Starring Sally J. Freedman as Herself Page 16

  “The answer is still no, Sally.”

  “But Mom … it’s very warm out and I’ll come in by eight … I promise … and you always let me stay out until nine on Fridays.”

  “Stop begging,” Mom said. “If I let you go out you’ll only run around and get all sweated up and then you’ll get thirsty and want to drink a quart of juice and then, bingo, another stomach ache.”

  “I won’t run. I’ll sit very quietly by the goldfish pool.”

  “This discussion is over,” Mom said. “Tonight you’re going to bed early and that’s that.”

  If Sally couldn’t go out tonight then she wouldn’t get to see Mr. Zavodsky’s friend, Simon. And this could be just the evidence she’d been waiting for! But there was no point in arguing with her mother. Mom wasn’t going to change her mind. Sally wrote another note.

  Dear Mr. Zavodsky,

  Okay. Enough is enough! I know all about you and Simon. You better not try anything funny. I’m closing in on you. This is your last chance to give yourself up.

  Sally was going to put this letter into Mr. Zavodsky’s mailbox the next morning, on her way to the Seagull Pool Club. But the Rubins had recently joined the Seagull and today was to be their first day and both families were going over together. So there was no chance for Sally to mail her letter without being noticed. She would just have to wait until later.

  “I’m so excited!” Andrea said. “Do you like my new suit?”

  “It’s very nice,” Sally said, putting the letter into her beach bag. Andrea’s new bathing suit was two-piece, with green stripes. The top was the same kind of halter that Jackie wore to school. The same kind that Peter Hornstein admired.

  When the girls were in the changing room at the Seagull Sally told Andrea, “You have to wear a bathing hat here.”

  “I hate bathing hats!”

  “Me too … they make my head itch … but you can’t go in without one … it’s a rule.”

  “I hate rules!”

  “Me too … and that’s not the only one either … you have to wash your feet before they’ll let you in …”

  “My feet!”

  “Yes.”

  “You’re the one with the fungus,” Andrea said.

  “I have to wash mine too … besides, my fungus is cleared up … you want to see …” She sat on the bench and held her bare feet up so that Andrea could see the bottoms.

  “They’re peeling!”

  “I know,” Sally said. “That’s the fungus part coming off.”

  “Euueewww …” Andrea made her “disgusting” face.

  Sally was worried. She had never told Andrea that Georgia Blue Eyes belonged to the Seagull Pool. The only thing to do now was pretend that she had never seen him there before. She’d act as surprised as Andrea. Of course, she’d have to explain this to Shelby but she was sure Shelby would go along with her. Or better yet, maybe Georgia Blue Eyes wouldn’t show up today. Maybe he’d stay home with Virus X or something.

  Sally, Andrea and Shelby were dunking in the shallow end of the pool when four boys surrounded them. One of them was Georgia Blue Eyes! But before Sally had a chance to say anything he sneaked up behind Andrea and untied her bathing suit top. “Tiddly winks … tiddly winks …” he called and the other boys joined in, chanting, “Tiddly winks … tiddly winks …”

  Lucky for Andrea her halter top was tied in two places, around her back and around her neck. Georgia Blue Eyes got only the string around her back. Andrea held her suit to her as the boys splashed, cutting the water with their hands so that it hit the girls in their faces. “Stop it … stop it …” the girls cried.

  “Hey … it’s Sally Nevermind,” Georgia Blue Eyes shouted. And the other boys began to call, “Sal-ly Nevermin-d … Sal-ly Nevermin-d …”

  Finally, the lifeguard blew his whistle and the boys swam away. They were still laughing when they reached the other side of the pool.

  Andrea ran for the changing room, with Sally and Shelby on her trail. When they got there, safe at last, Sally could see that Andrea was close to tears. “Want me to tie your top for you?” Sally asked.

  “Don’t you touch me!” Andrea said. “He knows your name.”

  Sally was surprised that Andrea was angry about that now. What the boys did was so much worse. She was sure Andrea would be too mad at them to care about Georgia Blue Eyes knowing her name. “No, he doesn’t,” she told Andrea.

