Karen's Kite

by Ann M. Martin

  “What in the world are you girls doing?” cried Mommy. “I cannot believe you were thinking of jumping off that roof.”

  Uh-oh.

  “We’re sorry, Mrs. Engle,” said Hannie.

  “You could have hurt yourselves badly,” said Mommy. “Karen, I am surprised at you for dreaming up something as dangerous as this. You are old enough to know better.”

  I looked at Natalie. It had been her idea. Not mine. But I didn’t say anything. I did not want to get her into trouble.

  “I’m sorry, Mommy,” I said. “I should have known better.”

  Mommy sent Hannie and Nancy home. Then she sent Natalie and me to my room. I did not feel like playing. I did not feel like talking either.

  I buried my nose in a book. It was called Dragonwings by Laurence Yep. It is about a man who dreams of inventing a flying machine. I wondered if he ever tried flying off a roof. If he did, I bet he got into trouble, too.

  Karen’s Kite

  Glub, glub, glub. Glub, glub, glub.

  It was Wednesday afternoon at school. I was walking around our classroom with my flying fish kite. I was making believe it was swimming through the air. I swam it over to Hannie and Nancy.

  “All I have to do now is put on a tail,” I said.

  “Your kite is gorgeous, Karen,” said Hannie. “How do you like mine?”

  “It is the best dog kite ever,” I told her.

  There were lots of great kites in the room. Everyone was working hard putting on the finishing touches. We were supposed to have our kites ready by the next afternoon.

  I carried my kite back to my seat. Natalie let out a loud sigh.

  “I do not know what’s wrong with it,” she said. She held her kite out in front of her.

  I could not find one thing right with it. The kite was lopsided. One corner was ripped. And the rag tail was coming undone. Natalie’s kite was a major mess.

  But no one told her so. Everyone said nice things to her.

  “Cool kite, Natalie,” said Ricky.

  “Maybe you will win the contest,” said Audrey.

  “You’re finished already,” said Hank. “I bet you’re the first one.”

  My classmates were trying to make Natalie feel good. They must have been. Otherwise they would have said nice things about my kite. It was truly spectacular. But no one had said so.

  I knew it was not the only great kite in the room, though. Addie’s 3-D star kite was perfect. Hank’s dragon kite looked almost as good as the one in Mrs. Moody’s store. (The one I was going to win.) Even Pamela’s butterfly kite was great.

  I decided I better say something nice to Natalie, too.

  “Your kite is so pretty. I love the color you chose,” I said. (It still looked like a dirty nickel to me.)

  Then Mr. Mackey looked at my kite carefully. “It is terrific, Karen,” he said. “It looks strong. And the colors are so bright. It’s going to light up the sky.”

  “Thank you!” I said.

  I was glad Mr. Mackey and Ms. Colman were talking to everyone about their kites, not just to Natalie.

  I looked around the room. I wondered who was going to win the contest. Except for Natalie, everyone had a good chance.

  I was so excited. I could hardly wait till Friday. I would get to see my very own kite flying proudly over Stoneybrook Academy.

  Bubbles

  “Let’s put on bathing suits and take a bubble bath together,” said Natalie. “We can fill the tub right up to the top.”

  Natalie and I were upstairs in my room. Mommy, Seth, and Andrew were downstairs.

  I wondered if I should ask Mommy and Seth for permission. After all, Natalie’s last idea had gotten me into big trouble. But how much mess could soap and water make?

  “Okay,” I replied. “You fill the tub. I’ll find bathing suits for us.”

  Filling up the tub would take awhile. I was glad Natalie was in charge of that. It was a boring job.

  Now where were my summer clothes? I took out two suitcases and emptied them. No bathing suits there. But I did find my big yellow summer hat. I tried it on.

  “How do I look, Goosie?” I asked. Goosie said I looked quite beautiful.

  “Why, thank you,” I said. I decided to leave my hat out for the next time I played Lovely Ladies.

  Then I remembered where Mommy had put my bathing suits. They were in the back of my underwear drawer.

