Page 33
He takes the same tack with the next boy he meets: "Are you going to beat me up?"
"Hey, kid, you're crazy goin' around sayin' that. You're just askin' to get beat up."
"So you're not going to?"
"Nah, you ain't worth it. No challenge to it."
Oskar dislikes this boy, but not nearly enough to be able to kill him.
With the next boy, it is, as they say, third time lucky. "Are you going to beat me up?"
"I hadn't thought of it, but now that you've given me the idea..." With that, the boy starts punching Oskar in the face, lightly at first and then a little harder each time, yelling, "Fight back, ya wimp!"
With every punch, Oskar feels his desire for revenge mounting until finally he yells, "Squeal like a pig!" and thrusts his knife at his tormentor. But this boy is an experienced street fighter who has defeated knife-wielders far more proficient than Oskar. He disarms Oskar, knocks him down with one punch, kicks him into unconsciousness and calls the police.
Oskar is still unconscious when the police find him. Because of his injuries, he is taken to the hospital. There they revive him, treat his injuries and put him in one of the restricted rooms for the sick and injured awaiting transfer to a penal institution.