aiden tyler, quaran-teen · “why are you dressed like that?” kylie asked. “the sun is...

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AIDEN TYLER,

QUARAN-TEEN BY REX OGLE

A Weekly Web “Serial”

(No, not CEREAL. Serial, as in Series.)

A brand new story about surviving the Coronavirus quaranMne

when you're trapped at home with your family... a hilarious ongoing middle grade story, filled with laughs, facts, farts, & hearts.

New Chapters every Tuesday!! Perfect for kids at home!!

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Aiden Tyler, Quaran-teen by Rex Ogle

* Apologies for typos, misspellings, and bad grammar! ☺ *

Social Media & Stuff:

*Watch new episodes LIVE every Tuesday at:

hBps://www.juniorlibraryguild.com/quaran-teen

(featuring weekly contests and giveaways)

Make sure to follow us at:

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hBps://twiBer.com/RexOgle

Or:

hBps://www.instagram.com/jrlibraryguild/

hBps://www.instagram.com/thirdrex/

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https://www.juniorlibraryguild.com/quaran-teen

https://twitter.com/JrLibraryGuild

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https://www.instagram.com/thirdrex/



CHAPTER TEN, Haircuts at Home

“AGHHHHHHHHHHHH!” Sophia screamed at the top of her lungs. Aiden and Jackson

both jumped off the couch when they heard it. They raced to the bathroom.

“Mom! How could you?!” Sophia shrieked from the other side of the door.

“What happened?” Aiden asked.

“What happened?” Jackson repeated.

Mom opened the bathroom door just enough to slide out, then closed it quickly. She

pushed both her sons toward the living room. She whispered, “Okay, boys, listen. It’s vital that

you don’t say anything when Sophia comes out. Because if you don’t have anything nice to say,

you shouldn’t say anything at all, right? No, wait... never mind, you should say something—

something nice. If you do, I’ll take you to Chik-Fil-A, or Taco Bell, or Arby’s, wherever you want.

Just be nice to her. Promise?”

“What’d you do to Sophia?” Jackson asked.

“We all need haircuts, and I thought hers would be the easiest, so...”

Sophia threw the bathroom door open so it slammed into the bathtub. She had a towel

around her shoulders, covered in hair clippings. Her previously long hair had been cut into a

bowl shape with crooked bangs. She cried, “I’m a monster, mom! You have to fix it!”

“You want me to cut more?” Mom asked.

“NO! I want you to take me to Amber’s Salon, so Amber can fix it.”

“Sophia. Amber’s is closed, you know that. Every non-essenXal business is closed unXl

quaranXne is liGed.”

“What about my hair, Mom? I can’t go outside looking like this!”

“When are you going outside?” Aiden asked. “No one has anywhere to go.”

“Shut up, Aiden!” Sophia screamed.

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“Sophia, please, don’t say—” Mom started.

“You shut up, too! Everyone shut up shut up SHUT UP!” Sophia ran back into the

bathroom and slammed the door as hard as she could. The whole apartment shook.

“We go to Arby’s now?” Jackson asked.

“No,” Mom said. “You forgot to say something nice.”

Aiden knocked on the bathroom door, saying, “I like it. You look like Spock from Star

Trek: Discovery.”

Sophia screamed.

Mom pinched her nose. “Aiden, I said say something nice.”

“That is nice,” Aiden noted. “I love Star Trek. I mean, it’s not as good as Star Wars, but

—”

“Please, stop talking,” Mom said.

“Let’s go on a family walk,” Mike said, “As much as I love spending Xme with yall on my

day off, the house is starXng to smell a liUle rank.”

“It is?” Mom asked.

Mike nodded. “No judgment. That’s what happens when four people spend 24 hours a

day in a small apartment.”

“I am NOT leaving this house,” Sophia snapped. She sat on the couch, arms crossed,

with a pink hoodie on, hood up. She had refused to take it off since Mom cut her hair two days

ago.

“Soph, it’s not that bad,” Mike said.

“It’s not that good either,” Sophia growled, looking at Mom. “If all of you want to go on

a family walk, go. I’m not leaving this house unXl my hair grows back to the way it was.”

“That could take months,” Mike noted.

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“I know!” Sophia shouted.

Mike started Xckling Sophia. “Come on, liUle lady. A family walk isn’t a family walk if the

whole family isn’t there, so you’re coming.”

