Karen's New Friend

by Ann M. Martin

  Ashley and Grace followed me.

  “I have to brush my teeth,” I told them.

  “We will help,” said Grace. She unscrewed the top of the toothpaste. She handed me my toothbrush.

  “I can do it myself!” I cried.

  “I was just — ” Grace started to say. But Ashley poked her.

  After that, no one said anything until we were back in the bedroom.

  I looked at my bed and the two cots next to it.

  “You can sleep in the bed,” said Ashley.

  “But I was sleeping in it!” exclaimed Grace.

  Hmphh. It was my bed.

  “Grace,” Ashley whispered loudly. “Don’t be a pain. Remember, we have to be nice to Karen. Her parents are divorced, and she lives in two houses. She has to go back and forth, back and forth.”

  I do not think I was supposed to hear what Ashley said. But I had heard anyway. I felt my cheeks grow hot. I could not look at my stepcousins.

  For heaven’s sake, what was wrong with divorced parents? It is no big deal. Lots of kids’ parents are divorced. Anyway, at least I had two houses. Ashley did not even have one house, because it had burned up. I did not say that, though. I just climbed into my bed and pretended to fall asleep. I also pretended that Ashley and Grace were not in the room.

  Escape!

  When I woke up on Saturday morning, the first thing I saw was Grace. The second thing I saw was Ashley. One in each of the cots. They were still asleep. Good.

  Very, very slowly and carefully I climbed out of bed. I tiptoed across the room. I did not want to wake up Grace and Ashley. I was afraid they would offer to feed me my breakfast or brush my teeth for me.

  Tippity-tippity-toe. I got out of that room in a hurry.

  Downstairs I ate breakfast. I ate with Andrew and Nannie. We were the only ones up. I hoped no one else would get up for awhile. I chewed my cereal quietly. And I tried not to clink my spoon against the bowl.

  Soon I heard voices, though. Ashley and Grace and Berk and Peter all ran into the kitchen at the same time.

  “Good morning, Karen,” said Ashley. “Did you sleep well?”

  “Yes,” I said, and I dashed out of the kitchen. I raced to my room, got dressed, and raced downstairs again. “I’m going to Hannie’s house!” I yelled. Then I raced across the street.

  “Hannie!” I cried, when she let me inside. “I have to escape! Can I hide here?”

  “Of course,” said Hannie. She led me to her room. “What are you escaping from? Should I close my door?”

  “And lock it,” I told her. “I am escaping from my relatives. They have taken over everything. Plus, Ashley and Grace treat me like a baby who cannot do anything for herself. And Grace is younger than me! Also, she sleeps with her mouth open and kind of snores all night.”

  “Ew,” said Hannie.

  “So I need to stay over here for awhile.” I got up and tiptoed to the window. I peeped outside. Then I pulled the shade down.

  “Are they out there?” whispered Hannie.

  “No. Not yet. But I am not taking any chances.”

  “What are you going to do later?” asked Hannie.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, you can stay here for lunch, but you will have to go back sometime.”

  I sighed. “I know.” Hannie and I were quiet for awhile. Then I said, “Guess what Addie is doing today.”

  “What?”

  “She is going to the mall with her friends from her old school.” (I did not say that one of them was her best friend.) “I wish I could go to the mall today,” I added. “Without the relatives.”

  “What is Addie going to do at the mall?” wondered Hannie.

  “Shop and have lunch,” I told her.

  “Just like we do,” said Hannie thoughtfully. “You know what? I think Addie is nice. I am glad she is in our class.”

  “Me, too. But I have to work very hard to be her helper.”

  “Ms. Colman says you are working too hard.”

  “I know. Hey, guess what. I started making my valentine for Ms. Colman.”

  “So did I!” Hannie showed me the card she was working on.

  “I just wish I knew what her fiancé was giving her,” I said.

  “Maybe he will give her a ruby ring! A ruby-red ring for Valentine’s Day. Wouldn’t that be romantic?”

  “Very. Do you think her fiancé is romantic?”

  “Yes. And handsome,” said Hannie. “I am sure he is handsome. And I bet he has some important, exciting job.”

