Scrawl

Mrs. Woodrow asks about the rest of the story, so Tod continues. Tod lied to Rex that he was getting change at the laundromat. Rex called Tod "buddy," and Tod angrily reminded him to never call him that. Rex was smoking as he told Tod that earlier he'd broken into a car to steal but hadn't realized that the owner was in the backseat with his girlfriend. The man had turned violent, so Rex had run away. Tod and Rex then headed into a nearby neighborhood where Tod stole a nice pair of pants off a clothesline and Rex stole a toolbox. Tod asked him why he knows the bible so well, but Rex didn't reply. They each went home afterward, where Tod made plans to use the pants for the landlord character.

Bernie doesn’t wake Tod up again this morning. At school, Greg and his friends taunt Tod by singing and recording him. When Tod takes a closer look at the sphinx, he notices that it is a different color than he remembers. Greg cuts in front of Tod in the metal detector line. Tod informs the video's audience that Greg needs to use the restroom, which embarrasses him. He takes off his jacket, goes through the metal detector, and rushes inside; Tod keeps Greg's jacket. In history class, Tod is haunted by the television cart, a reminder of the incident that started his punishment (it is revealed in Chapter 34 that Tod stopped Rex from smashing up a television on a cart). They watch a documentary on the potato famine and Tod gets more ideas for costumes. In art class, Tod steals supplies for the costumes. Karl Dingle, the boy playing the Criminal in the play, is being disruptive, so Tod asks Luz to fire him; she refuses.

In Tod’s gym class, they play badminton. Tod is paired with Rob, who is suspicious about Tod stealing pants. To deflect from his work for play, Tod angrily reminds Rob that while Rob’s rich parents buy him plenty of clothes, Tod must steal clothes because he's poor. Rob claims that he's not rich just because he has a dad with a job; Tod replies that simply having a dad makes him rich. Rob is about to make a comment about Tod's father, but Tod hits him with his racket. The boys then start hitting each other; Rob calls Tod a "fat loser" (146). The gym teacher breaks them apart and sends Tod to the nurse's office, declaring him the winner and commending him for not giving Rob that final blow.

After detention the previous day, Tod tries to find Rex to explain the fight with Rob and get Rex to take Tod's side. Tod knows that he has Bernie's loyalty. He can’t find Rex, but he finds a note from Luz in his locker thanking his mom for agreeing to make the costumes. On the bus ride home, Tod spots a thrift store. He scours the boxes of second-hand donations behind the store and finds several useful pieces. An older woman drives up and gives Tod money for helping to unload her donations. Afterward, he breaks open the official donation box with a crowbar and finds more potential costumes. Greg suddenly appears and records Tod while he holds up a dress; Tod is left confused. At home, Dick offers Tod soup. Tod admires the duffel bag of clothes and is glad that he has brought the journal home to write in. Dick also lets Tod borrow his vest for the play.

In his first weekend entry, Tod describes how he spent the weekend working on the costumes. He cut, sewed, and altered various pieces to create an entire wardrobe to fit each actor's measurements as given to him by Luz. He notes that Karl's measurements seemed off for his size and the clothes smell slightly. He tried hiding the duffel bag but couldn't fit it under his bed. Tod also notes that his mother seemed curious about his recent behavior. He ends the entry by claiming that the only time he took a break from sewing was when his family went to a diner for Thanksgiving dinner.

Bernie is absent again this morning. Tod is eager to be done with the costumes and pay his debt for the sphinx. At lunch, Tod's friends are missing, so he eats alone. He watches Luz's group of actors enjoy their temporary popularity; Karl points and laughs at Tod. Tod notices that the sphinx is its original color in an older picture in the school paper, which he finds a bizarre mystery. In math class, he uses the stolen art supplies to make fake silver buttons for the Policeman's coat. He is going to sew the buttons onto the coat in detention so that he won't have to sneak the modified coat through the metal detector later.