Once inside, Alex said, "Can you help me set up the ant farm?" He took it out of the bag and set it on the table.
"What's in your pocket, Alex?" The strange noise had followed them inside. It was, if anything, louder. It clearly wasn't the car.
Looking embarrassed, Alex reached into his pocket and took out -- two rather bedraggled looking speckled chicks.
"You stole chicks?" Luka asked in disbelief.
"Not the chicks, the eggs. I didn't think they'd hatch this soon. I guess my pocket must be really warm or something. I felt them starting to peck their way out when we were at the train. That's why I wanted to leave."
Luka barely heard the explanation. "And why did you steal eggs?"
"I dunno. I guess I thought it would be cool to raise chickens. Mom never lets me have pets."
"You're going to raise chickens in a Chicago apartment?"
"They're small. They don't eat much." Alex frowned. "You're not going to make me take them back, are you?"
"No." Luka knew that going back with two newly hatched chicks in hand would be at least as embarrassing for him as for Alex. He'd still have to think of something to tell Sam, but he had a few days to work that one out. "Do you know anything about raising chicks?" he finally asked.
"No, but you do, don't you? You grew up on a farm, didn't you?"
"I know nothing about chickens, except how to cook them. And these ones are still a little young yet to make a decent meal." He didn't really. It had been decades since he'd even thought about the subject. "Well, let's find a box to put them in. We can't have them wandering around the apartment. We'll figure out something ... at least until your Mom gets home and kills us both."
Alex found a shoe-box, and they put a towel in the bottom, and set the chicks inside. And Luka tried to think. What did any baby animal need? Food, water, and warmth. Water was easy. Alex got a bowl of water, and they set that into the box. Warmth? The apartment was a bit chilly.
"Do you have a desk lamp or something like that?" he asked Alex.
"Yeah, there's one in my room. Want me to get it?"
"Yeah, it will help keep the chicks warm."
And food. Luka knew that chicks ate special chick feed -- that much he remembered. Not the sort of thing he was likely to find at the corner convenience store.
Bringing the lamp, Alex seemed to read his mind. "What are we going to feed them?"
"I don't know. Maybe we can go to the library tomorrow and look up information on raising chicks. My grandfather used special chick food, I remember that."
Alex frowned thoughtfully. "How about eggs? The display at the museum said that they get nutrients from the egg yolk before they hatch. Maybe they can still eat eggs now?"
"It's worth a try," Luka agreed. He put an egg to boil on the stove.
"Now, can we set up my ant farm?" Alex asked again.
Luka shook his head. "Ants and chicks? I don't think your mother expected that, when she left town for three days that she'd come home to find us raising livestock!"
Three days. Luka almost sighed. Could he stand two more days of this? Well, tomorrow he'd be at work and Alex at school most of the day.
The rest of the afternoon was devoted to setting up the ant farm and feeding the chicks, who seemed, so far, happy enough in their makeshift home.
-----
Luka was making supper (having resisted Alex's pleas to go out for burgers -- he'd had enough fast food for one weekend), when the phone rang.
Alex snatched it up. "Hello. Taggert residence. Hi Mom!"
Luka had to smile as he listened to Alex chatting eagerly and happily with his mother, telling her about their day -- if rather selectively. Then he heard him say something about "Scrambled eggs and bacon ... yeah, Luka's a real good cook ...." Then, after another minute, "Mom wants to talk to you, Luka."
Luka took the phone, and Alex ran off to his room. "Hi, Sam. Are you in Florida?"
"Yeah, it was a long drive and I'm exhausted, but I wanted to check in with you guys before I went to bed. How's Alex been?"
"Oh ... fine ... we're having a good time."
"He's not giving you any trouble?" Sam sounded surprised.
"Not much. What was he saying to you about eggs?"
"Just that you had bacon and eggs for breakfast. We usually have that on Sundays if I'm not working, so it's ok."
"No, we had cereal."
"Cereal? Do I have cereal?"
"Sure. There was a box of that sugary stuff. Tasted a little stale to me, but ..."
Sam's voice went up an octave. "You let him have that crap for breakfast!? He's diabetic, Luka, or had you forgotten?"
"He said he has it a lot ..."
"He gets that as a treat. A quarter cup or so, as a special treat after dinner, once in a blue moon. I figure with the vitamin fortification, it's a little healthier than candy. But never for breakfast!"
"Sorry, Sam. He told me ...."
"Don't you know better by now than to believe anything that Alex tells you?"
"We won't do it again. His blood sugar's been ok today."
"Just be a little more sensible, Luka, ok? This is Alex we're dealing with here, not a sweet little toddler."
"I'm sorry," Luka said again. "Now go get some sleep. I'll see you in a few days. I miss you."
"Miss you too."
