by Daphne Maple
I saw Kim frown and I knew why: this was not Sasha. And failing a quiz would not be good. When we crossed the street I started running, to give her more time to read.
By the time we arrived at school Kim and I were panting, but Sasha was cool as a cucumber, probably because she was in great shape from all those dance classes.
“I’m going straight to homeroom,” Sasha said, hiking her backpack over one shoulder. “I’ll put my stuff away later.”
“See you guys in a minute,” I said, ducking into my locker alcove. The five-minute bell hadn’t rung yet, so people were milling around but it wasn’t super crowded. I spun my combination and then piled my stuff into my locker. As I shut the door I heard a sharp burst of laughter. Three girls were standing in the corner looking at something in a magazine, and one of the girls was Brianna. I looked away, not wanting her to catch my eye, then realized something. The two girls she was hanging out with, Kendra and Meredith, were black. I watched as Meredith read something out loud in a funny voice and Brianna clutched her arm and giggled. It wasn’t like you could tell everything from one moment, but it didn’t seem like Brianna had any problem at all with Kendra and Meredith being black. In fact, if anything, she looked overjoyed to be hanging out with them.
As though she could feel my gaze, Brianna glanced over and her eyes narrowed. Then she sneered and turned back to her friends, the ugly look falling away from her face as she began joking with them again.
So maybe it wasn’t my race that was the problem, maybe it was just me. But why? What had I ever done to Brianna? And more importantly, what could I do to get her to leave me alone?
Saturday afternoon I walked up the steps of Sasha’s silver-and-blue Victorian house and rang the bell. The three of us had sleepovers almost every weekend, and this time we were staying at Sasha’s. I heard Mr. S barking excitedly and a moment later Sasha opened the door, looking frazzled.
“Hey,” she said, raking a hand through her messy curls.
“Is everything okay?” I asked, bending down to pet Mr. S before following Sasha into the house.
“Yeah, I’m just kind of behind,” she said. “My mom left me a list of chores and I’m only about halfway through.”
“Let’s finish them up then,” I said, setting my overnight bag on the steps and taking off my pink cotton jacket. It was the weekend, so I figured I was safe wearing pink. I almost forgot to slip off my black flats but then noticed Sasha was barefoot. Not surprisingly, theirs was a shoes-off house.
“You don’t mind helping me out?” Sasha asked, relieved.
“Of course not,” I said, putting an arm around her shoulders. “What do we need to do?”
Sasha led me to the kitchen, where there was a stack of dirty dishes in the sink with traces of syrup on them. “I’ll take care of the dishes if you don’t mind putting the groceries away.”
I saw three reusable bags set neatly on the big island, the same kind we had at home. Sasha’s mom and my dad were both environmental lawyers, so our families had big recycle bins and reusable everything. Not that I minded; my dad had explained how important it was to create less trash, plus it was no big deal to use a metal water bottle instead of buying disposable plastic ones.
I started in on the first bag, which was mostly veggies and fruit. Once I had them tucked away in the fridge, I reached into the second bag. “Oh, you guys got caramel for milk shakes tonight,” I said. One of our sleepover traditions was making milk shakes with lots of fun mix-ins. Caramel was Kim’s favorite.
“We also got peanut butter,” Sasha said with a grin. I always tried different combos, but peanut butter and chocolate were my all-time favorites.
“Awesome,” I said, pulling out vanilla cookies that we could blend in for added crunch, along with M&M’s and rainbow sprinkles. “It looks like you have everything covered.”
“Yeah, and the ice cream is in the freezer,” Sasha said. She was done with the dishes and was drying her hands off on a red-striped hand towel. “The last thing I need to do is vacuum the living room.”
“I can help with that,” I said.
“Actually, the vacuum scares Mr. S, so if you wouldn’t mind taking him out while I get it done, that would be awesome,” she said. She had pulled the vacuum out of the hall closet and Mr. S was staring at it suspiciously.
