“The pie looks a little crispy,” Madison said. It was scorched around the edges.
“Well, I’m not a super cook yet, but I’m working on it, honey bear,” Mom said. “We can cut around the burned parts.”
Madison smiled. She had made the right decision about Thanksgiving. She could have her turkey and pie and eat it, too. And surprises never seemed to end….
Chapter 14
THE NEXT MORNING MADISON was so hungry, she took a bite of cold sweet potato pie before she even had breakfast.
She could barely wait to tell Aimee about everything that had happened, but Aimee and her brothers weren’t around, so she left a voice message to call back. Aimee was probably over at her father’s bookstore, Book Web.
Madison got ready for the clinic. Mom said that she could spend the day there.
Sugar the schnoodle was waiting!
Eileen was busy working on some files and paperwork at the front of the clinic when Madison walked in with a spring in her step.
“Hiya!” She waved. Eileen just nodded back a silent hello. Today her T-shirt said HAVE YOU HUGGED YOUR DOG TODAY?
Hugging Phin was one of Madison’s favorite things. And she’d been thinking about hugging Sugar all morning long, too.
Dan wasn’t around today. Madison remembered that he had gone for the weekend to his cousin’s place in Connecticut. He wouldn’t be back until after school break was over.
The only person in the back was Dr. Wing. He was standing in front of the cages.
“Hi!” Madison said as she bounced into the room.
Dr. Wing smiled. “Happy day-after-Thanksgiving. Aren’t we chipper?”
“TOTALLY!” Madison said. She went immediately to Sugar’s cage. “Is it okay if I walk—hey—wait a minute—”
Madison looked into every cage.
“Sugar? Where’s the schnoodle? Oh no, please don’t tell me she’s sick again!”
Dr. Wing shook his head. “No, nothing like that.”
“Where is she?” Madison asked. “Where’s Sugar?”
“A nice family from the east side of Far Hills came in and adopted her,” the doctor explained. “They’d been considering it, and I guess they made a final decision over the holiday. Isn’t that great?”
Madison froze.
All the giddiness that had been swirling inside turned to pure defeat.
Sugar was gone?
“Madison,” Dr. Wing said. “What’s wrong?”
She shook her head. “I just didn’t expect this. Not today.”
“Well, it’s a great thing. Sugar was a very sad puppy, and now she has a loving, caring family. If that isn’t the Thanksgiving spirit, I don’t know what is,” he said.
“I know, but—” Madison wanted to cry, but she took a deep breath. “It’s a surprise, that’s all.”
“I’m sure Sugar will be very happy with her new family arrangements, Madison. Don’t worry.”
She had to admit that Sugar being adopted was a good thing. Many times abused and neglected dogs with scars and personality problems had hard times finding new homes. That’s what Eileen and Dan had said. Madison wanted Sugar to have a happy home forever.
But it was still hard looking at Sugar’s empty cage.
She hadn’t even had a chance to say good-bye.
“She is gone now,” Mr. Wollensky said. He was there to volunteer today, too. “You look very sad, Madison.”
Madison sighed. “I just didn’t expect to come here and find her gone like this.”
“Is hard to let go, yes?” Mr. Wollensky asked. Madison watched as he opened up the cage and took out the messy newspapers that were lying across the bottom. Madison watched as Mr. Wollensky cleaned away the only things that were left from Sugar’s stay at Far Hills Clinic. Bit by bit, all traces of her were taken away.
Now Madison really wanted to cry.
“You feel Sugar in here, yes?” Mr. Wollensky pointed to his heart. Madison felt a lump in her throat. She did feel Sugar. She missed the schnoodle so much that she couldn’t even find the words to describe it. It was an ache—inside.
“Once I had a dog here I wanted to adopt for my own.”
“Like Sugar?” Madison said. She had wished that the schnoodle could have been her dog. “What happened?” Madison asked.
“It was not meant to be. This dog ended up with family who could take good care of him. Family’s very important.”
