“Don’t worry, Grace. I’ll always need you.”
After a while Grace lifted the gown off of Heather and gently hung it back on the hanger. “Allison, it’s very sweet of you to let Heather use this gown.”
“I’m so glad that there were things in the trunk that will work.” Allison almost mentioned Marsha’s generosity but quickly checked herself for Grace’s sake. It was easy to forget that they had once been rivals. “Anyway, I can’t wait for next Saturday night. I think it will be the greatest.”
“You have a lot of high school dances to look forward to.” Grace held up her hands. “But that’s enough about that. I’m going to go say hello to James, then head for home. I’ll see you in church tomorrow, girls. Have fun.”
And that’s exactly what they did. All night long they talked and giggled until it was long past midnight, and James tapped gently on their door and reminded them they had church in the morning.
“Sure, Dad,” Allison whispered. “We’re just about to fall asleep, right this very minute.” This was followed by uncontrollable giggles.
“I just don’t want to see any snoozing in the pew tomorrow,” he warned good-naturedly. “Good night, ladies.”
“Good night,” they called in unison.
The upcoming Harvest Ball was the talk of the school for the entire week, but Allison and Heather made a special pact not to tell anyone they would be going. They knew it wouldn’t be easy to explain why Andrew was taking two girls to the dance, even if one was his sister. Shirley was now gloating over Allison since she had somehow convinced poor Mark Spencer to take her to the dance. Allison heard that Shirley had actually paid for the tickets herself! A small part of Allison wished that Andrew was only taking her, but mostly she was glad that Heather was coming, too. It would be such fun!
On Friday, the day before the dance, Andrew stopped Allison in the hallway on her way to lunch. Shirley, as usual, was only a few steps away.
“Allison,” Andrew said with urgency, “I need to talk to you about the dance—”
“Sure, but let’s go over there,” Allison quickly interrupted, nodding toward an empty stairwell. She could tell by Shirley’s overly interested face that her curiosity was already aroused, and she could just imagine the inquisition that would follow.
“Shirley,” Allison said with a nervous smile, “why don’t you save me a seat in the cafeteria?” Allison waited a long moment for Shirley to reluctantly leave, then turned back to Andrew.
“It’s like this,” Andrew began. “You know Curt Boyd, the redheaded guy who plays left tackle on the football team? Anyway, Curt was telling me that he didn’t have anyone to take to the Harvest Ball, then I opened up my big mouth and told him that I had two dates. I was just joking with him, but when I saw the look on his face, I felt so bad that I explained why I was taking two girls. Then I went ahead and asked if he would like to join us.” Andrew smiled sheepishly.
Allison blinked in surprise. She didn’t know what to say. She wondered if this meant that Curt would be her date. What would her father say?
“He’s a real nice guy, Allison. He’s just never been comfortable talking with girls, but he thinks Heather is swell. Do you think that would be okay? I know it will probably seem more like a date now, but it doesn’t have to be like that. And I promise that I’ll explain everything to your dad—”
“Oh, I don’t think it should be a problem,” Allison said, trying to keep the nervous excitement out of her voice. “But why don’t I call him at home before this goes any further, just to make sure. Then you can call him later.”
Andrew smiled. “You’re super, Allison.”
She blushed. “I was about to say the same about you. I think it was very kind of you to invite Curt. He seems like a nice fellow, but have you mentioned this to Heather yet?”
“No, I wanted to run it by you first. I was hoping to catch her at lunch.”
“Then you better get to it. I’ll call Dad right now.”
When Allison called her dad, he seemed surprised and asked several fatherly questions. Then he agreed, saying that he trusted Andrew’s judgment on this. Finally he suggested that they might need to borrow a car since it would be a tight fit with four in the jalopy.
Allison hurried to the lunchroom, anxious to tell Andrew the good news, but she couldn’t see either him or Heather anywhere.
“Well, it’s about time,” said Shirley with exasperation. She was sitting at a table with Caroline and a deserted tray that Allison assumed must belong to Heather.
