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Post by Deleted on Nov 29, 2008 17:04:56 GMT -5
KRISTY'S WONDERFUL LIFE
A/N: Based loosely on the holiday classic. This may contain references to it, as well as other holiday movies.
CHAPTER 1
"Just hear those sleigh bells jingling, ring-ting-tingling too-o-o. Come on, it's lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with yo-o-ou. Outside, the snow is falling, and friends are calling 'yoo-hoo.' Come on, it's lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you..."
That was the song that was blaring from my clock-radio on a Wednesday morning. It also happened to be the last day of school before Christmas vacation.
Hi. My name's Kristy Thomas. I'm sixteen years old, and a junior at Stoneybrook High School. I used to have a pretty big family, but now, most of them have moved out. My two older brothers, Charlie and Sam, who are twenty and eighteen, respectively, attend college at NYU. My younger brother, David Michael, who's almost eleven, is in fifth grade at Stoneybrook Elementary School. I also have two stepsiblings and an adopted sister who attend Stoneybrook Academy, a private school in our neighborhood: my stepsister, Karen, is ten and in fifth grade; my stepbrother, Andrew, is seven and in second grade; and my adopted sister, Emily, who's five and in kindergarten. My grandmother, Nannie, used to live with us to help take care of Emily, but soon after Emily started school, Nannie felt that she was no longer needed, and she moved into an apartment complex at the end of our block.
How did I get this crazy family, you ask? Well, it all started soon after David Michael was born. That was when my dad walked out on us. (Unfortunately, he was killed in a plane crash about two and a half months ago.) When I was twelve, Mom met, and eventually married, my stepfather, Watson, who also introduced Karen and Andrew to us. Soon after they were married, Emily was adopted into the family, and like I said, Nannie moved in to help take care of things.
I also have a wonderful group of friends. Together, we are the Baby-sitters Club, or BSC, but I'll tell you more about that later. Right now, it was time to get up and get ready for school. I reached into my drawer and pulled out a white turtleneck sweater and a pair of jeans. This turtleneck is really awesome, because printed on it are skiers, candy canes and Christmas trees. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail, and held it in place with a white scrunchie, then went downstairs for breakfast.
"Good morning, Kristy," Watson said as I sat down at the kitchen table.
"Good morning," I answered as I reached for a piece of toast.
"Last day?" Watson asked.
"Yup, until after Christmas," I answered. I ate as quickly as I could, then stood up. "You know, I kind of miss all the craziness of weekday mornings, don't you?"
"Not really, honey," Mom answered. I could tell she wasn't exactly looking forward to a house jam-packed full of people again.
"Well, just wait until Karen and Andrew come," David Michael pointed out, finishing his cereal.
"And Charlie and Sam are coming in from New York," I added.
"All right!" Emily squealed. Mom groaned, but I could still tell that she'd be glad to see everyone.
"Now, Elizabeth, Charlie and Sam are in college now. I'm sure they've matured some," Watson reassured her.
'Charlie, maybe; Sam, I doubt it,' I thought. "Well, I'll see you later," I told everyone as I grabbed my keys from the cedar key rack by the fridge.
"Have a nice day," Mom said.
"Thanks," I called as I bounded out the door.
I couldn't wait to see what the day would bring.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 30, 2008 17:37:06 GMT -5
CHAPTER 2
Abby Stevenson and I arrived at Claudia Kishi's house at 5:05 that afternoon. We got out of my car and made our way into the house. In the good old days, we used to ring the doorbell, but since we're now frequent visitors, we don't have to do that anymore.
To no one's surprise, Claud was under her bed, foraging around for junk food. "Hi, Claud," I said.
"Hi," she answered as she crawled out from under her bed with a box of rainbow-colored candy canes.
"Thanks," I said as I accepted one and sat in Claud's director's chair. Abby took a seat in the desk chair.
Maybe I should stop here and tell you more about the BSC. It all started when I was in seventh grade. Back then, Mom and Watson were dating, and Mom, my brothers, and I lived on Bradford Court, next door to Mary Anne Spier and across the street from Claudia Kishi. (In fact, if you connected our houses, it made a triangle.) My older brothers and I took turns baby-sitting for David Michael one afternoon a week after school, and Mom had someone else on the other two days. As you may expect, there came a time when my brothers and I (as well as the regular sitter) were busy. You see, I'd had another baby-sitting job, and my brothers had after-school activities. Mom got on the phone and started calling all over town, looking for another baby-sitter. I remember we were eating pizza that night, and I felt bad about Mom's pizza getting cold, then it hit me: why should a parent waste an hour on the phone when they can make one call and reach a whole bunch of sitters? Like the saying goes, the rest is history.
I told my idea to Claudia and Mary Anne. They liked it, and then I posed two more questions: where should we meet, and who else should we get to join? Claud was able to help with both. We decided to meet in her room, since she has her own phone and phone number, and she introduced Stacey McGill, who had just moved from New York. Before too long, we were in business. Within a few months, we were getting so much business that we needed another member. That's when Mary Anne introduced Dawn Schafer, a recent California transplant, to us. Soon after that, Stacey's dad's company transferred him back to New York, and we invited Mallory Pike and Jessica Ramsey to join the BSC. When Stacey's parents got divorced, and she returned to Connecticut with her mom, we welcomed her back. Along the way, we acquired Abby Stevenson, Logan Bruno, Shannon Kilbourne, and Jason Everett. Over the years, the BSC has expanded, and we now have some young blood in the group: Bebe Everett (Jason's stepsister), Vanessa Pike (Mallory's sister), Haley Braddock, and Charlotte Johanssen. Vanessa, Haley, and Charlotte also happen to be three of our former baby-sitting charges.
Claud is the BSC's VP because like I said, we hold our meetings in her room, since she has her own phone and phone number. This is a good thing for two reasons: one, we don't have to tie up someone's phone line during our meetings, and two, Claud has the unfortunate task of taking calls during nonmeeting times. Claud is sixteen and a junior at SHS. Her older sister, Janine, is nineteen and a sophomore at U-Conn, where she's eventually planning to be a doctor. Their grandmother, Mimi, used to live there, too, but she died when we were in eighth grade. Claud isn't exactly Super-Genius, like her sister, when it comes to schoolwork, but when it comes to art, she's Picasso. In fact, Claud had to repeat some of seventh grade, but thankfully, she was able to catch up and go to high school with us.
Mary Anne is the BSC secretary, as well as my best friend. She's also sixteen and a junior at SHS. If you think my family life is crazy, let me tell you about Mary Anne's. Her mom died when she was a baby, and her dad was so upset that he sent Mary Anne to live with her mother's parents for a while. When Mary Anne was a year and a half old, he wanted her back. There wasn't a big court battle, and Mary Anne's grandparents reluctantly returned her. Mr. Spier wanted to prove that he could be a good single parent, so he invented all these rules for Mary Anne to live by: she had to wear her hair in braids, she had to wear whatever he picked out for her, things like that. As soon as Mary Anne was able to prove that she was growing up, he loosened up a bit. When Mary Anne was thirteen, he married Sharon Schafer, his former high-school sweetheart, and Dawn's mother, and Dawn and Mary Anne became stepsisters. Last summer, though, Dawn moved back to California for good, because she missed too much there.
