Top Dog
Page 10
“But I don’t have time at night either,” Sasha said.
“Maybe you should get up earlier,” I said.
“But I’m too tired,” Sasha moaned. “I usually hit snooze twice before I get up at all.”
“Hm, so that means you aren’t actually up until six fifty,” I said. We were getting closer to school, and there were groups of kids ahead of us on the sidewalk.
“Oh, I guess that’s true,” Sasha said, surprised. “I never thought about it, but maybe that’s why I don’t have enough time. Seriously, though, I’m so tired I can barely drag myself out of bed.”
“Okay, so if we figure out how you can get to bed earlier, you’ll be able to get up at six thirty and have enough time for everything you need to do in the morning,” I said, my feet swishing through a pile of leaves on the sidewalk. I felt like we were making progress, especially when Sasha nodded.
“Okay, so tell us about your afternoons,” Kim said.
“I have dance or Dog Club,” Sasha said, ticking things off on her fingers. “I get home around six, my mom and I make dinner and clean up. She has a big case, so she usually works in her home office for a few hours while I do homework and walk Mr. S. And then I go to bed.”
I considered this. “That shouldn’t take so long,” I said. “Are you sure that’s all you do?”
“Yeah,” Sasha said. “I mean, I do some stuff online, looking at dog blogs and stuff when I take homework breaks.”
Kim and I looked at each other. She was raising an eyebrow and I was grinning.
“How long do you read the blogs?” I asked.
Sasha, who hadn’t noticed my silent exchange with Kim, twisted a curl as she thought about it. “I don’t know, not that long,” she said. “There are some really neat videos though. I watched this one last night where an owner was teaching a dog how to ring a bell when the dog wanted to go out. But somehow he taught it wrong and the dog got confused and thought the bell was for when she wanted to eat. So the owner had to totally retrain the dog.”
“Sash, that sounds like a pretty long video,” I said. “Totally cute, but long.”
Sasha blinked and then realization spread across her face. “You know, I think you might be right. Because I thought I had all this homework time and then suddenly it was ten and I’d barely done anything.” She smiled sheepishly. “I also watched this one about a dog whose owner got back from overseas and they had this amazing reunion. I watched it like ten times because it was so sweet.”
“Well, that’s it,” I said as we joined the crowd heading up the path to school. “If you keep your video watching to weekends, you’ll have plenty of time to get everything else done.”
“And get sleep too,” Kim added.
Sasha was beaming as she threw an arm around each of us. “You guys are brilliant,” she crowed happily.
“We can’t deny it,” I joked.
Sasha laughed, but as we walked in the front doors, her face turned serious. “Thanks, you guys,” she said. “If this works, and I think it will, you totally saved me.”
“From what?” Kim asked, frowning.
“My mom!” Sasha said, laughing again. “She’s so irritated she’s about to explode! Actually I guess you saved her too, from having a heart attack or something. So thank you!”
“Anytime,” I said happily.
One problem down, two more to go. And as I headed to my locker I was sure that we were going to fix them too!
“Watch it, New Girl,” Brianna said snidely. The final bell had rung and I was walking toward the front door of the school to meet Kim and Sasha at our usual spot. But the sound of Brianna’s voice stopped me in my tracks. Yes, my heart was thumping hard in my chest, but it was time to take care of things with Brianna once and for all.
“It’s tough being the new girl, isn’t it?” I asked in an even voice, gripping my hands together so she couldn’t see them shaking.
Brianna’s eyes opened in shock, then narrowed dangerously. “I don’t know what you mean,” she snapped.
“I’m just saying it’s hard starting at a new school,” I said, moving to the side of the hall as three boys came racing by. “I know you were new last year and I bet it was even more difficult for you since you didn’t know anyone.”
Brianna was silent but her face was hard. I pushed on, figuring I’d say all I had to say and hope for the best.
“I mean, I met Sasha over the summer because my dad was friends with her mom,” I said. My voice was getting squeaky, so I took a moment to breathe before going on. “And I was so glad to have a familiar face that first day I came here because it’s pretty intimidating.”
