Chapter 4: Get Healthy Program

Remember how I mentioned the year 10 'Get healthy' program? Well, turns out the school had it scheduled for the Wednesday after my birthday. The day would involve dodge ball, a run/walk around the lake, and basketball. Ekl and I weren't looking forward to the idea, while Frog couldn't care less. Mum almost let me stay home, but I'm glad she didn't. You'll know why in a little while.

The sports day started out ordinarily enough. Frog and I got to school at half part eight, waited for Ekl for five minutes, then spent twenty minutes on the computers, waiting for the bell to go for assembly. In that time, Frog managed to find three stamps on eBay he wanted, and put bids on them.

Like I said before, Frog collects stamps and takes it very seriously. Ekl teases him about it all the time; it's the only thing she can get him really worked up over. She'll say something stupid like she's going to go to his house and burn the collection, which is one of the biggest in Australia, and he'll sulk. I've told her several times not to do it, but she still does when she can't find any other way to insult him.

So, after assembly, all the year 10s went to the community centre, which the school must have booked for the day, and split us into two groups. Ekl and I were on the opposite team to Frog in dodge ball, which was not good news for me or Ekl.

"So, do we have a plan for this?" Ekl asked me as we lined up against the wall. From the far side, Frog gave us a cheeky wave. He knew our side had no chance, even though we were evenly matched in numbers. His team had all of the cricket players with the excellent aim, while our side had the smart, yet un-sporty kids, who didn't know a dodge ball from a cricket ball.

"Dodge the balls?" I suggested lamely. The whistle blew, and there was a mad rush for the balls. Ekl and I held back, waiting for a few people to be hit or caught out before getting into the action.

Frog was like a mad man, running in and out, pelting the ball at whoever was closest, jumping and weaving away from the balls thrown at him. Our team put all our efforts into trying to get him out, but it was near impossible.

Ekl and I soon got into it, once our side had diminished a little. Ekl picked up a ball, and flung it as hard as she could, without even trying to aim at anyone. Surprisingly, it flew through the air and made Frog have to jump hurriedly out of the way. He slipped and landed heavily, swearing blue murder (I'm not sure the teacher's noticed amongst everyone else yelling) and everything sort of stopped for a minute. Everyone was so shocked that Frog had been made to fall over, that we didn't even take the chance to hit him out. He got up, and Ekl paled.

"You are so dead," he said, loud enough for her to hear. Ekl groaned. She'd known that was coming, and feared what it meant.

I was hit out maybe a minute later, by one of the worse players on Frog's team. I had tried to catch the ball, but Frog feigned a shot at me, so I dropped it in surprise. I moved to the sidelines, yelling out support to the few people left in my team.

"Catch it, catch it! No, don't run away from the ball!" I was yelling. "Go, Ekl, CATCH!"

Soon, however, there was only Ekl and another girl on our team, and well over half left on Frog's. Frog had one ball, our side had the rest. Ekl was collecting them when she realised Frog was walking up to the middle line, weapon in his hand. She had her arms full with dodge balls, so there was no chance of her catching him out. Instead, she attempted throwing them. Now, the first shot was a fluke, and Frog knew that. He ignored the balls bouncing past him, pathetically thrown by Ekl, aiming his shot carefully. Ekl gave a squeak, still throwing the balls in her arms at him quickly. When she threw the last one, she turned and ran, in hope of getting out of range.

No such luck.

Frog threw the ball at Ekl hard, hitting her on the bum on the full, resulting in many yells of "OUT!" Grudgingly, Ekl made her way to the steps, rubbing where the ball had hit her. The last member of our team was hit out moments later.

"God, I thought you were going to kill me with that dodge ball," Ekl said on our way around the lake after recess.

"What, you thought that was your punishment for making me fall over?" Frog asked, smiling slightly. "No way."

"Cut it out you two," I said. Exercise makes me slightly moody, if I'm not doing it out of my own free will. We'd since been left behind by the rest of our class, who had all chosen to run (the show offs). Ekl didn't like running, either, and Frog wasn't much of a runner, so we were walking. There was no teacher to keep an eye on us; they'd all run ahead with the other kids, probably not realising we weren't with the group. Anyway, there was no way we could get lost walking around the lake, as our path was more or less the road that followed the water's edge right around the lake.

"Hey," Frog said, stopping. Ekl and I stopped walking as well, a few feet in front of him.

"What?" Ekl asked.

"Didn't you see that?" Frog asked, pointing to the lake. "Look." About five metres into the water, a series of ripples were growing from something that had leapt out of the water. Frog was the only one to have seen it, so I'm not sure what it was. It was too big for a fish; the lake only had carp, the biggest about the length of my hand.

"What did it look like?" I asked, stepping towards the water's edge.

"I don't know," Frog replied, bending down and taking his shoes and socks off. He put them on the bank, and stepped into the freezing water. Luckily, he was wearing shorts (don't ask me why, because it had been freezing that morning) and the lake isn't too deep, about the same depth all around. He stood still in the water, about waist height, looking around him for whatever it had been. Ekl and I leant forward, curious at what he had seen. Obviously it had been something interesting, because he was willing to get wet to see it again.