Stacey McGill is the BSC treasurer. She's sixteen and a junior at SHS. Stacey also has diabetes (like my cousin, Robin), and has to stick to a strict diet. When Stacey was twelve, her dad's company transferred him to Connecticut. Stacey had just settled in, and joined the BSC, when her dad's company transferred him back. We hated to see Stacey go, but a few months later, Stacey's parents got divorced, and she and her mom returned to Stoneybrook. Her father has already remarried, and Stacey has a stepmother named Samantha.
Abby is the alternate officer of the BSC, which means that she takes over if someone has to miss a meeting (Dawn used to be one, too, until she moved back to California), and she lives down the street from me. She, her mom, and her twin sister, Anna, are originally from Long Island. When the twins were nine, their father was killed in a car accident. Abby never lets it, or her many allergies, get to her, though. Abby is also sixteen and a junior at SHS.
Mal and Jessi are fourteen and freshmen at SHS. Jessi has an average-sized family: her parents, her Aunt Cecelia, who moved in to help when Mrs. Ramsey got a job, her sister, Becca (AKA Rebecca), who's eleven and in sixth grade at SMS, and her brother, John Junior (affectionately known as Squirt), who's four.
Mal has a pretty big family, like I do. In fact, she used to go to a boarding school in Massachusetts, but she decided to come back to Stoneybrook for high school, so we're really glad. Mal has seven siblings, and three of them are triplets. The triplets, Adam, Byron, and Jordan, are thirteen and in eighth grade; Vanessa's twelve and in seventh grade; Nick's eleven and in sixth grade. They attend SMS, but the others attend SES: Margo's ten and in fifth grade, and Claire's eight and in third grade. I pity those poor teachers. Just when they think they've had all the Pikes in their class, along comes another!
Mal and Jessi also happen to be best friends, and love to read horse stories, but the similarities stop there. Mal is white, and Jessi is black. That didn't bother us BSC members one bit, but the Welcome Wagon wasn't exactly there when the Ramseys first moved to Stoneybrook. Another difference is their main interest: Mal loves writing stories, and Jessi loves ballet. In fact, I've seen Jessi dance, and she's really talented. I hope they'll make good use of their talents when they get older.
That leaves us with Logan, Shannon Kilbourne, Jason and Bebe, Haley, and Charlotte. Logan and Jason are juniors at SHS; Shannon is in eleventh grade at Stoneybrook Day School, a private school in our neighborhood, and the only BSC member to go to one; Bebe, Charlotte, and Haley attend SMS, where Bebe is in eighth grade, and Charlotte and Haley are in seventh grade.
There's something else I'd like to mention. Jason and Bebe are not only stepsiblings, but they're also the only BSC members not born in the United States. Bebe was born in Canada, and moved to Long Island with her dad when she was a baby. You'd have thought she wouldn't have an accent, but she has a very subtle one.
Jason was born in Scotland, and came to this country with his mom when he was four. Even though he was that young at the time, his accent never went away completely, for some reason. Nowadays, he sounds like the present-day Ewan McGregor, who happens to be one of Mary Anne's favorite actors. And the fact that Karen and Andrew both love him to bits doesn't hurt, either. (By the way, don't tell Jason I said this, but I think I'm falling for him.)
Anyway, back to me. I put on my visor and stuck a pencil behind my ear. I looked at the clock, and saw that it read 5:28. That meant that in just two minutes, another BSC meeting would be underway.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 30, 2008 17:39:56 GMT -5
CHAPTER 3
As soon as Claudia's digital clock turned from 5:29 to 5:30, I sat up taller in my chair and said, "Order!"
"Yeah, I'll have a cheeseburger and a chef salad with the oil and vinegar on the side, but I don't want the cheese on the burger, I want it on the side. And I'm not looking for a burger so much as I'm looking for tuna fish," Abby said. The rest of us got a good laugh. What would we do without Abby?
That's when the phone rang. As soon as Stacey pulled herself together, she reached over and hit the speakerphone button. (Our solution to a big problem.) "Baby-sitters Club," she said.
"Hi, it's Mrs. Rodowsky. Listen, my husband and I have been invited to a Christmas party on Saturday night. We'll be taking Shea with us, so there'll be just Jackie and Archie."
"Okay," I said, handing Mary Anne the record book.
"Kristy, you're the only one free," Mary Anne said. "Want the job?"
"Sure," I said.
"Sounds like a plan," Mrs. Rodowsky said. "I'll see you at 6:00, and we should be home by 9:00."
"See you then," I said as I de-pressed the speakerphone button.
That's basically how we work nowadays. Claud had gotten the speakerphone for Christmas when we were in eighth grade, and we were glad to have it. Before that, whenever a client called, the sitter was supposed to take down the information (the number of kids being sat for, and the length of time of the job), and call them back. At one time or another, the rule would be forgotten, and we were really happy to have the speakerphone. Boom, problem solved.
That's not my only idea, though. I also invented Kid-Kits, which are boxes that we decorated and filled with our old toys and games. (We have to change supplies every once in a while, though.) That makes us really popular with the kids.
We also have a club record book and a club notebook. The club notebook is more like a diary, where we write up every job we go on, and we read it once a week, so we know what to expect the next time we baby-sit for a particular family. I still remember when I came up with that idea after I'd gone on a job where I thought I'd be baby-sitting, but I ended up pet-sitting for twin Saint Bernards. It's really helpful, because then we learn if a kid is going through a certain phase, like when Jamie Newton was terrified of Halloween, and we can also learn helpful information about a kid, like we know that Nina Marshall is allergic to strawberries. The record book has two sections: Mary Anne is in charge of the scheduling, so the calendar pages are hers. Mary Anne has to know everyone's schedules, such as doctor and dentist appointments, Mal and Bebe's orthodontist appointments, Jessi's ballet classes, Stacey's trips to New York, etc. Stacey is in charge of the money, and there's a section in the book where she writes down what comes in, and what we spend on Kid-Kit supplies and the occasional pizza or slumber party.
Anyway, back to the meeting. We took several more job calls, and lined up several more jobs. (See how much we get done in half an hour?) Before I knew it, it was 6:00, and the meeting ended. "Meeting adjourned," I announced as I stood up and took my visor off.
As I left Claudia's room, I wondered what kind of mischief Jackie would get into this time.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 1, 2008 16:44:03 GMT -5
A/N: I'm getting to the good part, don't worry.
CHAPTER 4
I arrived at the Rodowskys at 5:45 on Saturday afternoon and rang the doorbell. The door was answered by Shea. "Hi, Shea," I said.
"Hi, Kristy," he answered. He was wearing dark blue dress pants, a white shirt, and suspenders. "Thanks for coming to my concert the other day."
"Hey, I'm there for you, babe," I said as I stepped into the front hall.
"Mom! Dad! Kristy's here!" Shea shouted up the stairs as I took off my coat and hung it up on the coat rack in the front hall.
A minute later, Mrs. Rodowsky appeared on the stairs. "Hi, Kristy," she said as she put on her coat. "We should be home by 9:00. The phone numbers are in their usual place. There's hot dogs in the fridge for their dinner. Well, see you later."
"'Bye," I said as Shea and his parents walked out the door.
"Want to see Jackie's art project?" Archie asked.
"Sure," I said. Archie grabbed my hand and led me downstairs to the rec room.
When we got there, Jackie was putting the finishing touches on his project. It was a little igloo village made of eggshells that were glued onto a piece of cardboard with cotton balls glued all over it.
