Turning Up the Heat

by Diane Muldrow

  “Wow!” said Peichi.

  “I thought the best thing was the walk-in closet!” exclaimed Amanda. “You walk right in the closet, and it’s like another room! She has a dresser in there, and shelves, and shoe racks and little compartments...so cool.”

  “Peichi, are you mad at Natasha for not telling her mom to invite you?” asked Shawn as Peichi was about to take a bite of lemon-poppyseed cake.

  Peichi shook her head. “Um, no, not really,” she said uncertainly. She rested her elbow on the table, forgetting that her hand and fork were still in the air.

  “Because I don’t think Natasha really meant to leave you out,” Shawn went on. She smiled and pointed at Peichi’s fork. “Don’t forget to eat your cake.”

  “Oops,” giggled Peichi. She glanced at her pink plastic watch. “Oh, I have to go! I have to get home for my flute lesson.” She gulped down the rest of her lemonade. “Harry’s is so cool,” she said, looking around. “I’ve never been here before. This is a lot better than Burger King!”

  “Right, no screaming kids running around,” said Molly. “It’s our hangout—whenever we have some extra money.”

  The friends were the youngest people in Harry’s, which made them feel cool. It was the kind of place where artists sketched and writers scribbled down their ideas. The place always smelled like fresh-brewed coffee, which it was famous for. The girls loved that smell, even though they couldn’t stand the taste of coffee.

  You could buy fruit smoothies, wraps of all kinds, and teas from all over the world. Hot tea came in funky old china teapots, and the cups never matched. Cookies were stored in big glass jars. Harry’s hadn’t always been a coffeehouse. A hundred years ago, it had been a drugstore. The dark wooden cabinets with glass shelves and sliding doors were still there, but Harry. the owner, had added little marble-topped tables and funky chairs. It was the perfect place if you were tired of plastic furniture, harsh bright lights, and greasy fast food.

  “We’ll walk you home, Peichi,” said Amanda. That was the rule. Shawn’s dad and the twins’ parents had recently allowed them to roam Park Terrace without adults, but only if the girls stayed together. Peichi’s mom had the same rule.

  There was a lot to see and do in Park Terrace. Prospect Park had a new zoo, an old carousel, a lake, an ice-skating rink, and softball fields. Park Terrace had pizzerias, book-stores, toy stores galore, and a puppet theatre. The huge library, art museum, and botanical gardens were great places to spend afternoons. And it was only a quick subway ride under the East River to Manhattan. New York City. The Big Apple.

  “Hey, look! There’s Justin,” Molly said as they were walking down Seventh Avenue.

  “Where?” exclaimed Amanda and Shawn.

  Molly pointed to a boy in a ball cap who was with an older boy. “See? Over there? By the school. I think he’s with his brother Ian. They’re going to shoot hoops.”

  “Quit pointing, Molly!” cried Amanda. “Now he’ll see us for sure.”

  “So?” asked Molly.

  “So, we have to act like we don’t see them,” explained Amanda. “Duh!”

  “What’s your problem? Why should we hide from them? I mean, we cooked lots and lots of food for him and his entire family just a few weeks ago,” said Molly, rolling her eyes. She and Peichi exchanged little smiles. Neither of them thought Justin was all that. Or any other boy, for that matter. As Peichi liked to say, “They haven’t changed since the first grade. They’re just a little taller.”

  “Let’s cross the street so we can walk right by him,” said Amanda.

  “Well, then he’s gonna see you!” said Peichi, giggling. Molly joined in, and she and Peichi began to really crack up. That annoyed Amanda even more.

  “I’ll cross with you,” Shawn said.

  All the girls ended up crossing the street. They headed toward the school, where Justin and Ian joined a group of kids playing basketball on the playground.

  “C’mon, pass it! I’m wide open!” Justin was calling to someone.

  Molly and Peichi were still giggling.

  Amanda cleared her throat nervously. “Sssh!” she hissed to the friends. “Just act normal!” As the girls approached the wire fence of the playground, Amanda straightened her hot-pink sundress and started talking, just so Justin would think she didn’t even see him.

  There was only one problem. Justin didn’t see Amanda. He was too much into the game.

