Away with Words , livre ebook

Archway Publishing - Linda Folsom

Découvre YouScribe en t'inscrivant gratuitement

Je m'inscris

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

92 pages

English

Vous pourrez modifier la taille du texte de cet ouvrage

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

A propos
Informations
Extrait

Description

Anyone struggling will relate to Charlie as he's confronted with one challenge after another before ultimately learning that he isn't alone; there is help.
“Away With Words” takes the reader on a journey of discovery with fifteen year old Charlie. His dyslexia has made him cautious and insecure but this summer life has stepped in and forced him to deal with things he never expected to. He must learn to navigate new and old relationships, a new city and to open up to others, including his father who has not been in his life for many years. The experience leaves Charlie untethered and challenged but ultimately stronger and wiser.

Sujets

Univers ado

Fiction ado

drawing

Young Adult Fiction

Coming of Age

Learning disability

Informations

Publié par	Archway Publishing
Date de parution	10 novembre 2022
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781665727990
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	1 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0200€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

AWAY WITH WORDS
LINDA FOLSOM

Copyright © 2022 Linda Folsom.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Archway Publishing
1663 Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403
www.archwaypublishing.com
844-669-3957

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Images by Vincent Takas.

ISBN: 978-1-6657-2798-3 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-6657-3176-8 (hc)
ISBN: 978-1-6657-2799-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022914107

Archway Publishing rev. date: 10/13/2022
Contents
Chapter 1The Tattoo
Chapter 2The Reveal
Chapter 3The Call
Chapter 4Getting Identified
Chapter 5Coping Mechanisms
Chapter 6The Journey Begins
Chapter 7Not My Son
Chapter 8First Encounter
Chapter 9The Roommate
Chapter 10Welcome to the Crew
Chapter 11What About Tyler?
Chapter 12The Future of Theater
Chapter 13Tyler’s Summer
Chapter 14Talk To Your Son
Chapter 15Searching For A Solution
Chapter 16Egypt to the Rescue
Chapter 17Anyone Can Act
Chapter 18Any Idiot Can
Chapter 19The Moment Of Truth
Chapter 20A Chip Off The Old Block
Chapter 21Enjoy The Moment
Chapter 22With The Author
Chapter 23Why Be Normal?
Chapter 24Is He Or Isn’t He?
Chapter 25The List
Chapter 26No More Secrets
Chapter 27The Audience Awaits
Chapter 28Have You Met My Dad?
Chapter 29A Farewell
Chapter 30Second Chances

I couldn’t have written this without the support of my husband, Stuart, who brings me endless joy or without the hope that my daughter Alana and my adorable grandson Kitt will read it.
I also want to thank the many writing friends who encouraged me throughout the process.
1
The Tattoo
Charlie leaned forward easing himself into the stiff vinyl covered chair. His chest rested against the cool surface, his head supported by a padded cushion which smelled of ink and sweat. He forced himself to take a few deep breaths to calm himself. His heart pounded worse than it had before any test as the high-pitch hum of the needle grew louder. He gritted his teeth as he felt the first sting as the needle pierced his skin. Grimacing, he glanced up at the smiling, blue-haired girl holding his hand and hoped he wasn’t making a huge mistake.