"Hi, Jackie," I said.
"Hi," he answered as he very slowly backed away. "Well, what do you think?"
"It's really something!" I commented.
"Thanks," he said. "It's for the display in the lobby at Stoneybrook Manor."
"I'm sure they'll appreciate it," I said, then I changed the subject. "You guys hungry?"
"Yeah!" Jackie exclaimed. He stood up and tripped over his shoelace. Luckily, I caught him before he sat down on the coffee table and crushed his masterpiece.
"Wow, that was a close one," I said.
"Yeah," Jackie agreed. His eyes looked as big as Ping-Pong balls.
"So, uh, shall we have dinner?" I asked.
The boys nodded and followed me upstairs to the kitchen.
"Are you looking forward to Christmas?" Archie asked as I put his hot dog in front of him and poured him a glass of milk.
"Yeah, Charlie and Sam--you know, my older brothers?--are coming home tomorrow afternoon," I told them.
"That's good," Jackie said as he accidentally knocked his glass of milk over. I shook my head, reached for a dish towel, and mopped it up.
"Uh, sorry about that," Jackie said. "So, how do they like New York?"
"Oh, they love it there," I answered as I refilled Jackie's glass. "There you go."
"Thanks," Jackie answered. He never lets any snafus get in the way, especially when he causes them.
Somehow, dinner continued uneventfully. After we'd finished, Archie said, "Have you noticed how much snow we've been getting?""Oh, yeah," I answered.
"Do you think we'll have a white Christmas?"
"I hope so."
"My brothers and I had a race yesterday to see who could make it all the way across the yard and back," Jackie said.
"Whoa," I said as the boys finished their dinner and I cleared the dishes away. "I'll bet that was fun, huh?"
"Yup," Archie said.
"Let's do it again!" Jackie exclaimed as he jumped up from the table. "Want to join us, Kristy?"
"Oh, I don't know," I said. "That snow looks pretty deep."
"Aw, come on, Kristy! It'll be okay! Besides, we always make sure there's nothing in the way before we go down the hill," Jackie said.
"I'd still rather all three of us be in one piece when your parents and brother get home."
"Come on, Kristy, there's nothing in the yard," Archie protested.
I took a look outside the window. Sure enough, there was nothing in the way. "Well...all right, but I'll watch," I said.
"All right!" Jackie shouted, then ran to get their coats.
"But first, we should put our dishes in the dishwasher," I said. "I don't want your parents and brother to come home to a messy house."
"Good idea," Archie said as he gathered up the dishes and carried them to the dishwasher.
A few minutes later, we were outside in the backyard. I stood on the patio and watched as Jackie and Archie started on the far end of the yard. They stood with a baseball player stance and ran down the hill. Oh, how I miss the Krushers!
The next thing I knew, Jackie was shouting, "Hey, Kristy, watch this!" Archie was holding Jackie's ankles and moving him back up the hill, like a wheelbarrow. Right away, I could tell that something was bound to spin out of control. I mean, this is the Walking Disaster here.
"Hey, you guys, take it easy, you hear?" I shouted anxiously. I was just about to run out there and stop them when I heard Bo, their Dalmatian, scratching at the door. Obviously, he needed outside, but I couldn't leave the boys unattended. On the other hand, if I were their parents, I wouldn't want to come home to find a disgusting mess on the floor.
So, what do I do? Well, being the responsible person that everybody always told me I was, I very quickly opened the door to let Bo out. No sooner had Bo made his way outside did I hear one of the boys (I still don't know which one) scream, "KRISTY!"
I whipped around. I wasn't surprised that Jackie had another accident, but I wasn't expecting to see what I saw that day: Jackie was lying on the bottom of the hill, and his left forearm was bent at a 15-degree angle. Archie was kneeling beside him, just in hysterics.
I ran out there and motioned for Archie to stand back. "Can you sit up?" I asked.
"Yeah, just don't touch my arm," Jackie said weakly.
I pulled out my cell phone and called the number that the Rodowskys had given me. I could tell by Mrs. Rodowsky's tone of voice that neither of them were surprised. "Okay, Kristy, I want you and the boys to get to the hospital immediately," she said. "We'll meet you there."
Normally, I'm a very careful driver, but during the drive to the hospital, I was so preoccupied with worrying about Jackie, I wasn't watching the speed limit. The next thing I heard was the sound of a police car siren, so I pulled over and stopped the car.
A minute later, a cop appeared at my window. "License and registration, please," she said.
I handed them to her. "It all seems to be in order," she said. "Miss Thomas, do you know how fast you were going?"
I shook my head. "You were doing 61 in a 55 zone," she told me. And you should've seen the look on my face when I heard that.
"I was? God, I'm sorry," I said as she handed my papers back to me. "I had other things on my mind, like getting this kid--" I jerked my thumb in Jackie's direction "--to the hospital."
"Do you need an escort?"
I shook my head. "That won't be necessary," I said. "It won't happen again, Officer."
"Good," she said as she tore the ticket off the pad and handed it to me. "Let's try to be a little more careful next time, okay?"
Perfect. Just what I needed. Could this day get any better?
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Post by Deleted on Dec 1, 2008 16:53:51 GMT -5
CHAPTER 5
The two younger Rodowsky boys and I had just taken chairs in the waiting room when Shea and his parents came in. "Kristy, we came as soon as we heard," Mrs. Rodowsky told me. "What happened here?"
"We were playing wheelbarrow in the backyard, and I fell and hurt my arm," Jackie panted, grimacing in pain. And believe me, if I could trade places with that poor kid, I'd do it in a nanosecond.
"Jackie Rodowsky?" the nurse called.
"I'll go back with him," Mrs. Rodowsky volunteered. I nodded glumly, and Jackie followed his mother to the examining room.
"Kristy, if you'd like, you can go home," Mr. Rodowsky said, handing me the money.
"No, I want to stay," I told him. "After all, I was the one watching Jackie, and thanks to me, he hurt himself."
"Okay," Mr. Rodowsky said softly. For some reason, I didn't tell me I was being way too hard on myself. I think he knew how hard I was taking this, and thought it would be best if he just kept quiet about it.
I sat on a chair between Shea and Archie, picked up a copy of "Sports Illustrated", and tried to read it. I was so worried about Jackie, though, I didn't get past the first page. I tossed the magazine back onto the table.
About an hour later, Jackie and his mother came back out into the waiting room. As I'd suspected, Jackie's left forearm was in a cast. As soon as I saw that, my heart just sank.
"Mrs. Rodowsky, I am so sorry," I said. "I feel horrible."
"It wasn't your fault," Mrs. Rodowsky said reassuringly, patting my shoulder. "These things just happen. The doctor says that he should be out of the cast by New Year's, so he can really make a fresh start in the new year, in more ways than one."
I was glad that Jackie was going to be all right, but at the same time, I still felt like I'd let them down. And I didn't even want to think about what would happen when word got around about this.
The next morning, I went to Bellair's to do some last-minute shopping. I still needed to buy gifts for Karen, Andrew, Emily, and David Michael. I found a personalized keychain for Karen, a baseball cap for Andrew, a package of Blue's Clues barrettes for Emily, and a can of softballs for David Michael. I knew they'd love them.
"I'll have a blu-ue Christmas with-out you-ou," the PA system sang. If I wasn't feeling so rotten about Jackie's arm, I would've joined right in.