Madison nodded. She understood. Sugar had a family now, and family, no matter how big or small, was important. Madison thanked Mr. Wollensky and grabbed her coat.
Madison decided to walk home, even though it was a very long walk. A woman across the road was walking a dog that looked familiar. She approached the woman and bent down to pet the dog.
“He’s a pug,” the woman said. “I hate it when kids call him Squashed-Up Nose and things like that.”
Madison smiled. “I know. I have a pug, too.”
Suddenly it hit her: she had a pug, too. She already had a dog who she loved more than anything in the whole wide world. And he wasn’t going anywhere. Madison realized that she hadn’t walked Phin in days.
She needed to see Phin—now. She needed to pet his coarse fur, hear his little snuffle; and watch his curlicue tail wiggle.
Soon she was running down the block, running toward home. She’d left her gloves in her orange bag, so her fingertips were like icicles. But she ran faster until she reached the porch at home.
“Phinnie!” Madison gasped a little as she walked back into the house. “Phinnie, where are you?”
Mom appeared in the doorway. “What’s going on? I thought you were over at the clinic. You were going to call me to come pick you up….”
Madison was looking all over the front hall. “Mom, where’s Phin? Have you seen him? I need to see Phin.”
“Hold it, hold it. Shhhhh. Follow me.” Mom tiptoed into the den. There, on the den couch, Phin had curled into the tightest ball and was snoring away.
Madison watched him quietly for a few moments, but then she couldn’t contain herself. “Phinnie!” Madison yelled.
He awoke with a snort, and she threw herself over his little pug body.
“Roowwrorooooo!” he yelped right back at her.
Madison lifted Phin into her arms like a baby and carried him upstairs into her bedroom.
“I missed you sooooo much,” she cooed in Phin’s ears. He licked the tip of her nose and panted. Madison didn’t even mind his doggy breath.
With Phin still in her lap, Madison logged on to her laptop computer. She had a special destination in mind, a place she’d discovered a long time ago. Madison plugged a few words into the TweenBlurt search engine, and up popped the address she was looking for.
Dog of the Day—Sign Yours Up Now Tell us about your special dog. Is your bichon frise funny? Does your weimaraner whine? Winners daily!
She accessed her photo files and pulled up her favorite shot of Phin. She’d taken it last summer in the backyard. He was standing in tall grass, and the sunlight was hitting his back in just the right places.
“Rowwwroooo!” Phin pushed his snorty nose into her side and wiggled back and forth. He knew how cute he looked.
Madison filled in the Web site form with her dog’s full name, Phineas T. Finn, and a few lines about why she loved him.
Phin doesn’t mind my messy room. He loves me when I’m sad or happy. And he gives the best hugs in the world. Some people say he looks funny, but I don’t think so. Phin is a true member of my family.
Almost immediately, Madison got a return e-mail to inform her that the Dog of the Day submission had been received and would be processed.
“You’re my family, Phinnie!” Madison kissed his little ears, and he squirmed. Sooner than soon, he would be making his big Web debut.
Madison opened a blank e-mail and started to write a note to Gramma. She wondered if their Thanksgiving dinner had turned out as nicely as hers had turned out with Mom.
&
nbsp; From: MadFinn
To: GoGramma
Subject: I MISS YOU!!!
Date: Fri 24 Nov 1:13 PM
Your sweet potato pie recipe was awesome, Gramma, even if we did burn it a little. Thank you for that. Of course I missed you more than anything. I had no one to play Crazy Eights with me.
I got a good extra-credit grade in social studies. The teacher gave me and Egg both an A+. She said that we were great partners. I was so nervous, but it’s funny how things work out.
I was afraid that if Thanksgiving wasn’t the way it always had been that I would be so sad. But change was okay. In the end it was A-okay. Our family is still here. I’m still here, too.
I hope I do get to visit you soon. Mom says maybe she’ll let me go to Chicago next summer. I will keep my fingers crossed so I can go.
