Astro boy the movie (the novel)

Chapter 12

All of the kids in the junkyard gathered around a long table cobbled together from scraps of metal. Hamegg sat at the head.

"Let me guess-take-out pizza again?" Zane asked.

Hamegg produced some battered-looking pizza boxes.

"More like taken out of the trash again!" Sludge complained.

"Picky, picky," Hamegg said cheerfully. "It's only a couple of days old. Look, this one still has toppings!"

Hamegg doled out a slice to every kid at the table. Before they could dig in, he held up his hand.

"Hey! Haven't you forgotten something?" he asked.

The kids paused.

He looked at Astro. "What have they forgotten, son?"

"Um ... grace?" Astro guessed.

"Exactly," Hamegg said. "Grace!"

The little girl whom Cora had given the chainsaw to looked up. She wore a baseball cap with the name "Grace" on it.

"What?" Grace asked.

"Turn on the TV, sweetheart, would you please?" Hamegg asked. "That's a dear."

Grace got up and turned on several television sets arranged all around the table. Each TV blared a different, loud show, a mix of professional wrestling, game shows, and car races.

"Well, Bon Appeteetee!" Hamegg said.

Everyone started eating, staring at the TV sets. Astro didn't touch his pizza. For one thing, as a robot, he didn't need to eat. But Astro wasn't sure if he would eat it if he were human. It looked pretty gross.

A scruffy kid next to him eyed his pizza slice hungrily. "Yo, new guy! You gonna eat that?" he asked.

"You can have it if you want it," Astro said, sliding his plate over.

"Thanks. I'm Sam," the kid told him.

"Don't be so nice. You're gonna starve to death," Cora warned Astro. She bit into her pizza and winced. "Or be the only survivor."

The kids laughed.

"So tell me, Astro, do your folks know where you are?" Hamegg asked.

"I don't have any parents," Astro replied.

"How very sad," Hamegg said. "Did you lose them? Or even sadder, did they lose you?"

Hamegg's words were too close to the truth. Astro decided he might as well be honest.

"I never really had parents," he began.

"No, the truth is I'm actually a ... I'm a ... " Astro was still too afraid to tell the truth.

"A what?" Cora asked impatiently.

Trashcan started jumping up and down behind Astro. He knew what Astro really was.

Astro looked at Cora. He wanted to tell her the truth. But what if she rejected him, just like Dr. Tenma had? He was just starting to feel comfortable here. Where else could he go?

"I'm a ... " He just couldn't say it.

"Don't worry, son. We're all orphans down here," Hamegg interjected. "Nothing to be ashamed about."

Astro sighed with relief. "So none of you have parents?"

"Parents?" Sludge asked. "Are you kidding me?"

"This whole place is a parent-free zone," Cora explained.

Zane stuffed another slice of pizza into his mouth. "I was born in the scrap heap. I was raised by wild dogs," he bragged, with his mouth full of food.

"Really? Are you sure it wasn't wild pigs?" Cora teased.

Everyone laughed, including Zane. Astro joined in.

Maybe, just maybe, this was where he belonged.

It was really late. After dinner, the other kids got ready for bed. Astro cobbled together a cot from some old robot springs and fabric scraps. Hamegg made the rounds of the junkyard, checking on all of his charges. He stopped by Astro.

"Feeling homesick for Metro City, Astro?" Hamegg asked.

"No," Astro answered, although he wasn't sure if that was true.

Hamegg sat down on an old oil drum. "Me neither," he said. "I was head of advanced robotics at the Ministry of Science. Oh yeah, right up there with Tenma and the other muckety-mucks."

Astro was curious. Hamegg had known Toby's father. "What happened?" he asked.

"What always happens to genius," Hamegg said. "They were intimidated by my talent, so they threw me away like an old battery."

"I'm sorry," Astro said. He knew what that felt like.

"Not your problem," Hamegg said. "You know, I've got a hunch about you, Astro. There's always room for a good kid in this family. Now how about getting some shut-eye? Good night ... son."

He tucked Astro into his bed, bringing the scraps of junk up to his chin.

"Good night, Hamegg," Astro said.

Hamegg left, and Astro noticed Trashcan staring at him, his eyes glowing in the darkness.

"I'm going to tell them," Astro said. "Just not yet, okay?"

Trashcan gave Astro a look that clearly said, "You'll be sorry." Then he trotted away.

Astro didn't let it worry him. Everything would work out fine-it had to.

Then he closed his eyes and drifted off into a peaceful sleep.