This was the type of attention I couldn’t have seen coming. It wasn’t what I thought would happen, but it did make for a strange day. On an errand for Miss Fuqua, I found out with my own eyes and ears who was spreading all of the nutty tales. It was just as I’d guessed.
I had to take a note to one of the third-grade teachers down the hall from our classroom. When I passed the library, I saw a table of five boys. They were all huddled up and listening to one of the boys telling them a secret. At least it looked like a secret.
I had to quietly sneak in the library door. Then I crawled underneath the table next to the boys. They had no idea I was there. I could hear everything the one boy was sharing with the rest of the group. I heard him say in a whispery tone, “Then Ruby jumped off the horse to catch the purse snatcher! We couldn’t believe it. My little sister has a lot of guts.”
The rest of the group was impressed as they listened to the boy. It was Ro! They were paying close attention to his wild story about me. He had been the one telling the so not true stories about me all day. It was too funny. And also not funny. Ro had been like Marquetta, not telling the whole truth. Actually, he wasn’t even telling half the truth! Still, I had to put my hand over my mouth so that I wouldn’t bust out laughing.
I crawled back out of the library without even being seen. Even though Ro’s stories made me laugh, I was disappointed in him. I knew what the truth was.
I was just upset that he never mentioned my drill team to anyone. I guess he doesn’t believe I could be a superstar like Kee-Kee, either. That’s okay. I was going to prove to him, Marquetta Loopy, and the girls who came to my tryout how fabulous the Chill Brook Steppers could be.
After school, Ma was going to take me to a real, live practice of my cousin Kee-Kee and the Wallace Park Spirit. I would then see how stepping was really done right.
I couldn’t wait!
Ma was taking me all the way to Wallace Park. It would have been nice to see my friend Mona Sweetroll, but Mona was out of town visiting her grandparents.
I leaned forward from my seat in the back of the van. “How long is this drive, Ma? Seems like we’ve been riding forever.”
“Cool your jets, little lady,” Ma said.
“I want to take as many notes as possible for my drill team,” I said. “I have to find out how Kee-Kee’s group got so good and how I can get everyone to go bananas for my squad.”
“What about learning how to actually flip, tumble, and cheer the way the Wallace Park Spirit does so well?”
“Ma, it wasn’t just the flipping, the tumbling, and the cheering. The Wallace Park Spirit had something electric that I felt when I watched them.” I was trying to make Ma see what it really took to be an all-star drill team captain. “It’s the style and grace they have. Besides, I can learn all of that other stuff when my wrist gets better.”
“Okay, baby,” Ma said. “Whatever you say. Just don’t get in the way over there, and keep an open mind.” We pulled up to the place where the practice was held, the 138th Street Baptist Church. Kee-Kee and her parents belong to that church.
“What do you mean by keeping an open mind?” I asked Ma.
“That means don’t be disappointed if you don’t see what you came to see. Okay?”
“I guess so, Ma,” I answered. I knew I wasn’t going to be disappointed, though. “Kee-Kee will amaze me again and teach me how to be just like her. Besides, Ma, can you imagine how gorgeous their practice outfits must be?”
Ma just shook her head like she was disappointed in me. “Come on, girl. Let’s go inside.”
* * *
As soon as Kee-Kee saw me, she ran over and gave me and Ma a hug. “Ruby, that’s a pretty cast you’re wearing. I love it!”
“Thanks, Kee-Kee. Am I on time for practice?”
“You’re on time, but we’re not really having our usual practice today,” Kee-Kee told me and Ma.
“Why not, Keeva?” Ma asked. “Not enough members to practice?”
“Two days a week, we do something nice for the neighborhood, for the whole Wallace Park area,” Kee-Kee told Ma.
I couldn’t help but ask, “Is it an extra-special squad show that you only do for them? And where is your cute practice outfit, girl?” I just had to know. Kee-Kee was wearing a regular-looking purple jumpsuit. It was cute but not what I expected.
“Come with me. I’ll show you what we do. As far as my outfit goes, we’re not dressed to flip all of the time. What were you thinking?” She laughed a little. Then she led the way over to the church gym.