“I can’t think of anything I’d like more,” I told Sasha. I grabbed one of Mr. S’s rubber balls from a basket in the front hall, and a minute later we were playing a lively game of fetch in the front yard.
“Can I join you?” Kim asked, coming up the path.
Mr. S bounded over to greet her and she bent down and ruffled his ears.
“We were hoping you would,” I said, tossing her the ball.
I saw that she was frowning, which was very strange for Kim—anytime she was around a dog she was usually smiling.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
She bit her lip and then shook her head. “Let’s wait till we’re inside with Sasha,” she said. Which kind of curdled my stomach.
I watched Mr. S run after the ball Kim threw and cheered him on when he returned with it in his mouth, wagging his tail in triumph. But it was a relief when Sasha called us in a few minutes later.
“So what’s going on?” I asked Kim the second we were inside.
Sasha gave us a quizzical look.
Kim slipped off her sneakers and sighed. “Pampered Puppy made a really great video to advertise their new doggy day care,” she said. “It already has a ton of views.”
“Ugh,” I said.
“Yeah,” Kim agreed. “You guys need to see it.”
“Do we have to?” Sasha asked, but she was already heading upstairs to her room.
I knew what she meant. I didn’t want to see some amazing thing Pampered Puppy had created either. But if it was out there, we had to know about it.
Sasha’s room was painted lavender and the comforter on her bed was a bright purple. Her bookshelf was crowded with a lot of my favorites and she had a big bulletin board filled with pictures of vacations with her mom, visits to her dad, and of course me and Kim. There were bunches of shots I’d taken at the shelter, and it normally made me happy to see them. But today all I could think about was Pampered Puppy.
Kim typed in the website and we waited while it loaded—Sasha’s computer was old. A minute later a slow, sad tune began to play and the screen filled with a dog standing in a dim front hallway looking dejectedly at the door. After a moment the dog walked to the window and looked out, then let out a sigh and settled on the floor, alone in a dark, empty room. “Does your dog miss you when you’re working those long hours at your job?” a sympathetic voice asked. “Do you worry about all that time alone, deprived of a companion to play with?” A moment later the melancholy tune was replaced by an upbeat jazz song and the camera panned over a huge room with polished wooden floors, bright white walls, and big windows. Fancy dog beds and toys were placed strategically, giving the perfect dash of color to the scene. “Maybe your dog would have more fun playing with us!” the voice said. Then four dogs bounded in and began to frolic about. Two smiling women walked in, both wearing T-shirts that spelled out “Pampered Puppy Doggy Day Care” in swirly letters. One began petting a dog, who jumped up to give her a big kiss. The other began playing catch with the remaining dogs. “Pampered Puppy Doggy Day Care,” the voice said. “Where your dog gets the best care possible. Opening in just one week. Sign up today for our special introductory offer and get two months for the price of one!” The screen faded so that all you could see was the Pampered Puppy name and their contact info in pretty, swirly letters.
“That’s bad,” Sasha said, sinking down on her bed.
“Really bad,” I agreed. “I can’t believe they have that introductory offer. A lot of people are going to like a deal like that.”
“And they open in just a few days,” Kim said. She was in Sasha’s desk chair, twirling a lock of hair like crazy.
I wan
ted to say something positive, something to cheer us up and rally us to get behind our Dog Club instead of worrying about theirs. But as the video began to play again, I couldn’t find the words. Instead I just watched in silence as Pampered Puppy told the world how great it was.
7
“Big news,” Alice said when the three of us and our club dogs walked into the shelter a few days later. “The Wongs are going to adopt Hattie!”
That was big news. It was great when a shelter dog found a home, and the Wongs seemed super nice. I knew they’d take great care of Hattie, though of course Alice would never let anyone take a dog unless they were totally qualified.
“Tim’s out getting a cake,” Alice said. Her eyes were shining and she straightened her T-shirt, which was printed with dalmatians. “We’re going to celebrate.”
“Terrific,” Kim said. She snapped Gus’s leash off then went over to pat Hattie’s head.
I released Coco and joined them. “You’re going to have a new home, Hattie,” I told her.