"Oh, shut up," I muttered. I would've expected someone to make me feel worse than I already did. But the PA system?
Just as I was leaving the sports department, I noticed Cokie Mason and Grace Blume. They were doing some shopping of their own. Hopefully, they were shopping for brains. One could only imagine how exhausting it must be for those two to have to share one.
Nearby, I could hear King humming the "Peoples' Court" theme while Alan Gray was saying, "This is the defendant, Kristy Thomas..."
"All right, you guys, that's enough," sharply cut them off.
"What did you do this time?" King teased.
"Like it's any of your business," I retorted.
"Hey, whoa, we're just asking," Alan said defensively. "We just heard that Rodowsky kid hurt himself, and we're just wondering if he's all right."
"What, you care?" I snapped.
That's when Cokie walked by. "Boy, somebody got up on the wrong side of the coffin," she commented.
That was all I needed to hear. Let me tell you, there's no love lost between her and the BSC, not by a long shot. I marched over to her and we stood nose-to-nose. "Look, b*tch," I growled. "I've had it up to here--" I put my hand over my head "--with your garbage, and so have a lot of people. So, if I were you, I'd stop bothering people, put a bag over my head, and go live under a bridge."
I turned around and stomped away. I just wanted to get home and forget what happened at the Rodowskys'.
When I got home, I took a quick look downstairs to make sure that none of the kids were around. The coast was clear, so I hurried upstairs to my room, and locked the door.
"Now, I know exactly how Mom felt," I said to myself as I took my purchases out of the bag.
I wrapped the presents and hid them under my bed. The last thing I wanted was the kids snooping around under there, especially at this time of year.
After checking to make sure they were well hidden, I reached for my purse. I'd had twenty dollars to spare when I left the store, but when I recounted it, I discovered that I had nineteen. I thought I must have dropped a dollar someplace, so I looked around my room, but had no results. Now, normally, I'm not so quick to suspect people, but the one thought that kept gnawing at me was the possibility that Cokie had taken it. I mean, who else would have?
If there really is such a thing as George Bailey syndrome, I definitely had it.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 2, 2008 17:40:00 GMT -5
A/N: In case you're wondering, Kristy is the George Bailey of this story, and Cokie is the Mr. Potter.
CHAPTER 6
After I'd finished stuffing everything back into my purse, I put it on the desk, and sat down on my bed to think. How did everything suddenly get so complicated? I mean, we've always expected some sort of disaster occuring at the Rodowskys', but this was the first time Jackie ever had to go to the emergency room while one of us was watching him. His parents had told me numerous times that it wasn't my fault, and these sort of things just happen, but it still didn't mean I didn't feel like crap.
"Kristy?" Mom's voice called from outside my door.
"Yeah, it's open," I answeed.
She came in and sat down beside me. "I just got off the phone with Mrs. Rodowsky. She said you really feel horrible about what happened to Jackie."
It took everything I had not to throw something across the room. Luckily, there was nothing breakable nearby. "I took my eyes off them for a split second to let Bo out," I said through clenched teeth, my voice breaking. "How could I have let this happen?"
Mom put her arm across my shoulders, and I laid my head on her chest. "It was an accident, honey," she said softly.
"Boy, I've never heard that one before," I said sarcastically. As much as I hate to admit it, if there's one thing we Thomases are known for, it's sarcasm.
"Kristy, honey, I know you're having a hard time, but you've got to believe me when I tell you that nobody blames you for this."
I raised my head and wiped the tears that were forming in my eyes. "No, but some people sure love having the chance to rub it in my face. Not only that, but that pompous sl*t, Cokie Mason, thought it was a good idea to steal a dollar from me."
I thought for sure that Mom would run to the bathroom and grab the first bar of soap she could find (knowing her, it would've been Lifebuoy), but she just shook her head. "Okay, Kristy, why don't you sit up here for a while and think things over. I'm sure you'll feel better once you've had some time to calm down."
"Okay, Mom," I said softly. We gave each other a hug, and she walked out of the room.
As I laid down on my bed, a million thoughts were going through my head, namely how nice everyone was to me about what had happened. When you think about it, we were all used to some sort of mishap occuring at the Rodowskys', and yes, kids do sometimes hurt themselves. That's the one thing we've always told ourselves to watch out for, and something like this could've happened while any of us were in charge over there.
But it didn't happen to anyone else. It happened to me. Either way you look at it, I was responsible. Jackie had hurt himself big-time, and it was my fault. Also, the one question that was gnawing at me more than anything was whether or not it would've made any difference if I'd never started the Baby-sitters Club.
I think it was nighttime when I sat up. That was because when I opened my eyes, I heard someone calling my name: "Kristy?"
I looked, and there, sitting at the foot of the bed, was a young woman with reddish-brown hair and green eyes. I rubbed my eyes to make sure I wasn't hallucinating. "Who the hell are you?" I asked.
"I'm Miriam, your guardian angel," she answered.
I thought for sure that somebody was playing a joke on me. As if I hadn't been through enough already! "All right, who put you up to this?" I asked suspiciously. "It was Alan Gray, right? That guy just doesn't know when to quit, does he?"
"No, it wasn't Alan. And you're right, he doesn't know when to quit."
"The next time I see Cokie, she is so going to need dentures," I growled, clenching my fists. I can't even begin to tell you how sick I was of peoples' bullshit.
"Whoa, slow down there, tiger!" Miriam exclaimed. "I still remember when you and your friends got back at that little bimbo at Old Hickory's grave."
"A, who are you really? And B, how do you know that?"
"I told you, I'm your guardian angel. I've been watching over you since the day you were born. I'll bet it would've been cool to have been born in Yankee Stadium, huh?"
"Actually, yeah," I admitted, cheering up a little. But it didn't last long. Immediately, I went back into third-degree mode. "So, you're my guardian angel, huh? Where were you when my dad ditched us?"
"I was making sure that your mom and Watson found each other."
I thought about that for a minute. "Fair enough," I decided. "I guess you know what you were doing then, huh?"
"Yeah, I guess I did. So, I understand that you've been having a hard time with things?"
"You don't know the half of it," I snorted. "I turn my back for two seconds, and one of the kids I'm sitting for breaks his arm."
"Those things happen, Kristy."
"Don't get me wrong, I love my baby-sitting club, but sometimes, I feel like things are spinning out of control," I confessed. And yes, I could feel the tears coming back. "And after what happened today, I'm starting to wonder if people would've been better off if I'd never put it together in the first place."
"Don't you think you're exaggerating just a little?"
"No, I don't, as a matter of fact," I retorted. "If you screwed up a baby-sitting job, got a speeding ticket, and were humiliated at the mall, not to mention having people looking at you like you were Kristy the Incompetent, how would you feel?"
"Okay, Kristy, all right. I'll tell you what I'm going to do. I'm going to show you what Stoneybrook would be like if you'd never formed the Baby-sitters Club."
"You're kidding, right?" I laughed in disbelief. I thought I was really losing my mind.
Miriam looked me in the eye, and it was a look that told me that if I wanted to feel any better, I'd better go along with it. "Would it help any if I told you that what you're about to see is just hypothetical, and not necessarily what would happen?" she asked.
That did it. I was stuck. "Whatever, as long as it'll help you get your wings," I sighed. I just wanted to get this over with.
