do I turn that off? I’m going to get in trouble if she finds out. Dan Cook.
He left the computer on. Let’s see what "adult conversation" is. He hauled himself to his feet and took the paper to his mother.
She was sitting at the kitchen table, chewing on something undefined from a microwaveable cardboard box. He handed her the paper and went to the sink for some water. He turned to face his mother. She'd set his paper on the table and was continuing to read her magazine.
"Mum, that's due tomorrow," he said.
"Oh, yes, of course. I'll get to it right away." She dropped the magazine and went back to her generic food. She looked up at Dan, who was still leaning against the counter. The light over the sink backlighted him.
"Dan, I'll get it back to you in fifteen or twenty minutes. Give me a few minutes to eat. I'm tired. Oh, and I need to make a phone call at eight. It's private and important. So please don't interrupt me with that fancy new modem of yours."
"Yeah, whatever," muttered Dan. "I'll stay in my room like a good boy." He crutched back to his room and closed the door.