by Judy Delton
“But what if my aunt won’t come with me?” asked Molly.
Mary Beth waved her statement away with her hand. “Tell her it’s an emergency,” she said. “Tell her there’s a fire you have to see, or you need a Popsicle right away. Now I’m going down there right now and hang out. You go home and wait for my call.”
Mary Beth set off to the market, and Molly went home to wait. Her aunt came in, then her mom and dad.
“Are you busy tonight, Auntie Ree?” asked Molly.
“Nope,” said her aunt. “Do you have something exciting for us to do?”
This was going to be easier than she thought! Molly had something exciting to do (what was more exciting than meeting the man she’d marry?), and her aunt was free and willing to go with her! Rat’s knees, Mary Beth was smart!
“Maybe,” said Molly. “I’m expecting a phone call.”
“How mysterious,” said Mr. Duff, setting the table.
Soon they all sat down to eat, but there was no phone call.
They finished their apple pie, and still no phone call.
They did the dishes and put them away and went in the living room to watch TV. Still there was no phone call.
Mr. Duff was dozing off in his chair when the phone rang.
But it was Rachel. “Heather wrote to me in purple ink!” she said. “And it smells like lilacs! I’m going to get some of that.” Molly hung up.
Rat’s knees! Here her aunt was ready to go, ready for a new husband, and nothing was happening.
“Was that the phone call you were waiting for?” asked Mrs. Duff.
Molly shook her head.
“Darn,” said Auntie Ree. “No party tonight. And Mr. Right may have been there!”
Molly could not believe her ears! It was almost as though her aunt was calling out for help! It was fate. It meant they were on the right track, all right. But where was Mr. White when they were ready?
When Molly was getting ready for bed, the call came.
“He didn’t come,” said Mary Beth, sighing. “I stood there at Maxwell’s for ages. My mom was really mad I was late for supper.”
“And we were all ready to come,” said Molly. “Auntie Ree was waiting to meet Mr. Right.”
“Well, he’ll be there tomorrow night,” said Mary Beth. “He has to shop, after all. Roger likes to eat.”
The next evening, Mary Beth went back to the market. Molly waited for Auntie Ree to come home. But it got later and later and she didn’t come.
“Where is Auntie Ree?” asked Molly at dinner. There were only three places set.
“She went to a movie with some people from work,” said Molly’s mother. “I’m glad to see she’s getting out and having a social life again.”
The phone rang. It was Mary Beth. “Get down here!” she cried. “Mr. White is here in the produce section! He’s picking out some melons, and he looks lonely!”
“My aunt’s not home yet!” cried Molly.
Mary Beth sighed. “Well, I’ll try to keep him here, but I’m not sure how long I can do it. Get down here the minute she comes home.”
Molly hung up the phone and went to the living room to watch for her aunt. She looked down the street. She looked up the street. No sign of her.
“How long do movies last?” she asked her mother.
“Oh, a couple of hours, I guess,” said her mom. “But they probably went out to eat first or stopped for a bite afterward.”
Now Molly was cross. Mr. White couldn’t linger in the produce forever! Didn’t her aunt know how hard it was to find the right man?
The phone rang. Molly answered it.
“What’s taking so long?” asked Mary Beth. “Mr. White is in dairy products now and that’s the last stop! His milk will get sour if he doesn’t check out and get it home and into the fridge.”
“She’s not here yet,” said Molly.
“I’ll try to keep him here, but it won’t be easy,” said Mary Beth and hung up.
When she called again, she was angry. “I told him he was buying the wrong cereal, and I took him over and showed him the one with less fat and sugar, but he didn’t buy it,” said Mary Beth. “And he walked the other way when I tried to transfer his stuff into a better cart. I told him the wheels went the wrong way and they squeaked, but he just said, ‘Who are you?’ and walked to the checkout. I might be able to take the keys to his car, but I don’t think my mom would like it.”
“It’s no use,” said Molly. “Let him go.”
“It’s not your fault,” Mary Beth said with a sigh. “We’ll try again in a few days. Roger will eat all that food up fast.”
