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Stanley bit into an onion. It didn’t burn his eyes or nose, and, in fact, he no longer noticed a particularly strong taste.
He remembered when he had first carried Zero up the hill, how the air had smelled bitter. It was the smell of thousands of onions, growing and rotting and sprouting.
Now he didn’t smell a thing.
“How many onions do you think we’ve eaten?” he asked. Zero shrugged. “I don’t even know how long we’ve been here.”
“I’d say about a week,” said Stanley. “And we probably each eat about twenty onions a day, so that’s …”
“Two hundred and eighty onions,” said Zero. Stanley smiled. “I bet we really stink.”
Two nights later, Stanley lay awake staring up at the star-filled sky. He was too happy to fall asleep.
He knew he had no reason to be happy. He had heard or read somewhere that right before a person freezes to death, he suddenly feels nice and warm. He wondered if perhaps he was experiencing something like that.
It occurred to him that he couldn’t remember the last time he felt happiness. It wasn’t just being sent to Camp Green Lake that had made his life miserable. Before that he’d been unhappy at school, where he had no friends, and bullies like Derrick Dunne picked on him. No one liked him, and the truth was, he didn’t especially like himself.
He liked himself now.
He wondered if he was delirious.
He looked over at Zero sleeping near him. Zero’s face was lit in the starlight, and there was a flower petal in front of his nose that moved back and forth as he breathed. It reminded Stanley of something out of a cartoon. Zero breathed in, and the petal was drawn up almost touching his nose. Zero breathed out, and the petal moved toward his chin. It stayed on Zero’s face for an amazingly long time before fluttering off to the side.
Stanley considered placing it back in front of Zero’s nose, but it wouldn’t be the same.
It seemed like Zero had lived at Camp Green Lake forever, but as Stanley thought about it now, he realized that Zero must have gotten there no more than a month or two before him. Zero was actually arrested a day later. But Stanley’s trial kept getting delayed because of baseball.
He remembered what Zero had said a few days before. If Zero had just kept those shoes, then neither of them would be here right now.
As Stanley stared at the glittering night sky, he thought there was no place he would rather be. He was glad Zero put the shoes on the parked car. He was glad they fell from the overpass and hit him on the head.
When the shoes first fell from the sky, he remembered thinking that destiny had struck him. Now, he thought so again. It was more than a coincidence. It had to be destiny.
Maybe they wouldn’t have to return to Camp Green Lake, he thought. Maybe they could make it past the camp, then follow the dirt road back to civilization. They could fill the sack with onions, and the three jars with water. And he had his canteen as well.
They could refill their jars and canteen at the camp. Maybe sneak into the kitchen and get some food.
He doubted any counselors were still on guard. Everyone had to think they were dead. Buzzard food.
It would mean living the rest of his life as a fugitive. The police would always be after him. At least he could call his parents and tell them he was still alive. But he couldn’t go visit them, in case the police were watching the apartment. Although, if everyone thought he was dead, they wouldn’t bother to watch the apartment. He would have to somehow get a new identity.
Now, I’m really thinking crazy, he thought. He wondered if a crazy person wonders if he’s crazy.
But even as he thought this, an even crazier idea kept popping into his head. He knew it was too crazy to even consider. Still, if he was going to be a fugitive for the rest of his life, it would help to have some money, perhaps a treasure chest full of money.
You’re crazy! he told himself. Besides, just because he found a lipstick container with K B on it, that didn’t mean there was treasure buried there.
It was crazy. It was all part of his crazy feeling of happiness.
Or maybe it was destiny.
He reached over and shook Zero’s arm. “Hey, Zero,” he whispered.
“Huh?” Zero muttered. “Zero, wake up.”
“What?” Zero raised up his head. “What is it?”
“You want to dig one more hole?” Stanley asked him.