"Okay," Miriam said, holding out her hand. I took it, and we got up from the bed. The next thing I saw was a bunch of flashing lights and colors swirling around us. It was like standing in the eye of a Life-Saver hurricane. And you know what? For the first time in my life, I actually wished I was Claudia.
"Just another day at the office for me," Miriam informed me.
Oh, yippee. This ought to be good.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 2, 2008 17:45:40 GMT -5
A/N: What you're about to read in these next few chapters may either shock you or make you laugh your head off.
CHAPTER 7
The next thing I knew, the colors and lights had stopped, and we were standing in the front hall of my old house on Bradford Court. "I thought the Perkins' lived here," I said, puzzled. I looked out the window, and saw that several houses on that block were boarded up.
"Well, they never moved here," Miriam answered.
I was just about to leave the window when Mary Anne's old house caught my eye. "What is this?" I asked, noticing the bars on all the windows.
"Well, since you never formed the Baby-sitters Club, Mary Anne found a new friend in Dawn, and they still reunited their parents."
"Oh, well, that's not too bad, is it?"
"Well, in a way," Miriam answered.
I didn't like how Miriam said that. Not one bit. "What do you mean?" I asked.
"I think you should come see this."
We climbed outside througt a hole in the wall, and I looked up and down both sides of the street. Almost all of the houses on that bock were boarded up or abandoned, there was garbage everywhere, and a couple of overturned cars. "What the hell...?" I murmured.
"I knew you weren't going to like this," Miriam said, shaking her head.
"Where's Mary Anne?" I demanded. "Where's Claudia? What's the deal here?"
Miriam led me down the street to the Kishis' house. Like the others, it was boarded up, and also had huge patches of mold and mildew all over the cracked, crumbling, and warped siding. I just wanted to puke, it was so disgusting.
"Claudia ran away to New York," Miriam explained. "She got so tired of her parents always comparing her to Janine, and a few days after Stacey moved back to New York, Claudia packed a bag and snuck out in the middle of the night after a huge blow-up, and her family moved to Stamford."
Whoa. I always knew that Claud's relationship with her family had its rough spots, but this was something even I never would've expected. If this was Stoneybrook without the BSC, I hated to think about what would've become of my friends.
Miriam and I started walking through town. I saw more abandoned, falling-apart houses, garbage, and stray animals everywhere. I'm surprised those animals weren't hungry enough to want to eat us for dinner, and I was willing to bet my college tuition that they were carrying every disease in the book.
"Wait a minute, this can't be Rosedale Road," I said. "I don't remember the Marshalls' house looking like that." The Marshalls' house looked like a bunker. Not only were there bars on the windows, but instead of their white picket fence with the pink and gold trim, I saw barbed wire and sandbags.
"Well, that's because Nina was almost kidnapped, and the Marshalls' don't trust anybody anymore," Miriam answered.
"Boy, I'll say they don't!" I commented.
Without warning, a figure dressed all in black popped up from behind one of the sandbags and pointed a shotgun at us. "Freeze!" he shouted.
My heart almost jumped into my throat. "Mr. Marshall!" I stammered. "I-it's me! It's Kristy! Kristy Thomas! Remember, I baby-sat for the girls last week?"
"Last week? We haven't had a sitter in six months, thanks to that bastard who tried to grab my Nina!"
"I think it'd be best if we got out of here before he starts getting trigger-happy," Miriam said, grabbing my arm and ushering me away from the house.
"Where's Mary Anne?" I asked.
"Uh, say, why don't we go see that Christmas tree lighting in the town square?" Miriam suggested. Right away, I could tell that she was hiding something.
"You take me to see Mary Anne right now," I ordered. I felt like I was talking to one of my younger siblings, for crying out loud.
Miriam clearly got the message, because the next thing I knew, we were standing in the 4200 block of Rosedale Road. I knew that right away, because one of the houses, 4221, was one that Stacey and her mom had looked at, and it was still there. And yes, it was still next door to that hideous-looking edifice that had all those Christmas decorations in the front yard. (If you ask me, I think those people are distantly related to the Griswolds.) Anyway, the house Stacey and her mom had looked at was this absolute health hazard: the roof was all but gone, the windows were smashed, the foundation was rotted through, and the door was barely hanging on by its rust-coated bottom hinge. If that house could talk, it would've been begging for someone to burn it to the ground.
"Is that Mary Anne's house?" I asked in disbelief.
"Unfortunately, yes. She's all by herself here," Miriam said grimly. "Ever since the big farmhouse burned down, and Dawn moved back to California, she's just completely fallen apart, like this house."
"Oh, no, don't tell me she's started wearing her hair in braids again."
That's when we saw Mary Anne coming out of the house. No, her hair wasn't in braids, but it was filthy-dirty, had split ends, and was falling out. She was wearing a hot-pink midriff top, a black leather miniskirt, red Doc Martens with yellow laces, and an overcoat that looked like even more worn-out than she did. "d**n, isn't she freezing?" I asked Miriam.
"Well, if you were a full-blown junkie, you'd be pretty oblivious to the cold, too," Miriam answered.
"Hey, Mary Anne!" I called.
She turned around. "What do you want?" she asked, sniffling and wiping her runny nose on her sleeve.
"Mary Anne, don't you know me? I'm Kristy," I said.
Mary Anne narrowed her eyes, and her lips curled in disgust. "Oh, yeah, now it's allll coming back to me," she said coldly. "All those years of bossing me around, thinking you knew everything, and don't even get me started on how you never threw me a bone when my house burned down, Dawn moved back to California, and Dad and Sharon decided to move to Philadelphia without asking me how I felt. Yeah, some friend you turned out to be!"
"Wait, what are you talking about?" I cried. "We let you stay at our house until you could find a temporary one while they were renovating the barn!"
"The hell you did!" she screamed. I couldn't help gasping, because this was the first time I'd ever heard Mary Anne swear. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to try to get my fix now." With that, she shoved me aside, and left, swaying ueasily all the while.
This was definitely not the Mary Anne I knew. Without the BSC, was this how she would've turned out?
What a horrific thought.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 3, 2008 8:22:27 GMT -5
CHAPTER 8
Before I knew it, we were in another part of town. Something about it looked vaguely familiar, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. "Do you know this place?" Miriam asked.
"Should I?" I answered. I saw a few houses, plus an apartment building a good distance away, and at least a couple more that looked like they'd been bulldozed to the ground.
"This is Watson's neighborhood," Miriam told me.
"You're kidding," I gasped. I couldn't believe what had become of the place. "Why would anyone want to do this?"
"Well this is how it would look if you'd never formed the Baby-sitters Club," Miriam answered.
Just then, I saw two small figures running down the street toward us. I thought for sure they were going to either mug us, beat us up, or pick our pockets. When I got a better look, I realized that they were, of all people, Linny and Hannie Papadakis. "Linny? Hannie?" I called.
They stopped and turned around. "Kristy?" Hannie exclaimed. "God, what are you doing here?"
"I live here, remember?"
"Really?" Linny asked. "I thought you moved back to Bradford Court."
"I've seen Bradford Court, and it doesn't look very friendly."
"Well, neither does this place, but it's a hell of a lot safer here," Hannie pointed out.
"What happened to those houses?" I asked, pointing in the direction of Watson's and Mrs. Porter's houses.