Luka hung up the phone, took a deep breath, and headed for Alex's room. The kid definitely had some explaining to do.
"What's in your pocket, Alex?" The strange noise had followed them inside. It was, if anything, louder. It clearly wasn't the car.
Looking embarrassed, Alex reached into his pocket and took out -- two rather bedraggled looking speckled chicks.
"You stole chicks?" Luka asked in disbelief.
"Not the chicks, the eggs. I didn't think they'd hatch this soon. I guess my pocket must be really warm or something. I felt them starting to peck their way out when we were at the train. That's why I wanted to leave."
Luka barely heard the explanation. "And why did you steal eggs?"
"I dunno. I guess I thought it would be cool to raise chickens. Mom never lets me have pets."
"You're going to raise chickens in a Chicago apartment?"
"They're small. They don't eat much." Alex frowned. "You're not going to make me take them back, are you?"
"No." Luka knew that going back with two newly hatched chicks in hand would be at least as embarrassing for him as for Alex. He'd still have to think of something to tell Sam, but he had a few days to work that one out. "Do you know anything about raising chicks?" he finally asked.
"No, but you do, don't you? You grew up on a farm, didn't you?"
"I know nothing about chickens, except how to cook them. And these ones are still a little young yet to make a decent meal." He didn't really. It had been decades since he'd even thought about the subject. "Well, let's find a box to put them in. We can't have them wandering around the apartment. We'll figure out something ... at least until your Mom gets home and kills us both."
Alex found a shoe-box, and they put a towel in the bottom, and set the chicks inside. And Luka tried to think. What did any baby animal need? Food, water, and warmth. Water was easy. Alex got a bowl of water, and they set that into the box. Warmth? The apartment was a bit chilly.
"Do you have a desk lamp or something like that?" he asked Alex.
"Yeah, there's one in my room. Want me to get it?"
"Yeah, it will help keep the chicks warm."
And food. Luka knew that chicks ate special chick feed -- that much he remembered. Not the sort of thing he was likely to find at the corner convenience store.
Bringing the lamp, Alex seemed to read his mind. "What are we going to feed them?"
"I don't know. Maybe we can go to the library tomorrow and look up information on raising chicks. My grandfather used special chick food, I remember that."
Alex frowned thoughtfully. "How about eggs? The display at the museum said that they get nutrients from the egg yolk before they hatch. Maybe they can still eat eggs now?"
"It's worth a try," Luka agreed. He put an egg to boil on the stove.
"Now, can we set up my ant farm?" Alex asked again.
Luka shook his head. "Ants and chicks? I don't think your mother expected that, when she left town for three days that she'd come home to find us raising livestock!"
Three days. Luka almost sighed. Could he stand two more days of this? Well, tomorrow he'd be at work and Alex at school most of the day.
The rest of the afternoon was devoted to setting up the ant farm and feeding the chicks, who seemed, so far, happy enough in their makeshift home.
-----
Luka was making supper (having resisted Alex's pleas to go out for burgers -- he'd had enough fast food for one weekend), when the phone rang.
Alex snatched it up. "Hello. Taggert residence. Hi Mom!"
Luka had to smile as he listened to Alex chatting eagerly and happily with his mother, telling her about their day -- if rather selectively. Then he heard him say something about "Scrambled eggs and bacon ... yeah, Luka's a real good cook ...." Then, after another minute, "Mom wants to talk to you, Luka."
Luka took the phone, and Alex ran off to his room. "Hi, Sam. Are you in Florida?"
"Yeah, it was a long drive and I'm exhausted, but I wanted to check in with you guys before I went to bed. How's Alex been?"
"Oh ... fine ... we're having a good time."
"He's not giving you any trouble?" Sam sounded surprised.
"Not much. What was he saying to you about eggs?"
"Just that you had bacon and eggs for breakfast. We usually have that on Sundays if I'm not working, so it's ok."
"No, we had cereal."
"Cereal? Do I have cereal?"
"Sure. There was a box of that sugary stuff. Tasted a little stale to me, but ..."
Sam's voice went up an octave. "You let him have that crap for breakfast!? He's diabetic, Luka, or had you forgotten?"
"He said he has it a lot ..."
"He gets that as a treat. A quarter cup or so, as a special treat after dinner, once in a blue moon. I figure with the vitamin fortification, it's a little healthier than candy. But never for breakfast!"
"Sorry, Sam. He told me ...."
"Don't you know better by now than to believe anything that Alex tells you?"
"We won't do it again. His blood sugar's been ok today."
"Just be a little more sensible, Luka, ok? This is Alex we're dealing with here, not a sweet little toddler."
"I'm sorry," Luka said again. "Now go get some sleep. I'll see you in a few days. I miss you."
"Miss you too."
Luka hung up the phone, took a deep breath, and headed for Alex's room. The kid definitely had some explaining to do.