Baby-Sitters Club 037

by Ann M. Martin

  I practically held my breath when the waitress appeared, and wondered if I should mention that I don't eat meat. I lost my nerve at the last minute, but luckily, Travis ordered grilled cheese sandwiches for both of us.

  "So," Travis said when the waitress had left. "What's been happening with you today?" "Not much, how about you?" I still felt a little tongue-tied around Travis and decided it was easier to let him keep the conversation going. Anyway, he always seemed to have something to talk about.

  "I tried out for track today," he said earnestly. "You wouldn't believe what happened. I was the first guy the coach picked. I guess all that running I did in California paid off ..." I let Travis's words drift over me, thinking how wonderful it was to be sitting there with him. If I had to describe the ideal boy, it would be Travis. Tall, good-looking, with a fantastic smile and a great personality. And he liked me even though he was three years older than I was.

  When the sandwiches arrived a few minutes later, he had moved on to another topic, football. "You see, Coach Larson was demonstrating an intricate play for us," he said, looking into my eyes. He took a bite of sandwich and moved a salt shaker next to the napkin holder. "The quarterback ran down to the twenty-yard line like this ..." I watched, caught up in the sound of his voice. "And then the tight end zigzagged over here . . ." He picked up a ketchup bottle and plunked it down next to the sugar bowl. "Bingo! Right over the line for a touchdown." "That's amazing," I said, trying to look impressed.

  "And you know what?" he added, sliding the pepper shaker across the table. "I was the only guy there who knew what he was talking about." "That's wonderful. You really know a lot about football." Travis grinned. "What can I tell you?" He wolfed down the rest of his sandwich and I hurried to keep up with him.

  It was almost four by the time we left Burger Bite, and I was starting to feel a little edgy. I knew Mom wouldn't be thrilled if she found out that I had spent the afternoon with Travis (but I also knew that she and Richard wouldn't be home for another two hours). So I was safe, at least for the moment.

  We walked around downtown, and Travis surprised me (as usual) by leading me into the Merry-Go-Round. "I saw some pierced earrings in here that would look great on you," he said. He led me to a display counter and spun an earring tree with his thumb. "Good! They're still here." He lifted a pair of delicate silver earrings off the tree and held them out to me. "Do you like them?" " They were perfect. Tiny butterflies in flight. "I love them," I said softly.

  Travis held them up to my ear and smiled. "I knew they'd be right for you." "I'll wear them under the stars," I promised him. (1 should explain that I wear two earrings in each ear.) "No," Travis said flatly. "You should wear them up higher. Just get another hole punched in your ear." "Three holes? I don't know," I said doubtfully. I remembered that I'd had to persuade Mom to let me get my ears pierced in the first place.

  Travis laughed. "It's no big deal. All the girls in California wear them that way. It would look really cool on you." "I'll have to think about it," I said, trying to sound casual.

  "There's nothing to it," Travis answered. We were standing side by side at the cashier. "They could probably do it for you right now." "No!" I was starting to feel a little panicky. I could just imagine Mom's reaction if I did something like that without asking her.

  I felt relieved when we left the Merry-Go-Round a few minutes later and headed back to the car, even though I knew that Travis was a tiny bit annoyed with me.

  "Thanks for the earrings," I told him, trying to smooth things over.

  "I'm glad you like them." He squeezed my arm. I knew I would never, ever forget this moment.

  My happiness didn't last long though, because when I got home I had the surprise of my life. Mom and Richard were waiting for me in the kitchen.

  "You're home early," I said casually, tossing my books on the kitchen table.

  "You're home late," Mom answered, frowning a little. She was cutting up vegetables for a salad.

  "Urn, not really." I nibbled on a carrot, stalling for time. I could tell that Mom and Richard were both annoyed with me. What an ending to a perfect day! "Mary Anne said you went shopping with someone named Travis," Mom went on. "I'd like you to tell me about it." Mom can be really direct when she wants to.

  There was nothing to do but tell the truth.

  "I ran into Travis after school," I said slowly. "He's a friend of mine, and he asked me if I'd like to ride downtown with him - " "Ride? You went in his car?" Richard interrupted.

  "Well, yes. We were going to buy a birthday present for his father," I said quickly.

