by Annie Bryant
“What a wonderful idea!” Ms. Rodriguez exclaimed. “The Sentinel hasn’t had any cartoons that I know of. And I bet people would really enjoy that. What do the rest of you think?”
The class seemed to love Isabel’s idea—a lot of people said something positive about it. Strangely, Charlotte noticed that Katani had a scowl on her face. I wonder what’s going on there? Charlotte thought. Why wouldn’t Katani like that idea? Katani was so artistic herself—it didn’t really seem to make sense that she would not like a cartoon. Charlotte was beginning to really worry that Katani did not like Isabel at all.
But she was so preoccupied with her own worries about her father that she brushed aside her concern about Katani. She didn’t even notice that Ms. Rodriguez didn’t call on Katani or ask her what her plans were for the paper.
But Katani sure noticed.
All anyone cares about these days is Isabel. That girl opens her mouth and everyone thinks she’s brilliant and fascinating, Katani steamed to herself.
Well, she wasn’t planning on trying out for the paper in any case. She’d do the assignment for Ms. Rodriguez and be done with it. Let Isabel do her hot new cartoon and get all the attention! Katani was sick of her already—and Isabel had barely been at school for a week.
A FRIEND IN NEED
“Katani!” Maeve was running, trying to catch up with Katani’s long-legged strides. “Wait up!”
Katani was in a bad mood. “What’s up?” she said, turning to Maeve without the slightest trace of a smile.
The girls were on their way to lunch, but first they had to stop at their lockers to dump their notebooks.
“Katani, listen. You know that pattern I chose for the blankets the other day?” Maeve twirled her locker with two quick spins. “Well, you were right. I think I may have kind of blown it a little. I mean, it’s a really cute pattern and everything, but it looks a little too complicated for me. I tried to do some quilting, and I ended up sewing all the pieces to each other. Look!” She fished a wad of fabric out from her locker and held it up for Katani’s inspection. It looked like a pincushion, with long tendrils of thread coming out from every angle.
Normally, Katani would have laughed her head off when she’d seen the results of Maeve’s botched attempts at sewing. But she was still really upset about homeroom and being ignored by the whole class—and completely upstaged by Isabel. Again.
“I thought Isabel was helping,” she said coldly.
Maeve was too high-spirited to pick up on Katani’s wounded feelings.
“Well, she is, of course. She’s such a sweetheart,” she gushed.
“So why don’t you ask Isabel to help, then?” Katani continued in a high, hurt voice.
“Well of course I’m planning on that! Only—”
“So great. So you don’t need me,” Katani said, slamming her locker shut. And before Maeve could say a single word, she had stormed off, leaving Maeve gaping after her.
* * *
Maeve:
Notes to Self
What is with Katani??? How can she be mad at me—what did I do wrong?
HELP HELP HELP these blankets are turning out to be a problem!
Idea for “Ask Maeve” column: Have a girl write in who really likes a guy (hint hint) but doesn’t know how to ask him to get together (hint hint) and what should she do?
* * *
INSIDE/OUTSIDE
Maeve was the first to arrive. “Geez, my mom is in the worst mood,” she complained, sweeping past Charlotte into her front hall and crouching down to give Marty a kiss. “She is out of control. She says she wants me to start doubling up with my tutor—all because of one tiny little bad grade in math!” She dumped her overstuffed book bag in the hallway. “She didn’t even want me coming over here today.” Maeve looked pretty down. “And worst of all, she’s threatening to have a big talk with my dad about my making blankets for homeless kids.”
Even as preoccupied as she was with her own worries, Charlotte felt a wave of sympathy for Maeve. “Your blanket project is wonderful,” she said warmly. “I’m sure your mom didn’t really mean that you’d have to give it up.”
Maeve sniffed. “She just wants me studying or taking lessons every single second of the day. I hate it,” she muttered.
Before Charlotte could respond, the doorbell rang. Katani and Avery were on the doorstep. Neither looked all that thrilled to be there.
