Welcome to another edition of “Behind the Scenes of The Dream Doers Series.”
The Dream Doers and the Summer of Secrets begins on the last day of sixth grade for Alex and Tyler and class bully Zach. But today’s flashback story continues a short series of the first day of kindergarten for Alex, Tyler and Zach.
*****
“Hey! Are you bothering her?” Tyler stepped between him and Zach.
Zach stepped back. “No.” He laughed. “She just looked scared. I came over to cheer her up.”
“She cries a lot,” Anson said, “because she’s a girl.”
Clay spoke up. “Yeah. We just came to tell her she didn’t need to be scared.”
That sounded okay to Tyler. Then he looked at Alex. She was shaking her head no and kept crying.
“We play with little Alex all the time,” Zach said. “We live in the same neighborhood. I’m Zach. This is Clay, and that’s Anson. What’s your name?”
“Tyler.” Tyler crossed his arms and cocked his head. “You were really just trying to cheer her up?”
“Yes. I don’t like to see little Alex cry.”
Tyler decided he didn’t like this Zach kid. Something about him just seemed…mean. Still, what Tyler said next surprised even Tyler. “Well, I don’t like to hear people tell my best friend they’re gonna pinch her and hit her and pull her hair.”
Zach’s face suddenly changed from trying to look nice to looking super mean. “You can’t be her friend,” Zach said. “Alex doesn’t have any friends.”
“She does now,” Tyler said. “So you guys just need to leave her alone, or you’ll have to deal with me, too.”
“Let’s go, Zach.” Anson tugged on Zach’s shoulder.
“He can’t protect you all the time, little Alex,” Zach said to Alex, then went away.
For some reason, though, Alex was still crying. “Did you mean that?” she asked. “I thought you wanted a boy to be your best friend.”
Hmm. He did want a boy to be his best friend because boys liked baseball. Maybe if this girl liked baseball…he’d have to ask. “Do you like baseball?”
“I guess.” Alex sniffed and shrugged. “My brothers play all the time, and I like watching them.”
Tyler nodded once. That was good enough for him. “Okay. You’ll do. We’re best friends. As long as you don’t cry anymore. I can’t have a best friend who cries. We just can’t be best friends if you cry.”
Alex wiped her face and shook her head. “’Kay. I won’t cry anymore at all. Ever. Promise.”
“Good. Let’s go tell our moms we’re best friends!”
*****
This flashback story concludes next week with another edition of “Behind the Scenes of The Dream Doers Series.” So stay tuned!
To Your Dreams,
Bonnie Jean
P.S. In case you haven’t yet been in front of the scenes of The Dream Doers series, it starts with The Dream Doers and the Summer of Secrets. In this young adult novel, best friends Alex and Tyler are forced to battle bullies, face their fears and keep strange secrets the summer they learn to do what they dream. You can hear the whole “Front of the Scenes” story for FREE. Just visit TheDreamDoers.com and fill out a super short form. Enjoy the story!