Sophia was trying not to laugh, but she was super Xcklish. “I’m not going!”

“You’re coming,” Mike said. “We all need some fresh air.”

“Dad!!”

“No arguments. Let’s go. Get your shoes on.”

Ten minutes later, the whole family was outside, wearing their facemasks. Aiden and

Jackson led the pack, followed by Sophia—arms crossed, wearing her hoodie, her baseball cap,

and sunglasses. Mom and Mike walked behind her. Mike said, “You look like a celebrity trying

to hide their face.”

“That’s cause I don’t want anyone to recognize me,” Sophia replied. “A bunch of kids

from my school live around here. Xavier and Quinten, Ben and Bradley. Elyse, Maddy, Luke,

Declan. I don’t want anyone seeing me.”

“Sophia Miller—is that you?”

The whole family turned. Aiden recognized twin sisters Kaylie and Kylie from the bus he

used to take to school last year. That seemed like a distant memory now. The girls waved from

their front yard. “OMG! How are you, Sophia? Isn’t everything super weird right now? We

miss school, do you miss school?”

“Yeah...” Sophia whispered, lowering her head, as if she could somehow hide. She

pulled on the strings so the sweatshirt hood closed Xghter around her face.

“Why are you dressed like that?” Kylie asked. “The sun is finally out. Aren’t you hot?”

“Just being cauXous,” Sophia said.

“Oh that’s smart,” Kaylie replied. “You can never be too safe these days.”

“Well, I guess I’ll see you later,” Sophia said, trying to end the conversaXon.

“When? Not at fiGh grade graduaXon,” Kaylie said.

Sophia turned back, taking off her sunglasses. “What do you mean?”

“Didn’t you hear?” Kylie said. “School is out for the rest of this year—which means no

graduaXon event. I mean, maybe they’ll do one remotely online, but—”

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“We won’t be walking across the stage? Or having the pizza and cake party like Principal

MarXnez throws every year?”

“Afraid not,” Kaylie said.

Kylie added, “DevastaXng, right?”

Sophia started walking away. Her walk turned into a jog. And then a run.

“Where’s she going?” Jackson asked. “This is family walk.”

“Give us a minute, okay?” Mom said to Mike. Mom chased aGer Sophia.

“Hey, I’ve got an idea,” Mike said. “Jackson, have you heard about the bears and hearts

game? People are pu_ng bears and hearts in their windows. Wanna see if we can find some?”

Jackson jumped up and down. “On your shoulders?”

Mike put Jackson on his shoulders. Jackson craned his neck in every direcXon. The

street was lined with apartment complexes and houses. “I see a bear there!” Jackson squealed.

“And one there too!”

But Aiden wasn’t paying aUenXon to the game. He was looking up the street, to the

next block where Mom had caught up with Sophia. Mom bent down to one knee. Sophia put

her hands up to her face. Even though Aiden couldn’t hear them, he could tell Sophia was

crying. Mom wrapped her arms around Sophia, and held her for a long Xme.

AGer the walk, the family came home. Mom, Mike, and Jackson reXred to their room to

take a nap. Sophia went in her and Aiden’s room and closed the door aGer pu_ng up a sign

saying “ STAY OUT”.

It was Aiden’s room too. He was about to complain when he realized he had the living

room, the TV, and Mom’s laptop all to himself. But now, he couldn’t decide what to watch. He

didn’t have Disney Plus or Hulu, but he had Neelix. There was also a bunch of channels offering

free shows. He’d already watched all the Star Trek on CBS All Access. Jacob recommended The

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Office or New Girl. Bella suggested a documentary about some McDonald’s Monopoly scam.

But Aiden opted to go with Lily’s recommendaXon: BaBlestar Galac[ca on Syfy.com.

Hours later, Aiden was hooked. He was devastated when he had to pause it because

Mom, Mike, and Jackson were ge_ng up.

“You ready for fun?” Mike asked. “Tonight is going to be the night to end all nights—

with so much excitement your heads will bleed with laughter.”

Jackson’s eyes got wide. “Bleed?”

“Mike, come on. Bleed with laughter?” Aiden said. “That’s creepy.”

“Totally fair,” Mike noted. “How about... we will laugh unXl our heads fall off?”

Jackson grabbed his neck. He squealed, “NO!”

“Please stop,” Aiden pleaded.

“Mike’s planned a fun evening for all of us,” Mom said. “While I cook dinner, all of you

are going to play board games. Then we’re going to eat dinner, play more board games, and

then... a scary movie with popcorn.”

