by Betsy Haynes
"Pie for lunch?" exclaimed Melanie. "That's great. My parents would never let us get away with just having dessert."
"Don't get your hopes up," warned Christie. "It's made out of meat and mashed potatoes."
"Oh," said Melanie, the look of anticipation fading from her face.
But her spirits perked up when Christie asked if everyone wanted to go to the Montague Youth Center after dinner.
"You bet," cried Melanie, and the others quickly agreed.
"Great," said Christie. "I'll call Phoebe, Nicki, and Eleanore and have them meet us there."
The Fab Five spent the rest of the afternoon in Christie's room napping and filling Christie in on what was going on at Wakeman Junior High. She asked about Chase Collins—the boy she was dating before she left—Randy Kirwan, Shane Arrington, and Tony Calcaterra. They told her all the things they could think of about what their arch-rivals, Laura McCall and her friends in The Fantastic Foursome, were pulling.
The most surprising thing they told her was that a proposal to change Wakeman from a junior high school to a middle school was being considered.
"You mean that you'd be the top class at Wakeman when you got into the eighth grade then?" asked Christie.
"That's right," answered Jana. "It's great for us, but think about all the kids who are in the eighth grade now. They thought they'd be the senior class next year. Instead they'd be lowly freshmen in high school."
"Garrett Boldt and Daphne Alexandrou must love that!" said Christie. "What a blow."
The others nodded and began talking excitedly about the possibility of Wakeman's becoming a middle school. Christie sat back and listened to her friends. She was happy for them, but it made her sad, too. It was one more thing going on back home that she wouldn't be a part of. She couldn't help wondering if the longer her family stayed in England, the fewer things she and the Fabulous Five would have in common.
CHAPTER 3
"Wow! Cool!" exclaimed Katie, taking in the interior of Montague's.
Ping-Pong tables with several couples playing matches were on the right. A row of video machines lined the wall behind them. In the center of the room was a jukebox and dance floor. Snack machines stood side by side along the wall to the left.
"Over here!" called Phoebe. She was seated with Nicki and Eleanore at several tables that had been pulled together. There were three boys with them.
"We've had a devil of a time saving chairs for you," Eleanore told them. "We could have rented them a half dozen times over."
"Thanks," said Christie. "Guys, this is Jana Morgan, Katie Shannon, Beth Barry, and Melanie Edwards. And this is Connie Farrell, Charlie Fenwick, and Davey Hopper," she said to The Fab Five.
"Welcome to London," Connie greeted them.
"The more birds, the merrier," added Charlie, lifting his soda in a salute.
"Birds?" asked Katie.
"He means girls," explained Christie.
"That's a terrible term for girls," said Katie. "It sounds so sexist. Why don't you call girls girls?"
"Come on, Katie," said Jana. "It doesn't make any difference."
"In the interest of good relations with our former colonies, I'll call Katie a girl, if that's what she wants to be called," Charlie said, chuckling. "But I want you to know, all the rest of you are still birds."
"We heard you personally know Trevor Morgan," said Davey. "Maybe you could five us an intro." He pulled out a seat for Melanie, and she sat down.
"If you guys get tickets to the concert and go with us, we can try," she said.
"That's an all-right idea," Davey replied. "What's your favorite Brain Damage song, Melanie?" The two of them began talking about Brain Damage music.
"What do you do for fun in the States?" Charlie asked Beth.
"Everything," she responded. "I just learned to ski this year, and Mel and I are cheerleaders. Most of all, though, I like acting, daahling." She struck a dramatic pose.
"You're an actress?" asked Charlie, looking interested.
"Is she ever," replied Jana. "Beth's had the lead part in several plays at school; she's been on cable television; and a big casting director from New York said she was great."
"Well, not really great," said Beth modestly. "He did say I was good, though."
"I've never known a famous actress before. Would you autograph my napkin?" teased Charlie. He pushed it toward her.