But when the next chance came, neither of the girls was expecting it.
CHAPTER 10
Fate Steps In—
and Out
On Saturday morning Auntie Ree took Molly and some of her Pee Wee friends to the mall.
“I want a new swimsuit,” said Ashley.
“So do I!” said Auntie Ree. “Let’s go in Sand and Surf and look at them!”
While they looked at swimsuits, the others sat on a bench in the mall and ate pretzels.
“Look!” shouted Mary Beth. She almost choked on a pretzel. “There are Roger and his dad!”
“Big deal,” said Rachel in disgust. “I don’t think Roger is anything to get excited about. Who wants to see him on a weekend when we don’t have to?”
Something was bothering Rachel, thought Molly. She wondered what it was.
But Molly knew what Mary Beth meant! Fate had brought Marie and Mr. White inches apart!
“Get her!” hissed Mary Beth between her teeth. “Go in and get your aunt!”
Molly ran into the store. Her aunt was trying on a swimsuit.
“Come on out!” said Molly, dragging her by the hand. But Molly’s aunt did not want to come out of the dressing room in the swimsuit.
“Look at the suit in the big mirror out here!” said Molly.
As her aunt stumbled out, Mary Beth was trying to talk Roger and his father into coming in the store and buying swimsuits.
Mr. White backed up. “Wait a minute, didn’t I meet you in the market?” he said. “You were trying to sell me cereal! Now you want to sell me a swimsuit!”
“My mother says I’m a born salesperson,” said Mary Beth.
“You’re a born cuckoo!” shouted Roger. “Leave my dad alone!”
Now a small crowd was gathering, and Auntie Ree was back in her regular clothes, frowning at Molly.
“This is Molly’s aunt Marie,” said Mary Beth to Mr. White. “Marie, this is Mr. White.”
In all the commotion, Molly did not think Mr. White and Auntie Ree even heard Mary Beth. But Mary Beth looked pleased with herself. “Now it’s up to them,” she whispered to Molly. “Our work is done.”
The girls sat down on the bench to watch Aunt Marie fall in love with Mr. Right, who was Mr. White. But she didn’t look like she was in love. No bells rang. No music played. Auntie Ree just said, “What is going on out here? I go in a shop and the next thing I know, you girls are creating a scene!”
“I don’t need a swimsuit!” Mr. White was saying.
“Let my dad alone!” Roger was shouting. “Let’s get out of here!”
“I hope Mrs. Peters doesn’t hear about this,” said Rachel. “It makes the Pee Wee Scouts look bad, causing scenes in the mall.”
Rat’s knees. How could love be a bad thing? If the Pee Wees let them alone, Mr. White and Auntie Ree could find out what they had in common. But now Roger was whining for a hot dog, and Auntie Ree was making sure none of the girls were lost.
“I wonder who that man was,” said Auntie Ree as they moved on down the aisle. “He was rude!”
As Roger and his father walked away, Molly heard Roger’s father asking him, “Who was that strange woman? And that girl tries to sell me something every time I meet her!”
“She’s a Pee Wee Scout,” muttered Roger. “I think she likes me.”
“Oh, that’s i
t!” said Mr. White, smiling. “Using me to get to you!”
When Molly and Mary Beth were alone, Mary Beth said, “I can’t figure out what went wrong. We had them in the palm of our hand. Why didn’t they fall in love?”
“Or at least go out on a date,” muttered Molly.
It looked like Molly would have a room mate for a long, long time.
Actually, Molly was getting used to it. Aunt Marie was very good to her and her friends, and it was fun talking at night when the lights were out.
Auntie Ree bought the girls ice cream sodas, and then they started home.
“We’ll think of something else,” said Mary Beth when they parted. “There are other fish in the sea.”
When Molly went in the house, she saw something that lifted her spirits. It was a letter from Kyle!
She ran to her room and opened it.
“Dear Molly,” it said. “I am writing back real fast because I don’t think you should find a husband for your aunt. My mom says she likes being single again. And maybe your aunt Marie does too. Divorce is hard at first. But your aunt can have a house without having a husband.”