“Where’s Heather?” Allison asked.
“Andrew just swept her away,” Shirley said with raised brows. “What’s going on with you guys and the Harvest Ball? Why did Andrew need to talk to you about the dance?”
Allison didn’t want to lie to Shirley, nor did she want to divulge any information yet. “I’m not really sure. . . . I need to talk to Heather.”
“Is Heather going to the Harvest Ball?” asked Caroline, giving her glasses a shove up the bridge of her nose.
“I . . . uh . . . I’m not sure. . . .” Allison wished those two would return.
“Don’t tell me that Andrew has set his sister up with a date!” Shirley exclaimed.
“Oh, there they are,” said Allison in relief as Andrew and Heather walked over. Allison tried to send Andrew a look that said his plan was A-OK as far as her dad went, and Andrew nodded as if he understood.
Andrew escorted Heather back to her seat and looked down at Allison. “Allison, we better hurry if we want to get any food today.” He glanced at the cafeteria counter. The cafeteria workers were just starting to put things away.
As they hurried over, Allison told him her dad had agreed with the new plan. “And he suggested you might want to use his car,” she added as she picked up a tray.
“Swell. And Heather, as usual, was very sweet about everything. It looks like we’re all set for Saturday. Sorry to spring this on you at the last minute like this. I hadn’t meant for it to turn out this way—”
“It’s perfectly fine, Andrew. And don’t worry, I don’t think this means we’re out on a date or anything. I know you are just helping out a friend.” Allison wanted to be sure he knew that she didn’t think any more of this than before.
Andrew winked down at her. “Well, don’t be so sure about that.”
Allison felt her eyes open wide, then she checked herself. Surely he was just teasing her.
“I think we’ll all have a lot of fun,” Andrew said more seriously, more like the Andrew she was used to. “And you know what they say, the more the merrier, right?”
“Right.” Her tray was full now, and she looked up at him questioningly. Normally he ate with his football buddies. “Did you—uh . . .”
He smiled. “I guess we don’t want to give them too much to talk about yet.”
“That’s right.” She grinned.
Back at the table, Allison could tell that Heather was being grilled by Shirley. She wondered how Heather had handled it. Maybe it didn’t matter anymore, but she still thought it would be fun to surprise everyone on the night of the dance.
“Tell us all about your dress, Shirley,” Allison said, hoping to change the subject with the detailed description of what sounded like a rather strange dress.
“I’ve already told you,” Shirley said in exasperation.
“Caroline and Heather might like to hear—”
“Well, I think I’ve had just about enough of visiting with them,” said Shirley. She stood and glared down at Allison. “And I’m tired of waiting for you.” She turned and stormed away.
Allison couldn’t help but giggle. “Goodness, whatever did you two say to her?”
Caroline’s cheeks were bright red. “Well, I told her to quit pestering Heather about the Harvest Ball, and that if Heather wanted Shirley to know, she would tell her. But I don’t think Shirley liked that very much.”
Heather giggled. “Thank you, Caroline. You are a dear friend. Now that Shir
ley’s gone, I want to fill you in on what all the secrecy is about.” Heather paused for a moment. “Is anyone else within earshot?”
“No,” said Allison. “Go for it. I’ll nudge you if anyone comes.”
She quickly ate as Heather filled Caroline in on the story of how their threesome had just turned into a double date. Allison thought Caroline’s eyes were going to pop right out.
“That’s nice, Heather,” Caroline said. “I sure wish I could see you all. . . .”
“Oh, Caroline, I wish you were going, too,” Heather said sadly.
“My dad’s going to take photographs,” Allison added brightly. “We’ll bring them to school for you to see.”
Caroline sighed. “That’d be nice.”
