Freestyle with Avery Page 2

  “It’s weird without Scott here. I miss him already, don’t you?” I asked.

  “Well, of course,” Dad said as he started the van. “I miss you guys all the time. But this culinary school is a big honor for your brother. And …” He turned the van toward town. “I’m looking forward to having quality time with my favorite daughter.”

  “Hey … I’m your only daughter!”

  “But still my favorite.” Dad laughed.

  We headed down Keystone Hill on the road that led right onto Telluride’s main street. “Okay. Is it time?” he asked, placing his finger on the CD power button.

  As soon as we hit Colorado Avenue (which all the Telluride locals—including me, of course!—call Main Street), I gave Dad the thumbs-up and he pressed play. John Denver’s voice filled the van: “He was born in the summer of his twenty-seventh year, comin’ home to a place he’d never been before …” We cruised down Main Street, and Dad and I belted out “Rocky Mountain High.” It was our ritual for the official beginning of a Telluride vacation. I hugged Marty close, hoping he wouldn’t start howling again, this time at the off-key noises coming from Dad and me. Neither of us could carry a tune, but that never stopped us from singing … or trying to, anyway.

  I always had to catch my breath when I saw the eye-popping, jaw-dropping scene ahead. Snow covered most of the buildings in town with a blanket of white, and behind them rose the huge peaks of the mountains. Once, when I was showing Maeve pictures of Telluride, I convinced her that The Sound of Music was filmed there. (Maeve goes nuts over musicals.) She believed me, too … and then pummeled me with a pillow when she found out I was kidding. But Telluride really did look like some kind of movie backdrop. It was in a narrow valley surrounded by three massive, snow-covered mountain peaks: Ajax, Ballard, and Telluride Peak. Halfway down Main Street, on the right, I could see the ski gondola moving up the Telluride Ski Resort mountain to Mountain Village and the ski runs. I wanted to stop the car, grab a board, and ride up the mountain right then and there!

  “First thing tomorrow, Ave.” It was like Dad could read my mind sometimes.

  Riding in the Snurfmobile was kind of like being famous. All the cars that passed honked at us and waved. Even people on the street stopped to salute my dad, the Snurfman, and he honked and waved right back. Dad’s bumper sticker love was contagious … people knew that if they caught the Snurfman in the Snurfmobile, there was a good chance he might give them some sticker freebies. That, plus his friendliness, made Dad a pretty popular dude around these parts.

  Marty put his paws against the window and barked at a German shepherd riding in a pickup truck beside us. Almost everyone in Telluride had a dog. “See, Marty? You fit right in!” I scratched Marty’s head and he happily slurped my hand.

  Dad pulled into his reserved space in front of ATS Sports. “I just have to run in here quickly. Do you want to come in, or stay in the—” I was out of the car before he had a chance to say it, and Dad laughed. “Okay, I guess that was a silly question.”

  I ran toward ATS with Marty snug in my arms. “Come on, Dad. Of course I want to see the store! What new stuff do you have? Any cool snowboarding gear? Oh! Is Bob working today? I can’t wait to see Bob!”

  When I burst through the doors, a blast of warm air hit me, along with the smell of leather, ski wax, and new gear. As I put Marty on the floor, I glanced around the store for Bob. A real live cowboy from Wyoming, Bob had been the assistant manager of Dad’s store for as long as I could remember.

  The only person in there wearing the official ATS T-shirt, though, was a pretty blond lady stocking up the hand warmers. “Where’s Bob?” I asked Dad.

  “Um …” Dad scratched his head. “Avery, Bob had to go back to Wyoming. I meant to tell you that over the phone, but it completely slipped my mind.” That was strange. In all the conversations that I’d had with Dad over the last several weeks, how could he forget something as huge as Bob leaving?

  “Wyoming? Why?” I wasn’t really freaking out … I was just expecting to see Bob leaning over the ATS counter like old times. What was happening here—first no Scott, and now no Bob?

  “His son, Wallie, opened a new dude ranch and he wanted his dad to help out. And Bob was ready to go back. He missed his family.” Dad put his arm around my shoulder. I got the message—it was hard to be far away from the people you loved.

  The blonde lady came over with an armful of bright pink helmets. “Oof! These are heavy! Jake, that new catalog sent us more helmets in pink than I know what to do with!” She dropped them in a pile beside me and held out her hand. “Lemme guess. You’re Avery!”