  Suddenly, Amanda pitched forward.

  “Ow!” she cried.

  Justin and all the other kids heard the cry and turned around just in time to see Amanda fall flat on her face!

  The girls rushed to help her up.

  “Are you okay?” they asked.

  The sound of dribbling stopped. Justin and Ian started walking over near the fence.

  No, no, don’t come over now, thought Amanda as she looked down at her big toe. It was bleeding. “I’m all right,” she said. “Come on, let’s get out of here!”

  But it was too late!

  “Are you okay?” asked Justin. He stood a small distance from the fence, holding the basketball. His brown eyes looked concerned, but kind of confused, as if he was thinking, How did she just fall over like that?

  “Oh, hi, Justin. Hi, Ian.” said Amanda casually. The other girls just waved. They were too embarrassed for Amanda to even speak to the boys.

  “I’m fine, I just tripped on something, I guess,” said Amanda.

  “Okay,” said Justin, shrugging. “See you later.”

  “See you later,” echoed Ian. They turned back to the game, and the boys started dribbling and shouting again.

  Amanda led the group, walking away quickly. As soon as the girls were out of sight of the playground, she stopped.

  “What happened back there?” asked Molly.

  “I can’t believe I fell down,” wailed Amanda. She began to cry. “I stubbed my toe, and then I slipped on a pebble or something! Oh, I’m such a klutz! I can’t ever look at Justin again! And I’m bleeding!”

  “Oooh,” cried Molly. “There’s a little flap of skin hanging off your toe!” That made Amanda cry even more.

  “Here, Amanda, I have a tissue,” said Peichi.

  “Don’t worry, Manda. Justin won’t think you’re a klutz,” Shawn assured her.

  But Amanda was in a bad mood for the rest of the day, even though Mom and Molly pampered her with brownies and lemonade when the girls finally got home.

  chapter 9

  “Girls” said Mom the next morning as the Moores ate breakfast together, “have you decided what you’re going to cook? We need to shop for the groceries after you both practice the piano.”

  “Molly and I talked about it last night,” replied Amanda.

  “We have a list, kind of,” added Molly. She helped herself to another pancake. “These are so good, Dad.” Dad didn’t cook too often, but one of his specialties was blueberry pancakes from scratch. “Scratch” meant that it wasn’t made from a mix.

  “Can you make these for us next week. too, Dad?” asked Matthew. “I love them.”

  “That’s why you’re so quiet this morning,” Dad teased Matthew. “You’re busy eating my pancakes.”

  “We should feed him these every day, then,” Amanda joked.

  “Hey, you haven’t asked me what I wanna eat next week when Mom’s gone,” Matthew told his sisters.

  “Good point,” said Mom. “What would you like the girls to make, Matthew?”

  “Hmmm.” Matthew chewed and stared out into space.

  “Ssssh! Matthew’s thinking!” cracked Molly.

  “I know, I can smell the smoke,” added Amanda.

  “Ha-ha, very funny,” said Matthew. He was used to being teased by his big sisters. “Um, I want macaroni and cheese. And peanut butter cookies, and hamburgers, and pizza. But you guys can’t make pizza, I guess.”

  “Why not?” asked Molly.

  “‘Cause you have to get pizza from the pizza place.”

  “Actua
lly, pizza is pretty easy to make,” Mom told the kids.

  Dad nodded. “I think you can make pizza dough ahead of time. Let’s look at a recipe. Maybe we could have a little pizza party next week.”

  “Yeah!” cried Matthew excitedly. “Can Ben come?”

  “That would be fun,” said Molly. “Maybe Shawn could sleep over, too!”

  “We’ll talk about that later,” said Dad. “Speaking of food for next week, remember that I’m going fishing tomorrow, so we’ll have some tuna...I hope.”

  “Remember the last time you went fishing, Dad? You didn’t catch anything, right?” asked Matthew.

  “I remember, sport,” said Dad. “But this time I’ll catch a great big fish just for you!”

  “Oops, we almost forgot the peanut butter,” said Amanda as she checked the shopping list. She, Molly, and Mom were at Choice Foods, shopping for supplies for their cooking job.