He was completely unprepared when Tyler wanted to hang out with him. She was a beautiful African American girl who he’d noticed around school but didn’t think he’d ever get to meet. She was in the smart classes, the ones he never got put into. He’d seen her in the hallway, sometimes with friends but more often alone. He thought about talking to her, but each time he had an opportunity, he chickened out. He told himself that she was out of his league, and put all hopes of her ever noticing him out of his mind. Until it happened.
Their unlikely meeting occurred at the school “Spring Fling” dance. His best friend, Dustin, talked him into going. Charlie knew Dustin only wanted him there so he wouldn’t have to stand around on his own all night. It’s true, “misery loves company.” Charlie was convinced he’d have a terrible time but said he’d go because his friend needed him.
When Charlie told his mom about the dance, she insisted that he get something nice to wear; he’d planned on wearing jeans and a T-shirt, like everyone else but, to humor his mom, he went to the Salvation Army store down the street where she’d promised him he’d be able to find something “appropriate.” Charlie was surprised when, after only a few minutes of looking through the racks, he found a cool vintage suit. It was gray with what the guy at the store said was a chalk stripe. The jacket was lined with a deep-burgundy satin. The suit fit him better than any jeans or jacket ever had. He never imagined owning anything like it.
He felt older, important wearing it and didn’t care that he would probably be the only one at the dance who wasn’t in jeans. Tyler told him later that it was the suit that made her notice him. She said it made her think that he wasn’t like all the other guys. It made him special. Charlie didn’t tell his mom about meeting Tyler or how much he liked the suit. He saw no point in encouraging her to stick her nose into his life.
It was great to hang with her at the dance, but when Tyler first started to talk to him at school, after the dance, he thought he was being pranked. He was polite to her but he couldn’t believe she really liked him, even though Dustin told him she did. Charlie saw himself honestly and didn’t know what she saw in him. He was an average-looking, too tall, scrawny white boy. His black shoulder-length hair was impossibly oily. He washed it every morning, with soap, not shampoo, figuring it would dry it out, but by midday it looked like he hadn’t washed it in a week.
A few weeks ago, one of the kids in his fourth period asked him if he’d gone for a swim during lunch. He started to answer him until he realized he was being insulted. He was pointing out that Charlie’s hair was so greasy, it looked wet! He wanted to climb under a rock. At least he was lucky that his skin was still clear. So far he’d avoided the acne that plagued a lot of the guys in his classes. He tried to buff up. He lifted weights—well, his mom’s weights, which were purple and pink—but they didn’t do anything. It was as if he had a slow leak. As much as he tried to pump them up, his muscles stayed flat.
He was starting to believe that Tyler might truly like him. They had been sort of a couple for a few months. He couldn’t help wondering why she’d chosen him, and expected her to end it any day. Maybe that’s why he’d gone along with the tattoo. That, at least, would be forever.
Her brother, Curtis, who owned the tattoo parlor, barely glanced at the forged parental permission slip. He just asked what they wanted and had Charlie sit down in the backward-facing seat that took up the center of the small parlor. Charlie let Tyler choose the design. She picked two intertwined koi fish, Japanese style, four inches long and nearly as wide. Charlie opted to have it on his back on his right scapula. He wasn’t totally comfortable with having a tattoo, so he figured it would be good to have it on his body where he would be able to hide it.
As her brother prepared, Tyler chatted on, explaining the significance of the koi. They were, she said, symbols of endurance, strength, luck, and love. Charlie wasn’t sure about the love part, but with her six-foot-two brother standing over him holding a needle, he didn’t think it was the best time to have that conversation.
Charlie had no clue what it was going to feel like. He hoped it would be a mild sensation, like the time when we was six and had tried out his dad’s electric razor. He’d felt a gentle buzzing vibration that vibrated all through his head. That had felt different, but not unpleasant. A tattoo, he quickly learned, was nothing like an electric razor.
As soon as Curtis started working, Charlie had to use all his will power not to cry out. He hadn’t expected there to be blood, but when he turned his head, he noticed that the cloth that Curtis dabbed on his back was getting redder and redder.

Tyler held Charlie’s hand and continued to distract him by talking about what they would do this summer, about what grades she’d gotten, and what color she was going to dye her hair. “I’m thinking purple but just on the tips, but Gabby did that last summer, and I don’t want her to think that I’m just copying her. So I thought maybe red, or I could let the blue grow out altogether and try for a braiding. What do you think?”
Charlie tried to focus on and respond to what she was saying, but he couldn’t. He had to concentrate on what was happening to his back. He was relieved when she didn’t wait for an answer but continued to talk about how much fun they were going to have this summer.
Charlie recalled that earlier, Tyler had mentioned that she often helped out at her brother’s shop—holding the clients’ hands and talking to them while they were getting their tattoos, to comfort them.
Now Charlie understood the value of that service, but he wasn’t too crazy about her holding hands with a bunch of strange guys, who, odds had it, were older and did not have the nicest ideas about her—but again, not the time to have that discussion.
As Charlie suffered through his tattoo, Tyler’s mind wandered. She held Charlie’s hand, reciting by rote some of the same assurances she used with everyone else as well as whatever came into her mind. While she rambled on, her thoughts strayed to how she and Charlie had come to be there, in her brother’s parlor, at that moment.
She was surprised that Charlie had agreed to the tattoo. She was totally shocked that whatever you’d call their relationship had started at, of all things, a stupid school dance. She would forever feel grateful that her friends had dared her to go up and talk to the boy in the suit and that she’d taken a dare she would normally hav