Thanks for being the best Gramma in the universe. Thanks for listening. Thanks for everything.
Yours till the pumpkin pies,
Maddie
xoxox
Madison hit SEND. The message went poof. As Madison logged off the laptop, Phin jumped off her lap and onto her bed.
“I’ll be right back, Phinnie,” Madison said, getting up and tiptoeing out of the room. She found Mom downstairs at her own computer.
“Mom?” Madison said as she came into the room. She assumed Mom was doing something work related.
“Come take a look at this, Maddie,” Mom said with a big grin.
Madison went over to the desk, and without even thinking, she sat right in Mom’s lap. She hadn’t sat there in years. It felt good to sit there again.
On the monitor, Madison saw that Mom had made a collage of different photographs from their family. There was a picture of Madison as a little baby. There was a shot of Madison, Mom, and Dad holding a stuffed turkey. There was a close-up shot of Gramma and Madison making a pie together.
“Oh, wow! That’s the first sweet potato pie she ever showed me how to make!” Madison said.
“See?” Mom said. “Everyone’s still here. Our family isn’t going anywhere, honey bear.”
“I love you,” Madison said.
“I love you more,” Mom said, winking.
Madison sighed. She knew no family was perfect, but she couldn’t help but think that her family came about as close as a person could get.
It was perfect for her. That’s what mattered most.
Mad Chat Words:
3:]
Doggy
:-#-
My lips are sealed
>:-<
I am angrier than angry
<:>==
Turkey
*woof*
Woof (what did you think?)
LMK
Let me know
WAI
What an idiot!
E2EG
Ear-to-ear grin
DTRT
Do the right thing
NBD
No big deal
IYSS
If you say so
BFN
Bye for now
Madison’s Computer Tip
The Internet can be so helpful with school projects. I search the Web for information on subjects like my Thanksgiving presentation with Egg. The only problem with getting information online, however, is that I need to make sure my facts come from the right places. Double-check any information you might get online, because not all Web sites have accurate facts. I usually go to Web sites like museums, libraries, or other big organizations when I look up information for school reports.
Visit Madison at the author’s web site www.lauradower.com
Turn the page to continue reading from Laura Dower’s From the Files of Madison Finn series
Chapter 1
NO MATTER HOW HARD SHE shoved, Madison couldn’t squeeze all her stuff into the teeny green gym locker. She had hated gym class from the moment seventh grade started. Before the winter holidays, Madison’s gym class was scheduled in the afternoon. Now, gym was in the morning, first period on Mondays.
The worst part was wearing the dreaded gym uniform. Its ugly blue polyester gym shorts made Madison’s legs itch, and a too tight, white T-shirt with a blue Far Hills Junior High logo was not exactly the most flattering fashion statement. And wearing that shirt meant wearing a bra, even though Madison didn’t have much to fill it out.
And even worse than wearing a scary, see-through T-shirt was the fact that Hart Jones would see her looking that way. Hart, Madison’s big crush at school, just happened to be in her same gym section. He would see her wearing the ugly outfit.
Madison had to stop herself from over-thinking immediately. She sighed and took a seat on the small benches between locker banks. Hart Jones. Just the idea of him made her feel faint. Or was that because the locker room smelled like wet rubber floor mats and soccer balls?
She pulled her sweater over her head and wriggled into her T-shirt. Then she carefully yanked off her stockings and tugged on the polyester shorts under her wool skirt. They felt snugger than snug, and her legs prickled with goose bumps from the chilly air.
The locker area wasn’t very full, so no one had seen her change. That was a major relief. Madison was standing alone in her row. Madison’s homeroom had been dismissed early. Sometimes homeroom teachers let certain groups out earlier than others. However, neither of her best friends, Aimee or Fiona, had arrived from her homeroom yet.
Madison heard whispering in the next locker bank but didn’t think much of it at first. Then she heard someone say her name.
“I can’t believe I still have Madison Finn as my partner,” the person grumbled with a huff.