When we got there, I saw the squad members who had performed the week before. None of them had a shiny, sparkly outfit on. No one was dancing, stepping, or flipping. There was no music. And there was a bunch of people I’d never seen before. It was weird.
“What’s going on here, Kee-Kee? Where’s the music? And who are all of these people?” This was not the practice I had imagined.
“On Tuesdays we open up the church and feed the homeless or families that may need a helping hand.” Kee-Kee pointed at all of the food lined up on the tables. Each and every member of the Wallace Park Spirit wore aprons, loaded up plates, and handed them out to anyone who came in and needed a hot meal. I couldn’t believe my eyes.
“Keeva, who set all of this up? You kids?” Ma asked. She seemed so impressed by what she saw. I wasn’t. This had nothing to do with drill team stuff.
“I kinda did, Aunt Fatima,” Kee-Kee said to Ma. “Most of the kids in the squad go to my school. They were all glad to do it.”
“What do you guys do on the other days?” Ma was really into what Kee-Kee and her friends had going. It was no big deal to me.
“On Thursdays we have elementary school kids here for tutoring sessions. We show them how to do math, science, and reading. Just regular school stuff,” Kee-Kee explained as she handed a cup of punch to a little boy about my size. There were grown-ups in old clothes. I saw whole families that looked tired but so happy just to be there.
“I am so, so proud of you, darling,” Ma said, praising Kee-Kee. Then she gave her a gigantic hug and kissed her on the cheek. “I know your mother is even prouder than I am.”
“Excuse me, Ma.” I threw Ma a big fake smile, grabbed Kee-Kee by the arm, and pulled her to the side. “What is all of this? How can I be like you if I don’t see you practicing in your cute squad outfits or see any of your amazing routines? How am I going to start my own drill team? Let’s get to it, girl!” I whispered with tight lips. And, oh, was I serious.
“Ruby, you need to check yourself. Honestly.” Kee-Kee jerked her arm away from me. She is a teenager and a lot bigger than I am. “What we do as a drill team is much more than what you saw in our show.”
“I thought that all you did was make crowds go crazy, lead parades, and sign autographs for all of Wallace Park.” I was confused.
Kee-Kee looked at me and shook her head. Then she pointed to a sign on the wall in the gym and asked me, “What does that say up there?”
“It says ‘The Home of the Wallace Park Spirit — the Number One Drill Team.’” I read really loud so that I could hear my voice echo in the gym.
“Do you know what that means?” Kee-Kee asked. It was one of those questions that you don’t really answer. “Listen, Ruby. You thought all we did was look cute, do super-double-whammy flips, and make pyramids, right?”
“No, I just … well, yeah, I did.” I couldn’t tell a lie.
“That sign says that we represent where we live. If we’re going to use the name of the neighborhood we love so much, that means we have to give back to it. It’s called community service.”
“We do that sometimes,” I told her. And that was the truth. “Ma takes us down to shelters and we give them our old toys, clothes, and canned foods.”
“Doesn’t it make you feel good when you do that?” Kee-Kee asked.
I nodded. “When I help people, everybody feels good. Daddy says the things we pass along will make others happy, and
I like that.”
“The dancing, flipping, and the tumbling are fun, and we work hard at it,” Kee-Kee explained. “But our neighborhood has given so much to every member of the Spirit. So we’re kind of like cheerleaders for Wallace Park and the people who live here. We love Wallace Park. It’s the least we can do two days a week to help the neighborhood.”
“I know what you mean. I love Chill Brook Avenue, too.” I started to feel what Kee-Kee was talking about. “But I can’t flip or dance or do any of that cool stuff that you do.”
Kee-Kee put her arms around me and said, “Don’t worry about all of that, little cousin. Performing will come to you. You’re a natural, especially the way you sing.” That made me feel good. Then she asked, “What’s the name of the squad you’re starting up?”
“We’re the Chill Brook Steppers. Don’t you just love that name?” I knew she would.
