“Wow, it’s so crowded already,” I said nervously as we pulled up. We had a special pass to park in the faculty lot, and the guard waved us in.
“Let’s set everyone up with the corsages first,” said Mom. “Then we can deliver the dress to Marcia.”
We parked and began unloading the corsages. Dad pulled up shortly after and parked his car nearby. Debbie, Nicholas, Rose, and Aster each got a display.
“They’re ten dollars each,” I told them. “Three for twenty-five.”
Dad volunteered to keep an eye on things while Mom and I helped everyone find the best locations. Nicholas claimed the front gate. “McIlhenny Moose Corsages!” he immediately began to cry. “Get ‘em while they’re hot!”
Aster promised to watch Poppy at their spot by the south entrance. Debbie picked the area by the ticket booth. Rose picked the restrooms. “Everybody’s got to go at some point,” she said. I had to give her that.
People began lining up for the corsages almost immediately. Mrs. McGillicuddy, whose anniversary party we had done over the summer, grabbed my arm. “What a great idea, Del!” she cried. “I adore the fall leaves. How in the world did you preserve them so beautifully?”
“Paraffin,” I told her. “Mom’s idea.”
I looked over at Debbie. She had a long line in front of her, too. “We’d better drop off that dress and start bringing these guys more corsages!” I exclaimed.
“Nicholas was right!” Mom said.
“I guess he was,” I admitted.
We headed back to the parking lot. There was Dad, leaning against his car, concentrating on his iPhone. The van was nowhere to be seen.
Mom walked up to him. “Ben, this isn’t the time for jokes,” she said. “Where’s the van?”
Dad looked up. “Huh? What are you talking about?”
“Have you been playing that Gnome game the whole time?” I asked.
Dad looked sheepish. “Yes,” he said. “It was time to harvest my navy beans. You know I hate it when they wither.”
I took a deep breath. “Well, if you haven’t noticed … the van isn’t here!”
“Someone must have stolen it from right under your nose!” Mom cried.
Dad looked around wildly. Then he smiled and pointed. “No, there it is!” he said. “You just forgot where you parked it!”
I looked at Mom. Was that possible? I was fairly certain we had parked it next to the red sports car. But there sat the white van, a couple of rows away.
Mom shook her head. “That’s weird. I could have sworn it was parked closer to Dad’s car … I guess we’re just worked up. I, for one, won’t be able to relax until the dress is delivered to Marcia.”
“And the corsages are all sold,” I added.
“That, too,” said Mom.
Mom gave Dad a dirty look and he wisely pocketed his phone. We walked up to the van. It looked dirtier than I remembered and someone had traced WASH ME into the dust on the back window. I hadn’t noticed that when we loaded up that morning.
Dad threw open the back door.
And it was completely empty.
“Someone stole our rose dress!” said Mom. “And the rest of our corsages!”
The campus police officer looked very confused as he took down our report. “So you say that someone moved your van and then stole a dress with roses on it?”
“No, the dress is made of roses,” I explained.
“Um, come again?” the officer said politely.
Nicholas came jogging up to us. “Everyone wants corsages! I need more,” he said. Then he noticed the looks on our faces, and the police officer. “What’s going on?” he asked.
My heart was beating superfast and my hands were shaking. “Someone stole the rose dress!” I cried.
Mom wrung her hands. “I’m supposed to get the dress to Marcia in fifteen minutes,” she said. “What am I going to tell her?”
“Who would do something like that?” Nicholas asked. Then his eyes narrowed. “I’ll bet it was those people from Fleur! They must have heard about your amazing dress and now they’re trying to sabotage you!”
“That’s crazy!” I said. But then I wondered, Or is it?
“You don’t really think that’s what happened, do you?” Dad asked Mom.
“I don’t know what I think right now,” Mom said, sniffling. She searched her pockets and came up empty. “And I forgot my bandanna!”
I felt sick. Was the competition between our stores so intense that things had come to this? My heart sank as I thought the unthinkable — could Hamilton have something to do with this? It was too horrible to consider.