“Hey,” Avery said, coming in first and dropping her skateboard on top of Maeve’s book bag. She looked from one to the other. “So, are we late? When does this emergency meeting get underway? And more important, where’s Marty? Here he comes.” Marty was running lickety-split down the stairs heading straight for Avery’s open arms. Charlotte felt a little twinge of jealousy when she saw how happy Marty was to see Avery. But she brushed it aside because, after all, Avery was the one who found Marty in the first place. Avery would love to have Marty live with her, but that wasn’t possible because Avery’s mom had really bad allergies. Marty and Avery had to be content meeting at Charlotte’s.
Katani came in but didn’t take off her jacket. She had her arms crossed, the way she always did when she was in a bad mood. “We can’t be late for anything,” she said pointedly. “Isabel isn’t here yet.”
“Hey, Katani, let up,” Maeve said with a sigh. “This isn’t the time for squabbling. Charlotte actually needs us!”
Katani rolled her eyes and didn’t answer. Before anyone could say a word, the doorbell rang again. This time it was Isabel.
“Hi, guys!” she said, completely unaware of any tension in the room. “Charlotte, I just love this house,” she went on. Then she caught sight of Marty, who was now scampering around Avery’s feet.
“Ooo! Hi cute little guy!” she cried, bending down and grabbing Marty in her arms. She started giggling when he licked her face.
“Oh—be careful,” Avery said suddenly, leaning over and scooping Marty back into her arms. “He can be kind of weird with people he doesn’t know very well.”
Isabel turned red. All the gladness seemed to go out of her expression. Why were Avery and Katani making it so hard for Isabel? Didn’t they have any idea how painful it could be to be new, trying to fit in?
It’s as if they’re bound and determined to shut Isabel out, she thought unhappily, leading her friends into the kitchen to make a plate of mini pizzas before heading up to the Tower. She hated that. It felt like she and Maeve were on one side, and Katani and Avery on the other. And stuck in the middle, with no idea of how the sides were being drawn, was Isabel. She had a sudden thought that this wasn’t what the Beacon Street Girls were about.
CHAPTER 7
Meeting in the Tower
OK, everyone!” Maeve said, once they were all settled upstairs. “Here’s the deal. Charlotte has a serious problem, and we have to figure out some way to help her.”
The mood in the room changed—Charlotte had the sense that Katani was softening.
“What’s the matter, Char?” Katani asked worriedly. “Is everything OK?”
Charlotte sighed. “Not really. The other day I overheard my dad talking on the phone, and it turns out that he’s been offered a job to go teach at Oxford.” When nobody said anything, she added, “Oxford—England.”
“Whoa,” Avery said. “England—that’s awesome.” Her eyes shone. “They have the most amazing soccer coaches there! Only they call it football,” she added.
Maeve cleared her throat warningly. “Avery, England is on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean,” she said pointedly.
“Oh—yeah, right,” Avery said quickly. Her brown eyes fastened on Charlotte’s as the implication of Oxford began to set in. “You don’t think he’s going to take it, do you? I mean, you just got here! We’re all friends now.”
“We’ve moved around a lot,” Charlotte explained to Isabel, who looked a little bit left out. “My dad is a writer. My mom died when I was really little, and my dad…I don’t know, he loves to travel. We’
ve been everywhere. We lived in Paris last year on a houseboat, and the year before that we were in Australia, and before that we were in Tanzania, and before that…”
Isabel was amazed. “Wow. And I thought moving from Detroit to Boston was a big deal!”
“I love traveling,” Charlotte said softly. “Just me and my dad. It was like the two of us on a nonstop adventure! I’ve loved getting to see different parts of the world and learning how other people do things. But now that I’m getting a little older, I feel different. I really want to settle down and have a home—at least for a while!” Her voice cracked a little. “I love you guys! I love Brookline and this house and the Tower and Marty…I don’t want to leave…not ever!” Despite her best intentions, tears started to spill over.
Katani leaned over to give her a hug. “Oh, Charlotte,” she said sadly. Then, with deep emotion, she blurted out, “I’ll die if you have to move!”