Molly had not thought about that before. Her pen pal should know. Kyle’s own mother was divorced! That made her an expert. And she had a house without a husband!
Kyle told her how she and her mother used to cry a lot. Then she went on in the letter about the new indoor skating rink in Golden Grove, and the new library. She signed her letter, “Lots of love, your pen pal Kyle.”
Then there was a P.S. “Lots of parents argue a lot and don’t get a divorce. I think you should ask your mom what’s up. If they are getting one, they should tell you.”
Molly couldn’t ask her mom directly. Or could she? At least then she would know. Whether it was yes or no, she would know.
Molly put the letter down. She ran down the steps two at a time. Her aunt was washing her hair and her mother was alone in the living room, letting the hem down in Molly’s skirt.
“Can I talk to you?” said Molly.
“Of course,” said her mother.
“Are you and Daddy getting a divorce?”
Her mother looked surprised. “Of course not!” she said.
“Really?” said Molly. “But you were fighting last week.”
Mrs. Duff frowned. “We weren’t exactly fighting,” she said. “Everyone has disagreements sometimes. Anyway, a fight doesn’t mean divorce. And if we were, we would tell you. It wouldn’t be your fault, you know.”
There was to be no divorce! Molly’s little family was going to stay as it was!
Suddenly Molly frowned. This meant that her dad would not have a house on the ocean. She would not go to California to visit him. She would not eat off little trays high in the sky.
Oh, well, it was a small price to pay to keep her family together. And she might be able to go to California some day anyway. To see Kyle.
The phone rang. Her aunt answered it. She talked quite a while and when she hung up, she came into the living room with wet hair, and a smile on her face.
“Guess what?” she said. “I got an apartment of my own! Only six blocks away!”
CHAPTER 11
Badge Day!
Molly couldn’t believe her ears! Kyle was very, very smart! She had just told her that her aunt could have a house without a husband, and bang, she had one! Well, an apartment anyway.
She wondered if her aunt had ESP and Kyle’s magic brain waves traveled over the miles to her. Or maybe her aunt knew all along she didn’t need a husband to have a home.
“Why, Marie, there’s no rush to leave!” said Mrs. Duff, putting her arms around her sister.
Yes, there is, thought Molly. Even though Molly loved Auntie Ree, she wanted her room back.
“It’s time,” said Auntie Ree. “It’s time for me to be on my own. You three really helped me through a hard time.”
Auntie Ree and Molly’s mother had tears in their eyes and hugged each other. Then they hugged Molly. Tears made Molly nervous because she thought they were sad. But sometimes tears were happy, she found out. It was hard to know which were which.
That evening they all trooped over to the new apartment, and Aunt Marie showed them where she planned to put everything and the pullout cot where Molly would sleep if she stayed overnight. She showed them the view of the pond from the kitchen window and the little fold-up ironing board that came out of the wall. The living room even had built-in bookcases for Auntie Ree’s books.
“I’m so pleased for you!” said Mrs. Duff.
“It’s a great place,” said Mr. Duff. “And if you need any pictures hung or squeaky doors oiled, I’m your man!”
“Thanks,” said Aunt Marie, laughing. “But I think I can handle it.”
Molly couldn’t wait to see Mary Beth. The next morning, she ran over to her house.
“My aunt is moving out!” she told her.
“Is she getting married?” asked Mary Beth.
Molly shook her head. “She doesn’t want a husband!” said Molly. “She wants an apartment!”
Mary Beth looked doubtful. “Everyone wants a husband,” she said. “My mom said so.”
Molly usually believed what Mary Beth’s mother said. But not this time. She was surprised to discover that adults could have different ideas about things and they could both be right.
Molly wrote a long letter back to her pen pal. She wrote it with red ink. She had to use a big envelope because there was so much news to tell her.
The next Tuesday at Pee Wee Scouts, Mrs. Peters said, “Let’s hear all about your pen pals!”
Tim had a big package. “My pen pal sent me a baseball!” he said.
