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)
Help is Just a Call Away
Peter's mother answered the phone. "Hi, Dan, yes, Peter's here. But first, tell me how your mother is doing?"
No way around it. "She's not here."
"Did she tell you how her doctor's visit went today?"
"No. She seemed really rattled, though." No point in reviewing the argument.
"When will she be back? I really should talk with her. I haven't in a couple days."
He didn't know that Marilyn had been talking with his mom at all. "Has she told you what's wrong?" he asked, knowing the answer.
"No, she's pretty private. When will she be back?" she pressed.
"I don't know. She didn't say. Is Peter there?"
"Hmmm...I'm concerned about her, Dan."
Yes, I can tell that, thought Dan. Now where's Peter?
"Is Peter there?" he pressed, gently, so as not to annoy her.
"Oh, of course. Let me get him."
Peter came on the phone. "Dan, what's up?"
"A two letter word starting with 'U' and ending with 'P.'"
"Ok, I knew that. I keep forgetting I shouldn't ask you that."
"Do you have some time?" asked Dan.
"No, I've got a paper due tomorrow."
"Oh. Sorry. Never mind, then. I have some interesting news, but I guess it can wait." Dan's voice showed disappointment.
"Ok, I'll bite. What's going on?"
"Well, you know why my dad didn't go into the AIDS clinic with me? I know the answer. It's...well...it's too complicated to tell you over the phone. I'll tell you the next time I see you."
Peter thought for a moment. "But if I come over, your mom'll hear us. And if you tell me over the phone, my mom might hear."
"Mom isn't here. I don't know where she is. She's never gone this time of night. I'm worried about her, to tell the truth."
"You always tell me the truth, my dear Dan. So where do you think she went?"
"I don't know."
"Didn't she leave a note?"
"Yeah, but it was kind of weird. It said, 'Dan, I love you with all my heart. Please always remember that.' Kind of strange, don't you think?"
Peter was silent for a minute. "Yeah, that is weird. Well, Dan, I'd better do this paper or I'm going to flunk old Anderson's class. Call me if anything happens, ok? I guess your news will have to wait. Sorry, old buddy."
"Yeah, ok. Good luck. I'd better do some homework, too."
He pressed "off" and put down the phone. Since his mom wasn't home, he'd just take the phone into his room, in case she called, or in case Peter changed his mind. He grabbed a can of soda and his backpack and went back into his room. He turned on his computer as he sat down. He pulled out a couple of notebooks and started to organize his work. He had one short assignment due tomorrow, so he figured if he did just that one, he could put off the rest.
The computer was up by now, so he logged on to check his e-mail. There was a note from his therapy clinic, asking if his appointment tomorrow could be delayed by a half hour. Another note was addressed to all the soccer players, reminding them of the team meeting next week. Dan knew it would be a rah-rah meeting about not letting their physical conditioning be lost over the winter months, which Coach Johnson referred to as the "bloat months." Phillip sent him a joke comparing a computer to a soccer ball. Dan laughed out loud when he found that people wanted to kick both. It was inane, but Dan felt inane this evening.
Lastly, there was a note from his dad. The subject was simply "Sorry." Dan thought for a moment. Then he deleted it, unread. He logged off to free up the phone line.
There was a loud knock at the front door. Who would come over at this hour? The knock came again. Still irritated at the note from his father, he got up, grabbed his cane and headed for the front door. On the way, he bent over to massage his throbbing knee.