Suddenly, Allison felt sorry for Caroline. It must be hard for her to hear all this talk of dances and dresses and know that she would not be going. Allison remembered how it felt to be on the outside looking in; that’s how she had felt when she had longed for a home. It had seemed everyone else had a family to love them—everyone except her. And only two weeks ago she had felt left out, the new girl, the stranger. That was probably how Caroline felt right now. Like an outsider.
“You know, there will be lots more dances, Caroline,” said Allison reassuringly. “I bet you’ll be going to some before long.”
Caroline shook her head. “I don’t think so, Allison. Boys don’t ever talk to me. I know I don’t look right, and I sure don’t dress right. I can’t hardly even talk right.”
“Well, maybe we could help you,” offered Heather.
“Really?” Caroline asked with a spark of hope in her eyes.
Allison studied Caroline for a moment, wondering what they could possibly do to help her. Naturally, Heather couldn’t know what Caroline really looked like. Helping Caroline seemed like a pretty big challenge, but then Allison had always liked a challenge.
“Sure,” Allison said finally. “That is, if you want.”
Caroline was beaming now. “That’d be great.”
“I probably won’t be much assistance,” said Heather. “Grace is the one who helps me with my appearance—well, I assume I look okay. That’s what Allison always says. And from what I hear, Allison must know what she’s talking about. It seems she’s the most stylish girl in school.”
“You’re joking. Where did you hear that?” Allison asked in wonder.
“Lots of places,” Heather said with a knowing grin. “I may be blind, but I’m certainly not deaf.”
Allison just shook her head. She’d never heard anything like that, but it was nice to think that perhaps someone had said such a thing.
“It’s true,” said Caroline as if to defend Heather. “Everyone says it’s because you’re from New York. I also know that lots of the girls are jealous of you, Allison. I hear them talk.”
“Well, that might explain why some girls don’t seem very friendly,” Allison said thoughtfully.
Just then the bell rang, and it was time to get back to class. For the rest of the day, Shirley completely ignored Allison, but it was nice for a change. During gym Allison and Karen walked outside together, chatting freely as they went. Perhaps now she would have a better chance of making more new friends. Allison almost hoped Shirley’s snit might last awhile, but at the same time she wasn’t eager to make Shirley her enemy. She had to keep in mind that their dads were business partners, and Shirley was holding her deepest secret. It wouldn’t do to be on bad terms. Perhaps at tonight’s football game Allison would casually mention the Harvest Ball to Shirley. That might smooth things over once more. Shirley would enjoy hearing this little tidbit of information before everyone else. Shirley was like that.
Allison dressed warmly for the football game that evening, wrapping a woolen scarf around her neck. It had been a damp, foggy week, and it promised to get colder by nightfall. When they reached the stadium, Allison and Heather found seats in the upper rows again. Heather said she felt more comfortable back there, and Allison didn’t mind a bit. They wrapped up together in a big woolly blanket, and she surveyed the students below them. She noticed Shirley once again wearing her black-and-gold outfit and flitting around from group to group. At first Allison thought she was imagining things, but every time she saw Shirley, it seemed she was looking up at Allison, almost as if she were actually talking about her.
Finally she could stand it no longer. Allison turned to Heather and said quietly, “I know this sounds crazy, but I think Shirley is down there talking about me.”
“Talking about you?”
“You know what I mean, Heather. It’s like she’s saying bad things or something.”
“What in the world makes you think that?” Heather asked incredulously.
“She keeps looking at me.”
Heather laughed. “Oh, Allison, sometimes you are so suspicious of people. She’s probably just irked that her best friend might be keeping something from her.”
“Perhaps . . . But I don’t want her to be irked. Don’t forget, Shirley has a mean side to her.”
“People can change.” Heather smiled. “Don’t worry about it, Allison.”
At half time Allison went down to get them some hot cocoa. By now she had decided to avoid Shirley altogether. She slipped quietly into the back of a line, hoping that she wouldn’t bump into her.
