“No act of kindness, 
no matter how small, 
is ever wasted.”
Aesop

 Max was right. Middle school is different. People are nice. Mostly nice. Well, there are a couple of jerks, but I stay away from them.

No matter how hard I tried to get him to tell me, Max would not tell me about what he saw that day with the Orb. Jamie told me she thinks the Orb and Max are bonded somehow.

I don’t know about Max bonding, but I do know Max knows things and he is helping his friends.

Tomorrow is Saturday, Max and I are supposed to play video games. Jamie is hanging around a lot with Max. I don’t think she likes going home. She sits on Max’s bed and reads while we play X-Box or search the internet.

My new friend Amanda is going to come over. She said her mom would drive her over to Max’s house if Jamie was going to be there too. Amanda is like me only not as bad. She is real pretty and kind of smart too.

●●●●

“Hello, Amanda, I am Max’s friend Jamie.”

“I know, Jac told me all about you.”

“Jac? You call Melvin Jac?”

“Yes. He said it was what Max uses and he likes the name.”

“Okay. Jac it is.”

Jamie had met Amanda at the front door with Max’s mother. They both waved to Amanda’s mother who waved back and drove away.

“Amanda, come with me, Max and Jac are in his room.”

“His room? His bedroom?”

“Yes, where else would they be?”

“Oh, I thought it was like a den or game room or something. Jac said they play games there all the time.”

“They do, but it is in Max’s bedroom. We can sit out back, on the patio, if you prefer?”

“No, it is okay. I have never been in a boy’s bedroom.”

“Ever?”

“No. This is the first time I have been invited anywhere.”

With a big smile from Max’s mother, Jamie takes Amanda’s hand and leads her to Max’s room. Max and Jac are sitting, Indian style, on the floor, playing X-Box.

“Look who’s here.”

When the boys barely look up, Jamie shrugs, points Amanda to the office chair, and flops on to Max’s bed. Amanda watches the boys play the game and Jamie reads until the game ends.

“Wow, Jac, you are getting better.”

“It is the game, The right side of the controller. The Y, C, B, and A buttons have a lot of control in the game.”

“Whatever, you seem to anticipate the game better. Hello, Amanda. It is nice to meet you. Jac has told me a lot about you.”

“He did?”

“Yes, he did.”

Amanda is smiling. Focused on Max, she is trying to avoid looking at me. Jamie has put her book down and is watching.

“What did he say, exactly?”

“He said you and he have the same problem.”

“That is obvious, what else did he say?”

“He said, it was nice to have a new friend.”

Max is being coy. Jamie is beaming. Amanda pulls a tissue from the box on the desk and catches a little drool. Embarrassed, she looks away. Max fixes everything with a comment and exaggerated hand gestures.

“Don’t worry about that. Have you seen Jac when he is close to winning? Spit flies everywhere.”

Amanda is laughing. Jamie is laughing. Max is smiling at me. I look at all them and then answer.

“If you think that’s bad, wait until I win. I am going to own you and it won’t be pretty.”

They are laughing. I am laughing. I have never felt closer to anyone except my mother.