"Mrs. Porter moved to Ohio about six months ago, and some bloodsucking land developers are building a shopping center we don't really need all the way out here, so they're tearing down every house in sight," Linny growled, turning his head and spitting on the ground. "But they're not going to tear our house down!"
After he said that, he snatched up a nearby lead pipe, handed it to Hannie, and put on a set of brass knuckles. I was really shocked, because these were definitely not the sweet, down-to-earth kids I remembered.
"Have you seen Karen and Andrew?" I asked them, trying to hide my alarm, but to no avail.
"Not since they moved to Nebraska with their mother and stepfather," Linny answered.
"What? When did that happen?"
"Over the summer," Hannie answered, fighting the tears that were coming. "Listen, you'd better get out of here."
"What? Why?"
Hannie pointed behind me. I turned around and saw a Mercedes parking beside the curb. A minute later, three guys in suits got out of the car. And they didn't look like very nice people. Linny must have known they were there, because he pushed his way past me, and stalked toward them with Hannie close behind, gripping the lead pipe like a Louisville slugger.
"I think we should take Hannie's advice and get going," Miriam said, grabbing my elbow.
All this because I decided not to start the Baby-sitters Club!
As we walked up the street, Miriam suggested, "What do you say we see how the Everetts are getting along, shall we?"
"Oh, yeah, I'll bet they're just peachy," I said sarcastically. "The entire town looks like a war zone, in case you haven't noticed."
"Well, this is how it might look without the Baby-sitters Club," Miriam reminded me.
"Oh, come on!" I exclaimed. "Do you really expect me to believe that parents would let their kids run that wild if I'd never started the club?"
"Well, you never know."
"Look, let's just see how much the Everetts' life is shot to hell, and move on, okay?"
That's when we found ourselves outside the apartments, and much to my surprise, the entire complex was not only still standing, but it looked like it did before. "Well, I'll be damned," I marvelled. "I thought for sure they'd be all gone, too."
That's when I saw Steve, Diann, and Bebe coming out of their apartment. They all looked pretty downcast. I didn't think anything of it at first, nor could I really blame them for feeling that way. I know I would have. "Boy, I'll just bet they're loving what's happened to the rest of the town, too, huh?" I commented.
"That's not the only reason why they're upset," Miriam said. "You see, without the BSC, Jason was never able to control his anger, and now he's in a juvenile facility in Hartford for almost beating a man to death."
If my jaw had dropped any lower, it would've hit China. "I don't believe it," I moaned in shock. "I mean, Jason's always had a bit of a temper, but it would never lead to him doing something like that."
"And I'll bet it never occured to you that your club is one of the things that kept him out of trouble, is that it?" Miriam challenged me.
"Okay, you're right. I shouldn't have said what I said about never forming the BSC. I get it. Can we go home now?"
"Not yet. There's more to see."
Oh, great. Just what I wanted to hear. "Well, that's nice to know," I roughly barged on, "but if it's all right with you, I really don't want to see any more, so I'm leaving. Say hi to Mimi for me, and I hope you get your wings. Goodbye." And with that, I turned on my heel and started up the street. I just wanted to get things back to normal.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 3, 2008 8:29:28 GMT -5
A/N: The "alternate Stoneybrook" is pretty scary, isn't it?
CHAPTER 9
As soon as I'd made sure that Miriam was gone, I ran up McLelland Road, toward town. To be honest with you, I'd had more than enough of this crap. I just wanted everything back the way it was.
I was cold and thirsty, and hot chocolate sounded like a good idea. I didn't even care what sort of nasty surprise I would find. That's how cold I was.
That's when I found myself outside the coffee house, which was just down the street from Stoneybrook University. It wasn't quite as clean as I'd remembered it, but at least it was still standing. The real surprise came when I found Abby standing behind the counter, reading a magazine. "Yeah, what'll you have?" she asked, without even looking up to see who it was.
"Just a hot chocolate," I answered, seating myself on one of the high stools at the counter.
Sighing, Abby put down the magazine and went to the kitchen doorway to yell out the order. "Hey, Joe! I need a hot chocolate!" Then she turned around and saw me. "Say, don't I know you?"
"Abby, it's Kristy, remember?"
"Kristy who?"
"Kristy Thomas, from school. Remember?"
Abby studied me for a second. "I've never seen you before in my life, but you look like a sports buff to me," she answered.
"Yeah, that's right," I said. "How did you know?"
"That's the only kind of people we ever get in this slop house anymore."
"Seriously, though, I am a sports buff. Remember, we had that basketball game in gym class before Thanksgiving break?"
"Uh, actually, the school burned down six years ago."
I sighed and held my head, because I knew what was coming next. "All right, how many seconds do I have to get out of here before you blow my head off?"
Abby looked at me in surprise. "I'm not blowing anybody's head off, are you?"
"Abby, you have no idea what I've been through," I groaned. "One minute, I'm in my room, stewing over how I'd let a kid I was watching get hurt, and the next thing I knew, this crazy woman who claims to be my guardian angel shows up, and starts giving me all this psycho-babble about how people need the Baby-sitters Club, and well, I guess you know the rest."
"It kind of reminds me of a movie they show on TV around this time of year."
"Really? What?"
"'It's A Wonderful Life'. Ever see it?"
"Who hasn't?"
"So, this woman says that she's your guardian angel, huh?" Abby said as she served my hot chocolate.
I nodded and took a sip of my drink. "After my dad died, I had a similar experience with this old guy who looked like a cross between Mr. Magoo and Eric Stoltz from when he was in 'Mask', but I just kept blowing him off," Abby continued. "Now that I think about it, I kind of wish I'd listened to him, but I didn't, and here I am. I ran away from Long Island when I was thirteen, found a job right here in Stoneybrook, and I've been here ever since."
I put down my hot chocolate and looked suspiciously at Abby. "So, you're saying I should listen to her?" I suggested.
"I would."
"Okay, sure. What the hell?" With all that's happened to me, I might as well try to make things right.
After I paid for my drink and left the coffee house, I saw Sam coming out of one of the frathouses. He was dressed in a chicken suit, and stumbling all over the place. Right away, I could tell that he'd had too much to drink, and I could probably smell him from two blocks away. He stunk!
After Sam picked himself off the curb, he turned and noticed me standing there. "Hey, Kristy, how's it going, Sis?" he slurred happily. I couldn't understand how anyone as ripped as he was would've ever recognized me.
"Sam!" I cried in disbelief. "Sam, my God! What happened to you? What happened to the town? What the hell's going on here?"
"I don't know. What did happen to the town?"
"Sam, come on!"
"Where are we going?"
"Sam, I'm serious! I just want to show you what's become of Stoneybrook." I draped his arm across my shoulders, and we walked down the street.
"Oooh, somebody's in a bad mood," he said, trying his hardest to maintain his balance.
"Sam, look! It didn't look like this yesterday!"
I should've expected Sam to say something really stupid, because, well, that's what he's known for. "Well, neither did your room, but things still turned out all right," he snickered.
"Where's Mom and Watson?" I asked, changing the subject. Apparently, that was the wrong question to ask, because in one second flat, Sam yanked himself free from my grip and glared at me. I hadn't seen him that pissed since the time I'd spilled my orange juice on his Sammy Sosa T-shirt.
"What do you mean, where's Mom and Watson?" he demanded. "And since when are you and Mom on speaking terms again?"
"Look, I just want to know where Mom is," I said.
