Super Fast, Out of Control! by Louis Sachar

1

Saturday
    Marvin and his friends were hanging out in his backyard.
    “What do you want to do?” asked Stuart.
    “I dunno,” said Marvin.
    “It’s no fair that your mom won’t let us watch TV,” griped Nick. “What’s so special about fresh air?”
    “Let’s play unicorns,” said Linzy. Linzy was Marvin’s five-year-old sister.
    “We’re not playing unicorns,” Marvin grumbled.
    “So what do you want to do?” asked Stuart.
    “I dunno,” said Marvin.
    “What about a video game?” asked Nick. “Does that count as TV?”
    “I’m the gold unicorn,” said Linzy. “Marvin’s the rainbow unicorn. Nick, you can be the blue unicorn. Stuart will be the pink unicorn.”
    “I don’t want to be pink,” said Stuart. “Why can’t I be the gold unicorn?”
    “You can’t start out being gold,” Linzy explained. “First you have to do some good magic. Then the unicorn fairy will turn you into gold.”
    “We’re not playing unicorns,” said Marvin.
    “How did
you
get to be gold?” asked Stuart.
    “The unicorn fairy made me gold,” said Linzy, “because I used my magic to save the princess.”
    “We’re not playing unicorns,” said Marvin.
    “How do you play?” asked Nick.
    Linzy stared at Nick. She had never heard such a dumb question in all her life. “You just pretend you’re a unicorn,” she said.
    “How?” asked Stuart.
    Linzy sighed. She couldn’t believe Marvin had such stupid friends.
    “Just pretend you’re a magical horse with a horn in your head, like this.”
    She pranced around the yard, flapping her arms, and sang, “
I’m a unicorn. Yes, I am. I’m a gold unicorn. Yes, I am. Oh, I’m a gold unicorn. Yes, I am
.”
    Linzy stopped prancing and flapping. “Your turn, Marvin,” she said.
    “I don’t want to,” said Marvin.
    “You have to. It’s the rules,” said Linzy. “Except when I did it, I was gold. You have to be rainbow.”
    “Just get out of here, Linzy!” snapped Marvin. “Can’t you see we’re busy! You’re such a stupid pest.”
    Linzy stared hard at Marvin. He was afraid she was going to cry.

    “I’m telling the unicorn fairy on you!” she shouted, then stormed into the house. She slammed the door behind her.
    Marvin sighed.
    “So what do you want to do?” asked Stuart.
    “I dunno,” said Marvin.
    “It’s unfair your mom won’t let us watch TV,” said Nick. “What’s wrong with her?”
    Marvin shrugged.
    “We could ride bikes,” suggested Stuart.
    Marvin got an uneasy feeling in his stomach. “There’s nowhere to go,” he said.
    “Hey, didn’t you get a new mountain bike?” asked Nick.
    Marvin felt sick.
    “That’s right!” said Stuart. “How come you haven’t shown it to us?”
    Marvin shrugged. “It’s just a bike.”
    “I know!” said Nick. “Let’s ride our bikes down Suicide Hill!”
    Just hearing those words made Marvin feel like he was falling down a very steep cliff.

    “I’ll go home and get my bike,” said Stuart. Marvin couldn’t believe it. Nick was a daredevil, but he thought Stuart was smarter than that.
    “I’ll bring my stopwatch,” said Nick. “Maybe we can break the record.”
    “Cool,” said Stuart.
    Marvin didn’t care about breaking records. He was more worried about breaking bones.
    Linzy returned to the back door. Marvin was glad to see her. He thought it might be fun to play unicorns after all.
    “Mom wants to see you,” Linzy said.
    As Marvin walked into the house, Linzy said, “You’re in big trouble now, mister.”
    They walked to their mother’s office.
    Marvin’s mother was sitting at her desk, in front of the computer. She worked asan accountant. She helped people figure their taxes. She normally didn’t work on Saturdays, but it was getting close to April 15, so she had been very busy lately.
    “Did you yell at your sister?” she asked Marvin.
    “Kind of,” he admitted.
    “You need to tell her you’re sorry,” said his mother.
    Marvin turned to Linzy. She