  “Don’t lie to me … I heard him call you Sally.”

  “Oh, that … he knows my first name but not my last.”

  “You never told me he belongs here!”

  “I didn’t know myself.”

  “Liar!”

  “I’ve seen him here a few times but I didn’t know he was a member.”

  “You never said you saw him here.”

  “I didn’t? I guess I forgot.”

  “How could you … how could you keep such a secret from me? I hate you! I’m never going to speak to you again!” She ran into a toilet stall and slammed the door.

  “Whew …” Shelby said, “she’s really mad.”

  “I know.”

  “I think she might really hate you.”

  “I know.”

  “Have you got any suntan lotion?” Shelby asked. “My back is killing me.”

  Sally opened her locker and took out her beach bag.

  “What are you going to do?” Shelby asked.

  “I don’t know.” Sally couldn’t find the lotion. She turned the bag upside down and shook. Everything fell out onto the wet floor, including her letter to Mr. Zavodsky.

  “I sure wouldn’t want to trade places with you!” Shelby said.

  Sally picked up her letter. It was ruined. The ink had blurred.

  “Could you do my back?” Shelby asked.

  “In a second …” Sally mashed up her letter and threw it into the trash basket. She could write a better one later. Right now she had other things to worry about, like Andrea hating her.

  Sally got a letter from her father, written on pink dental wax, the same day that Douglas got one written on toilet paper. Daddy never ran out of ideas for funny letters. Sally also got a letter from Christine.

  Dear Sally,

  You probably don’t remember me but I used to be your best friend. My name is Chrissy. We used to live on the same street. I haven’t heard from you in ages. It is too bad that some people go away and forget their old friends. In case you are wondering, we survived the ice storm. My mother says it will go down in history. In case you are wondering, we have a new girl in our class. Her name is Pearl and she comes from Ohio. She thinks she’s great because she can do fractions. Nobody likes her. She’s a real jerk. Do you remember Tommy Byers? In case you’re wondering, I like him. So does Pearl. I guess you must be having a great time with all the other millionaires. If you can find time to write, in-between all your parties and dances, I might be able to find the time to read your letter.

  Your old friend,

  Chrissy

  Miss Swetnick and Peter Hornstein’s brother, Hank, rented an apartment in the building next to Sally’s. Sally could look out her livingroom window and see into their bedroom. They were painting it themselves. On Thursday after supper Sally waved to them and they waved back. “Need any help?” Sally called. “I love to paint.”

  “Sure … come on over,” Hank called back, leaning out the window. “We’re going to do the bathroom tonight.”

  Sally ran next door. “We have a beautiful bathroom back home,” she told Miss Swetnick and Hank. “It’s black and lavender.”

  “We’re doing ours in blue,” Miss Swetnick said. She had on shorts and a man’s shirt, with the tails hanging out. Sally was used to seeing her in dresses.

  “Black and lavender looks really pretty …” Sally said, “just like a bordello.”

  Miss Swetnick and Hank looked at each other and laughed. “Who told you that,” Miss Swetnick asked.

  “My father,” Sally said. “Have you eve
r been to a bordello?”

  “No,” Miss Swetnick said, “I haven’t.”

  “Me neither.”

  They laughed again. “Do you know what a bordello is,” Hank asked.

  “No … do you?”

  Miss Swetnick cleared her throat and said, “Come on … let’s get busy … we have a lot to do tonight …”

  They went into the bathroom. Hank handed Sally a paint brush. “You can start under the sink,” he said. “I can’t get in there because of my size.”

  “I’m going to work on the curtains, darling,” Miss Swetnick said.

  “Okay …” Hank told her. “My partner and I will see how far we can get …”

  Sally crawled under the sink. “Does your brother ever help you paint?”

  “No … Peter would rather play ball.”

  Sally dipped her brush into the tray of blue paint and started on the wall. “Does Peter talk much about his school friends?”

  “Not too much.”

  Some paint dripped onto the floor. Sally wiped it up with a cloth. “Does he ever mention them by name?”

  “Now and then.”

  Sally paused, her brush on the wall. “Does he ever mention Jackie?”