"The same place as always, I guess," he answered angrily. "Downtown." And with that, he collapsed into a peaceful sleep, landing headfirst into a fallen stop sign.
'Right. Downtown,' I thought. 'Can't wait to see this.'
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Post by mafan4life on Dec 3, 2008 11:51:59 GMT -5
You're a terrific writer
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Post by Deleted on Dec 4, 2008 8:10:06 GMT -5
CHAPTER 10
When I got to the center of town, I couldn't believe my eyes. A riot was in progress. There were broken windows and burned-out buildings, and people were looting the stores, grabbing clothes, stereos, jewelry, and anything else they could get their hands on. I even saw Alan Gray running down the street, and also dropping almost everything he'd swiped.
"We're slashing pries! Everything must go!" he was shouting. And then he ran headfirst into a nearby lamppost. After he collapsed to the ground, a bunch of muscleheads ran up to him, grabbed everything he'd had in his pockets, and took off. I'll admit, seeing that happen was more than a little amusing.
'That's what you get for your little terrorist act at the airport, dumbass,' I thought, but I couldn't really think about that now, because my first order of business was to find Mom.
I had just started down the street when I heard a voice calling, "Kristy! Hey, Kristy!"
I turned around and saw Miriam running toward me. "Miriam?" I said. "Boy, am I glad to see you!"
"I thought you might be," she answered. "What's happened so far?"
"Well, I saw Abby working at the coffee house on the college campus, and I saw my brother coming drunk from a frat party, and now this."
I'd just barely gotten the words out when I heard a huge crash behind me. I spun around, and saw some of the Pikes throw a mailbox through a store window, and grab everything in sight. I was really shocked, because I never, in my wildest dreams, imagined the Pike kids being capable of doing such a serious crime.
"Let's get out of here and find my mom," I told Miriam.
"Okay," she agreed, reaching for my arm, and we made our way up the street.
I just wondered what kind of shape Mom was in, and maybe I could also find out what happened to Watson.
We had just turned the corner and made our way up that street when I was in for another shock. Charlotte Johanssen and Becca Ramsey were running out of one of the stores, each carrying a shopping bag. At first, I'd assumed they'd just finished shopping, but when they ran by us, I saw pearls flopping against their chests and trickling out of their shirts. That's when I started to get suspicious.
I decided to follow the girls, so off we went. Maybe we could find Mom while we were at it.
"I really don't think you're going to like what you're about to see," Miriam warned.
I spun around and got right up in Miriam's face. "Hey, you know what? I haven't liked one single thing I've seen here, okay?" I barked. "Why don't you go make some prank calls to Dionne Warwick and leave me alone!"
"Well," Miriam said, "she told me that if I made fun of how big her nostrils are one more time, she'd smother me in my sleep."
I let out a scream of fury, sounding like Lily Finnerty from "Grounded for Life". Apparently, it worked, because the next thing I knew, I was standing in front of Hurley's Garage, and Miriam was nowhere in sight. I don't know why, but I found myself remembering the time Dawn accidentally dialed that number when she was trying to reach Mrs. Barrett, before she became Mrs. DeWitt, when one of her kids got sick. "Well, now what?" I muttered.
Right on cue, the door opened, and Charlotte and Becca came sauntering out. "Girl, I've never seen anyone with hands that fast," Becca was laughing as the two of them high-fived.
"Well, you kept dropping all that stuff. I had to do something, right?" Charlotte answered.
I felt like the sky had just fallen on me. Never in a million years would I have pictured Charlotte Johanssen, a doctor's daughter, and the shyest, sweetest girl I know, doing such an about-face. I could only imagine how heartbroken her parents must be.
Charlotte and Becca had just run off when I saw Mom step outside with a trash bag and make her way over to one of the dumpsters. "Mom!" I called.
She looked up. The first thing I noticed was how tired and haggard she looked. She had dark circles under her eyes, and she was wearing a faded NYU sweatshirt that looked like it was two sizes too big, bleach-stained jeans, and paint-splattered high-tops. I waited, figuring that she'd throw something at me and start screaming her head off. Instead, she had the warmest smile on her face.
"Kristy! I'm so glad to see you!" Mom exclaimed, running up and wrapping me in a hug.
"Mom, that can't be you," I stammered.
"Of course it's me, honey. Are you okay?"
"Yeah, considering."
"I just put some soup on. Would you like to come up for some?"
"Yeah, sure. Why not?" I answered, and we headed toward the house.
At least my mom was the same way I remembered her. Well, sort of.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 4, 2008 8:15:44 GMT -5
CHAPTER 11
I followed Mom up the steps to her apartment. She opened the door, and we stepped inside. "Make yourself at home," she said.
I decided to take a little tour of the place, because I was anxious to see how my mom lived. I followed her to the kitchen, and found a table with five chairs around it, just like it had been when we'd lived on Bradford Court. The only difference was, instead of a stove and refrigerator, there was a hot plate on the counter and an ice chest nearby.
In the living room, which was attached to the kitchen, I found a loveseat jammed up against one wall, a recliner on the left side, a four-foot Christmas tree on the right side, and, on a shelf bolted to the opposite wall, a beat-up 12-inch TV with its left antennae bent and the bottom right corner covered with duct-tape. I knelt beside the Christmas tree to examine the presents. I saw gifts for me, my brothers, and Nannie, but I didn't see gifts for Watson, Karen, Andrew, or Emily. I decided to ask Mom about it later.
I walked down the hall and peeked into one of the bedrooms. I saw a full-size bed against one wall, and a laptop against the other. It had to have been Mom's room.
Across the hall from Mom's room, I found a bathroom. There was a green rug on the floor, and green covers on and around the toilet. I stepped into the bathroom to use it, and when I got done, I found myself washing my hands in a dark green sink. I turned around and studied the tub. It was also dark green with a brown ring forming in it, and had a shower head with a bit of limescale build-up around the edges. The shower curtain, which was just starting to mildew, had little red and green polka dots on it.
I will tell you one thing. As much as the rest of the place looked like it had seen better days, it made the bathroom look almost immaculate, in comparison.
When I came out of the bathroom, I decided to continue my tour. In another bedroom, I saw a set-up that reminded me of the boys' room on "The Brady Bunch": there was a set of bunk beds against one wall, and a single bed against the other. I assumed that my brothers slept in that room.
At the very back of the apartment, I found, what I assumed, was my room. To my surprise, it looked exactly like my old room when we lived on Bradford Court. Talk about a blast from the past!
When I came back into the kitchen, Mom was ladling the soup into bowls for us. "Mom, you would not believe what I've just been through," I said as I sat down at the table. "Mary Anne's a junkie, Jason's in juvie, the town looks like a war zone, all the kids are running wild, and Sam can't hold his liquor."
"Well, since no one was available to baby-sit for anyone, things just went downhill," Mom said, shaking her head and putting the bowl of soup in front of me.
"All this because I never started the Baby-sitters Club?"
"Huh?"
"The Baby-sitters Club! Remember? I started it because you couldn't find a sitter for David Michael? Stacey, Claud, Mary Anne, and I all pitched in, and everybody loved us. Is any of that ringing any bells here?"
At that moment, David Michael came in, carrying a stereo. I did a double-take. He was wearing a Public Enemy sweatshirt, baggy jeans, tan work boots, a faded black parka, and a chunky gold necklace around his neck, as well as two earrings in each ear and a cigarette in his mouth. He looked like a gang-banger.