“Must be some students who took the van on a joyride,” Dad said.
The campus police officer nodded. “We do have a lot of high jinks on campus this time of year,” he agreed. “Last night someone put a huge pair of moose antlers on the statue of Vern McIlhenny.”
“Or maybe,” I mused, “it was someone from the other team.”
“You think one of the Benton Beavers fans stole our van?” Mom asked.
“They could be trying to sabotage the Homecoming parade,” Dad said.
Mom sniffed again. I remembered that I had left a pack of tissues in the car. I opened the passenger-side door and pulled open the glove compartment. An avalanche of Three Musketeers bars spilled out.
“Huh?” I said. I will never understand the appeal of a Three Musketeers. It’s a Milky Way without the caramel. (And, obviously, a Milky Way is a Snickers without the peanuts.) I grabbed one and ran to my mom and dad, who were still trying to explain what had happened to the officer.
“So let me get this straight for once and for all. You’re saying that the owner of the stolen dress is named Rose?” the officer asked.
“Look!” I cried, holding out a candy bar.
Mom gave me a what-in-the-world-are-you-thinking look. “Del, this is no time to have a snack,” she said.
“No,” I said. “This isn’t our van. This van belongs to someone who loves the taste of fluffy nougat.”
Dad looked at the license plate and his jaw dropped. “Oh wow,” he said. “You’re right. This isn’t our van.”
The officer smiled. “Now we’re getting somewhere,” he said. “Your van was stolen by someone wearing a dress.”
“Actually,” said Nicholas, “I don’t think your van was stolen at all. And I think we can get it back pretty easily.”
As Nicholas explained, he was a big fan of a radio show called Car Talk. And last week he had learned that keys of cars of the same make and model can start each other. “So all we have to do is find out who drives the same car as you,” Nicholas concluded.
Dad was nodding. “I know who took it,” he said. “The assistant dean.” He laughed. “He must have just gotten into the van and driven off, not realizing it wasn’t his. He and his wife just had a baby. So he’s been a little distracted lately.”
“I hope he’s a careful driver!” Mom worried. “He doesn’t know he has the world’s most fragile dress bouncing around in the back!”
After a few tense moments, we got the assistant dean’s cell number. He didn’t pick up and Dad left him the world’s strangest message. “Um, excuse me, Dean Washington, I think you accidentally stole my minivan with a dress made out of roses in the back….”
By then, the whole family had returned to the parking lot looking for more corsages. So there was quite a crowd by the time Dean Washington pulled into the parking lot, honking his horn.
He looked totally embarrassed. “Ben!” he said as he got out of the car. “How in the world did this happen? I can’t even begin to apologize!”
Mom rushed over and threw open the back door of the van. “The dress is fine!” she called.
“Yay!” everyone cheered.
“You know we just had a baby girl,” the assistant dean explained. “I’m a little sleep deprived, as you can imagine.” Everyone nodded sympathetically. “I got here early to get ready for the parade when I got
an emergency call from my wife that we were out of diapers. I hopped into the first white van I saw. I was so distracted I didn’t even notice it wasn’t my van until you called.”
He shook his head ruefully. “Who ever heard of your keys being able to start someone else’s car?”
“Actually,” I said, “he did.” I pointed to Nicholas, who smiled.
Everyone grabbed new corsages to sell. Mom and I gingerly picked up the dress and rushed it over to the auditorium, where the Homecoming Queen and her court would be getting dressed.
Marcia was standing by the door. “You made it!” she said. “I was getting worried! Did something happen?”
Mom and I looked at each other and laughed. “If we told you, you’d never believe it,” I said.
Marcia brought the dress over to the Homecoming Queen, who happened to be Emily, the girl we had first met in Marcia’s office. We waited until Emily put it on to make sure it fit. Mom had extra roses and her sewing kit at the ready just in case.
Then Emily came out wearing the dress. It was the first time we had seen the completed dress on an actual person. It looked so luxurious, so beautiful, so velvety soft, and it smelled so fragrant, it took everyone’s breath away.