Brianna shrugged. “Not really.”
She wasn’t giving me anything, but I pushed on. “This school is much bigger than my old one,” I said. “That first day I got lost, like, every time we changed classes.”
Her face was still set.
“Plus I missed my old friends,” I said, starting to wonder if this was going to be another failed attempt. “There’s something cool about being with people who knew you when you were five and you shared animal crackers at snack time.”
And finally Brianna smiled. It was only there for a second, but I saw it. I watched her start twisting the strap on her bag. “It looked pretty easy for you,” she said after a moment, not meeting my eyes.
But my heart jumped anyway. She was actually responding to what I said and not just making fun of me! “I can see how it would look that way,” I said, not wanting to disagree and make room for a fight. “But actually Kim and I had big issues at first. And I had a tough time at the dog shelter.”
“I thought you loved it there,” Brianna said, looking at me without glaring for the first time ever. Her eyes were a warm shade of brown.
“I do now,” I said. “But at first I was scared of the big dogs. And that made me a total third wheel. Everyone was having this great time playing, while I was terrified of getting attacked.”
Brianna laughed. She actually laughed at my joke.
“So yeah, it probably looked like coming here was totally easy for me,” I said, brushing a stray braid out of my face. “But it was harder than it looked.”
“But you’re happy now,” Brianna said, a trace of wistfulness in her voice. “You have this great group of friends, and everyone likes you.”
My friends had called it: Brianna was jealous of me. And truthfully I could understand why. My life here was pretty great.
“I am happy,” I said. “But I’ve also worked hard to make Roxbury Park my home.”
Brianna nodded thoughtfully at that.
“I still miss my old friends,” I went on. I wanted her to know that even though I was happy, my life wasn’t perfect. “And I’m still getting used to certain things here. I think the winters are going to be a real trial for this Southern girl.”
Brianna smiled again.
“You know, if you ever want to stop making fun of me and start hanging out, you could sit with us at lunch sometime,” I said, taking the final leap. The halls had pretty much emptied out, and I could see the janitor sweeping. We were going to have to get going soon. “Kim and Sasha are nice—you’d like them.”
Brianna looked sheepish. “You’d really want to be friends with me,” she asked, “after I’ve been kind of obnoxious?”
I raised an eyebrow and planted a hand on my hip.
Brianna laughed. “Okay, more than kind of. I’ve been obnoxious and I’m sorry. And if you’re serious, I’d like to join you guys one day.”
“Okay then,” I said, smiling.
“See you tomorrow,” Brianna said, almost shyly. She was smiling, too, as she headed toward the library
I headed for the door. I was late but I knew my friends wouldn’t be mad at me, not when they heard my news! In fact, as I pushed through the heavy front door and out into the sunny afternoon, I decided we were going to stop at the Ice Creamery.
Because with their help and Anna’s, I’d just t
urned an enemy into a friend—and that was worth celebrating!
19
My friends had been thrilled when I filled them in on the latest with Brianna. And after dinner I’d told Anna the whole story, and she was so proud she squealed. Which was pretty great.
Now I was up in my room, putting together the photo montage for Your Roxbury Park. Our parents had agreed that I could use a few pictures of us in addition to the dogs and their owners, since the paper was local. We were all pretty excited to get our pictures in Your Roxbury Park but even more excited that now people could see how much fun the dogs had with us. We might not be “professionals,” but you could see in the pictures how much we loved the dogs. And how much the dogs loved us!
I started with the picture of Mrs. Washington and Gus, then scrolled through some of the other shots. I added one of Boxer, Humphrey, and Lily all sitting on Kim’s lap, then one of Sasha, Tim, and Caley running with Popsicle, Gus, Coco, and Mr. S. You could see the joy on the dogs’ faces, and Sasha, Tim, and Caley were all laughing happily. I scrolled through a few more and then my breath caught as I came to a shot of Ms. Wong bending down to snuggle Hattie. At first all I could see was our beloved Hattie, who we all missed. But then I began to look at the photo more closely.