  “Jackie … let’s see … is he the one who plays third base?”

  “No … Jackie’s a girl!”

  “Oh, a girl! No, I don’t think he’s ever mentioned her …”

  Sally smiled to herself and went back to painting.

  After a while, Hank said, “The only girl I’ve ever heard him talk about is Sally …”

  “Sally … that’s me!”

  “Oh …” Hank said. “I didn’t realize you were that Sally.”

  “Yes, I’m the only one in the class.” She wanted to ask, What did Peter say about me? but she just couldn’t. That would be too nosey.

  Miss Swetnick came back into the bathroom. “I’ve got the curtains up … come and see …”

  Sally and Hank followed Miss Swetnick into the bedroom. The new curtains were drawn, making the room dark.

  “Very nice!” Hank said, putting his arms around Miss Swetnick’s waist.

  “They’re pretty,” Sally said. “I like the colors.” They were made out of heavy cotton material, in yellow, orange and brown print. “But you won’t be able to see into our livingroom anymore.”

  “Yes, we will …” Miss Swetnick said, “see …” and she pulled the cord, opening the curtains.

  “I meant you won’t be able to see when the curtains are closed,” Sally said.

  “Oh …” Miss Swetnick answered. “I guess you’re right.”

  At eight o’clock, Sally said goodbye to Hank and Miss Swetnick. Too bad Hank hadn’t told her anything else about Peter. Maybe next time.

  “Thanks for helping,” Hank said.

  “It was fun,” Sally answered. She was glad she’d done the hardest part for him. Getting the wall under the sink just right wasn’t easy.

  She had to walk to dancing class by herself, because Andrea still wasn’t speaking to her. Sally had tried to explain. She’d said, “I meant to tell you about him … I really did … it’s just that I had so many other things on my mind … I forgot … that’s all …”

  “Don’t waste your breath,” Andrea had said, “because I’m not listening.”

  Their mothers tried to get them back together but Andrea recognized this and told her mother to mind her own business. So their grandmothers tried to fix things up but Andrea saw through that too and told her grandmother to worry about her own friends.

  On the way home from dancing school Sally tried again. “Can I walk with you?” she asked Andrea.

  Andrea didn’t answer.

  “Miss Swetnick is moving in next door.”

  No response from Andrea.

  “I’ll tell you a secret …” Sally said, looking for some kind of expression on Andrea’s face, but Andrea acted as if she hadn’t heard a word. “I like Peter Hornstein … nobody else in the whole world knows that, except maybe Barbara.”

  Andrea didn’t even look her way.

  “I’d like to kiss him … I really would … Andrea, can you hear me?”

  “No.”

  “Remember the day we were walking home and the bird plopped on me?” Sally laughed, hoping Andrea would too. “Andrea, please say something!”

  “Something.”

  They saw Omar at almost the same moment. He was lying in the middle of the street, in front of their building. Andrea cried out and ran to him. “Omar … Omar …” She sank to her knees and gathered Omar’s broken body into her arms. She held him close. “Oh no … my baby … my poor baby …” She stroked his head. Omar’s eyes were staring into space and his beautiful white fur was all bloodied. Sally knew he was dead.

  Andrea sobbed, her body shaking, her cries growing louder and louder. Sally didn’t know what to do, what to say. She touched Andrea’s shoulder but Andrea shook her away. Sally ran into the house, calling, “Omar’s dead … Omar’s dead …”

  Andrea’s mother heard Sally and so did many of the other neighbors. They all rushed outside, in time to see Andrea stand up and walk slowly toward the house, with Omar cradled in her arms.

  “I didn’t do it,” Mrs. Richter said to no one in particular. “I never liked that cat but I didn’t do it.”

  “Of course you didn’t,” another woman said. “You don’t even have a car.”

  “Hit and run …”

  “Such a shame …”

  “The poor child …”

  “Getting his blood all over her dress …”

  Mrs. Rubin put her arms around Andrea and cried with her. Andrea’s sister, Linda, became so hysterical her grandmother had to slap her and carry her upstairs.