“Wow,” I said. There was nothing else to say.
Emily looked down at the flowing red, textured skirt. She laughed delightedly. “It’s a little heavy,” she said. “But who cares? I feel like a … a …”
“Homecoming Queen?” I suggested.
She laughed. “The coolest Homecoming Queen ever,” she said.
As we walked back to the van, I suddenly realized how exhausted I was.
“Me too!” said Mom when I told her. “What a stressful morning!”
“Shall we sell some corsages?” I suggested.
“Good idea,” replied Mom.
But when we got to the van, the back was empty.
My heart stopped. “Do you think …”
“We sold every one,” said Nicholas from behind us. “They were a huge hit! We could have used a hundred more!”
“Looks like we’ve started a whole new Homecoming tradition,” I said. “Go, Petal Pushers!” I turned to Nicholas. “Thank you,” I said simply.
“My pleasure,” he returned, with a grin.
“Thank you both!” Mom said. “I’m headed over to find everyone. You coming?” I checked my watch. We still had time before the parade.
“Treat you to a hot chocolate?” I asked Nicholas.
“I thought you’d never ask!” he said.
“All right, see you later,” said Mom.
Nicholas and I strolled over to the concession stand that was on the quad and got in line.
“Well, hello there, Delphinium,” said a snotty voice from behind me.
I took a deep breath and turned around. It was Ashley, of course, in leather leggings and a long, fuzzy-looking, off-white sweater coat. I sighed. My jeans with the hole in the knee, McIlhenny sweatshirt, and one red, one yellow hightop now seemed completely kiddish, as Pops would say.
“Hi, Ashley,” I said with a sigh, just wanting to get my hot cocoa and be on my way.
Nicholas leaned forward. “Hi, I’m Nicholas,” he said. Ashley looked him up and down.
“Oh you’re Nicholas,” she said and nodded. She turned back to me.
She bit her lip. “Del, I’ve been meaning to tell you. What you said at school the other day really hit close to home,” she said.
I narrowed my eyes at her. “What are you talking about?” I asked.
“I was being friends with your sister to get to you,” she said.
“I thought so,” I said. But why was she admitting it to me?
“But not for the reason you think,” she said. She gulped. “Not to be mean. I did it because … because … I miss being friends with you,” she finished softly.
Wait — had I heard her correctly? “You miss me?” I said.
“I do. Being friends with Rose kind of helped. A bit.” I took a deep breath. This was completely unexpected. Could it really be true? “Oh, Ashley,” I said. “I didn’t realize …”
Ashley barked out a laugh. “Well, I guess I’m not such a bad actress after all!” she said.
I glared at her. “Like I really believed you!” I snapped.
“Oh, I don’t know about that,” said Ashley with a smirk. “You seemed pretty convinced!”
I was so flustered I stepped away from her, bumping right into the person ahead of me in line.
“Actually,” said Nicholas, looking from me to Ashley, “I’ve read quite a bit about body language, and I’m about ninety percent sure that Ashley was telling the truth. She really does miss your friendship, Del.”
“That is so not true!” Ashley spluttered. “At all!” She stormed off angrily.
I turned to Nicholas. “Really?” I asked him.
Nicholas laughed. “No! I don’t know the slightest thing about body language,” he said. “I just made it up.”
I grinned at him. “Thanks, Nicholas,” I said.
“You’re welcome,” he replied.
I looked at him. “Hey — you want to hang out with me at the game?” I asked. I was seeing him in a different light. Nicholas was smart. And talented. And, I grudgingly admitted, now that he had grown into his big ears, maybe even a little bit cute. I’d never be interested in him in that way, of course — he was more like a brother. Or a slightly annoying cousin. But I was pretty sure that we could be friends.
Nicholas shook his head. “I’ve kind of got a date for the game,” he said with a grin. “With Sabrina. And then afterward we’re going to head over to the library. Can you believe she’s never seen the original Tupperware exhibit?”