“For real?” Aiden asked.

“Yes!” Jackson hissed.

Mom started pulling out massive cans from a box. The first was a can of salsa almost as

big as Jackson. Then she pulled a massive brick of cheddar cheese out of the fridge. It was as

big as Aiden’s arm. Aiden asked, “Those are huge. Where’d you get those?”

“My restaurant,” Mom said. “The owners realized their wait staff was having a hard

Xme, so they let us buy food wholesale. That means we get a lot more for a lot cheaper.”

“Cool,” Aiden said. “So what’s for dinner?”

Mom grinned. “Nachos.”

Aiden’s mouth watered.

“Go grab your sister, will ya?” Mike asked.

Aiden knocked on his bedroom door, but Sophia snapped, “Go away.”

“We’re gonna play board games.”

“I’m not in the mood.”

“Sophia, come on, it’ll be—”

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Something slammed into the door. Aiden took the hint. Sophia needed some space.

Mike, Aiden, and Jackson played Ticket to Ride. Jackson won, though only because Mike

helped him the whole Xme. AGer a nacho dinner, they played Codenames. Mike and Jackson,

versus Mom and Aiden. Mom and Aiden won. While Mike made popcorn, Mom disappeared

inside the bedroom with Sophia. Aiden tried to eavesdrop. All he heard was a lot of

whispering. Something was going on with Sophia.

“Popcorn’s ready,” Mike shouted. “That means movie Xme!”

“What are we watching?” Jackson squealed.

Mike smiled darkly. “Contagion.”

“Wait, is that a movie about disease?” Aiden asked. “Absolutely not. I’m pu_ng my foot

down. No. No way.”

“I’m with Aiden,” Mom added, coming out of the room and slowly closing the door. “No

disease movies.”

“Is Sophia joining us?” Mike asked.

Mom shook her head. Aiden noXced a look exchanged between his parents.

“LEGO Movie,” Jackson squealed.

Mike said, “Sorry, liUle man. We’ve seen it like a million Xmes.”

“Trolls World Tour?” Jackson asked.

“How about Train to Busan?” Aiden said.

Mike shrunk back. “You realize that’s a movie about zombies, right? I thought you

hated zombies.”

“I do,” Aiden admiUed. “But with everything going on... I don’t know, I’m kinda in the

mood to get freaked out.”

“Sold!” Mike said, grabbing the remote.

“For real?” Mom asked. “You boys have fun. Jackson and I will watch the LEGO Movie in

my room.”

“Yes!” Jackson clapped.

When Mom and Jackson disappeared into the bedroom, Aiden turned to Mike. “Is

Sophia okay?”

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Mike hesitated. AGer a minute, he said, “She’s not right now, but she will be. We’ll all

be okay.”

Aiden didn’t know if it was the way Mike said it, or the start of the zombie movie, but an

ice cold chill ran up Aiden’s spine.

That night, Aiden couldn’t sleep. Train to Busan was one of the best movies he’d ever

seen—but it was also one of the most terrifying. Why had he agreed to a zombie movie? What

was he thinking? AnyXme he heard anything now, he’d find himself wide awake. When an

outdoor cat meowed. When a bird chirped. When a windchime sXrred. Everything sounded

like a zombie now.

Aiden looked over at the clock. It was aGer midnight. He was never going to get any

sleep at this point. He sat up. His side of the room was a mess. Sophia’s side was perfectly

organized. Sophia was tucked in her bed. But even sleeping, she looked sad. He wondered

what was going on with her.

“Why are you watching me sleep?” Sophia asked.

“What? I’m not,” Aiden said.

Sophia sat up. “Yes, you are.”

“I’m wide awake,” Aiden admiUed. “Zombie movie reacXon.”

“Oh.” Sophia kicked off her blanket. “I’m hot.”

Aiden waited a minute, then asked, “Are you okay?”

Sophia shrugged. AGer a long Xme, she whispered, “Everything is falling apart.”

“It’s not,” Aiden said. “It’s just... different from what we’re used to.”

Sophia whispered, “I hate different.”

Aiden wanted to say, “Me too.” But that felt like the wrong thing to say. That’s not what

his sister needed to hear. So instead, he said, “It doesn’t have to be.” Then he got out of bed.

