Zero to Hero (12 page)

“Maybe there’s hope for that kid after all,” he said.

But Billy, being Billy, ran smack into the doorjamb, bumping his forehead and spilling the contents of his backpack all over the bricks. He looked up at the Hoove and waved, as if to say, “I’m all right.”

“No waving,” the Hoove called out to Billy. “Nowhere in the rules does it say it’s okay to wave.”

But Billy wasn’t listening. He just continued to wave until the Hoove had no choice but to flick him a little wave back.

As Billy disappeared inside the school doors, Hoover Porterhouse shook his head and sighed. It was going to be one tough year.

Can’t get enough of Billy and the Hoove?
Read on for a sneak peek at their
next crazy adventure!

MIND IF I READ
YOUR MIND?

“Who wants to go first?” Mr. Wallwetter said, his beady eyes scanning the classroom like an eagle searching for a big, fat snake to eat. “Do we have a volunteer?”

“I nominate Cheese Sauce here,” Rod Brownstone blurted out, pointing to Billy with his beefy index finger. Some of the kids in the class snickered, but Billy ignored them. Growing up with the last name of Broccoli, he had gotten very good at ignoring cheese sauce jokes.

“How about it, Billy?” Mr. Wallwetter said. “Why don’t you be our first speaker in the Speak Out Challenge. SOC it to ’em, if you catch my drift?”

Billy gulped. The Hoove still hadn’t shown up, and without him, Billy had no speech. The assignment was to give a demonstration, and the Hoove was the main ingredient in his demonstration. He was going to have to stall until the Hoove arrived … that is, if he ever
did
arrive.

“Thanks so much for the offer, Mr. Wallwetter,” Billy said, using his most charming voice and sociable smile, “but I’d rather go last, if that works for you.”

“It doesn’t,” Mr. Wallwetter answered tartly, tugging on his skinny little mustache.

“Then how about next to last? I can make that work.”

“Come right up to the front of the class now, Billy,” Mr. Wallwetter said in a way that didn’t leave much room for saying no. “Wow us all with your demonstration.”

Billy looked around desperately for signs of the Hoove, hoping that he had floated in and was hovering somewhere above the fluorescent lights. No such luck. Billy’s heart raced with a combination of anger and nerves. The Hoove had sworn he’d be there when the opening bell rang. Promised. On his honor.

“The Hoove’s Rule Number One Hundred Forty-Three,” he had declared just that morning. “When you count on the Hoove, you can count on the Hoove.”

Yeah, right
, Billy thought.
I’d do better counting on my fingers and toes.

As Billy shuffled reluctantly to the front of the class, Rod made farting sounds with his mouth in time to Billy’s steps. Mr. Wallwetter didn’t seem to notice, though. He was busy writing Billy’s name on the board, along with the topic he had submitted.

A Demonstration of Mind Reading by William C. Broccoli.

“Check it out,” Brownstone snorted. “I bet that
C
stands for Cheese Sauce.”

“Honestly, Rod, why don’t you knock it off already,” Ruby whispered to him. “It wasn’t even funny the first time.”

Billy smiled at Ruby and she smiled back.
Enjoy it while you can
, he thought. In about two minutes, that great smile of hers was going to vanish when he made a total dork of himself trying to demonstrate mind reading and coming up with zippo.

“Are you ready, Billy?” Mr. Wallwetter asked, putting down the chalk and walking over to his desk.

“We were born ready, weren’t we, Billy Boy?” came a ghostly voice from the back of the room. Billy looked up and there, swooshing through the door in his hyperglide mode, was Hoover Porterhouse.

“I was about to give up on you, pal,” Billy said aloud before he could stop himself.

Mr. Wallwetter, not knowing there was a ghost in the room, thought Billy was addressing him. “Well, I’ll never give up on you, pal,” he whispered, coming over to Billy and giving his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “Show us what you got, buddy.”

“Let’s do this,” the Hoove said. “We’re going to make their heads spin!”

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Copyright © 2012 by Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver.
Cover art by Sam Nielson
Cover design by Steve Scott

All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Inc.
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First printing, January 2012

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eISBN: 978-0-545-39252-5