I shook my head. “I can’t,” I said.
“I’m supposed to meet her right here on the quad,” he said. “You want to wait with me?”
“Sure,” I said. I sat down with him on a nearby bench and pulled out my cell phone. I took a deep breath. I was going to text Hamilton.
R U AT HOMECOMING? I typed in. I found his name and pressed SEND.
A moment later, Nicholas pulled out his phone. He flipped it open, and looked at me like I was crazy.
“What?” I said.
“Of course, I’m at Homecoming,” he said. “Are you losing it?”
“Holy crud,” I said. It all made perfect, awful sense. I had mixed up Nicholas’s and Hamilton’s numbers when I was inputting them! Those irritating messages from Nicholas had actually been nice messages from Hamilton. And what had I called him? Oh that’s right. Einstein! No wonder he wasn’t talking to me!
“I meant to send it to a guy named Hamilton,” I explained, not sure whether to laugh or cry. “And now he’ll probably never talk to me again.”
And then, as if I had summoned him, there was Hamilton, striding across the quad. My heart skipped a beat.
“That’s him,” I said, pointing.
“What are you waiting for? Go talk to him,” said Nicholas.
I took a deep breath. Nicholas gave me a nudge. I stood up and sprinted after him.
When I caught up with him, I touched his arm. “Hey, Hamilton,” I said.
He turned around. “Don’t you mean Einstein?” he asked. He did not look amused.
“You’re never going to believe why that happened,” I started to say.
“Try me,” said Hamilton.
So, as we stood under a maple tree, red and yellow leaves drifting down around the us, surrounded by people in moose antlers, I told him the whole story. And he burst out laughing.
“I was sort of mad,” he said.
“I can only imagine,” I told him.
“So does that mean you want to go to the game with me?” he asked.
“Definitely,” I said.
The parade was magical. Marching bands, cannons shooting out red-and-yellow confetti, the McIlhenny Moose galloping around, pumping up the crowd. I was pleased to see that lots of people were wearing our corsages. Th
en what we had all been waiting for: the float with the Homecoming King and Queen and their court.
My heart swelled with pride as I saw Emily, the beautiful Homecoming queen, wearing the amazing dress we had created. People went crazy when they saw it. Someone stepped on my foot as they jostled to get a picture, but I didn’t mind. “I’ve never seen anything like it!” the woman next to me said in wonder.
“Nice dress,” Hamilton said.
“I like the bouquets,” I said back, even though I thought they were a little boring. And that’s all we said to each other about flowers all day.
We met up with Becky, Amy, Heather, and Jessica in the stands. I gave an excited squeal when I saw they were each wearing a corsage. They looked awfully surprised when I showed up with Hamilton. But no one said anything, thank goodness. Becky squeezed my hand and I squeezed back. “I’ll explain later,” I whispered to her.
We had a great time at the game, doing the wave, chatting away, munching on hot dogs and popcorn as we cheered for the beleaguered Moose. They were massacred as usual. But no one seemed to mind.
In all the fun, I almost forgot that tomorrow was D-Day. D as in the biggest decision my family was ever going to make.
Chapter Thirteen
Nicholas shook my hand solemnly. “Thanks for a great time, Del,” he said. “I can’t believe all the amazing shots I got at the game, and best of all — of the Tupperware.”
I giggled. “Well, thank you, Nicholas, for all your help. The corsage idea was brilliant.” I was willing to give credit where credit was due.
“Actually, I think that figuring out why the van was missing was even better,” he said, opening the car door and sliding into the passenger seat. “I mean, that’s how you got the rose dress back in time for the parade, you know. That would have been a disaster.”
I leaned in the window. “That was pretty good, too,” I told him with a grin.
“Hey, can you tell your friend Sabrina I’ll be IMing her as soon as I get home?” he asked me.
“Actually,” I said, “why don’t you just surprise her?” I didn’t have the heart to tell him she was no friend of mine.
Coming Up Roses Page 9