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He put on a t-shirt, a pair of cowboy boots Abuela bought him at a garage sale, and the Boba

FeU helmet from last year’s Halloween costume.

Sophia giggled. “You look stupid.”

“Good,” Aiden said. “You put on something stupid too.”

“Why? Where are we going?”

“You’ll see.”

Sophia hopped out of bed. She put on a pair of red gliUer shoes and fairy wings, then

added a bug antenna headband. Aiden put his finger up to his lips, then they Xp-toed out of

their room, toward the front door. Aiden has just unlocked it when the living room lamp came

on. Mom sat up, a book falling off her chest. She oGen fell asleep reading. She narrowed her

eyes. “Where do you two think you’re going?”

They were caught. Aiden was sure Mom was going to freak out. That he would be

grounded for eternity. Even aGer quaranXne ended. He didn’t know what to say. He farted.

“Aiden!” Sophia groaned.

“Why are you nervous?” Mom asked.

Aiden decided to be honest. “We couldn’t sleep. I thought we could take a liUle walk

outside—not far!—just in the courtyard.”

Mom rubbed her eyes. Then she stood up.

Aiden readied himself for Mom to flip out.

“In the courtyard?” Mom asked, “How about a bike ride instead?”

Aiden and Sophia looked at each other, shocked.

Mom put on her sneakers, then led her children down to the garage to unlock their

bikes. The three of them rode out onto the street in front of their apartment complex and rode

up and down Gardner Street.

Aiden couldn’t remember ever having been outside of his apartment aGer midnight. No

people were sXrring. No one was out walking or driving. The only sound came from the wind

and from insects chirping and a distant water fountain.

“There’s no one around, I love it,” Mom whispered.

Sophia pulled off her facemask, shoved it in her pocket, and said, “I’m free!”

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As Aiden rode in circles on his bike, he looked up. The sky above was filled with

gliUering stars. He’d never noXced how bright they were before. And it wasn’t nearly as dark as

he would have thought. Not with the streetlights and the lamps outside the buildings, and not

with Mom and Sophia on their bikes, laughing. Aiden laughed too.

CHAPTER ELEVEN, BINGO!

“Quit hogging the laptop!” Sophia shouted at Aiden.

“I’m not hogging it, I’m doing my homework!”

“Nuh-uh! You’re listening to Timberlake and SZA’s ‘The Other Side’ on repeat.”

“I can listen to music while I do my homework,” Aiden stated.

“I wanna Zoom with Sapphire.”

“Your best friend can wait. Or go use Mom’s phone and FaceXme her.”

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“I need the laptop!” Sophia argued. “Sapphire is doing games online. She figured out

how to set up stuff with our class. Everyone’s gonna be there: Gage and Emery and EmmeU and

Maggie, Dhruvi and Gyan, Alexa, Arya, Rohan, and Soren, Johnny, Josiah, Suri, Ruthanne, Erin,

Will, Gabriel, Kai, Grant, Bradley, Nathanial, Nate—”

Aiden cut his sister off. “Naming everyone in fiGh grade isn’t going to help me finish

homework any faster. Just let me do this paper, and I’ll let you use the laptop when I’m done.”

“But the game starts in ten minutes!”

“Not my problem,” Aiden said. “You shoulda told me earlier.”

Sophia stomped her feet and screamed.

“Please stop screaming, both of you!” Mom shouted from her bedroom.

“I’m not screaming,” Aiden shouted.

“I scream too,” Jackson squealed. Then he leapt up on the couch and started jumping up

and down.

Mom stormed out of her room, “What is going on?!”

Sophia kept screaming, and Jackson kept squealing. Aiden looked at his Mom and

yelled, “Those kids are lunaXcs! Please tell me they’re adopted.”

“Okay, that’s it!” Mom shouted. “ENOUGH!!!”

Jackson collapsed onto the couch and hid under the throw blanket. Sophia stopped too.

Then tears welled up in her eyes. She ran into Mom’s arms and started sobbing. Mom helped

her to the bedroom, then closed the door. Aiden could hear them whispering in there.

“What is that all about?” Aiden asked.

Jackson shrugged. “I dunno.”

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At noon, Aiden borrowed Mom’s phone. Just like every Tuesday, he was ready to

FaceXme his friends for lunch. A second later, the phone rang. Bella, Lily, and Jacob waved from

floaXng boxes on the screen.

“You died your hair!” Aiden shouted at Bella. Her hair was bright blue.