  I picked out a red bathing suit and a green striped one. Then I headed for the bathroom.

  When I opened the door, I had a big surprise. An enormous tower of bubbles was in the bathtub. Water was sloshing over the side.

  “Natalie!” I cried. “The water! Turn off the water!”

  Natalie was facing the other way. She was looking at herself in the mirror. Blue cream was smeared all over her face. It was Mommy’s special face cream.

  “Karen? What’s going on up there?” called Mommy.

  I hurried to turn off the water. The next thing I knew, Mommy, Seth, and Andrew were standing at the bathroom door.

  “Oh, girls! Look what you’ve done!” cried Mommy.

  “Karen made a bubble mess,” said Andrew.

  “Let’s get towels and clean up fast. This water could leak down into the living room,” said Seth.

  When the floor was dry again, Mommy and Seth came into my room. They wanted to talk about what had happened.

  “What is going on, Karen?” said Mommy. “One day you do something dangerous. Then you do something careless.”

  “This could have cost us a lot of money for no reason,” said Seth.

  Mommy and Seth were very angry at me. I looked at Natalie. I was waiting for her to tell them it had been her idea. I was waiting for her to tell them she was the one who left the water running. But she didn’t. She let me take the blame.

  I told Mommy and Seth I was sorry about the flood. When they left, I told Natalie a thing or two.

  “It was all your fault and you didn’t even say anything!” I shouted.

  “Well, you shouldn’t have left me there so long,” said Natalie.

  “I thought I could trust you. But all you know how to do is get me into trouble!”

  That did it. Natalie’s chin started to quiver. Then she burst into tears. This time I didn’t care.

  “I would just like to tell you one more thing,” I said. “I am not speaking to you anymore.”

  I turned away from Natalie. I did not say another word all night.

  Meanie Karen

  When I woke up on Thursday, I made a big mistake. I said, “Hi, Natalie.” I forgot I was not talking to her.

  I did not say another word until breakfast. Then Seth asked for the butter. It was on the other side of Natalie. So I had to say, “Butter, please.”

  I had said four words since our fight. But I would not say anything else to Natalie if I could help it.

  When we arrived at school, I put down my pack. Then I went to visit Hannie and Nancy. I left Natalie by herself.

  “Why don’t you ask Natalie to come sit with us?” asked Hannie.

  “I am not talking to Natalie,” I announced. “We had a fight.”

  A few kids at the back of the room heard me. They gave me crabby looks.

  “What happened?” asked Hannie.

  I did not have a chance to answer because Ms. Colman came in.

  “Good morning, everyone,” she said. “Please take your seats.”

  While Ms. Colman was taking attendance, I heard some kids whispering about me. They were calling me “Meanie Karen,” because I was not talking to Natalie.

  I wished lunchtime would come fast. I would tell everyone what Natalie had done. Then they would understand why I was not talking to her.

  When we were seated in the cafeteria, I made an announcement, “I am going to tell what happened, in case anyone is interested.”

  I told everyone how Natalie let the water run over the bathtub. I told them how she let me take the blame.

  When I fi
nished, Nancy and Hannie pulled me aside.

  “Her grandfather died,” said Hannie. “You have to be nice to her.”

  “I am sorry about Natalie’s grandfather,” I said. “But she was the one being mean, not me.”

  The rest of the kids gathered around Natalie. I could not believe they were taking her side. Natalie looked in my direction. She thought she was so great just because everyone was mad at me.

  Back in our classroom, Ms. Colman and Mr. Mackey helped us put the finishing touches on our kites. The afternoon was supposed to be fun. But it wasn’t. I was not talking to Natalie. And now the other kids were not talking to me.

  I was in a bad, bad mood. I knocked over Natalie’s box of crayons accidentally on purpose. I did not say I was sorry. First of all, I was not sorry one bit. Second of all, if I said I was sorry I would have been talking to her. And I did not want to talk to Natalie Springer ever again.

  “Your kite looks like it’s finished, Karen. All you have to do now is attach the line,” said Mr. Mackey. “I’ll show you how.”