  I shook her hand but I didn’t get a chance to even say anything, because the woman kept talking. “I’ve heard so much about you!” she said. “Your dad’s told me so many wonderful things. It’s great to finally meet you.” Well, who is she? I wondered. I hadn’t heard anything about her before.

  “Avery, this is Andie Walker. Andie’s my new assistant manager,” said Dad. I stared at the woman who grinned back at me. I could tell right away that she loved the slopes. Anybody with cheeks that tanned in the winter had to spend her days on the mountains. She was wearing jeans, but they were trendy jeans for someone my mom’s age, and she had long, blonde hair pulled back with an elastic. Two points in my book … I was always a fan of rocking the ponytail.

  “Nice to meet you,” I said. “Sorry, I’ve never heard of you before.”

  “Avery!” Dad turned as pink as the helmets.

  “What? It’s true….” I smiled at Andie to show I meant no hard feelings.

  Andie laughed and Dad patted her on the back. “Everyone around here just loves Andie … I’m sure you will too Ave. She’s a great addition to Telluride!” And then—was it just my imagination—or did Dad actually WINK at her? No way, I thought. But then—and I was positive about this—Andie winked back!

  CHAPTER

  4

  Rolling Down the Windows

  I have a daughter who’s about your age,” Andie Walker said. “Her name’s Kazie, and she can’t wait to meet you. She’s a snowboarder too! I’m sure you guys will totally hit it off.” Andie turned to Dad. “Jake, before I forget, what do you want us to bring over for dinner tomorrow?”

  Ohhh! Dad was having a party … a welcome party for ME! That was definitely what the wink was for. I wondered who was invited besides Andie and her daughter Kazie. Hey, the more the merrier!

  “I’ll talk to you about it later,” Dad said to Andie, and I pretended not to notice when he tilted his head in my direction. Wow, Dad was way bad at surprises.

  I felt something tug my hand. It was Marty, trying his hardest to pull me outside the store and explore the streets of Telluride. “I know how you feel, Marty Man. Dad … can we go now?” I shifted on my feet. I loved the store, but I was more than ready to start having fun.

  “All right, all right,” he agreed.

  “Oh, Jake, Donnie Keeler called about the Snurfer. His plane comes in tomorrow morning.”

  “DONNIE KEELER!” I exclaimed. “Donnie Keeler, the Golden Egg, is coming here?” Donnie Keeler is an amazing snowboarder on his way to the next Olympic Games. He already won the gold once, and according to every boarding magazine around, he’s America’s number-one hope for the next Games. They call him the Golden Egg because of his curly, bright yellow hair … and because of his golden all-star talent. Donnie Keeler is HUGE in the boarding world.

  “Donnie Keeler’s our celebrity judge for the competition,” Dad said. He was trying to be cool, I could tell, but his eyes were shining. He turned to Andie. “Tell DK to give me a ring when he gets in. And I’ll call you later.”

  “Sounds good. Nice to finally meet you, Avery,” Andie said with a wave.

  “Donnie Keeler …” I murmured and felt Dad poke my shoulder. “Ow! Nice to meet you too, Andie.”

  Dad and I walked out of ATS to the Snurfmobile. “Let’s take Marty home and get him settled in. I got him a dish with his n
ame on it,” Dad said and jumped in the driver’s seat.

  “Is it all right if he sleeps with me?”

  “I don’t see why not.”

  “Thanks! I can’t believe it … a whole week with Marty and you, Dad. This is unbelievable!”

  “I noticed you mentioned Marty first. Guess I know where I stand.” Dad grinned as he turned left into the driveway of our house.

  Dad lived in the cutest gingerbread-style house at the corner of Willow and Columbia, east of the fire station, near the end of the canyon. I was glad that his place was on the sunny side of town—the north. In the winter, the mountains cast a shadow over the south side of Main Street. Even though we’d be closer to the gondola and the ski slopes if we lived on the south side, it was much colder. Besides, Telluride was so small that it was easy to walk.

  The minute Dad stopped the van, I jumped out and ran inside. Marty followed behind me, barking all the way. I burst through the front door, stood in the hallway for a second, and took a deep breath. I loved the smell of Dad’s house—all sorts of wood. There was the pine tree incense, the cedar closets, and best of all, the wood-burning fireplace. Mmm! The smell of winter!