  “I’m sorry, Andrea,” Sally said, as Andrea walked by. “I know how much you loved him.”

  “No one will ever know how much I loved him,” Andrea wept.

  The phone rang. One long ring followed by two short rings. It was for them. Douglas answered. He’d been expecting Darlene to call. But it wasn’t Darlene this time, because Douglas said, “Yes … yes, this is the Freedman residence … just a minute, please …” He put the receiver down and called, “Mom … hey, Mom … hurry up … it’s long distance for you … person to person …”

  Mom ran out of the bathroom, pulling her robe around her. “Oh, my God … oh, my God … something’s happened to Arnold …”

  Ma Fanny rushed to her side and Sally and Douglas stood close by, waiting. Sally felt her stomach turn over. This is it, she thought. This is it. It’s Daddy. Something terrible has happened. She wanted to scream. Scream because she’d been praying so hard. And for what? Barabara was right. It didn’t help to pray. In that moment she knew she would never see her father again. Never feel his arms around her. Never give him another treatment. She let out a small cry, then clapped her hand over her mouth. Bad things always happen in threes, she thought. First, Omar … and now, Daddy …

  “Yes, this is Louise Freedman,” her mother said into the telephone. Then, “Bette … Bette, is that you?” She covered the mouthpiece with her hand and told the three of them, “It’s Bette.” They nodded. “Yes,” Mom continued, “yes, I can hear you … yes, yes … what is it?”

  Sally tried to swallow but found she couldn’t.

  “Oh, thank God,” Mom said. “Thank God everything’s all right.” She covered the mouthpiece again and told the family, “It’s all right.”

  Sally tasted the beans she’d had for supper.

  “Yes, I’m okay now,” Mom said, sounding stronger. “I was just so worried getting a person to person phone call … oh, it’s good to hear your voice, Bette … I miss you, too … how are you?… you do?… you are?” Mom turned to Ma Fanny. “It’s an addition,” she said. Ma Fanny slapped her hand against the side of her face. “Oh, God … that’s wonderful,” Mom said into the phone. “I’m so happy for you …” She started to cry and handed the phone to Ma Fanny.

  “
Bette …” Ma Fanny said. “So tell me the good news … I want to hear it straight from the horse’s mouth … I couldn’t be happier … for all the money in the world I couldn’t be happier … When?… August?… I’ll be there with bells on … mazel tov, my darling …” She handed the phone back to Mom.

  “Jack …” Mom said, “Jack, is that you? Congratulations! It’s wonderful news … the best.”

  An addition, Sally thought. What does that mean? It’s got to be something good, they’re all so happy. An addition. Maybe Aunt Bette has passed some kind of arithmetic test. No, that’s silly … it has to be something else. I’m so sick of secrets! Why doesn’t anybody ever tell me what’s going on!

  When Mom and Ma Fanny were off the phone, Douglas said, “That’s great news for them but personally, I wouldn’t want one.”

  “I should hope not, at your age,” Mom said and she and Douglas and Ma Fanny laughed together.

  So, Sally thought, Douglas understood about the addition too. So, she was the only one who didn’t know. Well, she wasn’t about to admit it. Then Douglas would make fun of her, saying her mind was a blank, or that she was just a baby. “What will the addition look like?” Sally asked, figuring she could find out what it was by playing twenty questions.

  “Who can say?” Ma Fanny answered. “As long as it’s healthy we won’t complain.”

  “I still can’t believe it,” Mom said. “Just when I was expecting the worst it turned out to be the best.”

  “And she’s already four months?” Ma Fanny asked.

  “Yes, I guess she didn’t want to get our hopes up until she was sure … remember the last time?”

  “How could I forget?”

  “The last time, what?” Sally asked.

  “The last time Aunt Bette was pregnant she lost the baby after two months,” Mom said.

  “Oh … she’s going to have a baby.” Suddenly it all made sense.

  “You dummy!” Douglas said. “What’d you think she was going to have, an elephant?”

  “No!” Sally said. “An addition!”

  “It is an addition,” Mom said, “an addition to the family.”

  “Oh … an addition to the family,” Sally said. “Now I get it.”