“Yup. I was bored so I decided to try something new. You like it?”

“I love it,” Lily said. “How are all of you holding up?”

“I’m going sXr-crazy,” Jacob said.

“Yup, cabin-fever here too,” Bella added.

“Same,” Aiden said.

“Have any of you watched the news lately? It’s so depressing.”

“So many people are losing their jobs. Or ge_ng furloughed, which I guess is kinda the

same thing. And lots of people are sXll ge_ng sick. Some are dying.”

“It could be worse though,” Lily noted. “The governments all over the world are

responding and trying to keep people safe. That’s why they want everyone to stay at home and

use masks when they do go out. To keep numbers as low as possible.”

“I thought people were saying COVID is a hoax?” Jacob asked. “On the news, there were

people gathering and protesXng.”

“It’s not a hoax,” Lily said. “Those people are just ignorant. If it were a hoax, it wouldn’t

be all over the whole world.”

“I heard Mom and Mike talking last night,” Aiden admiUed. “They said no one is sure

when quaranXne will be over.”

“Are we going to be stuck like this for the rest of our lives?” Jacob asked, the whites of

his eyes as big as a clock.

“No,” Bella said. “But it may take Xme. Maybe another month.”

“Another month?” Aiden felt his heart sink. “I can’t wait that long. I’ll murder my sister.

Or she’ll murder me.”

“What’s happening with Sophia?” Lily asked.

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“I don’t know. She’s freaking out all the Xme, and reading all the bad news. One day

she’ll be fine, and the next she’ll be... not. Plus, her and Mom are always sneaking off and

whispering. I hate secrets.”

“Girls are weird, man,” Jacob said.

“Hey!” Bella snapped. “Lily and I are girls too, you know.”

“Yeah, but you’re more like boys. I mean, you’re cool, and not, you know... dumb like

most girls.”

“Most girls are not dumb,” Lily growled.

“Yes, they are,” Jacob said. “I don’t mean dumb like stupid, just that they don’t get stuff

like guys. They don’t like sports or comics or—”

“Dude, stop talking,” Aiden said.

“Yeah, Jacob, you sound like a moron,” Bella snapped. “You can’t make one blanket

statement about every female in the world. Every person is different, boy or girl. And I’m a girl,

and I love sports.”

“And I love comics,” Lily added.

“I wasn’t trying to insult anyone, geez, calm down,” Jacob said. “You’re being so

sensiXve. You’re like my Mom when she’s on her—”

“Jacob!” Bella shouted. “Don’t you dare say it or I’ll hang up this call so fast your head

will spin.”

“Go ahead,” Jacob shouted. “These calls are ge_ng boring anyways. And depressing.

All you three talk about is Coronavirus and people dying and sad stuff. I’m sick of hearing about

that stuff.”

“So don’t join the calls then!” Lily snapped.

“Hey, hey! Stop with the shouXng,” Aiden said, trying to help, but realizing instantly, he

sounded like his Mom. “Everyone needs to calm down.”

“Stop telling me to calm down!” Bella yelled. “The whole world has gone off the deep

end, I can freak out if I want to!”

“That’s not what I meant,” Aiden started to say, but Jacob interrupted.

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“Maybe it is a hoax,” Jacob said. “You don’t know. I don’t know either. What I do know

is that nobody I know has it. And we’re all walking around with masks. So we’re safe. We’re

fine. Everyone needs to just relax and stop acXng like it’s the end of the world.”

“That’s such a stupid thing to say,” Lily roared. “2.4 millions people have it globally.

That’s a lot of people. And celebriXes have had it. Tom Hanks, Idris Alba, Daniel Day Kim—”

Bella added, “Andy Cohen, Colton Underwood, Sara Bareilles, P!nk. The list goes on and

on, Jacob. So stop being stupid.”

Jacob shouted, “I’m not stupid, you’re stupid!”

“Come on, everyone, please—” Aiden tried to say.

But Lily shouted, “I’m ouUa here.” When she hung up, her image disappeared. Then

Jacob’s did too.

“Bella, wait!” Aiden said.

“Sorry, Aiden. I have to go,” she said. Then she hung up too.

“What is wrong with everybody?!” Aiden shouted to himself. This big heavy sinking

feeling filled up his stomach. He began to wonder if his friendships were going to survive the

quaranXne, or if maybe COVID could hurt more than just people.