Avery chewed her lip. “Huh,” she said, thinking. “We’ve gotta get a plan, you guys. Charlotte, you can’t let him do this to you. It’s…” She sat back, and came up with the absolute best word she could think of. “Unfair!”
“I know,” Charlotte said unhappily. “But he’s always dreamed of teaching at Oxford. It’s got all this amazing history—all of his favorite writers and poets used to study there. I overheard him say that it was a job of a lifetime, a dream come true. And the thing about my dad is that when he has a dream, he usually makes it happen.”
Isabel jumped to her feet, pacing back and forth a little. “I wonder,” she said slowly, “if we couldn’t figure out a way to make him change his mind.”
Avery and Katani caught each other’s eyes.
“What do you have in mind, Isabel?” Maeve asked eagerly.
“I don’t know,” Isabel said slowly. “I’m just thinking—if Charlotte’s dad thinks he has his heart set on moving, maybe we should use a little reverse psychology to get him to change his mind.”
“What do you mean?” Charlotte asked, confused.
“I’m not sure yet,” Isabel murmured. “I’m just thinking…sometimes my mom tries to get my older sister to do things that she doesn’t want to do. Elena Maria is amazing at figuring out how to get her way by dropping little hints…kind of letting her know what’ll happen if she can’t do what she wants to.” She started giggling. “Like one time my sister got asked to a party with this guy she really liked, and my parents said she was too young to date. Well, Elena Maria pretended to go along with it. Instead of arguing with them, she just said, OK, fine. And then she said all this other stuff about how it was good that they were telling her how to handle this, because she probably wouldn’t have the judgment to decide for herself. And that it was a good idea for them to make decisions for her. And how later, when she was older, she’d be able to ask them what to do whenever she was stuck.
“Next thing we knew, my parents disappeared for about an hour to have a ‘discussion.’” Isabel grinned. “And they told Elena Maria that she could go after all! And that it was time for her to start making up her own mind, and making her own mistakes, because that was the only way she’d grow up to become a self-reliant adult!”
“Great story,” Katani said, “but I don’t really see how it fits here, Isabel.”
“Yeah—what’s the connection?” Avery seconded.
“You guys!” Maeve wailed. “Don’t be so negative! We need every bit of help we can get! And actually, I think Isabel’s idea is kind of cool. Parents are usually backwards like that. In the movies ’reverse psychology’ always seems to work!”
“So what am I supposed to do? Tell my dad how much I want to move to England?” Charlotte asked, confused.
“Maybe,” Isabel said, shrugging. “Maybe if you point out all kinds of good things about moving that really aren’t good at all, he’ll realize how crazy it is to make you guys go.”
“Couldn’t it—I don’t know, kind of backfire?” Charlotte worried. “What if I tell him how great it would be to move and he agrees?”
“Does anyone have any better ideas?” Maeve demanded.
The Tower room fell silent.
“OK, guess not,” Maeve said. “So reverse psychology wins. Charlotte, for the next few days, you’ve got to be all over your dad. You’ve got to convince him of a million crummy reasons to uproot you and drag you back across the Atlantic!”
* * *
Maeve:
Notes to Self
These blankets need a little more work. Get Katani to help…Why is K so mad?
Change I.M. away message: “Eating dinner. I’m single-handedly ridding the world of hunger—starting with myself.”
Get Dillon to help with “Ask Maeve” column. Working closely together could really get the sparks going.
Shoe sale at Filene’s Basement—ask Katani to go…if she’s not still mad!!!
Go to Party Favors for world’s best chocolate cupcakes and check out all the new party toys. So fun!
* * *
ALL IN PIECES
Maeve and Isabel were upstairs in Maeve’s bedroom on Saturday afternoon, looking with some dismay at the pile of cotton spread all over the room.
Isabel held up the fabric with a frown. “OK. It says we’re supposed to sew piece A to piece B. That’s simple. It’s kind of like math,” she said helpfully.
“I know!” Maeve wailed. “But I tried to do that, and look what I ended up with!” She held up a piece of gingham that looked something like a starfish. “This is not a blanket. Not even close. It couldn’t even keep a spider warm!” They both giggled at the image.