Suddenly, Frog dove on something in the water, getting drenched from head to toe. Something thrashed underneath him, and I could tell it was bigger than any carp. When I realised what it was, I couldn't help but yell out.

Frog had a Vaporeon.

Its body was lean and regal looking, I wasn't sure if it was covered in light blue skin or fur. Fins stood out on its head, and its long finned tail thrashed wildly. It was definitely a Vaporeon, yet strongly different to its cartoon self, like the Pikachu was.

I ran into the water, wading over quickly to help Frog. Ekl was yelling something out excitedly, not game enough to get into the water, which I might add was as cold as ice. I grabbed onto the Vaporeon, not wanting it to disappear. We'd made that mistake with the Pikachu. The mongrel Pokemon bit me on the arm as we struggled with it towards shore. I yelped loudly, gripping it harder as it tried to wriggle away. Blood poured easily down my arm, and it wouldn't let go. Its teeth were like little jagged pieces of ice, and I could feel that part of my arm starting to numb over. Suddenly, it disappeared in a red light, and Frog and I fell on top of each other, tired from fighting with it. Ekl held up a red and white Pokeball that appeared to be glowing, ever so slightly. Frog had brought her Poke belt the other day, and obviously Ekl hadn't been without it ever since. I wish I had thought to bring mine.

"Good thinking," I said, squelching out of the lake. I lay down on the grass between the road and the lake, breathless. I had never been really fit, but I think I would have been just as exhausted if I had been.

"Ok, so what the hell was that?" Frog demanded, sitting on the grass beside me.

"That was Vaporeon," Ekl said, sounding very proud. "And I caught it."

"You caught it?" Frog asked, standing up. "Koosh and I wrestled it out of the water."

"But I got it in the Pokeball," Ekl said gleefully. "Rightfully making it mine." I looked up at her, sniffing from the cold water dripping down my nose.

"I think we deserve that, thank you," I said coldly. "I didn't see you getting wet or bitten to get it to shore."

"But I caught it in the Pokeball," Ekl said, disappointed I wasn't taking her side.

"Hand it over," Frog said. Ekl gave it to him sulkily.

"Frog, we'll count that as your get back for her making you fall over in dodge ball," I said, trying to sit up, but feeling too tired and heavy with water to do much else.

"Alright," he said, looking disappointed that he wouldn't be able to torment Ekl with his threat to get her back. "I was going to give you this, anyway." He thrust the Pokeball under my nose. I pushed it way.

"You did the most work," I said. "And you're not going to pay Ekl any revenge, and Ekl isn't going to bug you about the Vaporeon being her Pokemon, got it?" Both Ekl and Frog nodded.

"Holy corn, what happened to your arm?" Ekl asked suddenly, noticing my arm. It was completely covered in blood now, dripping loudly onto the grass with the excess lake water. I was starting to shiver now, and I sneezed.

"We'd better get you some help," Frog said, helping me up. He looked cold, too, but he was more concerned about my arm.

"Damn thing bit me," I mumbled, checking out the damage. "Think I might need stitches." Luckily, it was about that moment one of the teachers drove past, looking for us three lost students.

"What did you do to yourself?" Mrs Phillips tutted as she lifted the shirt I was holding over my arm. Mrs Phillips is the town doctor, and very nice. She's sort of short with grey streaked brown hair, cut short and tied in a stumpy ponytail on the back of her head and strong, grey eyes. Like everyone else, she's good friends with my Mum and knows my family quite well. She hates to be called Doctor Phillips, I think because she used to get all sorts of "Dr. Phil" jokes. If she tells you to do something, you do it, and without argument. She just had a way of making you do things that were meant for your own good.

"I got bitten," I said, pressing the shirt down again as she went about getting what she needed. I was soaked through, and feeling very cold and sorry for myself. Frog wasn't looking too healthy either, and I knew we'd both have horrible colds in the next day or two.

"That dog will need to be shot," Mrs Phillips said sternly, resulting in yells of "no way!" from Ekl.

"It wasn't a dog," I said.

"I know a dog bite when I see one," she said.

"It was a Pokemon," Ekl spoke up. "A Vaporeon."

"Don't be silly," Mrs Phillips said. "You're too old to believe in that sort of thing." Mrs Phillips had her own kids who all followed Pokemon, and many of the younger kids who came to the doctor's office would ask for Pokemon bandaids, so it's no surprise she knew what we were talking about. She held up a needle, and I paled when I saw it.

"This will only hurt a bit," she promised. I hate needles. I don't like pain. I knew it wouldn't be any worse than the bite, but I still flinched when she came near me with it. "Don't be silly," Mrs Phillips said. "It's just a tiny needle." I looked away as she inserted it, and was relieved when she said "it's out."

"Will it need stitches?" I asked. Mrs Phillips nodded. I must have paled even more when she said that, and I turned away as she got her equipment ready, humming to herself gently.