“Did you hear about Allison O’Brian?” whispered a girl off to Allison’s right loudly enough for her to hear. She vaguely knew the girl from her English class, although they had never actually had a conversation. The girl obviously hadn’t noticed Allison standing there as she continued to speak, and the shocked tone of her voice sounded as if she were disclosing some horrible revelation. “Well, I just heard that her mother is a movie star!”
“You’re kidding!” said the other girl. Allison froze as she listened to the first girl continue with her story.
“No, it’s absolutely true. It turns out that her mother is the Marsha Madison!”
“Unbelievable!” said the other girl. “Well, then, that explains everything.”
“What’s that?” asked the first girl.
“Why she’s so snobbish, of course. Haven’t you noticed how she lords it over the rest of us? She’s always walking around with her nose in the air. It’s obvious that she thinks she’s too good for us.”
“Well, now that you put it that way, I can see—”
Allison moved away from the line, away from the cruel words and straight to the rest room. She went into an empty stall and closed the door. Hot, angry tears began to flow down her cheeks. Snobbish? Too good? Nose in the air? Since when? When had she done any of those things? She had tried to be friendly to everyone.
“Did you hear about Allison O’Brian’s mother?” said an unfamiliar female voice. Allison’s fist flew up to her mouth—what was going on here? Perhaps she should just step out and stand up to them, but how could she with these stupid tears running down her face? Instead, she just stood and listened again in horror.
“Yes, can you believe it? I always thought she acted sort of snooty and superior. And then, of course, she’s best friends with that awful snob Shirley Jenson.”
“Well, I just heard that she’s even turned on Shirley Jenson now.”
“Really?”
“Yes, it seems the only one she talks to anymore is Heather Amberwell, and that’s just because Heather is Andrew’s sister. She must think she can get to Andrew through his poor blind little sister. Isn’t that just too horrible!”
“Ha! Well, Shirley Jenson already tried that trick and it didn’t work. It’s a good thing that Andrew is so sensible and nice. I’m sure he won’t fall for that snooty Allison O’Brian. I sure wish he’d look my way, though. Speaking of Andrew, I’ll bet they’re starting the second half by now.”
Allison flushed the toilet to cover her sobs. It was all so unfair. How could they be so awful? They didn’t even know her.
After several minutes the bathroom became quiet, and Allison finally slip
ped out and splashed cold water on her face. Fortunately the cold night air had turned lots of cheeks pink and eyes bright. Maybe no one would notice hers. She went out and quickly got their cocoa since the lines were gone now. Then she walked back up through the stands, holding her chin out and her head high. It was all she could do to keep the tears back. Let them say what they wanted. She knew it wasn’t true. She passed by Shirley and felt her eyes on her, but Allison didn’t even look her way. She was much too hurt and angry to talk to Shirley right now. It took all her willpower to not throw her cocoa in Shirley’s face.
“Hey, slowpoke,” said Heather. “What took you so long?”
“You know how those lines can be, plus I had to use the bathroom.” Allison looked longingly over to where her father was sitting. “Say, Heather, would it be okay if we sit with Grace and Dad and Winston for the rest of the game?”
“Fine with me. Let’s finish our cocoa first.”
Allison didn’t want to explain the awful scenes to Heather just yet. Maybe she would tell her tomorrow. When they finished their cocoa and moved across the stadium to the general admission section, Allison was glad to see her father’s smiling face.
“What’s up?” he asked. “You two actually coming to sit with the old folks tonight?”
“Sure, Dad,” Allison said with a teary smile.
“You okay?” he asked quietly.
“I guess so,” she whispered. “But can we go home right after the game?”
“Sure.”
She could see the concern in his eyes, but she couldn’t explain it to him right now. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders. It felt strong and protective and reassuring.
True to his word, they left right after the game. Once they were all safely in the car and on the road, Allison blurted out the story. She didn’t go into all the details. Some things still hurt too much to even say out loud.
“I’m so sorry, Allison,” James said. “But maybe it’s for the best to have it out in the open now.”
Allison O'Brian on Her Own, Volume 2 Page 12