A minute later the girls heard pounding on the door. In tumbled Sam, Maeve’s super brainiac younger brother, who was dressed—as usual—in military fatigues. Sam was obsessed with military history. He had memorized every battle in every world war, and he had a collection of books that would rival the library at West Point Military Academy.
“What’s up, weirdo?” Maeve said. “Can’t you see Isabel and I are working here?”
Sam was tapping on the side of Maeve’s guinea pigs’ cage. “Hey, Lucy. Hey, Ricky,” he called.
“They’re not Lucy and Ricky anymore,” Maeve told him, sighing heavily. “They’re actually Lara and Zhivago now. Sam, I told you—we’re working!”
“On what?” Sam asked curiously, picking up a scrap of fabric. “Hey—are you guys trying to make flags? This could be kind of cool for one of my battle scenes.” He picked up a piece of cotton and pretended to wave it around, marching around the room.
“Sam,” Maeve seethed, “could you do me a favor and march yourself downstairs and bug someone else? Isabel and I are busy!”
Isabel giggled. “He’s cute,” she said, when Sam had left them alone.
“He’s a total nerd…and a weirdo,” Maeve pronounced unsentimentally.
Isabel sighed. “I wish I had a brother. I always wanted one.”
“Well, I’d kill for an older sister,” Maeve told her. “I’d trade Sam in a heartbeat.”
“Elena Maria’s great,” Isabel admitted. “But she can pull the big sister thing a lot. She always gets everything first. And my parents are completely fascinated by everything she does—she’ll come home and tell a story about school, and they’re all dazzled. By the time I tell something, it’s all old news.” She shrugged. “Anyway, it is what it is,” she said with a smile.
Maeve looked at her admiringly. “You have the best outlook, Isabel. You’re always so up about everything.”
Isabel glanced down at the fabric she’d been holding. A shadow seemed to cross her face, and for just a moment she lost her sunny expression.
“Isabel? You OK?” Maeve asked, setting down her scissors.
Isabel hesitated for a second. “If I tell you something, do you promise not to tell anybody else? Even Charlotte?” she demanded.
“Sure,” Maeve said, without thinking.
“It’s about my mom,” Isabel continued. She was still looking down, not meeting Mae
ve’s gaze. “You know how I told you that we’d moved to Boston so she could have some tests done and stuff?”
Maeve nodded.
“Well, she’s been seeing a new doctor at a hospital downtown, and yesterday we got back some of the results. It’s all still preliminary, but it looks like she has multiple sclerosis.”
“Multiple—what?” Maeve gasped. “Isabel, that sounds awful!”
Isabel had to smile. “It sounds scary,” she admitted. “And it’s kind of hard, learning what it is after waiting and wondering for so long. But they caught the disease in the early stage, they said, and her doctor thinks that if she gets treatment it may not get any worse. At least, not for a long time.”
“So what is it?” Maeve wanted to know.
“It’s like a disease of the nerves. It makes it hard for her muscles to work right. So she gets weak on one side, and sometimes she gets dizzy. She has to use a cane to walk right now, but the doctor thinks that should get better in a couple of months.” Isabel sighed. “In some cases, if it doesn’t get better, it could mean ending up in a wheelchair.” Her eyes filled with tears. “That makes me so scared…I’m just so used to seeing my mom being so strong. She’s always worked and had time for Elena Maria and me, and time to run errands and do a zillion things. I’m just…I don’t know, it’s hard to imagine her having to slow down. She’s going to have to spend a lot of time at the doctor’s while they figure out the best treatment for her. And she’s going to need more and more help from my sister and me.”
Maeve thought for a moment. “Well, she’s lucky to have a daughter like you, Isabel. If anyone can help out, you’re the one who can. You’ve got such a great outlook, and that’ll help her the most. Just knowing that you believe she’ll do great, and that she won’t need a wheelchair—that will help a lot. But, if she does need a wheelchair, you shouldn’t really be too scared about that. I mean, there are some really cool wheelchairs. You know…the kind that go upstairs and spin around.”