Dinosaur Boy by Cory Putman Oakes Page B

and shoveled a spoonful of rice into his mouth.
    I frowned. Somehow, the two of them had managed to get on the same page. But they had left me a few pages behind.
    Still, I found myself nodding in agreement. Sometimes, especially when you’re part dinosaur, it’s easier to just go along with the crowd.
    I grabbed a napkin to dab my watering eyes. I had eaten my entire salad. And now it felt like the molé was trying to escape through my eyeballs. Also through my nose, which had started running.
    All of a sudden I felt a sneeze coming on. I could tell it was going to be massive, but even I wasn’t prepared for how loud it was when it finally came.
    â€œAAAAAACCCCCCHHHHHOOOOOOOOOO!”
    Sylvie and Elliot both jumped. The guy at the top of the ladder nearest us jumped, too, and glared down at us.
    â€œWow!” Elliot exclaimed. “That was one big dinosaur sneeze!”
    I shrugged and wiped my nose. I felt better. Like when a cold you’ve had for a long time finally goes away. Kind of cleaned out. Maybe I should eat spicy food more often.

That Stupid T. Rex from Jersey
    The next morning, during computer class, Mr. Broome woke up for long enough to saddle us all with a boring spreadsheet assignment, then promptly went back to sleep at his desk. Almost immediately, people started gathering around Allan’s computer, just the way they had on the second day of school.
    And once again, Allan’s big head was blocking the screen so I couldn’t see what they were looking at.
    â€œUh-oh,” I heard Sylvie say.
    She had taken the computer next to mine. Elliot was on the other side of her, and she had just angled her screen to show Elliot something.
    I got a sinking feeling in my stomach.
    â€œWhat?” I asked.
    Sylvie moved her screen so that I could see it too.
    It was the Portland Daily News website. And the top headline was:
    Dinosaur Hybrid Goes Prehistoric, Bites Classmate
    My first reaction was a strange mixture of guilt and confusion. Had I bitten someone and somehow forgotten about it? Who had I bitten? Had I hurt them? My teeth were still quite human, so I couldn’t have done any more damage to them than an ordinary human…
    But then I remembered Amalgam Labs, and how I wasn’t the only dinosaur hybrid in the world.
    â€œIt was in New Jersey,” Sylvie reported, scanning the article. “A T. rex hybrid. He bit another kid in the middle of a soccer game.”
    â€œWell, that’s a relief,” I joked. “I only bite people over volleyball disputes.”
    Sylvie and Elliot both snickered, but the half dozen kids who were gathered around Allan’s computer all turned around and stared at me, openmouthed.
    I gulped. I hadn’t realized they would take this so seriously.
    â€œI’m kidding,” I told them all. “I don’t bite people.”
    â€œThis kid didn’t either,” Allan said, pointing at his computer screen. They had also been reading the article. “Until he did .”
    â€œThat kid is a T. rex,” Elliot pointed out. “A meat eater.”
    â€œWhat does that have to do with anything?” Cici demanded. As usual, she was right next to Allan, backing him up. I wondered if she ever used her brain at all or if she just let Allan do all the thinking for the pair of them. Which didn’t seem like the best plan to me, considering how stupid Allan was.
    â€œStegosauruses are herbivores. They eat plants.” Elliot explained. Then, with exaggerated patience, he added, “That means that Sawyer is more likely to attack the fern in the back of the classroom than you.”
    â€œDoubtful. I’m pretty sure it’s plastic,” I muttered.
    But nobody was listening to me.
    â€œA dinosaur is a dinosaur,” Cici sniffed. “Who cares if he looks like Stegosaurus ? He might have the appetite of T. rex . We won’t know until he starts eating us.”
    â€œThe article says the kid