"Well, I don't usually do autographs when I'm socializing," Beth joked. She patted Charlie's cheek playfully and added, "but . . . since it's you." She dug a ballpoint pen from her purse and signed the napkin with a flourish and gave it back to him.
"I'll keep this next to my heart forever," he told her, sticking it inside his shirt.
"Yeah, right where he can sweat on it," said Nicki.
Everyone laughed except for Eleanore, Christie quickly noticed. She had been dating Charlie recently.
"You're planning to ride at my family's country place, aren't you?" asked Connie.
"We wouldn't miss it," said Katie. "Christie has told us about Rigel, the Arabian horse you let her ride."
"He's eager to meet more Americans," Connie replied with a grin. "When can you come?"
"How about Friday?" Christie suggested. "I'm sure The Fab Five will be shopped out by then."
Beth laughed. "I won't be! But I probably will be broke." She turned to Nicki. "Speaking of shopping, where'd you get the sweater you have on? I've never seen anything like it."
Nicki's oversized sweater was bright green and had dozens of small objects attached to it. "Are those earrings?"
Nicki nodded. "I collected them for a long time and then finally had enough to fasten to the sweater."
"Beth makes great earrings out of fishing line," Christie jumped in. "She's creative like you, Nicki." She was hoping that the two girls' interest in wild clothes would make them like each other.
"Christie told us that you're the son of a baron," Katie said to Connie. "What's it like to be royalty?"
He smiled. "It's really no big deal. England is filled with people descended from royalty."
"He's just being modest," commented Phoebe. "His family is very posh."
Connie shrugged, then changed the subject. "Friday's fine for riding." He turned to Nicki, Phoebe, and Eleanore. "Can you come, too?"
"I thought you'd never ask," said Nicki. The three girls promised to be there. As everyone began chattering away about how much fun riding would be, Christie watched Jana. Her friend seemed so quiet. Is something wrong, Christie wondered, or is it my imagination?
"Do you want to pick out a Brain Damage song on the jukebox?" Davey asked Melanie.
"Sure." Melanie hopped up from her chair.
Nicki, who was going out with Davey, kept an eye on the two of them as they walked across the dance floor together, talking and laughing.
"So?" Connie said, looking at Jana and Katie. "What great talents do you two have?"
The girls looked at each other.
"I don't know if we have any special talents," replied Katie. "I'm a judge on the Teen Court at Wakeman."
"And I'm on the yearbook staff," offered Jana.
"See, you do have talents," said Connie. "I guess that's why you're called The Fabulous Five."
A Brain Damage song started playing, and Melanie and Davey began to dance. Christie noticed Nicki watching them like a hawk.
"Would you dance with me?" Charlie asked Beth.
"Sure."
Nicki and Eleanore exchanged glances as Beth and Charlie made their way to the dance floor.
Just then two boys Christie had seen around the club came over to their table and asked Jana and Katie if they'd like to dance. They accepted.
"Excuse me," said Connie. "I need to say something to Dick Lasley."
When he had gone, Christie saw that Nicki and Eleanore were still watching the couples on the dance floor. "Don't worry about Melanie and Beth," she told them. "They're just having fun."
"With our coves," poi
nted out Nicki.
"Melanie's got a boyfriend named Shane Arrington whom she really likes," replied Christie, "and Beth wouldn't steal anyone's boyfriend. They're only being friendly. You'll see."
Nicki looked skeptical, but Eleanore smiled. "We'll see," she said.
Just then Connie came back. "How about a dance?" he asked Christie.
"Love to." She gave Nicki and Eleanore another smile of reassurance before she followed Connie.
"This is great," cried Melanie, bouncing up and down on Christie's bed later that evening. The five friends had drawn straws to see who would sleep in it first. Katie and Melanie had won.
Christie and Jana had unrolled their sleeping bags on the floor in front of the bed and were writing on postcards they had bought at a shop after leaving the youth club. Beth had placed her sleeping bag near the door. "So I won't step on anyone when I try to find my way to the bathroom in the middle of the night," she had explained.