  “Oh, we just have to find out about him,” I said. But we did not know how to do that. So we sat in Hannie’s room and wondered about him. That was better than going back to the big house.

  The Big Fight

  On Monday I arrived at school extra early. That was because of my stepcousins. I had needed to escape from them again. So I had run to Hannie’s house as soon as I got dressed. Mrs. Papadakis said I could stay for breakfast. Then I asked if she could take us to school before Ashley found out where I was. So far, Ashley and Grace had not come over to Hannie’s house. I wanted to keep it that way.

  Hannie and I were the first kids to arrive in our classroom.

  “Ah. Peace and quiet,” I said.

  But soon the room was busy and noisy. That was okay. As long as Ashley and Grace were not around.

  When Addie showed up, I ran to her.

  “Hi! Hi, Addie!” I called. “Did you have fun at the mall?”

  “Tons!” she answered. “I bought a pack of glow-in-the-dark stickers. And a pair of earrings. We are going back next weekend.”

  Addie was wheeling herself toward her cubby.

  “I’ll push you,” I said.

  “I can do it,” said Addie.

  But I pushed her anyway. I pushed her over to her spot by my desk.

  “Karen, I have to go to my cubby,” said Addie. “I have to hang up my coat.”

  “I will do it for you.”

  Addie did not answer. She just sighed. Then she took off her coat and handed it to me. While I was hanging it up, Addie went to the pencil sharpener. I ran across the room and grabbed her pencils. Boy, did Addie ever keep me busy. I stuck the pencils in the sharpener.

  “Karen,” said Addie, “I can do it myself.”

  “I am supposed to be your helper,” I replied.

  “Okay. But you do not have to help me so much.”

  Our day began. Ms. Colman made some announcements. We had Show and Share, and Addie showed us her stickers. Everyone liked them, even Pamela. Pamela said they were cool.

  When it was time for spelling, Ms. Colman said, “Okay, boys and girls. Please take out a pencil and a piece of paper.”

  I reached into Addie’s tote bag to find her paper.

  “Leave me alone, Karen!” Addie whispered loudly. “Just leave me alone!”

  I glanced at Ms. Colman. She was busy writing on the blackboard. “I am trying to be nice to you,” I hissed.

  “Well, stop it!”

  Hmphh. What was wrong with Addie? I reached into my desk for my own pencil and a piece of paper.

  Addie leaned over to me. “I am not a baby, you know,” she said.

  Well, for heaven’s sake.

  “Addie — ” I began. But Ms. Colman turned around then.

  “Are you ready, boys and girls?” asked our teacher.

  During spelling I stared straight ahead at Ms. Colman. I did not look at Addie. Not once. Not even when she dropped her pencil on the floor. (Bobby Gianelli picked it up for her.)

  When spelling was over I said, “Do you know what, Addie Sidney? You are a big pain. I am not going to be your helper anymore.”

  “Good,” said Addie. “I do not want you to be my helper.”

  “Girls?” said Ms. Colman. “What is going on?”

  “I am not Addie’s helper anymore,” I answered. “Someone else can have that job.”

  “I do not need a helper!” exclaimed Addie.

  “Pleas
e calm down,” said Ms. Colman. Then she let Ricky and me switch our seats again. We were back in our old places. I refused to look at Addie.

  The Mystery Man

  At lunchtime, Nancy and Hannie and I did not sit in our usual seats. “I want to be as far away from Addie as possible,” I said.

  We sat at one end of the long table and Addie sat at the other end. Natalie and the twins sat near her. I could hear them talking. They told Addie about the spaghetti feast. Addie told them some more about the mall.

  “Do you like spaghetti?” Tammy asked Addie.

  “I love it,” said Addie.

  “Well, the next time we have a spaghetti feast, maybe you could come, too.”

  “Thanks!” said Addie.

  When Addie had finished her lunch, she wheeled herself to the door to the playground. The lunchroom monitor held it open for her. Then he helped her roll over the bump in the doorway.

  Addie disappeared outside.

  “I wonder what she will do today without you,” said Hannie.

  “Oh, who cares,” I replied.

  “What was your fight about?” Nancy wanted to know.