  “We can’t forget the peanut butter for Matthew’s cookies!” said Mom. “It’s going to be fun to cook with you girls again. I really love that.”

  “We love it, too, Mom!” said Molly. “Oh, I’m going to miss you next week.” She suddenly wanted to hug Mom, but that seemed weird, right in the middle of the supermarket aisle.

  “Look,” said Mom. “Isn’t that Natasha coming in the door?”

  “Yeah, and she’s with her mom,” said Amanda. “Oh good, you’ll finally get to meet Mrs. Ross!”

  “Now I’ll see for myself what she’s really like!” Mom said. “I’m sure she’s a lot nicer than you girls make her out to be.”

  The twins waved to catch Natasha’s attention.

  “Hi!” Natasha called out, wheeling her shopping cart over. Her serious-looking face brightened up with a smile. “Hi. Mrs. Moore!”

  The girls could smell Mrs. Ross’ rose-scented perfume.

  “Hi!” said the twins. “Hi, Mrs. Ross.”

  Mom and Mrs. Ross smiled at each other. “Hello,” they said to each other.

  “Mom, this is Mrs. Ross,” said Amanda quickly. “Mrs. Ross, this is our mom.”

  Little Miss Manners strikes again, thought Molly. Okay! I’m just jealous that I never know whattodo!

  “How do you do!” said Mrs. Ross, shaking Mom’s hand.

  “Hello, I’m Barbara,” said Mom.

  “I’m Natalie.”

  For a split second, all was quiet. The girls put on big fat smiles and waited to hear what their moms would say.

  “Well, my daughters had a wonderful time at your tea party the other day.” Mom told Mrs. Ross.

  “Yes, thank you, it was very nice,” Molly spoke up. For once, she knew the right thing to say! Score! she thought. I said something polite before Amanda did!

  “Thank you, Mrs. Ross,” echoed Amanda.

  “It was wonderful to have them!” Mrs. Ross exclaimed. “And Shawn, too. They’re all such nice girls,” she went on, “and Mr. Ross and I were very impressed with you all.” She smiled at Molly and Amanda. “I hear you teach art history,” said Mrs. Ross to Mom. “That’s fascinating.”

  As Mom and Mrs. Ross began to chat, Natasha pulled the girls aside. “I’m not grounded anymore,” she whispered. “Guess why.”

  “Why?” Amanda asked.

  “They liked you all, and decided that I’m allowed to hang out with you. So they let me off the hook for sneaking out to cook with you.”

  “That’s good,” said Molly as low as she could. “Then come over and cook with us tomorrow. We’re doing a bunch of cooking since Mom’s going out of town. Okay?”

  There she goes again, thought Amanda. Who said I wanted Natasha to be there?

  “Okay!” said Natasha. Her blue eyes lit up. “I’ll be there.”

  “...so nice to meet you, too,” Mom was saying.

  “Bye, girls,” said Mrs. Ross.

  Everyone said good-bye to each other, and Natasha and Mrs. Ross soon disappeared into the throng of shoppers and carts.

  “Thanks a lot, Molly” said Amanda once the girls had helped put all the groceries away and gone up to their room.

  “What? For what?” asked Molly. She was confused. What had she done now?

  “Well, you just went ahead and told Natasha to come over tomorrow. Why didn’t you ask me first?”

  “Well, I never thought of asking you—” began Molly.

  “That’s just it! That’s the problem!” Amanda began to shout. “You never think! You just go ahead and do it!”

  “What’s the matter, Amanda?” asked Molly, scrunching up her nose. “What are you talking about?”

  “Now the money that Mom pays us isn’t going to go as far, because we’ll have to share it with Natasha.”

  Molly couldn’t believe what Amanda was saying. “That’s crazy, Amanda,” she said. “You said yourself at Mom’s party that Natasha could be one of the Chef Girls. So why can’t she work on this job? Mom will pay Natasha herself—we won’t have to pay her out of our money! You’re not making any sense.”

  That comment made Amanda even angrier. “Well, why do you always just—just go ahead and say whatever you want?” she shouted. “You never ask me what I want!”

  She stormed out of their room and went downstairs.

  Molly fell back onto her bed and wondered why Amanda was always mad at her these days.