"Hi, Mom," he said breathlessly. "This was all I could find. I lost the cops going through the storm drain. You know, people say the less donuts you eat, the faster you can run."
If I was Mom, I would've given him a piece of my mind, not just about stealing the stereo, but also for acting like it was a game. But, much to my shock, she laughed.
"Good boy," she said. "Just put it in the utility room."
I could not believe my ears. Mom was actually condoning this. "Mom," I managed to say after David Michael left. "Mom, what the hell are you thinking? You're actually praising him!"
"Kristy, please spare me another lecture on what a mess our family is," Mom groaned, getting up from the table and putting her bowl in the sink.
"You can't be serious! How can you let him get away with this? How can any of this be happening? Is Watson really that much of a jerk?"
Mom turned to face me. "Watson? Kristy, are you sure you're feeling okay?"
"NO! No, I'm not okay!" I shouted, jumping up from the table. "I don't understand what's happening here, and why the hell no one can give me a simple, straight answer!"
"You know, I've kind of wondered that myself, Kristy."
"Mom, I just want to know one thing," I said, putting my bowl in the sink and turning to face her. "Where is he? Where's Watson Brewer?"
Mom looked at me in surprise. It was as if she couldn't believe that I didn't even know, but the thing is, I seriously didn't. "Why, Kristy," she said, trying to keep her voice steady, "he's in the same place he's always been for the last four years...Stoneybrook Cemetery."
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Post by mafan4life on Dec 4, 2008 12:23:31 GMT -5
You're very good.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 5, 2008 7:48:20 GMT -5
CHAPTER 12
As soon as those words came out of Mom's mouth, I just stared at her. Before I knew what was happening, I turned on my heel and ran out the door.
As I ran to the cemetery, several thoughts were going through my head. If I had not made my wish, the town would not be so messed up.
The first person I thought of was Mary Anne. Normally, she hates swearing. In fact, she reminds me of a librarian. But from what I just saw, she could make even the most outspoken drag queen cringe.
Next, I thought of Jason. Knowing him as well as I do, he wouldn't go as far as attempted first-degree murder. In fact, the worst I've seen him do is when he almost punched this one kid named T-Jam on his first day at SMS.
I also couldn't believe that I'd witnessed several of our baby-sitting charges, namely Charlotte, Becca, and David Michael, performing such violent acts of crime. They're usually such good kids.
The last people I thought of were Claudia and Stacey. I remembered Miriam saying something about Stacey moving back to New York, and Claudia running away from home to join her after a big falling-out with her parents. I also couldn't help wondering about Jessi, and why I hadn't seen her yet. I'd seen Becca, but not Jessi, and then it hit me.
I remembered an old song called "Annie Doesn't Live Here Anymore". (Nannie has the record of it, and I've listened to it at least once.) My guess was, Jessi had joined this dance troupe in New York. She'd had the opportunity to join them (and it's headed up by none other than David Brailsford), but she declined. She wanted to stay here and finish school. That had to be it.
A police car siren interrupted my thoughts. As a curious onlooker, I went to see what was going on. I saw Mrs. Felder standing beside the car, holding three-year-old Hope. Susan, their autistic twelve-year-old daughter, was standing beside her, flapping her free hand and clicking her tongue, like she usually did. "Mrs. Felder?" I said as I ran over to them. "What's going on?"
"Someone started making fun of Susan, and Mr. Felder attacked him with a lead pipe," Mrs. Felder answered as we watched Mr. Felder being handcuffed and put in the police car. Then they drove away.
"Wow, that's unbelieveable," I whispered. I knew it wasn't nice to call mentally disabled people names, because as Jason once said, it's prejudice, and it still exists. That's why there are agencies to help such people, and they sometimes focus more on the abilities than the disabilities. I also knew Mr. Felder was trying to protect his daughter, which any parent should, but I'd never imagined him going that far.
"Well, I should be going," I said at last. "Nice seeing you."
"Thanks, Kristy," Mrs. Felder said, managing a tiny smile.
I watched as Mrs. Felder and the girls got back in their car and drove off before I went on my way.
A few minutes later, I found myself standing outside the cemetery. As I approached the gate, I took a deep breath, let it out, and opened the gate.
I just wanted to get this over with.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Dec 5, 2008 7:52:32 GMT -5
A/N: As you can tell, I'm battling personal demons in the previous chapter.
CHAPTER 13
I rushed into the cemetery, closed the gate behind me, and leaned against it. I was so breathless that I had to take a minute before I started searching for Watson's grave.
As I walked, I started looking at the grave markers, and hoping against hope that what Mom had said wasn't true. But with everything I'd seen up to this point, I was prepared for anything. It was already dark, so it was a little hard to tell the gravestones apart. And the snow didn't help matters, either.
And then, just when I'd passed by the old sycamore tree, I saw it: Watson's grave. My knees locked. My eyes filled with tears, and I felt a sharp pain shooting across my chest and down my right arm. I'd never seen something so horrifying in my entire life.
When I could finally get my legs to move, I walked over to the stone, laid my flashlight on the ground, and knelt in front of it. "No," I whispered in horror. "No! This can't be happening! Oh, please, God, no!"
I'm not a big crier, but after seeing Watson's grave, I threw myself onto the stone and started bawling my eyes out. I just couldn't conceive of the possibility that something like the BSC never forming could result in such mayhem and heartbreak, and I sure as hell never imagined my family and friends turning out the way they did. I didn't want to believe it, but these things were there, every single one of them. All because of my poor-me attitude toward one of our sitting charges hurting himself.
I looked up at the sky and continued, "God, please, take me back! I'm sorry for what I said about the Baby-sitters Club! I take it all back! I don't care what happens to me anymore! Just let me get back to the way things were, and I promise I'll never say things like that again!"
That was the last thing I remember before finally collapsing into blackness.
The next thing I knew, I was lying on my bed. I sat up and looked at my surroundings. There were my dresser, desk, and TV in their usual places. I couldn't believe it.
"Oh, God, what a nightmare," I said to myself as I stood up.
The next thing I heard was someone calling my name: "Kristy!"
'I know that voice!' I thought. 'Sam!'
"Coming!" I called back as I put on my shoes and ran downstairs.
Sure enough, when I reached the bottom step, there he was. I couldn't believe how normal he looked. I screamed ecstatically and threw my arms around him, almost knocking him over in the process.
"d**n, you sure sobered up fast!" I commented as I let go of him.
Sam gave me a puzzled look. "What are you talking about?" he asked.
"Sam, you have no idea what I've been through," I told him. "It all started when Jackie Rodowsky broke his arm yesterday. I was so sure that starting the BSC was a mistake, but when I got home, nothing was the way I remembered it."
"Well, it's almost time for the party, so we'd better get moving," he told me.
I stared at him blankly. "What party?" I asked. I didn't remember there being a party at our house.
"Our Christmas party. All your friends are coming, remember?"
"Oh, that party."
"Yeah, you started planning it when Charlie and I were here for Thanksgiving," Sam continued. "If you'd like, I can tell you what you said, how you said it, and even what you sounded like."
Leave it to Sam to say something like that. "Don't you dare," I threatened him, but at the same time, I couldn't help laughing.
As Sam and I started heading toward the living room, I had a feeling that things were going to be all right now.
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