How To Eat Fried Worms

Mr. Forrester comes home, reads the letter, notices the many typos and bad spelling, and notes to his son that it’s a forgery. 

Billy’s father points out that “fulmar” isn’t a body region but a seabird. Tom asks him if Joe and Alan can be arrested for committing mail fraud.

On the final day, Billy finds Joe and Alan waiting, grouchy and unhappy. Tom couldn’t make it because he refused to eat his meal and got grounded. Joe says Alan wanted to stuff the last worm with red pepper, but Joe stopped him. Billy makes short work of the last worm: This one tastes especially good. Alan examines Billy’s mouth and complains that there’s still some worm stuck to a tooth, so Billy sucks that away.

Alan says he won’t be able to give Billy the money until the next day: “I’ll have to work Saturdays for six months to pay it back” (104). Alan gets up to leave; Joe agrees to come along in the hope that his presence will make Mr. Phelps go easier on Alan. Alan asks if tomorrow at 10 o’clock will be a good time to meet Billy and pay him. Billy says it can be later if Alan prefers. Alan fights back tears and walks out.

Burping, Billy congratulates himself on his big win. He burps again: It tastes like beans. Realizing he’s been fooled, Billy runs out and yells after the retreating boys. Alan starts to run away, but Joe grabs him. Billy runs up and accuses them of faking the worm. He says he’ll eat another worm to make sure he’s had all 15. Joe shrugs and drags Alan away.

As Billy lifts up the 15th worm to eat it, Alan rushes into the barn, knocks Billy over, drags him into the tool closet, and locks it. Joe arrives and points out that Billy can simply yell until his parents free him. Billy bangs rhythmically on the locked closet door, yelling to be let out. Alan suggests they throw Billy down the cistern: They’d all been down there last year, and they can lower him on a rope. Alan begins to remove the boards that cover it.

Mr. Forrester arrives at the barn, chases Joe and Alan away, and frees Billy. He then scolds Billy for Alan’s trying to open the cistern again; he sends him to his room. Billy protests that Alan will win the bet, but his father replies, “Then you will learn something” (110).

Upstairs in his room, Billy kicks at the wall. He’d almost won! His father blames him for the cistern when opening it again was Alan’s idea, not his. He kicks at his bed.

Tom appears at the Forrester’s screen door and asks to talk to Billy. Mrs. Forrester tells him Billy’s upstairs being punished because he and Alan and Joe did something “very naughty.” Sounding intrigued, Tom asks what they did.

Tom chats with Mrs. Forrester while Billy kicks his bedroom wall again and then gazes sadly out the window. Below him, Tom’s brother Pete suddenly appears, carrying a basket. Billy pulls up the window, Pete whispers “Catch,” and tosses him a brick attached to a string tied to the basket. Billy catches the brick and pulls up the basket just as Joe and Alan, desperate to stop him, rush out of the bushes.

Billy pulls a can from the basket and removes a worm from the can. Joe and Alan scream “MRS. FORRESTER!” over and over (115). Billy shouts that it’s too late and drops the worm into his mouth. Tom and Mrs. Forrester appear and watch as Billy finishes chewing the worm. Billy rushes downstairs to the backyard, grabs Tom’s hands, and they and Pete dance around the yard as Billy yells, “I win! I win!” (115). Joe and Alan, dejected, walk away.

Months later, Billy parks his minibike against a tree and walks down to the river, where he joins Tom and Joe for lunch. Alan can’t make it because he’s still paying off his debt by working at a store.

Billy pulls out his meal: It’s a worm sandwich. He can’t stop eating them.