  I did a very good job attaching the line. My kite was ready for the contest.

  I thought that would make me happy. But it didn’t. Boo.

  The Sleepover

  “Good morning, Goosie. Good morning, Emily Junior. Good morning, Hyacynthia.”

  I said good morning to every doll and toy in my room. I did not say good morning to Natalie.

  It was Friday. It was the day of the kite-flying contest and the sleepover. No way was I going to be in a bad mood. After all, how many chances would I get to have a sleepover in my wonderful school with my wonderful teachers?

  I put my pajamas in my pack and rolled up my sleeping bag.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow,” I said to my dolls. “I’m sleeping over at school.”

  The next day would be Saturday. Then it would be Sunday. On Sunday, Natalie’s parents were coming home. Thank goodness.

  That day my friends and I had a hard time concentrating. We could hardly wait for school to end and the contest to begin.

  I kept turning around to look at Hannie and Nancy and pointing to the clock on the wall. (They thought I was being a meanie to Natalie, but at least they were still talking to me.)

  At the end of the day, Mr. Mackey came to our room with three parents who were going to help at the sleepover.

  “Is everyone ready?” he asked.

  “Ready!” we answered.

  “All right, then,” said Mr. Mackey. “We have beautiful weather for our contest. The sky is clear and there’s a nice breeze. I think you know how the contest is going to work, but I will let Ms. Colman explain it to you one more time, so there won’t be any confusion. Ms. Colman?”

  “Class, in just a little while, we will go outside to launch our kites. You will get to watch them fly for awhile. Then we will come back inside, play some games, eat dinner, and have our sleepover. The adults will take turns watching the kites. We will keep a record of the time that each one comes down. Whoever owns the last kite to come down will win Mrs. Moody’s gift certificate. Are there any questions?”

  No one had a question.

  “Then it is time to line up,” said Mr. Mackey. “The contest is about to begin.”

  As we left the room, I whispered to my beautiful flying fish, “Do you think we can win?”

  Glub, glub. (She said she would try her best.)

  I really wanted to win the prize. But I knew it would not be easy. So many great kites were in the room.

  I closed my eyes. Then I crossed my arms and my fingers and my toes.

  “Please, please, please let me win,” I wished.

  The next thing I knew, I was out in the sunshine with the breeze on my face.

  The Kite Fight

  “Everyone spread out across the playground, please,” called Ms. Colman.

  Ms. Colman told us that the playground was a good place for kite flying. There were no trees or wires for our kites to get caught in.

  “This is what to do,” said Mr. Mackey. He told us to stand with our backs to the wind. That way the wind could do its work. It would carry our kites up in the air.

  “Hold up your kites. When I say go, let go of your kite and unwind the line.”

  I held out my kite. I hopped from one foot to the other. That was not part of Mr. Mackey’s instructions. But I could hardly wait for Mr. Mackey to call …

  “Go!”

  I let go of my kite and unwound the line the way I was supposed to. My flying fish sailed up, up, up into the sky.

  “Good-bye, Fish! Have a nice flight. Don’t come back too soon!” I called.

  “Bat kite, please be a winner!” called Ricky.

  All around me kites were sailing into the sky. A few kids were having trouble. They were either facing the wrong way, or letting out the line too quickly.

  Natalie was doing everything right. But she was still having trouble. That was because her kite was such a mess.

  Ms. Colman, Mr. Mackey, and the parents helped out. Soon all the kites — even Natalie’s — were in the air.

  We attached our lines to hooks in the ground. Then we stood back and watched. It was so, so beautiful. Eighteen kites were flying high. I waved to my fish.

  Suddenly the wind blew harder. My line jerked. My kite took a nose dive. Everyone watched my kite crash into Natalie’s. For a few seconds, the two kites looked as if they were fighting with each other.

  Natalie’s kite did not have a chance. It zoomed to the ground. Then the wind died down and my kite sailed back up where it had started.

  I took one look at Natalie and she burst into tears.