She looked up, and the sight of her sweet little face made my chest clench. I would miss her!
“You girls should be sure to tell the Wongs about the Dog Club,” Alice said. “I bet they’ll be interested.”
I looked at Alice gratefully. It would be perfect if we got to have Hattie at the Dog Club. She’d have a home, but we’d still get to see her. Alice was gazing fondly at the little sheepdog, and I realized she would miss Hattie too. It must be hard to run a shelter where your job was to love the dogs but then try to find them homes. That was one of the many things that made Alice so awesome. And the Dog Club too: that was how we still got to see Popsicle every week, and now I had my fingers crossed that the Wongs would join so we’d still get to play with Hattie.
“Great idea, Alice,” Sasha said. “We’ll definitely tell them all about it.”
Hattie gave out a bark, as though she understood, and then ran over to say hi to Mr. S. I picked up a blue rubber ball and threw it for the two of them, laughing as they dashed after it, Gus at their heels. Sasha tossed a tennis ball for Boxer, Lily, and Coco, while Kim went over to Humphrey and tried to coax him into a game of tug-of-war. Caley was snuggling on the floor with Daisy and Gracie, and Alice smiled at the scene, then headed into her office.
A few minutes later the door opened. “Cake’s here,” Tim called.
Alice hurried back into the big room. “Great,” she said. “Let’s try to set everything up so it’s ready when the Wongs get here at five.”
In between playing with the dogs, we put up a folding table; set out plates, napkins, and forks; and took turns guarding the cake box from the dogs, who knew something good when they smelled it.
Right at five the door opened.
“Congratulations!” We cheered as the Wongs came in. Hattie ran to greet them, along with Popsicle and Gus.
“This is quite a celebration,” Mr. Wong said, looking surprised and pleased.
“There’s a lot to celebrate,” Alice said. “It’s a wonderful thing when a dog finds a home.”
“We’re happy for you guys and we’re happy for Hattie,” I said. Kim was slicing the cake while Sasha put it on plates, which I passed around.
“This is delicious,” Ms. Wong said after her first bite.
“Bundt Cake Bakery makes the best cakes,” Caley said, then glanced at Kim. “But for pies the only place to go is the Rox.”
Kim smiled at the mention of her family’s diner.
Tim was nodding enthusiastically. “And the Rox’s sweet potato fries are the best. You need to bring those in once in a while,” he told Kim.
“Oh, does your family own the Rox?” Ms. Wong asked.
Kim nodded proudly.
“Those sweet potato fries really are tasty,” Ms. Wong agreed. “We eat there every Friday night. Though I guess now we’ll need to get home right after work for Hattie.” She was looking across the room to where Hattie was now romping with Gracie and Gus.
“Hattie is our first dog and we want to take really good care of her,” Mr. Wong said, sounding slightly nervous. “We’ll do all we can to make sure she’s happy and has everything she needs.”
I cleared my throat, seeing the perfect opportunity. “Actually, we might be able to help you with that,” I said. “With our Dog Club.”
Ms. Wong was nodding. “You mentioned that before,” she said, sounding interested. “How does it work?”
We explained the club to the Wongs while Tim gathered up the empty plates, Alice packed the cake away, and Caley played with the dogs.
“It sounds perfect,” Ms. Wong said, looking at her husband, who nodded enthusiastically. “We’d like to sign Hattie up.”
Kim, Sasha, and I squealed at that.
“As you can see, the girls adore Hattie,” Alice said with a grin. “We all do. I think it will be good for her to spend some time here every week. And I know we’ll love having her.”
Sasha took Mr. Wong into Alice’s office to fill out the forms to officially join the Dog Club while Kim and Ms. Wong headed over to Hattie. Hattie jumped up and gave Kim a big kiss on the cheek, then ran after the tennis ball Caley was throwing. I took out my camera and snapped a shot of Popsicle dropping a ball at Tim’s feet, Boxer and Humphrey sniffing a chew toy, Caley snuggling Gracie, and Kim laughing as Hattie bounced at her feet.
