Long Islanders

13 - Jaws

Spring faded into summer and school finally let out. Jimmy rejoiced on the last day of school, when he could hang his backpack up in his closet for the entire summer and forget about it until September, with the exception of his Boy Scout camping trips.

The heat rolled across the island in waves, sending Jimmy and his friends flocking often to the various sumps to seek refuge from the heat. It was while swimming in one of the safe sumps, one of those free from snapping turtles, that Jimmy asked Anthony if he was excited for the release of a new movie.

"Jaws comes out in a week!" he exclaimed. "I want to see it so bad!"

Andrew nodded longingly. "It'll be in the drive-in, too. That movie sounds so good!"

Nathaniel looked over at them. "I want to see it, but I don't have any money to."

Jimmy thought for a moment. "Then let's not spend any money," he suggested. "Let's just go see it."

John looked up. "You mean sneak into the drive-in?"

Jimmy nodded. "That's exactly what I mean."

Andrew shrugged. "I'm in."

"Same," Nathaniel and John chorused.

"This Friday?" Jimmy asked.

"Sure," everyone agreed, and the plan was set.

On Friday, Andrew, John, Nathaniel, and Jimmy biked down to the local drive-in movie theater in the evening. They pulled up outside the chain link fence surrounding the drive-in lot that was playing Jaws. Leaving their bikes outside, they scrambled over the fence and dropped down onto the pavement.

"Ready?" John asked. The three other boys all nodded. John jerked his head towards the parked cars. "Let's go! Quick!"

The four started forward, hurrying to find a spot before the movie started. The lot was pretty full, so it took a couple minutes before the boys found an empty spot alongside a car holding three young men.

"Hey," Jimmy called, coming up to the open passenger side window. "Excuse me, but would you mind saying that we're with you, if anyone asks?"

The guys exchanged a look and a grin, and then the driver glanced at Jimmy and shrugged. "Sure, kid. We don't mind."

John and Andrew adjusted the speakers hanging from their poles on either side of the parking space, taking them off their hooks and bringing them closer to the group. Then the four settled down into sitting positions on the pavement and glanced up at the large screen that had just gone dark with the beginning of the movie.

As the opening scene started to play, the voice of an attendant startled the boys out of their excited fixation on the movie.

"Excuse me? Young men? Are you...ahem, accompanied?"

"Yeah," came the driver's voice from the car next to them. He looked at the attendant seriously as the boys resisted the urge to grin. "They're with us, sir."

"Ah," the attendant said, and he left the boys alone.

Jimmy, Andrew, Nathaniel, and John settled in to watch the movie, and they were not disappointed. As they left the theater after the showing, climbing the fence and grabbing their bicycles, Jimmy shook his head. "Jaws is going to be a new classic."

"Definitely," Andrew enthused. "That was so awesome!"

"And the plan actually worked," Nathaniel added.

"When doesn't it?" Jimmy asked, slightly insulted. Nathaniel just shrugged.

"The movie was good, the plan was good, and we're not out any money," John summarized. "Nice job, Jimmy."