Ms. Wong was smiling, her cheek pressed against Hattie’s fur. She couldn’t see Hattie’s face but I could, and Hattie was the picture of bliss, cuddled against Ms. Wong. Just a quick glance told you that Hattie knew exactly who her owner was and where she belonged. As I stared at the photo the love between owner and pup so obvious it radiated, something occurred to me. Maybe, just maybe, if the Wongs could see actual evidence of Hattie’s love for them, even when she was at the shelter, they’d reconsider and let her come back to the Dog Club.
So at the end of the night, when I had all my pictures laid out perfectly, that one was front and center. I saved the document, then sent it to Mrs. Washington, fingers crossed that this would be what finally got our Dog Club the customers we needed to keep the shelter open.
The next day I saw Brianna in the locker alcove. My shoulders automatically scrunched up, but then I remembered: we were okay now. At least I hoped we were.
Then Brianna turned, caught my eye, and smiled. Yeah, we were okay.
I couldn’t stop grinning as I twirled my locker combination.
It felt kind of funny to be walking over to our lunch table with Brianna right behind me, smiling instead of glaring. Emily, Rachel, Naomi, and Dana all did a double take when they saw her. But then they greeted her and passed us a Tupperware of cookies that Naomi and her mom had baked. They were shortbread with a layer of caramel topped with chocolate sprinkles.
“Wow, I’m sitting with you guys every day if you always eat like this,” Brianna said after biting into her first one.
“Yeah, we all stuff ourselves when Naomi brings in cookies,” Kim said, her mouth full. “She and her mom should open a bakery.”
“Seriously,” I agreed, taking another one.
Brianna cleared her throat. “So, I know you guys have seen some of the ads my mom ran for Pampered Puppy,” she said, her cheeks turning red. “My mom can be a little, um, aggressive and she’s really excited about doing the doggy day care.”
“Yeah, we kind of got that,” Sasha said in a neutral voice, nibbling on a cookie as she waited to hear what Brianna would say next.
“Last night, after Taylor invited me to sit with you guys and stuff, I had a talk with her,” Brianna went on. “She agreed to tone down the ads.”
Kim, Sasha, and I beamed at each other, then at Brianna.
“That’s awesome; thanks,” I said.
“Well, I figure there are enough dogs in Roxbury Park for two doggy day cares,” she said. Then she lowered her voice and looked just at me. “And I figured I owed you one.”
“Thanks,” I said. “That means a lot.”
“And by the way,” she added with a grin, “I love your shirt—that color is great on you. I may just have to find one like it for myself.”
I looked down at my pink shirt and burst out laughing.
I was so excited about our Dog Club being featured in Your Roxbury Park that I could barely sleep on Saturday night. On Sunday morning I was up with the sun, which was more than a little unusual, and the second my eyes opened I leaped out of bed and rushed downstairs. A wet, chilly breeze blew into the front hall when I opened the door, but The Roxbury Park Gazette was sitting on the porch, already waiting for me.
I grabbed it, ran into the kitchen, and shuffled through the sections of the newspaper until my fingers touched the sleek pages of the Sunday magazine. I pulled Your Roxbury Park out and then let out a gasp when I saw the cover. THE ROXBURY PARK DOG CLUB it said in big letters. There was a picture of me, Kim, and Sasha surrounded by club and shelter dogs, the three of us grinning. I hadn’t taken that shot but I remembered who had: Alice. Apparently I wasn’t the only one sending photos to Mrs. Washington!
For a moment I just gazed down at it. Who’d have thought I’d ever be on the front of a magazine like this! But finally I flipped it open, and for a second time my breath caught in my chest. The photo spread was amazing. I mean, maybe as the photographer it was boasting to say it, but there was something about seeing the club pictures all blown up and perfectly airbrushed that made them look incredible. I paged through, admiring the work Mrs. Washington and the other editors had done. There were quotes from the website mixed in with the photos, as well as a short history of the club that described Kim, Sasha, and me as “true dog lovers and a real credit to the Roxbury Park community.” I couldn’t wait to show my dad that! And at the bottom was all the info needed for anyone to sign up for our Dog Club. In a word, it was perfect. Absolutely perfect.