  The first thing I wanted to do was visit my room. “Come on, M-Dawg. I’m gonna give you the royal tour.” I scooped up the little pooch and carried him upstairs.

  Dad’s house sort of reminded me of a tree house. There was a spiral staircase right in the middle of the family room, and the upstairs was all open so you could see the kitchen right from the hallway railing. My brothers’ bedroom was across from mine and when we were little we made tin can phones to communicate.

  “Check it out, Marty, Dad got you your very own dish, and one of those doughnut pillow beds. See, you can curl up right in the middle of it and be all cozy warm … only for naps though. Because guess who you get to sleep with? Yup, yours truly. And look at the toys. A ball and a tug-of-war rope.” Marty went crazy over most of the new stuff—sniffing around his new bed and the dish. But the toys he left alone. One look and he turned around and stuck his nose in the air. Marty was a one-toy type of dog … and that toy was Happy Lucky Thingy.

  Dad had gotten me big bins that rolled under the bed to put my things in. I didn’t have to fold anything! I even had my own computer here. My favorite place in the room was my window seat that looked out on the mountain, the town, and the ski slopes. My blanket was folded right where I left it last summer. I placed Marty’s pillow bed in the window seat so he could keep a lookout for me when I came back from the mountain.

  I could tell right away that Marty felt at home. As soon as I put his poofy doughnut down he crawled right in, walked around it a few times, and snuggled up inside. He was sound asleep when Dad brought my suitcase into the room.

  “I think Marty’s a little tuckered out after his big day, Ave.” Dad grinned. “Bet he’s still getting used to the altitude change. It can be just as hard for dogs as for people.”

  I looked at Marty snoozing peacefully in his doughnut. “Yeah, usually he’s a pretty high-energy dude.”

  “Kind of like someone else I know.” Dad coughed and looked in my direction.

  I shrugged. “Hey, speaking of high energy … I’m totally starving!”

  Dad knew exactly what to do. “Ready for burgers?” he asked. Fat Alley Burgers made the best burgers in Telluride. I had been thinking about a big, juicy one ever since I got off the plane.

  “I’m ready! Let’s go.” I started to charge out the door but Dad caught me on the way.

  “Whoa, hold on a sec, Ave. It’s freezing out there. A sweater might not be a bad idea, huh?” he suggested. “How ‘bout we leave in five minutes. I’m going to call Bif and tell her you made it here safe and sound.” Bif was Dad’s nickname for my mom. Even though they were divorced, they were still friends. I was lucky that way.

  “Tell her I say hi!” I yelled. I grabbed my favorite winter sweater from my suitcase. It was blue with white stripes going down the sleeves. The ear warmer Katani made me matched perfectly, so I wore that too. The outfit must have been kind of different from what I normally wear, because when I came downstairs Dad looked surprised.

  “Wow, Avery. You look so … grown up,” Dad said. “I like your headband.”

  “Come on, Dad. And FYI it’s an ear warmer, okay?”

  “No, really,” he said. “Look at you here.” Dad pointed to the picture of us over the mantel—a photograph taken four years ago that Dad had gotten blown up and framed. Dad, Tim, Scott, and I were standing at the top of Gold Hill, holding our snowboards. My smile was so huge that you could see I was missing three teeth. Later that day we got free chili at a stand by the chairlift and ate the whole bowl on our way up to the summit. The snow was totally perfect—“pow-pow” as we snowboarders would say. I remembered it like it was yesterday. And I knew that Dad was right … I definitely looked a lot older now. (Even if I was still a shortie.)

  The air outside the diner was a combination of burgers, fries, and fresh snow. Dad and I breathed deeply before going in. “Best smell ever!” I declared.

  The restaurant was toasty warm and full of people. “Avery Madden!” Tommy, one of the ski instructors, slapped me five. “Long time no see!” The best part of having a home away from home is seeing everyone again when you came back to visit.

  His girlfriend, Kimberly, waved too. “Welcome back, Avery. Are you ready to Snurf?”

  I loved that everyone in Telluride expected me to enter the competition. “I’m super psyched!” I said. “It’s going to be shred-tastic.”

  “How’s Bah-ston?” came a low voice from behind me. I turned around to see Charlie, a gondola operator at one of the stations in Telluride. His skin was permanently suntanned and leathery from being in the sun every day.