  “Nothing.”

  “But you and Addie are really mad at each other.”

  “So what? It is none of your business.” Uh-oh. I sounded mad at Nancy, too. “Sorry,” I said. I did not want to start another fight.

  Nancy sighed. “That’s okay. I guess.”

  My friends and I finished our lunches. We put on our coats. We went outside. I looked around for Addie. She was all by herself. She was bundled up in her chair, parked on the blacktop where kids play four-square and hopscotch and jumprope. She was reading a book.

  “Come on, you guys,” I said to Hannie and Nancy. I led my friends toward the monkey bars, far away from Addie Sidney.

  “Where are we going?” asked Hannie.

  “Away from Addie. I am ignoring her,” I announced.

  I did not really ignore her, though. I kept peeking at her during recess. I wanted to know what she would do without me around.

  For awhile, Addie just read. Nancy and Hannie and I hung from the monkey bars and talked about Ms. Colman’s fiancé.

  “Maybe he has an exciting job like … a detective. Yeah, maybe he is a detective,” suggested Hannie. “I just know he does something interesting.”

  “Maybe he is a spy!” exclaimed Nancy.

  “Nope. Too dangerous,” I decided. “Maybe he is a pilot.”

  I looked across the playground. Addie had put her book away. She had moved over to a bunch of girls from the other second-grade class. She was watching them play hopscotch.

  Terri and Tammy wandered over to the monkey bars. They listened to us talk about Ms. Colman’s fiancé.

  “Maybe he is a horse trainer,” said Terri.

  Hannie shrugged. “He is a Mystery Man.”

  Natalie wandered over. Then Pamela and Jannie wandered over.

  (I checked on Addie. She was talking to a teacher.)

  “We need to find out about the Mystery Man,” said Pamela after awhile. “But how?”

  “We could be spies!” I cried. “We could follow Ms. Colman after school.”

  “Or we could assign Ms. Colman to write a composition,” suggested Natalie. “She always makes us write them. She would have to call it ‘All About My Husband.’ ”

  I giggled. “You cannot make your teacher do homework,” I said.

  “I know,” replied Natalie. “I was just having fun.”

  That was true. We all were. I think even Addie was having fun — without me.

  “Leave Me Alone!”

  Guess who picked up Hannie and me at school that afternoon. Charlie. He came in the Junk Bucket.

  “Hi, Charlie!” I called.

  “Hi!” he replied.

  “Hi!” said two more voices.

  Boo and bullfrogs. Ashley and Grace were in the car, too. They were both sitting in the front seat with Charlie. But when they saw me, they scrambled out. “You can sit up front, Karen,” said Ashley.

  So Hannie and I crawled into the front.

  My stepcousins slid into the back. “Who is your friend?” Ashley asked me.

  I did not want to tell her. I did not want her to invade Hannie’s house the way she had invaded mine.

  When I did not answer, Charlie nudged me with his elbow.

  “She’s Hannie,” I said to Ashley.

  Charlie glared at me. “Her name is Hannie Papadakis and she lives across the street,” he told Ashley. “She is one of Karen’s best friends.”

  “Karen, how nice,” said Ashley.

  “Do you and Hannie want to play with me and Ashley?” asked Grace.

  “No, thanks,” I said. “Um, we have too much homework.”

  Actually, we did have some homework. Ms. Colman hardly ever gives us homework, but that evening we were supposed to write a little story about what kind of pet we would have if we could have any pet in the whole wide world. I was going to write about a monkey.

  Since I had told Ashley and Grace about my homework I had to start it right away. Ashley and Grace left me alone. They said I should work in peace. Even so, the story was not easy to write. By dinnertime, I had not finished it.

  At the supper table, Grace spread my napkin on my lap for me. Ashley poured my milk. I pointed out that I was seven years old, but maybe she did not hear me. She cut up my chicken for me, too. Later, Grace served me dessert.

  I was glad when I was able to say, “Well, I have not finished my homework yet. I am going back to my room.”

  I was almost finished with the monkey story when someone knocked on my door.

  “Come in,” I said.

  Ashley poked her head into the room. “Are you still working?” she asked. She stepped inside and peered at my paper.