Madison knew the voice. It was Poison Ivy Daly, her mortal enemy.
Ivy was speaking about their science lab. Mr. Danehy had assigned Madison and Ivy as lab partners. He obviously didn’t know how much they didn’t get along.
“Just ignore her,” Ivy’s friend Rose advised. “What’s the big deal?”
Madison stood on top of the bench, leaning into the lockers, to hear whatever more she could hear. Ivy was talking to her drones, Rose Thorn and Phony Joanie. Madison knew they might say not-so-nice stuff, but she still wanted to hear it. Unfortunately, the juicy eavesdropping stopped there. Madison’s name wasn’t mentioned again. They moved on to talking about hair. Ivy always wore her perfect red hair in perfect red clips.
As Madison stepped off the bench, the room got very quiet. Madison was surprised to see someone standing in the space between the locker banks. It was Ivy. And she was staring right at Madison.
“Hello, Madison,” Ivy said curtly. “I didn’t know you were in here.”
“Yeah, well…” Madison mumbled. She turned back to the green locker.
Madison wondered if, even for a fleeting second, Ivy felt a smidge guilty about gossiping without knowing who was nearby. But clearly Ivy felt nothing of the sort. She just stared. Madison felt Ivy’s eyes watching her.
Rose and Joanie appeared from around the corner, too.
“Nice shorts,” Joanie snapped to Madison. She was always snappy.
Madison felt her entire body shrink when Joanie said the words, however. Nice shorts. Ivy, Rose, and Joanie were wearing their shorts baggy and longer. They made the uniform look good. But Madison stood there in gym shorts one size too small.
“’Scuse me!” Aimee Gillespie said, appearing from nowhere and sliding past the others into Madison’s locker bank. Best friends have a way of showing up just at the right time. “Hey, Maddie!” she chirped.
Ivy raised one eyebrow at Aimee’s entrance and walked away to find a mirror. Her drones followed.
“What was that about?” Aimee asked Madison.
Madison sat down on the bench again. Her shorts felt tighter than ever now. “These.” She pointed to them.
“Huh?” Aimee shrugged. “Not everyone got the new shorts, I don’t think. It doesn’t really matter, does—”
“New shorts?” Madison asked incredulously. “Wha
t new shorts?”
Aimee explained that a letter had been mailed home with an order form for a new style of gym shorts. The administration had received complaints about the sizes being too small for a lot of girls. They were offering a new style.
“I never knew,” Madison said. Her mom must have thrown out the mail without reading it. She did that sometimes.
“But you look great in those shorts,” Aimee said. “You have nice legs.”
“Thanks,” Madison said. Maybe the shorts weren’t so bad after all.
Fiona appeared with a flounce and a smile. “Helloooooo! Did you guys have a good weekend?”
She’d already changed into her gym uniform, pulling off her clothes to reveal the shorts underneath her pants. Fiona said it was easier to change that way. Of course she had on the loose shorts.
“Where did you get those?” Madison asked her.
“I don’t know,” Fiona admitted, a little spaced out. She sneezed. “They’re more comfy than the other ones.”
Madison would have to ask Mom to order her a pair of those.
“GIRLS!” A booming voice echoed into the locker room. Coach Hammond blew her whistle for emphasis. “LET’S GO! LET’S GO! INTO THE GYM!”
She wasn’t as mean as a drill sergeant, but Coach Hammond was strict about starting class on time, lining up in perfect rows, and playing fair.
Madison hid behind Aimee and Fiona as they shuffled into the main part of the gym. She was happier than happy to see a few other girls wearing the shorter, snugger shorts.
“OKAY!” Coach Hammond yelled. She yelled even when she was standing nose to nose with a student. “TODAY WE HAVE PHYSICAL FITNESS TESTING! HEADS UP!”
Aimee turned to Madison. “This stinks. It’s Monday morning. Who tests your physical fitness on Monday?”
“Yeah.” Fiona sniffled. Then she sneezed three times in a row.
Thanks for Nothing Page 10