He tossed it to Kenny.
“Wow,” said Tracy. “He’s sure lucky.”
More hands were in the air to tell about their new friends. Everyone’s but Rachel’s. Molly noticed that Rachel was very quiet. Rachel usually had a lot to say. Especially about her pen pal, Heather.
“Shari and I both baby-sit our little brothers,” said Mary Beth. “We both want a lot of kids when we grow up.”
“Mrs. Peters,” said Ashley, “if Jason’s dad has to come here on business, Jason is going to come along and we’ll go horseback riding together!”
“How nice,” said Mrs. Peters. “This is just what I hoped would happen! You would have a new friend and get to meet!”
“I probably won’t meet my pen pal,” said Roger.
“Why not?” asked Kevin.
“Because I never wrote to her!” said Roger. “I think it’s dumb!”
“You knew she wouldn’t write back,” scoffed Ashley. “You’re afraid of rejection.”
“My mom says we shouldn’t close ourselves off from new experiences,” said Patty. “I think that’s what Roger is doing.”
“My pen pal has the same name I do!” said Jody. “Just his first name,” he added. “He collects CDs too.”
“Is he handicapped?” asked Lisa.
Jody shook his head.
“Just because he collects CDs like Jody and has the same name, doesn’t mean he has a wheelchair!” said Tracy. “My pen pal has crutches but it’s because she broke her leg climbing a tree.” Then Tracy showed the sealing wax her mom had given her. “I melt a little and stamp my initial on it.” She showed them the T.
One by one everyone told something about their pen pals.
“I’m glad you are enjoying writing letters,” said their leader. “And I’m glad you are keeping an open mind and learning new things from them.”
Molly raised her hand. “I learned from Kyle that even if your parents argue, it doesn’t mean they will get a divorce.”
As soon as she said that, Rachel burst into tears. Everyone was so surprised that no one said a thing. Finally Rachel wiped her eyes and said, “My mom and dad might get a divorce! Maybe I won’t have anywhere to live!” Then she burst into tears again.
Rat’s knees! All these days Molly had selfishly worried about her own aunt a
nd her own parents divorcing! And all the time it was Rachel’s parents who were having problems! She never thought that anything would happen in Rachel’s happy family! Rachel’s father was a dentist! Dentists did not leave their wives!
Mrs. Peters tried to comfort Rachel. So did Mrs. Stone. But Rachel put her head down on the table and would not look up. Molly didn’t remember Rachel ever feeling bad, unless she was mad at Roger.
While Mrs. Stone was passing out the cupcakes, Molly went over and sat by Rachel. She put her arm around her shoulders.
“I’m sorry about your parents,” she told her. “But my pen pal, Kyle, has parents who live apart, and it isn’t too bad. They both love her, and she has two homes instead of one. And my aunt is divorced and she’s real happy. Everyone doesn’t have to be married to have a happy home.”
Rachel did not look up.
“Anyway, maybe they won’t get a divorce at all,” said Molly. “Do you know for sure? I thought my mom and dad were, because they fought, but they didn’t. Maybe you should talk to your mom and you’d feel better. And I’ll give you Kyle’s address if you want to write to her.”
Molly gave Rachel a hug and went back to her chair. Mrs. Peters asked Rachel if she’d like to have her mother or father come and get her. Rachel shook her head. She wanted to stay.
Mrs. Peters looked sad, but she said, “Maybe these badges will cheer us up a little. I’m sorry to say that Roger will not get one today, but just as soon as he writes his letter and mails it, he will get his badge.”
Everyone looked at Roger. This was the first time a Pee Wee Scout had not gotten a badge with the others! Sometimes they did not do much work for it, but they did something. But Roger hadn’t done anything! He couldn’t get a badge when he didn’t even try!
Mrs. Peters passed out the pen pal badges. Molly hoped Rachel’s would cheer her up. They had a pen on them, and a little bottle of ink.
“Hey, what’s this?” said Sonny, pointing to the pen and ink.
“It’s a pen you write with, dummy,” said Tracy.