“I sure do. And don’t you think everyone who lives on Chill Brook Avenue would be proud that you were representing them?” she asked.
“I sure do!”
“Well, give them something to be proud of and give your Steppers something to stand for. The cute outfits and cool routines will come together. Trust me, cousin.” Kee-Kee latched me by the arm and walked me back over to Ma. Then she joined the rest of her squad to help pass out the food.
I called out to her, “Kee-Kee, aren’t you going to sign my candy cane?” Up until that point, I only had a few inky names scribbled on my cast.
“Yeah … maybe I will later,” she answered. Without even looking over at me, she joined her team to help with the food. I thought that Kee-Kee didn’t want to sign my cast because she was too busy thinking about feeding the homeless.
Ma asked, “So, what were you girls talking about?”
“Just talking about outfits, flips, and how to really become a neighborhood superstar.”
Sometimes when I get out of school, I like to take Lady Love for a walk along Chill Brook Avenue. The next day I put on her little pink fake diamond leash and we walked like two divas. We looked so cool together.
I only walk up to the stoplight on Fifty-fifth Street and then turn around. Ma won’t let me go too far by myself. As we walked, I could hear her call out, “All right, little Miss Booker and little green diva, Mama misses you. Come back.” Whenever we go for a walk, Ma keeps an eye on us. Today she was on the stoop reading a fashion magazine.
On my way down the street, I thought about everything Kee-Kee had told me. I thought about all the things her squad does for Wallace Park. I had no idea how I was going to come close to being like her and the Wallace Park Spirit. I was starting to think about just forgetting the whole thing. Maybe I’d stick to singing and being the third-grade Trivia Queen. Maybe that was good enough.
But when I got three houses away from our house, I saw something that changed my mind quickly.
Our neighbor, sweet Mrs. Vine, was slowly coming toward me and Lady Love, pulling a heavy-looking cart on wheels. I don’t know how old Mrs. Vine is, but it’s probably as much as Ma and Daddy put together.
“Hey, sugar. How’s school going?” Mrs. Vine asked. She looked really tired, and the sacks in her cart looked so full.
“School is a piece of cake, Mrs. V. Third grade is so much fun,” I told her as I fed Lady Love a piece of banana.
“I remember when I was in the third grade. That was ages ago, sugar.”
Mrs. Vine was hunched over a little and breathing kind of heavy. I couldn’t let her pull that cart any farther. She lived two more houses down. “Can I help you, Mrs. V?”
“Oh, well, sure, sugar.” She gave me the cart handle. The cart was kind of heavy, but it wasn’t too heavy for me to pull.
“Are you just coming from the Fifty-seventh Street Market, Mrs. V? Looks like you’ve got a lot of stuff.” I pulled the cart with my good hand. Lady Love walked next to us.
Ma saw what I was doing and yelled out, “Hi, Mrs. Vine. Ruby’s helping you out, huh?”
Mrs. Vine turned to Ma and said as loud as she could, “Yes, she is. You should be proud to have such a sweet little girl. She’s just as sweet as she can be.” My cheeks got warm and I could feel them turning red. That happens when people say super-nice things about me.
“So how often do you have to go to the store, Mrs. V?” I wanted to know. An idea was starting to stir up in my brain.
“Mostly I go on Wednesdays. It just depends on how I’m feeling. Sometimes I’m too tired to even walk to my front door.” When Mrs. Vine said that, it made me think.
“So do you always go to the store alone?” Ideas were still coming to me.
“Most of the time I go with Mr. Brumley across the way, or Miss Pepperburg next door. There’s a whole lot of us old-timers who walk together to get groceries.” I knew all of the old people Mrs. Vine named. They have all lived in this neighborhood for a long time.
When Mrs. Vine and I made it to her house, she tried to lift one of the bags out of her cart.
“Don’t worry about it, Mrs. V. You go and open the door and I’ll bring the bags up,” I offered.
“Are you sure, sugar?” she looked back at me and asked.
“Yes, I’m sure. No problem.” I gladly picked up one sack at a time and took it inside. I did it with only one hand. It felt good to help.