“Family meeXng!” Mom said. “Sophia, Aiden, Jackson, all of you. Come join me at the

table.”

Jackson raced over and hopped in Mom’s lap. He held up a plasXc pterodactyl and

pretended it was eaXng Mom’s chin. “We’re all starXng to lose it a liUle bit,” Mom said. “But I

know what will help—”

“You found a cure for coronavirus?” Aiden said.

“We’re taking a vacaXon?” Sophia asked.

“Cookies?” Aiden added.

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“No, no, and no,” Mom said. She pulled out her old dry erase board. It looked like a

BINGO sheet, with a 5 x 5 grid of boxes. But instead of BINGO, it said PURGE, and instead of

numbers, it said stuff like KITCHEN CABINETS, FRIDGE, LIVING ROOM, BEDROOM, BEDROOM

CLOSETS, and BATHROOM.

“Is this a game?” Sophia asked.

“Sure, let’s think of it like that,” Mom said.

“Wait, what’s a purge?” Aiden asked.

“A purge is when you get rid of something you don’t need. With all of us stuck at home

24/7, I feel like we have lots of extra energy to spend on something like cleaning our home top

to boUom. It’s like a spring cleaning, but more intense. There’s plenty of stuff we’re not using,

things that are just taking up space, so we’re going to get rid of those.”

“I’m not ge_ng rid of my LEGOs!” Aiden said defensively.

“I’m not ge_ng rid of my music collecXon!” Sophia added.

“I’m not ge_ng rid of me!” Jackson squealed.

Mom shook her head. “I’m not saying we have to get rid of things we love. But we

should try to lose the stuff we don’t use on a regular basis.”

Sophia looked around the room. “We don’t use the umbrellas very much.”

“And we have that vegetable pasta maker thing that Uncle Josh bought for you, and you

never use,” Aiden said.

“We’re not ge_ng rid of the umbrellas,” Mom said. “And the pasta maker makes me

happy when I use it. Though I should make zucchini spaghe_ more oGen. Ugh. I’m not doing a

good job of explaining this. Oh, I know. Everyone on the couch. Move it.”

As the kids moved to the couch, Mom turned on Neelix. Then she made everyone

watch the first episode of a show called Tidying Up with Marie Kondo.

When it was over, Mom asked, “Does that make more sense?”

“You want us to spark joy—” Aiden started.

“—by cleaning up,” Sophia finished.

“Ari-gato,” Jackson said.

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“That’s exactly it,” Mom said. “Every day, we’re going to choose one room, and we’re

going to tackle it together. We’re only going to keep what sparks joy. Everything else goes into

a trash bag or a box for donaXon.”

Aiden was surprised to find he was kind of excited. Watching the show, made him

realize he had some stuff he wouldn’t mind ge_ng rid of. But he also had a lot of stuff he

wanted to keep. He was too old for Pokémon, but he didn’t want to get rid of his guidebooks.

“Can we start tomorrow?” Sophia asked.

“No,” Mom said. “We’re starXng today. And we’re starXng with the messiest place in

the whole apartment—your bedroom.”

“I can’t get rid of these jeans! They spark joy for me!” Sophia moaned.

“But you can’t fit into them,” Mom said. “You haven’t worn them since you were six.”

Sophia groaned and whined unXl Mom made a deal that she could keep the jeans, if she

did something creaXve with them and promised to get rid of the rest of the clothes she couldn’t

wear anymore.

For Aiden, ge_ng rid of clothes was a lot easier. If he didn’t fit into them, he was fine

tossing them, or saving them for Jackson. Clothes didn’t maUer that much to him. But when

Mom pulled out his boxes of toys from his closet and under the bed, he got nervous.

“I want to keep all these though,” Aiden said.

“That’s not how the system works,” Mom said. “I want you to take each item out of the

box, one at a Xme, hold it, and see if it really sparks joy.”

Aiden groaned. But as he went through the box, he realized there were a lot of toys he

had that he didn’t want or never played with. There were others that he absolutely loved and

couldn’t imagine ge_ng rid of. It turned out, Xdying up was easier than he thought. It just took

some Xme.

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“Remember to say, Arigato!” Jackson squealed.

“Are you sure you want to get rid of all your Power Ranger toys?” Mom asked. “You

loved those.”

Aiden shrugged. “I’m keeping the Red Ranger, but the rest can go. Jackson, do you want

the Dino-zords?”