“Can I see?” Anna asked, coming into the kitchen. Jasmine and Tasha were right behind her. All three of my sisters looked sleepy, and I realized they’d gotten up early to see this. My heart swelled as I stepped back so they could take a look.
“This is fantastic!” Anna crowed when she saw the cover.
The three of them turned the pages slowly, shrieking in excitement over every detail.
“What’s all the noise?” Dad asked.
For a second I worried we’d disturbed him since Dad loved sleeping in, but then I saw that he was smiling as he slipped on his reading glasses. “Let’s see what the fuss is about.”
My sisters moved over, and soon my whole family was exclaiming about my pictures, my Dog Club, my friends, and me.
“I feel like I’m the sister of a celebrity,” Tasha said proudly. “I’m bringing this to show off at work today.” She had a part-time job at the Roxbury Park Cineplex.
“Wait, I want to bring it to Sugar and Spice to show everyone on my afternoon shift.” Jasmine pouted. Sugar and Spice was the candy store on Main Street where she worked on weekends.
“Not to worry,” Dad said. “I plan on buying about a hundred of these. After all, we have a lot of relatives who are going to want to see what a great thing Taylor has done here.”
Joy was bubbling up in me, fizzy and sweet, and I couldn’t stop smiling.
Anna wrapped an arm around me. “I’m going to cook a big brunch to celebrate,” she announced.
I might have burst into tears of joy right then if the phone hadn’t started ringing.
“It’s me,” Sasha said when I picked up, her voice giddy. “Alice just sent me two calls and three emails from potential clients. Your photos did it, Taylor. The Roxbury Park Dog Club is back in business!”
“Two points and the game is ours!” I shouted, raising my arms over my head the way Tim always did. Gus had just taken the winning shot in our game of doggy basketball and we were the champs, at least for this round.
Tim, the opposing coach, scowled. “I think there should have been a foul called on Lily when she jumped into the basket,” he said. “That totally messed up Popsicle’s shot.”
I laughed. “You’re a sore loser,” I told him playful
ly, and now he laughed.
“It’s called a winning spirit,” he told me. Coco brought over a Frisbee, which he threw across the room. Coco, Boxer, Lily, and Mr. S took off after it. I headed over to the corner, where Humphrey was snuggling with Sasha, who was on the phone.
“Okay, we’ll let you know just as soon as we can schedule that first visit with you,” Sasha said, her voice professional. But when she hung up she pretended to faint. “That was, like, my fiftieth call today. I’m never going to get to play with the dogs!” But she was grinning.
After just a few days, Sasha reported that cutting out her video time had made a huge difference. She was able to do everything she needed to and get to bed on time, and didn’t even need to press snooze on her alarm because she was no longer exhausted when it went off.
“I can’t wait to meet some new dogs,” Kim said cheerfully. She was giving Gracie a tummy rub.
We’d had so many calls and emails that we’d had to start a wait list. Which was pretty great. We had three potential new dogs that would be coming in for a first meeting next week. And if all went well, our club would be full again!
“I wonder if we should refer some of the calls to Pampered Puppy,” Kim said thoughtfully.
“No way,” Tim said. He was still playing Frisbee with Coco, Popsicle, and Lily, but Mr. S was taking a break to come cuddle with Humphrey, while Boxer had joined the Frisbee game.
“Tim, be nice,” Caley fake scolded, a hand on her hip. But then she looked at Kim. “He does have a point though. Why would we help them?”
“It’s to help the dogs and their owners,” I said, knowing just why Kim had suggested it. “If we don’t have room, the dogs should still have a fun place to go in the afternoon.”
“And maybe if we give them some referrals now, they’ll give some back to us if we need them later,” Sasha said, her business sense coming out.
“I doubt it,” Caley said, wrinkling her nose. She leaned over to pet Gus, who leaned against her leg.
“Stranger things have happened though,” I said, thinking of Brianna. She’d asked me to be her partner for the math project we were doing in class, and so far it was going great.