  She talked to Mom about it later when Amanda was practicing the piano louder than usual. She was practically pounding the piano keys.

  “Well, sweetie,” said Mom as she began to brush Molly’s hair, “I don’t think this is about Amanda not wanting Natasha to come over tomorrow. I think she just wants you to talk to her first about the things you do together.”

  “Well, okay, I guess I don’t always think to do that,” said Molly. “But why does she always have to blow up at me? She’s been so moody lately!”

  Mom smiled at their reflection in the mirror. “You like to do things on the spur of the moment,” she told Molly. “But Amanda is like your dad. She has to consider everything! That’s all. You two may be identical twins, but your personalities are very different. Just try to remember to include Amanda in your plans, that’s all. Okay? I think that’s fair. After all, your dad and I have to do that with each other.”

  “Okay, Mom,” said Molly. “It’s just that she never had a problem with me before. We used to always want to do exactly the same things.”

  “May be you really didn’t, and now Amanda’s sticking up for herself,” said Mom. “See you downstairs, sweetie.”

  MaybeMom is right Molly thought. Molly had an idea. She grabbed a piece of Amanda’s stationery, picked up a glitter pen, and wrote:

  Dear Amanda,

  I think I get it now. I’ll Make SUPER-sure to ask you what you want to do, when we’re doing things together! Which is all +he time! you’re my best bud!

  Love, Molly

  “I have a big announcement,” Shawn told the twins later that night. The three of them had just watched a video and were sitting outside on Shawn’s terrace. They liked hanging out there, above the rooftops of Park Terrace, on summer nights.

  “What is it?” asked the twins.

  “Is your dad going on that big trip?” asked Amanda.

  “Actually, it’s not an announcement. But I have an idea!” Shawn explained.

  “What is if?” the twins asked again, giggling at “the twin thing.”

  “You know how we’re always saying we don’t have any money—” Shawn began.

  “And it’s so hard to make money,” added Molly.

  Shawn and Amanda shot each other a glance and started to giggle. They tried not to, but the harder they tried, the harder it was not to laugh.

  Molly’s face was getting redder and redder.

  “Okay, go ahead and laugh,” she said with a pout.

  “Ha-ha! Sorry, Molls, but...ha! Ha-ha!” Amanda cracked up.

  “Don’t roll off the balcony,” said Molly. She folded her arms across her chest and let out a big sigh.

  Molly h
ad tried having a pet-sitting service once, but she’d quit after only a few weeks. She’d had the worst luck a business owner could have. Even though she took very good care of all the pets, both Swishy the fish and Sam the hamster died while their owners were away.

  The Weedons and the Wolfs blamed old age, not Molly. But after the hamster died, Molly decided to give up taking care of other people’s pets.

  “Anyway:” said Amanda after her laugh attack was over, “it’s not like there’s a ton of baby-sitting to do, because there are so many nannies around here.”

  “Right!” said Shawn. “Well, tomorrow we’re going to cook for your mom and get paid for it. Why don’t we try to do that more often? Cook for people in the neighborhood? I mean, our parents aren’t the only ones who don’t have time to cook a real dinner every night.”

  Molly and Amanda looked at each other. Then they looked at Shawn.

  “You mean, we’d have, like, a cooking business?” asked Amanda.

  Uh-huh! said Shawn, smiling.

  “How would we get customers?” asked Molly.

  “We’d advertise,” replied Shawn. “In the Park Terrace Press.”

  “Does that cost money?” asked Amanda.

  “Uh-huh.”

  “We could advertise for free all over Park Terrace,” suggested Molly, “Just by putting flyers up.”

  “That’s true,” said Shawn. “Anyway, I think it would be fun! We’d be making money just by hanging out together and doing something we like to do anyway.”

  “And working really hard.” Amanda reminded her.

  “I think it sounds pretty cool!” exclaimed Molly. “We could make so much money! Plus we would still cook for free sometimes, when people need help like the McElroys did.”

  Shawn nodded. “For sure,” she said. “That was so great, helping people who didn’t expect it.”

  Molly looked over at Amanda, who looked anxious, and said, Well, we’ll really have to think about it. Right, Manda?”