Jackson’s eyes lit up. “Really?” Jackson picked up the mechanical dinosaur as if he had

picked up the world’s biggest diamond. His eyes gliUered. “Wow.”

“That was very sweet of you,” Mom said.

“I have my moments,” Aiden smirked.

The whole aGernoon flew by, and before they knew it, it was past dinnerXme. Mom

said, “I wonder where Mike is? He said he’d drop off a pizza for us an hour ago. I’m going to call

him. Can you two handle things from here?”

“We’re almost done,” Sophia said. She and Aiden looked around their room. It was like

a whole new place. Their closets were perfect, with less clothes and less junk and less things

crammed into every inch. It was the same with their shared bookshelves and under their beds.

Aiden just had one more stack of books to go through, and he’d be finished. He picked up an

old Hardy Boys paperback. He felt it with his heart. He liked this book, but he didn’t love it. He

could let it go. He did the same with some Magic Treehouse books, some West Coast Avengers

comics, and a bunch of novels he started but never finished. Part of him wanted to keep all of

the books, cause he loved reading, but he thought it would be nicer if he donated them to

someone who could read them too.

Plus, there were plenty of books he was keeping. Like Jeffrey Brown’s Star Wars: Jedi

Academy trilogy, Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events, and Neil Patrick Harris’s Magic

Misfits series, which taught how to do actual magic tricks. Plus, he was keeping all his X-Men

comics. Though he did wonder if he would ever get his Hickman run back from Jacob.

That’s when Aiden found his set of Classroom 13 books. There were six of them, all with

hilarious Xtles, wriUen by an author named Honest Lee. Aiden held them and immediately felt

lighter, like he was floaXng almost. He remembered when the books first arrived in the mail, a

giG from Uncle Josh. When he’d read them, they made him laugh and laugh and laugh.

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With everything going on the world, with all the scary stuff out there, he needed more

laughter. “I’m keeping these. Maybe I’ll even read them again,” he whispered to himself. He

put all six books on the nightstand next to his bed.

Aiden pulled out his Happy List—the one he’d started for homework, but kept working

on—a list of all the things that made these dark Xmes seem a liUle less dark. He read it over:

#1. X-Men Comics

#2. LEGO sets.

#3. My half of the bedroom when Sophia isn’t there.

#4. TV shows like Dragon Prince and LEGO Brickmasters

#5. Crunchy tacos.

#6. Hanging with my friends, even if it’s only on Zoom or Face[me.

#7. My Uncle Josh and all the cool stuff he sends me.

#8. Abuela.

#9. Movie nights when Mike picks the movie.

#10. Jackson, cause he’s hilarious.

#11. Board games (especially when I win)

#12. Star Wars and Star Trek.

#13. BaBlestar Galac[ca.

#14. Thin crust pizza with pepperoni and pineapple.

#15. Family hikes, when we used to go out to the woods or Joshua Tree state park.

#16. Car rides.

#17. Being in an actual comic bookstore.

#18. Halloween, my favorite holiday.

#19. Christmas.

#20. My birthday, even if I don’t get presents.

#21. Birthday cake.

#22. Swimming in pools in the summer.

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Aiden added #23 to the list, wriXng, Reading Classroom 13 books. He smiled.

In the living room, he heard the front door open and close. Mom shouted, “Mike’s here

with pizza. Who wants dinner?”

Sophia stood up, stretched, then kicked Aiden playfully. “Last one gets the coldest slice.”

She ran out.

Aiden stood up, but paused to survey the room. It felt a liUle empXer, but in a good way.

For some reason, he felt like he’d really accomplished something, like he would sleep really well

tonight. He felt proud.

But when Aiden got into the living room, his feelings changed.

“Here, sit down,” Mom said to Mike, moving him onto the couch.

“Honey, I’m fine. I have to get back to work,” Mike said. But he was pale.

Mom touched his forehead with the back of her hand. “You’re burning up,” she

whispered. The blood seemed to drain away from her face. “Aiden, Sophia, Jackson, please put

on your facemasks.”

“Why?” Sophia asked, her mouth full of pizza.

“Just do it,” Mom said.

Aiden stared at Mike. He looked really sick.

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Howdy!

If you’re reading this, than I just wanted to say THANKS for tuning in. I hope you’re

enjoying!

Best,

Rex-o-rama Ogle!

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aiden tyler, quaran-teen · “why are you dressed like that?” kylie asked. “the sun is...

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