A few minutes later Sasha came out of the office. Mr. S and Popsicle ran over to her, and Kim and I followed.
“We have a new Dog Club client,” I said happily.
“We really needed that,” Kim said, sounding relieved.
“And we get to keep seeing Hattie,” Sasha added. “I’d have missed her so much if she left for good.”
I looked over at the fluffy little dog and nodded. “Same.”
“And this makes a space for a new dog to come to the shelter,” Kim said. “That’s a good thing too.”
It was true. Alice did her best to take in every dog that needed a place to stay, but sometimes the shelter got too full. Having a space open meant now a dog could come here and make a home at the shelter, at least until we found a family like the Wongs that wanted to adopt a new dog.
The door to the shelter opened and Mrs. Washington came in. Gus raced to the door, excited to greet his owner. I saw the Wongs watching as Gus leaped up joyfully and licked her cheek.
Mrs. Washington laughed. “I missed you too,” she said. “How was this guy today?” she asked us.
“Great like always,” Sasha said, grabbing Gus’s leash off the hook by the door and handing it to her.
“We’ll post on the blog tonight,” Kim said.
“And I took a couple of really cute pictures of him,” I added. “They’ll be up too.”
Mrs. Washington smiled as she snapped Gus’s leash onto his collar. “I always love reading about the fun he has here every day.” She waved as the two of them headed out the door.
Now the Wongs stepped forward, and Ms. Wong smoothed back her hair nervously. “I think it’s time for us to go too.” She reached into her purse and pulled out a purple collar and leash.
I suddenly felt a lump in my throat. Hattie was really leaving!
“I can help you with those,” Alice said calmly. She gently put the collar on Hattie and then petted her while Mr. Wong fumbled with the leash. Finally he had it secured.
“Okay then,” he said, sounding uncertain.
Hattie looked at us, confused.
“You’re going home,” Kim said, and I could hear a hint of tears in her voice. “I bet they have a good dinner waiting for you.”
“We got everything Alice suggested,” Ms. Wong said. She bent down and petted Hattie. “Let’s go home, girl.”
We all watched as the Wongs led Hattie out. Hattie turned in the doorway, her brown eyes wide as she looked back at us.
“Good-bye, Hattie,” we called.
And then she was gone.
“This is so sad,” Sasha wailed.
Alice put an arm aroun
d her shoulder. “And happy too.”
“I’m just glad she’ll be coming to Dog Club,” I said, sniffling a little. It was sad. But as Alice said, it was happy too.
“Definitely,” Caley agreed.
“We should be sure to give the other dogs some extra attention,” Kim said. She was stroking Boxer as she spoke. “They’ll miss her and they don’t understand what happened the way we do.”
Of course Kim, the dog whisperer, thought of that! “Good point,” I said, going over to Lily so I could give her a hug.
The shelter door opened again as other owners came to pick up their dogs. When the last one had gone, we helped Alice put away toys and then took one final look around.
“I know Hattie was just one dog, but it seems kind of empty in here without her,” Caley said.
It did.
We headed home, the mix of happy and sad staying with me for the rest of the night.
8
“I can’t believe we have another big essay for English,” Kim said with a sigh as we sat down at our lunch table. “I feel like we just handed in the one about our volunteer work.”
I knew Kim had struggled with that, though in the end she got an A. “This one sounds a little easier,” I said, peeling the top off my yogurt. We were almost done with the Eleanor Roosevelt book, and this new essay was writing about someone you admired. “Who are you guys going to write about?”
“I’m going to write about my mom,” Sasha said, mixing the dressing into her salad. “Sometimes she drives me crazy but she’s pretty amazing, raising me on her own and running a law firm and everything.”
“Yeah, you should call the essay ‘Superwoman,’” I said.
Sasha grinned. “What about you guys?”
Just then Rachel stopped at our table, a concerned look on her face. “Hey,” she said. “Have you guys seen this?” She held up a flyer and I immediately recognized the swirly letters of Pampered Puppy.