  “You broke my kite!” she cried.

  I did not say a word. I was still not talking to Natalie. Anyway, I did not think I had to explain. Everyone saw what had happened. The wind started the kite fight. Not me. I was not even holding the line.

  I was angry at Natalie for getting me into trouble before. But I was sorry for her too because her grandfather died. And because now her kite had fallen down.

  My feelings were all mixed up.

  Sleeping at School

  “You didn’t do anything wrong,” said Hannie.

  “That’s right,” said Nancy. “It was not your fault.”

  The Three Musketeers were standing in a group on the playground. Everyone else was gathered around Natalie again.

  Pamela stomped over to me. “How could you do that, Karen Brewer?” she said. “How could you knock Natalie’s kite out of the sky?”

  “That is ridiculous!” I said. “I did not touch Natalie’s kite and you know it.”

  Big-mouth Bobby came over next. “It’s bad enough you would not talk to Natalie. You did not have to make her lose the contest, too,” he said.

  I stuck my tongue out at him.

  “Come on, let’s go sit on the swings. We can watch our kites from there,” said Nancy.

  My classmates and I watched the kites for awhile. When we were tired of watching them we went inside. Most of the kids had forgotten about the kite fight by the time we got there. I was glad. I wanted to have fun at the sleepover.

  Natalie was still mad at me, though. I felt sorry for her. I really did. But I decided the best thing to do was ignore her.

  Our sleepover was in the gym. That was fun because we could run around a lot.

  “Do you want to play dodge ball, or jump rope?” Hannie asked Nancy and me.

  I was trying to decide when Ms. Colman called, “Will someone help me put this chart up on the wall?”

  “I will!” I said. I love to help Ms. Colman — especially with important jobs.

  At the top of the chart were big letters that said KITE-FLYING CONTEST. Underneath were two columns. One said, “Name of Student.” The other said, “Kite-Flying Time.”

  The first line was already filled in. It said: Natalie Springer. Fifteen minutes.

  I would hate to be the first one on the chart. I hoped I would be the last one. Then I would be the winner.<
br />
  I was on my way to the jump rope corner when Mr. Mackey called, “Kite down!”

  Bobby Gianelli’s name went up on the chart. His kite-flying time was forty-five minutes.

  “Too bad,” said Ricky. “It was a neat kite.”

  I was having a lot of fun at the party. So were most of the other kids. Every once in awhile, one of the grown-ups called, “Kite down!” Then we’d run to the chart to see whose name and time had gone up.

  By the time we had eaten our dinner, six kites had come down.

  By the time we went to sleep, ten kites had come down.

  “Fly, fish kite, fly!” I whispered as I closed my eyes. I hoped my kite would fly all through the night.

  The Winner

  “Rise and shine, everyone,” said Ms. Colman on Saturday morning. “Only two kites are still flying. They belong to Karen and Hank.”

  “Yes!” I cried. I tumbled out of my sleeping bag. I ran to the window. There they were — Hank’s dragon kite and my flying fish kite.

  We took turns going to the bathroom. Then we lined up to go to the cafeteria for breakfast. We were on our way out of the gym when Mr. Mackey called, “Kite down!”

  We looked outside. My flying fish kite was the only kite left in the sky.

  “Congratulations, Karen. You have won the contest,” said Mr. Mackey.

  I could not believe it. There had been so many great kites. I wanted to be the winner, but I had not really and truly thought it would happen.

  “You won, Karen, you won!” cried Hannie.

  “I am really happy for you,” said Nancy.

  “Thanks!” I replied.

  I was so excited I could hardly eat any breakfast. I tried to wait patiently for it to end. Finally my friends and I returned to our classroom to meet our parents. Mrs. Moody was there waiting for us, too.

  “Congratulations to everyone. Your kites were terrific,” she said. “And now I would like to present the gift certificate to our winner, Karen Brewer. Karen, will you please come here?”

  I walked to the front of the room. (I did not have very far to go since I sit in the first row.) Mrs. Moody handed me my prize.