  "Who is this Travis?" Mom said. "And how come he can drive?" "He's old enough to drive," I told her. "He's sixteen." Wrong move. Richard looked furious, and Mom looked upset.

  "Let me get this straight," Richard said slowly. "You went out with a sixteen-year-old boy in a car? A boy we don't know?" "Yes, but - " "But nothing!" Mom said. "You had no business going off like that without asking me first." I shrugged. This was getting complicated. (And deep down, I had the nagging feeling that Mom was right.) "Look, why don't we just forget the whole thing and fix dinner? I'll help you," I said, reaching for the salad bowl.

  "There's no way we're going to forget this," Mom said. She put the knife down and faced me. "No one's going to eat anything until we get this straightened out." I knew from the look on her face that she meant business. I sat down. I was really in for it.

  Chapter 7.

  Mary Anne wandered into the kitchen and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw me. She had "uh-oh" written all over her face. She took her time opening a can of cat food for Tigger, her kitten, and I knew she was listening to every word. If only she hadn't told Mom and Richard that I had been out with Travis! "We've got a problem here," Richard said flatly. He motioned for me to sit down at the kitchen table.

  "I didn't think you would get this upset," I began, but Richard held his hand up.

  "You showed very poor judgment, Dawn," he said sternly.

  "I know it looks that way, but - " "I'm very disappointed in you," Mom spoke up. She sat down across from me. I felt like I was being attacked from all sides! "If you met Travis, you'd really like him," I protested. I stared at my hands, not knowing where to begin. "He's really a nice boy." Mom stared at Richard. "I'm sure he is, but that's not the point." Mary Anne took a quick peek over her shoulder and went back to feeding Tigger. I couldn't believe all the trouble she had gotten me into.

  "Then what's wrong with him?" "For one thing, he's too old for you," Richard said bluntly. "He's sixteen and you're only thirteen. What could you possibly have in common?" "Well, we're both from California. We're interested in the same things." I glanced at Mom, wondering if she would agree with me. She should be able to understand how I felt. Even though I love my friends in Connecticut, I miss my friends in California. So does she.

  "And another thing," Mom went on, "we've never even met this boy. Did you know he was going to pick you up at school today?" I shrugged. "Nope. That's just the way Travis is. He likes to do things on the spur of the moment. He's impulsive." And fun and exciting, I wanted to add.

  "If he really liked you," Richard said, "he would make plans to see you. He'd visit you here at the house and meet the rest of your family." I sighed. Richard is very serious about being a good stepfather, but sometimes he just worries too much. I wish he would lighten up a little and be more like Mom.

  "Travis likes me," I said. "You wouldn't believe all the presents he's given me. First a necklace and hair combs, and today he bought me some earrings at the Merry-Go-Round." "I'm not so sure I like that idea," Mom said slowly. "You hardly know him, and he's showering you with presents. Something just isn't right." 1 glanced at Mary Anne, who had finished feeding Tigger and was slipping out of the kitchen. I couldn't wait to talk to her alone! None of this would have happened if she had kept her mouth shut.

  "It's no mystery," I said, scraping my chair back and standing up. "Travis gave me some presents because he l
ikes me. I don't know why you can't understand that." I looked at Mom. "And I really want to see him again." "1 know you do, honey," she said, softening a little. "And I'm sure that once we meet him, we'll feel different." "You mean you're going to let her continue to see him?" Richard exploded. "I can't believe you're serious." "Well, maybe we came down a little hard on him," Mom said hesitantly. She cupped her chin in her hands and looked thoughtful. "You know, he really does sound nice - " "This is ridiculous!" Richard broke in. "We don't know this boy at all." "Now, Richard," Mom said soothingly. "Maybe we're making too big a deal out of this. As long as Dawn understands that she can't see him without our permission, I don't think there's any problem." "Of course there's a problem. She shouldn't be seeing him at all. He's too old for her." They were still arguing when I quietly slipped out of the kitchen. It was obvious that the argument was going to go on for a long time, and there was someone I wanted to talk to: Mary Anne. I found her upstairs, sprawled on her bed, doing her homework.

