CHAPTER XV--Making Plans
"Well, it would be a calamity anywhere else in the world, but nothing isever bad at Hilltop." Gwendolyn Matthews and Poppy were in the Twins'room, and a crowd of girls were listening to what they had to say withflattering attention.
"Not even Thanksgiving away from home?" Prue demanded with a littlepout.
It had just been decreed by Miss Hull and the faculty that there wouldbe no Thanksgiving recess this year. Several cases of measles had brokenout in the past week, and the school doctor had ordered a quarantine.Such a thing had never happened before, and the seniors were doing theirbest to cheer up the many disappointed girls. Gwen and Poppy hadselected Twins' room to go to first of all, for they were pretty surethat they would find a goodly number of the girls there.
"It's only four days, Prue," Poppy said consolingly, "and Miss Hull sayswe are to have a longer Christmas vacation to make up, besides nolessons for the four days now. You all must admit, that's fair enough."
"Of course, it's fair," Prue agreed readily; "but, well I had a veryspecial engagement this Thanksgiving, and I hate to give it up."
"I was going to visit Ann's uncle," Gladys said sadly, "and now, ofcourse, I can't."
"Well, you will some other time," Prue suddenly turned cheerful.
It is always so easy to make light of other people's disappointments,particularly when you are comparing them with your own. They always seemsmall in comparison.
"Don't be too sure of that," Ann laughed her quiet little laugh. "UncleLacey doesn't offer invitations very often, and he is not so terriblyfond of me. He's probably delighted to receive my telegram, and hasalready made up his mind that he has done his duty to his sister's onlydaughter, and with a sigh of relief returned to his library."
"Poor Glad!" Sally laughed, "cruel uncle refuses second invitation andAnn and Glad have to find other host for Christmas." Both girls lived ata considerable distance from school.
"Not for Christmas," Ann denied. "I am going home for that blessed day,and so is Glad, aren't you honey?"
"I most certainly am," Glad replied. "Christmas is one day when I mustbe with my mother, not to mention my small brothers and sisters."
"What were _you_ going to do that was so exciting, Prue?" Janet inquiredcarelessly.
"I was going to New York," Prue replied. "I have never been there in mywhole life." She spoke as though she were ninety. "And Daddy promised totake me this year. We were going to meet my brother John, he's afreshman at Princeton, you know," she added with pride. "And, oh dear,we were going to have a simply wonderful time, and now just because theRed Twins and that horrid little Ethel Rivers have the measles, I can'tgo. John will be so disappointed."
"Don't worry about brother," Gladys teased. "It's my opinion that hewill be quite relieved. Grown-up boys are never very crazy about theirbaby sisters, especially when their friends are around. You know, Pruedarling, you may feel terribly grown-up, but you still wear your hairdown your back, and to boys that means you are still a babe and beneaththeir notice."
"That isn't so at all, Glad," Prue protested. "John and I have alwaysbeen the best of friends and he would like to introduce me to hisfriends, I know he would."
"John is in college now," Gladys spoke with cool and perfect assurance,"and that makes all the difference in the world. I guess I ought toknow, I've had three brothers at Yale."
"Perhaps that accounts for it, Yale isn't Princeton." Prue was almost intears but she managed to smile as she said this.
The other girls laughed.
"I reckon you'd better admit defeat," Poppy teased. "Prue got ahead ofyou that time sure enough."
Gladys drew herself up, and tried to make her roly-poly little self lookimposing as she replied:
"When Prue has had as much experience with brothers as I have, she willcome to me and humbly beg my pardon and tell me I am right," she laughedsuddenly. "Never will I forget the dance my youngest brother took me towhen he was home for his first Christmas vacation. It was at the CountryClub, and because it was Christmas all the younger kids went."
"I know about that kind of dance," Poppy interrupted. "Nobody has a verygood time."
"Well, I know _I_ didn't," Gladys admitted. "I felt very elegant when Ileft home. Ted had on full dress and looked magnificent, and I had letmy best party dress down--" she stopped abruptly and fell to playing atatoo on the arm of her chair.
"Go on, Glad, we're listening," Phyllis urged. "What happened when youarrived at the dance?"
Gladys looked from girl to girl, then she said quietly: "Nothing."
"Nothing?" Sally protested. "Oh, Glad, don't be irritating!"
"I'm not trying to be," Glad replied. "Simply nothing happened. Ted leftme as soon as he found some of my old maid cousins that he could leaveme with, and he only came back and danced with me once. He brought a boyto meet me that wore glasses because he was cross-eyed, and hestuttered. I danced with him once and then I went into the dressing roomand took off my slippers. My feet were almost broken, and the next daythey were black and blue. He had tramped all over them."
"Well?" several voices demanded as Gladys paused.
"There's nothing more to tell. I wept into somebody's opera cape untilit was time to go home, and during the drive I fell asleep on Ted'sshoulder. I didn't think he understood until the next day, when Motherasked me if I'd had a good time. I said I had, and after breakfast Tedtook me to the village and filled me full of ice cream, and on the wayhome he explained very gently what a nice thing a sister could be, asort of little comfort, you know, and then on the other hand, what adreadful little bore. I didn't need the talk, I'd learned my lesson. Istay at home now and fix the studs in their dress shirts when they wantto go out, and if it's cold I stay up and make hot soup for them, but Inever ask to tag along."
Nothing was said after Gladys stopped, for a minute or two. The girlswere all thinking hard. Most of them had brothers or cousins and theyall understood.
"Perhaps if I'd treated my brother like that," Gwen said with a laughthat held sadness in it, "he might have been a better friend of mine nowthan he is; but I always tagged along and he got thoroughly sick of me.I dance about as well as your cross-eyed friend, Glad."
Phyllis was thinking of Tom, and being thankful that he was so mucholder than she and Janet, that they had never had the chance to makeGwen's mistake.
Janet was thinking of Peter and wondering. Peter Gibbs was a boy she hadknown back in Old Chester. They had shared the Enchanted Kingdomtogether, and he had taken the place of her brother long before Tom hadarrived to claim the right. Janet was fonder of Peter than she reallyknew, and she found herself suddenly wondering if he had outgrown her,now that he was in college. She made a firm resolve to take Gladys'sadvice.
"Well, thank goodness, Chuck isn't in college yet," Daphne saidsuddenly, and Sally and the Twins laughed.
Then, as so often happens, when a room-full of people have been quietlythinking, everyone began to talk at once. They dismissed the subject ofbrothers and returned to the holidays. They made plans for all of thedays, except Thanksgiving Day itself.
"Something's bound to happen then," Gwen assured them. "Miss Hull willprobably ask one of the classes to entertain."
"You know it will be the Seniors," Poppy replied reproachfully, "andwhat we will do at so short notice I'm sure I don't know." This inPoppy's complaining tones made the girls all laugh.
"Cheer up, Poppy, we'll all help you, no matter what," Sally promised."We might have a real old-fashioned pillow fight between the wings; thatwould liven us up a bit," she suggested. "I admit I feel ratherdepressed myself."
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