  I tried to keep a straight face when I answered him. People who don’t live in Boston just can’t do the accent, but it was so funny to hear them try. “Boston’s cool, Charlie. Not enough snow yet for shredding, though, that’s for sure.”

  As usual, Robbie, the owner of Fat Alley, was there working the grill. When he saw us, he walked around the counter to give me a big hug. He smelled like grease and ketchup. “You ready for a Fat Alley special?” he asked.

  “So ready.” I hopped onto a spinning stool at the counter. When we were little, Scott and I used to spin around and around until we got so dizzy that we could barely stay on. It was a game that Dad wasn’t crazy about. “Robbie, can you make mine a double cheeseburger with cheddar and bacon, please?” Dad called.

  “You got it!” Robbie went back to the grill and waved his spatula. “And for you, Ave?”

  “Burger with lettuce and tomato!” Dad nudged my foot with his and I added, “Please.”

  The waitress, Bonnie, walked over with three mugs on her tray. Bonnie was about my mom’s age, maybe a little younger. She had short brown hair and always wore a pink-checkered dress—the Fat Alley uniform—and a warm, friendly smile. Bonnie and my dad had moved to Telluride about the same time. “Coffee for you, Jake. And for Avery … hot chocolate with extra marshmallows, hold the whipped cream.”

  I cupped my hands around the warm mug and breathed in the rich chocolate. “Mmm, mmm! Thanks, Bonnie. Do you know the drinks of like, everyone in the state of Colorado?”

  Bonnie rolled her eyes. “Oh, goodness no! Only in San Miguel County.” She poked Dad in the elbow. “So Jake, where is Andie, huh? I have her green tea here.”

  Dad’s coffee must have gone down the wrong pipe, because he started coughing … a lot.

  “She’s closing up,” I answered for him. “Andie’s the lady I met at the store, right, Dad?”

  Dad gulped his water. “Uh, yeah, Avery. So I guess no tea tonight, Bonnie. Thanks though.”

  Bonnie looked at Dad and me. “I better go finish up with … stuff,” she said and bustled off.

  “Weird. Why would Bonnie make tea if Andie isn’t even here?” I asked Dad, then whispered, “Maybe she’s getting a little, you know, l
oco-loco … ?”

  Dad shifted in his seat and stared into his mug. He was being so weird! I decided it was to time to tell him the gig was up about his “surprise” party for me.

  “Okay, Dad, what’s up? Is this about my surprise party?”

  “Surprise party?” asked Dad.

  “Dad, I’ve already figured it all out. I heard you talking to Andie at the store … c’mon … she and Kazie coming over for dinner?”

  Dad got a funny look on his face. He took a sip of coffee and played with his spoon. “Avery, there’s no surprise party. It really is just Andie and Kazie coming over for dinner … a dinner party.”

  The excited smile slipped off my face, but I tried my very best to keep smiling, so Dad wouldn’t know I was a teeny-tiny bit disappointed. (And a teeny-tiny bit embarrassed, too.) “Well don’t you think we should invite Robbie and Bonnie and Kimberly? Ooh, and what about the other people who work at ATS? I mean, if we’re having a dinner party and all?”

  Dad sat up and looked me straight in the eye. “I need to talk to you about something. I’ve been meaning to talk to you, but I wanted to wait until you were here … in person. Avery, Andie isn’t just the manager of my store.” Dad took a deep breath. “Andie is the woman I’m seeing.”

  It took a moment for this news to sink in. “You mean, like, your girlfriend?” I said the word slowly. Hearing it sounded just as strange as saying it.

  “I—I’ve been seeing Andie for some time, Avery. I like her a lot … and I hope that you’ll like her too,” Dad explained. I looked over at Tommy and Kimberly cuddling in their booth and suddenly pictured Dad and Andie doing the same thing. WEIRD TO THE MAX.

  “Her daughter Kazie’s a great boarder, just like you. I have a feeling you two will be best friends in no time,” he added. I remembered the BSG and secretly thought, I’m not really looking for any more best friends.

  “Does Mom know about Andie? Do Tim and Scott?”

  Dad made an “iffy” face. “Well … I’ve told Mom, and she’s totally fine with it. She said if I liked Andie, she was sure Andie was a nice person. But Tim and Scott don’t know yet. Do you think I should tell them over the phone?”