  "Thanks a lot," I told her. "You really got me in trouble with Mom and Richard." "Oh, Dawn, you know I didn't want to do that," she said, sitting up. "I feel awful that they're mad at you, but I didn't know what else to say." "Why did you have to tell them anything?" I asked, slamming my books on her desk. "You could have kept your mouth shut." "But how could I have?" Mary Anne said in a quavery voice. "They asked me if I knew where you were. So I had to tell them the truth. I said you had gone shopping. With Travis." I sighed. I knew Mary Anne couldn't have made up a good lie. Besides, I didn't want her lying for me.

  "Anyway, you never said it was a secret." Mary Anne's voice shook a little, and her eyes had grown very bright. "Sharon and Dad would have been really worried about you if I told them I didn't know where you were." "I know," I said wearily. I had a feeling Mary Anne was about to start crying.

  "You know I wouldn't do anything to hurt you," she said, sniffing. Mary Anne cries very easily. I didn't say anything for a moment, and then I realized that Mary Anne was right. It wasn't her fault that I was in such a mess.

  "Look," I said, putting my arm around her shoulders, "why don't we just forget about it? There's really nothing else you could have done." She looked up, her eyes teary. "Do you mean that?" I nodded and sat down on her bed. "How was your day? I've hardly seen you." "Logan came over after school," she said, brightening a little. "He gave me that toy for Jigger, just like he promised." Logan is one of the most dependable people I know. He and Mary Anne are a lot alike. You can always count on them, and you always know where you stand with them.

  "You really like him, don't you?" I said, even though I knew what her answer would be.

  "Of course I do." Mary Anne blushed a little. "I guess that seems silly to you. He's not exciting, like Travis." "I don't think it's silly. I like Logan." "He's not full of surprises," Mary Anne said slowly. "But that's okay with me." I thought about all the problems Travis had caused me today. "Maybe surprises aren't such a great idea after all," I said.

  Mom called us for dinner just then, and we didn't have a chance to talk about Logan and Travis anymore. I slid into my place at the dining room table and had no idea what to expect. Would Mom and Richard argue all during dinner? Would I get a lecture? Would they criticize Travis?

  Luckily, none of these things happened, and dinner went fairly smoothly, considering the circumstances. But Mom and Richard didn't say much during the meal. Mom just stared at a spot over my head, and Richard pretended to be absorbed in his Greek salad. Mary Anne and I exchanged a look now and then, but neither one of us felt much like talking. However, I had the feeling that this wasn't the last I would hear about Travis.

  Chapter 8.

  Kristy always likes to give a lot of details about her baby-sitting jobs because she expects the club members to read the notebook very carefully. It's a great way to learn what other baby-sitters are doing with their kids, and you can get a lot of good ideas. None of us really likes to write in the notebook, but Kristy takes her job as president very seriously, and she tries to set an example for us.

  "Going Camping" was the perfect way to entertain her four younger brothers and sisters. Karen has a great imagination and loves any kind of game that involves "let's pretend." David Michael is an easygoing kid who will go along with just about any game you suggest. And Andrew and Emily love to play, period! This is the way Kristy and Karen set up the game. They found an old bedspread upstairs in the linen closet. It had belonged to Andrew and was bright yellow with racing cars all over it.

  "It doesn't look like a real tent," David Michael said doubtfully when Kristy and Karen brought it downstairs. "It should be dark green, or maybe brown." "No, this is fine," Kristy said hastily. She knew the kids were getting restless, and she wanted to start things moving as quickly as possible.

  "I'll help!" Karen yelled when Kristy started to drape the bedspread over some lawn chairs.

  "Make it a big tent," David Michael suggested. "Then we can move all our supplies inside." He picked up a brown canvas canteen and a cast-iron frying pan.

  "Big ant?" Emily said, puzzled. Emily is learning English sort of slowly. The pediatrician says she's language-delayed.

  Andrew laughed. "No, big tent," he said, pointing to the bedspread. "C'mon inside." "Wait! Don't go in yet!" Karen said urgently.

  Kristy looked startled. "Why not?" Karen lowered her voice to a whisper. "Because you can't just walk into a tent without looking. You have to check it first for bears. There could be one sleeping inside." "Bears?" Emily started to look a little worried.

  "It's just pretend," Kristy said, taking her hand. Karen is very imaginative, and when you set up a pretend situation, she jumps right in. "What should we do?" Kristy asked very seriously. She was still holding onto Emily's hand. She didn't want to squelch Karen's imagination, but she didn't want Emily to be frightened, either.

