Page 15 - Demo

PDF Studio - PDF Editor for Mac, Windows, Linux. For Evaluation. https://www.qoppa.com/pdfstudio
all about delivering the package.
the man who was moving away.
of seven."
· She reluctantly turned away from the windowful of candies. Her nose felt funny where she had held it against the glass. She rubbed it until the tingle went away.
Tick, Tock 13
buy a double ice cream cone, chocolate and strawberry.
deliver it before seven. Before seven.
Tick, tock.
sticks, taffy, horehound, chewing gum, candy bars, chocolates, caramels, mint wafers, all day suckers, jelly drops, loz­ enges, marshmallows, crackerjack, and other sweets lay temptingly spread out. The dime itched her palm moistly. What to buy? Five cents worth of mixed candy
her.
1l "I' . h I
·
make it.
liver the package. No, he had said to
Tick, tock.
But running made her lose her breath. She was panting. Why hurry? Why
A clock that couldn't say anything but:
looked in the window longingly. Licorice
A block farther, she reached a corner drugstore. Thewindowhadanotherone of those big clocks with a pendulum. The
of even. She guessed she'd better hurry
"What time is it, mister?" she asked
He looked at a wrist watch. "Quarter
She hurried off, half skipping, half _
runnmg, for a couple of blocks before o'clock, kept repeating in her head. That
was taller than she, and perhaps a year older. His tousled head sprouted from
look as though he had been caught in
hurried more.
and a box of crackerjack? Or an all day
A swinging movement caught her gaze. Her eyes strayed to a wall cloi;k
sucker and a vanilla ice cream cone? Or a big double cone, chocolate and
a bigger noise than the clock she was
strawberry?
"Watcher name?" He kept pace with
"You leave me alone!"
nothm', are you?"
with a pendulum. The hands stood at pendulum swung, she fancied she could
TICK, TOCK.
to go. It really hadn't ought to take stopped now and went in the store to
twelve minutes of seven. Every time the hear it, and such a big clock would make
Twelve minutes to seven. Six blocks
more than ten minutes. But it would be longer, it would be after seven, if she
£amt sound of :
Tick, tock.
Tere was no answer, except that she
"V!atcher hurry? You ain't scared or She clenched the p_ackage tighter un­
The dime slid around in her damp
dr her arm. She could almost feel its
palm. Shewedgeditbetweenthumband forefinger. "I'm not scared of you."
carrying, a great big:
she slowed down. Seven o'clock, seven was when he had told her she must de­
hand stood between ten and nine minutes a little faster, or she wouldn't quite
Ring the bell and leave it before seven. run your legs off for a darn old clock? She came to a small candy store and
the act of stealing pennies from a play­
Before she could start running, a boy caught up with her and began to pass her, walking at a brisk, crisp clip. He
"I'm not scared at all."
She held the package against her ear
She jumped to her feet. Absorbed in watching-the game, she had forgotten
a scrawny neck. His hands were thrust deep into his pockets so that his elbows flapped as he moved. His stubby nose hung like a round little marble over his short upper lip. It gave his face a nasty
mate. She vaguely remembered seeing him on the bench at the ball game.
up beside her. "Whatcher name?"
"Watcha scared of then, 'fraidy cat?"
"Then watcha runnin' for, huh?"
o'clock."
but ·the jiggling didn't seem to have hurt it any. The voice inside still murmured•
He looked at the little girl, and slowed
m tn a urry. have to bring this
to a man. He has to have it by seven
"Why?"