The Quarry WC 239

The Quarry
WC: 239

I am watching Grandma Katherine make her famous strudel.

“And then, Tommy, you roll out the dough like this.” She starts rolling.

This is boring; I don't dare say that out loud. I take my 12-year-old mind elsewhere.

Yesterday was scary. After school, I went down to the quarry with my friends. Swimming isn't allowed, so of course, we jumped in. You can't touch the bottom in a quarry unless you're a weighted-down corpse. That's why you're not allowed to swim there.

So, we were splashing around, and Joey got a cramp in his calf. The water was cold, so he climbed out. Now there was just Ed Merkel and me.
Ed was about 10 feet from me when I felt someone grab my ankle and pull me under. I kicked away from whatever it was and swam to where Joey was. I looked back at the water and Ed had disappeared. Then he bobbed back up again and headed for the edge real fast.

Well, I'm not about to wimp out and say anything. I'm sure Ed won't either. Same reason. Joey wants to go back another day, but both Ed and I thought we should do something else.

I am curious about who, or what, grabbed my ankle—but not enough to go back in.


So then Grandma Katherine says, “You place the sliced apples in a single layer…”

This is so boring.