  Karen thought for a moment. "I'll go in first," she said. She picked up a broken flashlight. "If I'm not back in a few minutes, you better call the mountain rangers." "Good idea," David Michael told her. "I think I can signal them. It's a good thing I know Morse code." He scrambled through a cigar box filled with toys and picked out a set of fake teeth. He clicked the teeth together a few times. "We're lucky this is still working." "I want to do Morse code! I want to do Morse code!" Andrew shouted.

  "Sssh," Karen said. "You'll wake up the bear if he's sleeping inside. Do you know how mad they get if you wake them up when they're hibernating? That's all we need!" "Sorry," Andrew said, clapping his hand over his mouth. "Please can I do Morse code?" he whispered.

  David Michael handed him the plastic teeth. "Just remember that SOS is three short, three long, and three short. You got it?" He clicked the teeth together to show him.

  "I got it." "Places everyone," Karen said. "I'm going in now. Andrew, are you ready?" "I'm ready with the teeth. I mean the Morse code!" "David Michael?" "I'm standing by with the - " He spotted a pile of branches nearby. "The bonfire!" "Why do we need a bonfire?" Kristy asked.

  David Michael rolled his eyes. "In case the Morse code doesn't work. I can always light the bonfire and use smoke signals to get the mountain ranger." "Oh, right. Good idea." Kristy smiled to herself. The kids were really getting into it. She could hardly wait to tell the BSC members this at the next club meeting.

  "Me, too! Me, too! Me, too!" Emily said, tugging at Karen's T-shirt.

  "She wants something to do," Kristy said. "Let's give her a job." "I know. You can wish me luck. I have a very dangerous job ahead of me," Karen said seriously. She walked over to Emily and shook hands. "Say 'Good luck,' " she prompted.

  "Good luck," Emily said, smiling. Kristy had no idea if she knew what 'good luck' meant, but she knew Emily was happy to be included.

  "Here goes," Karen said dramatically. She took a deep breath and crawled inside the tent.

  Everyone else crouched down and waited outside, ready to run, if necessary. A few moments passed, and then Karen reappeared. "It's all safe," she said. "Ther
e are no bears inside. At least right this minute." "What do you mean, right this minute?" David Michael asked.

  Karen looked over her shoulder as if she expected a bear to appear at any moment. "I don't want to scare anyone," she said slowly, "but I have to warn you that I found a pot of honey inside." "Honey!" Andrew clapped his hands over his mouth.

  Karen nodded. "And you know what that means," she said, looking around the group.

  "What does it mean?" David Michael looked blank.

  Karen nudged him. "It means there must have been a bear in there." "Oh, right." David Michael scuffed the dirt with his toe and looked a little embarrassed. "So what do we do now?" "Well, I think we should all go into the tent," Karen said, holding the flap open. "But make sure you rig up a bear alert outside for us." "A bear alert?" David Michael brightened.

  "That's a great idea. You go in and I'll fix one." Kristy trooped inside with the younger kids, and for a minute everyone was quiet. It was pretty hot and uncomfortable in the tent, and she wondered what Karen was going to come up with next. Luckily she didn't have to wait long.

  Emily was yawning when Karen grabbed Kristy's arm. "Did you feel that?" "Feel what?" Kristy asked.

  "The ground just shook," Karen said, looking at each of the kids. "I think we're in for an earthquake." "No!" Andrew screamed. "What should we do?" "Let's all hold hands," Karen said calmly. "That way nobody will be swept away when it happens again." Emily glanced at Kristy, her eyes wide as saucers, and Kristy scooped her onto her lap. "Don't worry, Emily," she said, holding her very tightly. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you." "There it goes again," Karen said. She fell against the side of the tent, and Andrew did the same thing. "Hold on tight, everybody!" "Wait a minute," Andrew yelled. "What about David Michael? He's outside making that dumb bear alert!" "We'll have to help him," Karen said firmly. "Andrew, rescue David Michael." Andrew looked impressed. "Wow!" "Open the flap of the tent very carefully and peek outside. The minute you see him, tell him to get in here." "Okay." Andrew crawled to the edge of the tent and lifted the bedspread. "David Michael! David Michael!" he whispered. "Come inside. I've got to rescue you." He crawled back inside. "He's not there!" "Are you sure?" Karen asked.