"I'm glad I'm not afraid of heights," Katie said, peeking over the edge of the bed. "This is one high bed."
"If you want to trade places with me, I'll make the sacrifice for you," volunteered Jana.
"No way," Katie responded. "I'm going to pretend I'm the Queen of England sleeping in the imperial suite."
"With all your handmaidens sleeping around you?" joked Beth.
"Whatever," said Katie, plumping up her pillow and flopping back with a smile of contentment. "What are those ribbons for, Christie?" she asked, pointing to two blue ribbons pinned to the wall.
"Those are the ribbons I won at the science fairs," answered Christie. "One is from St. Meg's, the other is from the Bloomsbury District competition." Changing the subject, she added, "I'll be so jealous if Wakeman becomes a middle school. In the private schools here you stay in the same school until you're eighteen. It will take me forever to be part of the oldest class at school."
"Wow," said Beth. "That's terrible. Are the subjects here hard?"
Christie nodded. "The schools are tougher here. If you want to go to college, you have to start taking subjects to prepare for it when you're thirteen. And when you're sixteen, you take a comprehensive exam to see if you can get into the college you want."
"That sounds serious," said Melanie. "Do you know which college you want to go to?"
"Either Oxford or Cambridge," answered Christie.
"They're both in England, right?" asked Katie.
"Yes," Christie replied.
"You won't even be coming back to the United States to go to college?" asked Beth.
Christie shook her head.
"Isn't there any chance your father will be transferred back to the States?" asked Melanie.
Christie shrugged and looked down at her hands folded in her lap. "I doubt it," she said softly. "He hasn't been in his job long enough."
The room was filled with silent gloom. Finally Jana broke the tension. "I need to brush my teeth. Don't talk about anything interesting until I get back."
Christie watched Jana as she left the room. "Is something bothering her?" she whispered to the others after she was gone. "She seems so distracted—or something."
Beth, Melanie, and Katie exchanged glances.
Katie nodded. "She is worried about something."
"Does it have anything to do with Randy?" asked Christie.
Randy Kirwan and Jana had been going together since elementary school, and everyone called them the perfect couple. They had even been elected Mr. and Miss Wakeman Junior High earlier in the school year.
"No." Melanie shook her head. "But it's pretty serious."
"Maybe Jana will tell you about it herself," added Beth.
When Jana returned, the talk shifted back to Wakeman Junior High and the possibility that it would be a middle school next year. As the girls talked, Christie half-listened. She still wanted to hear about kids from Wacko and what they were doing, but as time went on, she felt less and less interest. Even Chase Collins, whom she used to think of all the time, seemed far away now.
Will I ever see Chase again? Christie wondered. I'd like to . . . It would be so much fun if he visited me in London, too. We could ride up the Thames River together, or tour Soho. It would be so romantic to be together in Europe.
With a tiny stab of guilt she thought of Connie and how much she liked him. He was so nice and had been so friendly to The Fabulous Five tonight. Why did I ever have to move, anyway? Christie thought as Katie shut out the light and everyone called "Good night." Sometimes it was so confusing to have friends who lived in separate places.
CHAPTER 4
"What are we going to do today?" asked Katie the next morning as The Fabulous Five ate breakfast.
"Let's get tickets for the Brain Damage concert right away," suggested Melanie.
"Yeah," agreed Beth. "I can't wait to see them—and a play. I've got to see a play."
"There's a half-price ticket booth in Leicester Square," volunteered Christie's mother. She had taken a couple of days off from her job at the University of London to be at home with the girls at the start of their vacation. "And there are agencies nearby where you should be able to get tickets for the concert. From there it's an easy walk to Piccadilly Circus, where there are some good shops, like Lillywhites and Simpsons. There are lots of great shops in Soho."
"All right!" exclaimed Melanie, raising her toast into the air. "Monster shopping and a circus, too."
Mrs. Winchell chuckled. "Piccadilly Circus isn't the kind of circus you're thinking of, dear. In England they call a traffic circle a 'circus.'"