  “Yes,” I replied.

  “You must be getting tired,” she said. “Let me finish that for you.”

  “My story?” I cried. “No! I can do it myself. Leave me alone!”

  “Sorry,” said Ashley.

  I did not say, “That’s okay.” I just stood up and grabbed my story. Then I finished it in Kristy’s room.

  Soon, it was bedtime. When Ashley and Grace and I were changing out of our clothes, Grace held my nightgown toward me. “Let me help you,” she said.

  “No!” I howled. I yanked the nightgown from her. I pulled my quilt and pillow off my bed. Then I ran into the playroom. “And don’t follow me!” I yelled to my stepcousins.

  In the playroom, I put the quilt and pillow on the couch. I would spend the night there. I did not need a bed. Besides, all the animals were in the playroom. The goldfish were in their tank. Emily Junior was in her cage. Shannon and Boo-Boo were napping on the floor. They would be much better company than Ashley and Grace.

  Ashley and Grace

  I woke up slowly the next morning. My mind woke up first, before my eyes did. It is Tuesday, I thought. Five more days until the relatives leave. Finally I opened my eyes. I saw an aquarium and a cage and a TV set and shelves full of toys. I was not in my room. Where was I?

  Then I remembered. The playroom. I had had a fight with Grace and Ashley. I was sleeping on the couch. Boo-Boo was sleeping on my stomach, and Shannon was sleeping by my feet.

  After a few minutes, I heard a whisper.

  “Karen?” said a soft voice. “Karen, are you awake?”

  Grace and Ashley were standing in the doorway. They were wearing their nightgowns. Their hair was all messy.

  “I’m awake,” I said.

  “Can we talk to you?” whispered Ashley.

  “Okay.”

  Ashley and Grace ran into the room in their bare feet.

  “I’m freezing!” cried Grace.

  “Get under the quilt,” I said. “It is warm in here.”

  Ashley and Grace and I huddled under the quilt. Boo-Boo ran off. He looked annoyed. But Shannon stayed with us.

  “Karen,” said Ashley, “we are sorry we made you mad
. We were only trying to be nice to you. Honest.”

  “I know,” I replied. “But I heard what you said about the divorce. I do not want you to be nice to me because my parents are divorced. I want you to be nice because you like me. Also, I do not need you to do everything for me. I am not a baby.”

  “No. You’re not,” agreed Ashley. “We really are sorry, Karen.”

  “Really,” added Grace. “We promise not to do all those things for you. But we still want to be your friends. Do you want to be ours?”

  I thought for a moment. Then I said, “Yes.”

  “Good,” replied Ashley. “I have an idea. How about if we start over? Let’s pretend that you and Andrew just got here, and the last few days never happened. How is that?”

  “It’s fine,” I said. I paused. Then I went on, “Hi, Ashley! Hi, Grace!”

  “Hi, Karen!” my stepcousins answered. “So glad you could come!”

  Karen and Addie

  I liked starting over. That was a gigundoly wonderful idea. Maybe Addie and I could start over, too. While my stepcousins and I got dressed that morning, I thought about some of the things we had said to each other. I thought about Ashley and Grace being nice to me because I am a divorced kid. I think actually they had felt sorry for me. Then I thought about Addie. Had I tried to be her friend because I liked her or because she has cerebral palsy? Maybe I felt sorry for her, too. Plus, I had treated Addie like a baby, just the way Ashley and Grace had treated me. That was not a way to make a new friend. I guess Addie knew it. Now so did I. I did not know if Addie would forgive me, but maybe we could start over.

  When Hannie and I reached Ms. Colman’s room that morning, we hung up our coats in our cubbies. Then I marched over to Addie Sidney.

  “Addie,” I said, “I am very, very sorry about our fight. And I am sorry I was so helpful. I guess I really was not helpful at all.”

  “I am sorry I got mad,” replied Addie. “But you know, I can do lots of things myself. I just need help with some things.”

  “Do you still want to be friends?” I asked Addie.

  She nodded. “Yes. But Karen, I do have other friends. And Barbie is my very best friend. I think she always will be.”