After I was done, Mrs. V tried to offer me money for helping her. I just couldn’t take it. “No, thank you, Mrs. V. I would do this anytime for you,” I told her.
Once, Daddy told me and my brothers, “Don’t ever do a good deed for someone because you expect something in return.” That means you should do stuff because you’re being nice, not for money or anything. It was like Daddy was standing there telling me this, and I heard him loud and crystal clear.
After I pulled Mrs. V’s grocery cart up the stairs, too, I picked up Lady Love and scrammed back to my house. “Bye, Mrs. V. I’ve got some Chill Brook Steppers work to do.”
“Bye, sugar. And thank you again,” she hollered out from her front window. She seemed happier, sitting up in that window, smiling. I wondered if I’d had something to do with that.
“Slow down, baby. Where are you going?” Ma asked. I rocketed up our stoop and headed inside.
“I’m about to bring more smiles to Chill Brook Avenue. You’ll see!”
Two days after I helped Mrs. V with her groceries, I held another meeting with Teresa, the Piccolo twins, and Toya Tribbles. They didn’t look too interested in what I had to say, not even my girl Teresa. “Ladies, here we are again. And this time around, things are going to be a little different.”
Teresa twisted a piece of bubble gum in her mouth. “Okay, girlie, I know we can’t be here learning any moves. You’ve still got some ways to go with that cast on your little wrist.” She had on the most stylish pair of cowgirl boots I’ve ever seen. But style wasn’t why I called the Chill Brook Steppers all together.
“Yeah, Booker. Don’t waste my time again,” Toya said with her arms folded tight. She rolled her eyes and neck at me. “Got any new bright ideas besides how cute we’re going to look?”
“I sure …” Peaches began to say.
“… hope so, Ruby Booker.” As usual, her twin, Plenty, finished the sentence. They were wearing matching roller skates. They looked cute, too. But it wasn’t why we were meeting.
“I’ve thought about it, and if we’re going to be the Chill Brook Steppers, we’ve got to represent.” I walked back and forth in front of the girls.
“So you still don’t know how to dance or do drill team steps?” Toya wanted to know.
“Nope,” I answered with a grin.
“And you still can’t …” started Peaches.
“… do a backflip?” finished Plenty.
“Not with this on.” I held my cast as high as I could.
Teresa whispered to me, “Uh, Ruby, you got anything else up your little candy-cane cast?”
“Well, remember when I told you guys that I went to see my cousin’s drill te
am perform, and how crazy the crowd was for them?” I asked.
“Yeah …” they all said together.
“Now I know why that crowd went bonkers for the Wallace Park Spirit. It had nothing to do with what they had on or how high they jumped,” I continued.
“What was it, the loud music?” Toya joked. She sure does have a smarty-pants mouth sometimes.
“No, Toya. Those people cheered their hearts out because they really love the kids who make up the Wallace Park Spirit. They’re proud of where they live and they show it on and off the stage,” I explained.
The girls looked puzzled. “So what are we gonna do?” Teresa asked.
“We’re going to be a drill team that Chill Brook Avenue can be proud of. We’re going to do good things, too.” I walked over to my guitar-shaped book bag and pulled out five purple T-shirts with our names on the front and THE CHILL BROOK STEPPERS on the back. I also had lists of names and houses where older people like Mrs. Vine lived.
“Nice T-shirts, but what happened to the fancy outfit you had on the last time we got together?” Toya asked me.
“I put it away for now. I think that first we need to prove that we are worthy enough to have Chill Brook in our name,” I told the girls. Then I gave them the lists of names.
“What are we …” said Plenty this time.
“… gonna do with these?” Peaches capped off the question.
“We’re going to be there for all of the older people who live on Chill Brook. If they need us to help them with groceries, we do it. If they need their stoop swept, we do it. If they want us to walk their pets, we get it done,” I said, breaking it down to my squad mates.
“I get it! The more nice things we do, the more everybody on Chill Brook will see that we are something good for our neighborhood, right?” Teresa started to see where I was coming from.
Ruby Flips for Attention Page 3