"It's a traffic circle?" Melanie said in disbelief. "How come I've heard of it, if it's just a plain old traffic circle?"
"Lots of interesting things go on there. Performers like jugglers entertain, and people often demonstrate over political causes," said Mrs. Winchell.
"One of the first things we have to do is get you travel cards," said Christie. "You'll need to take along your passports to be able to buy them."
"What are travel cards?" asked Jana.
"They're special tickets that let you take the buses or the Underground as often as you want," Christie explained. "We'll be using them a lot."
"Will we get to see Buckingham Palace?" asked Melanie. "I want to see Princess Di."
"And Old Bailey, the court where they held the trials for all those famous murderers and spies," added Katie. "I've got to see that."
"Will we be able to use our travel cards to get to Connie's place in the country?" asked Jana.
The girls' questions came faster and faster.
"Mo-om!" cried Christie as the girls overwhelmed her. "Help!"
Mrs. Winchell laughed. "I think you girls need to get organized," she told them. "Why don't you make a list of the things you want to see, then decide when you want to visit each one."
"Will Dad be able to take us to Connie's on Friday?" asked Christie.
"You'll have to talk to him about that, sweetheart. Some executives from the company's headquarters in the United States are here this week checking on things. He may be pretty busy. When you get your list made, we'll sit down with your father and go over it."
"Great idea," said Katie.
"Don't forget about Christie's birthday," said Mrs. Winchell. "It's Saturday, and we need to plan a special dinner for her."
"Christie's our old lady." Melanie laughed. "She's the first one to turn fourteen."
Christie stuck her tongue out at Melanie. "Your birthday's next month, Melanie Edwards, and the rest of you will be fourteen before you know it."
"First things first," declared Jana. "Let's go get tickets to Brain Damage, and we can decide what to do next."
"That was easy," remarked Jana as The Fabulous Five emerged from the Underground at the Leicester Square stop. "I wish we had subways like that at home. Everything's so clean, and there's no graffiti here. I want to ride one of those big double-decker buses," she said, pointing to one that was passing by.
"Let's get our concert tickets quickly
and go to Piccadilly Circus," suggested Katie. "Maybe Melanie can ride one of the elephants there."
"Funneeey!" retorted Melanie, wrinkling her nose at Katie. She unfolded the map she was carrying so they could all see it. "Buckingham Palace doesn't look far from there. Maybe we can go there afterward."
"Don't forget shopping," Beth said. "We have to go to Soho to shop."
"All right! All right!" Christie laughed. "We'll do it all eventually. Just give me a break." She had to chuckle at her friends. They were like little kids in a candy store.
Piccadilly Circus was mobbed. Cars and buses were pouring into the circle from several side streets, and darting back out again. In the center of the circle was a statue of a man with wings holding a bow and arrow.
"Look at those people sitting around the statue," observed Jana. "Have you ever seen such wild hair and clothes? Check them out, Beth."
Several of the people had their hair moussed into long spikes or Mohawk cuts and dyed in bright colors. Most had on black leather or torn denim jackets and pants with shiny metal studs. The boys in the crowd were wearing at least as many earrings and necklaces as the girls.
"They're punkers," said Christie.
"They look pretty wild—even to me," commented Beth.
Katie pointed to the statue. "Who's the guy with the wings?"
"It says here on the map it's Eros," replied Melanie. "Is he some ancient English guy?"
Christie put her hand over her mouth to hold back a giggle. "He's the Greek god of love, Mel. Your kind of guy."
"My gosh," said Melanie, looking at the winged statue with awe. "I've always thought there should be a god of love; now I know there is one."
The girls stood there for a minute, taking in all the amazing sights: a juggler, the punkers, the flood of cars and tourists from all over the world.
Suddenly Melanie turned to the others. There was a sly look in her eyes. "Christie, didn't you say that anyone can perform here?" When Christie nodded, she continued, "Well, I've just made up a cheer! How about this?"
She raised her arms and did a Flying Dutchman jump, touching her toes with her fingers.
