Amber Brown Sees Red

by Paula Danziger

  They’re still in the school.

  So are Mr. Robinson, the principal, Mrs. Clarke, the vice principal, Mrs. Peters, the school secretary, and Mr. Jones, the custodian.

  I, Amber Brown, could definitely make a joke about the animal skunks and the human skunks all still being in the school. But I won’t. I actually like all of the people still in the school.

  I also won’t joke because that would be dangerous because I really don’t want to laugh when I have to go this much.

  I try to concentrate on other things.

  I count the number of school buses.

  There are a lot of them.

  Some of the buses are the ones that normally bring kids to our school. Some are the ones that normally take kids to the middle school and the high school.

  Buses filled with kids who have permission to go home will be leaving soon.

  Buses filled with kids who are waiting for someone to pick them up are staying in the parking lot.

  I am one of those kids who is waiting.

  I am one of those kids who is getting worried about whether I am ever going to be picked up.

  I am getting worried about holding it in until someone rescues me.

  Trying to think of other things, I turn to Brandi, who is sitting next to me, and start singing, “One hundred smelly old skunks on the wall, one hundred smelly old skunks on the wall, take one down, pass it around .... ninety-nine smelly old skunks on the wall....”

  Brandi joins in.

  So do some of the other kids.

  Jimmy changes the words. “Ninety-nine smelly old skunks on the wall, knock one down, kick it around ......”

  Tiffani hits him on the head with her knapsack. “Skunk abuser.”

  Jimmy rubs the top of his head. “Ow!”

  “Serves you right.” Tiffani shrugs. “You can hurt people, just not animals.”

  Jimmy turns around and stares at her. “My father’s got a name for people like you ..... ‘tree huggers.’ ”

  Tiffani folds her arms. “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names can never hurt me.”

  “Skunk hugger.” Jimmy sticks his tongue out at her.

  “I may love skunks ... but you smell like one ...” Tiffani sticks her tongue out at him.

  “If you love skunks,” Bobby grins, “you must love Jimmy if he smells like one.”

  Both Tiffani and Jimmy make gagging noises.

  From the front of the bus, Mrs. Holt calls out, “Amber Brown. Brandi Colwin. Someone is here for you.”

  Brandi and I give each other high fives.

  One of our mothers has finally gotten here.

  We can get out of here, off the bus, to a bathroom.

  Saved from a life of embarrassment ... I look out of the bus, expecting to see my mom or Mrs. Colwin.

  It’s neither.

  Chapter Five

  “Max. What are you doing here?” I look at my mother’s boyfriend, actually my mother’s fiancé .... my future stepfather. (But I try not to think of him that way. I like to think of him as just Max, this nice guy. If I think of him as “stepfather,” then that means I’ve given up thinking that my mom and dad will ever get back together.)

  He looks at me, pretending to be hurt ... at least I think he’s pretending. “Would you like me to leave? Would you like to go back on the bus?”

  “No!” Brandi and I yell at the same time.

  “You must be Brandi.” Max smiles at her.

  She smiles and nods.

  He explains. “Amber, the school contacted your mom and then she called me to see if I could help by picking up you and Brandi. I changed my schedule. Your mom faxed signed permissions to the school ... and, here I am.”

  It’s weird.

  I really like Max but it’s sort of like he’s totally becoming a part of our lives .... and like my father’s almost not there .... like Max is becoming my father.

  I think about my real father and I think about how he’s almost becoming my unreal father.

  It’s hard to stay close to someone who I hardly ever see, who is basically just a voice. A lot of the really good times that my dad and I had seem so long ago.

  Now it’s Max who is there when we need him.

  “Save us! Save us!” Kids on the bus yell out of the window. “Help! We’re being held captive because of skunks!”

  “Quiet down!” one of the teachers yells.

  “Help! We are being held captive by skunks!”

  I’m not positive but that sounded like Jimmy Russell.

  “Detention!” the teacher yells.

  With that detention added to all his others, Jimmy will have to come back from college for that punishment .... or maybe he won’t even go to college.... It’ll probably be a job or jail.

  I remember an important fact.

  I have to go to the bathroom.

  “Wagons ho.” I use the phrase that my Aunt Pam always says when she’s ready to leave.

  We go to the car.

  Max pretends to be a chauffeur, opening the back door for Brandi and me.

  We get in and drive off, leaving Skunk School behind.

  “Pit stop!” I yell as we approach a gas station.

  Max stops.

  I run into the bathroom.

  When I come out, Max and Brandi are pretending to be gas station attendants, washing car windows.

  When I woke up this morning, I had no idea it was going to be like this.

  Every school should have at least one Skunk Day a year, only without the skunks and without the smell.

  I only hope that I can convince Max to take us to the mall.

  Chapter Six

  “You have one thousand, two hundred and eighty-two points.” The arcade attendant tells us our total.

  That’s the most points I’ve ever gotten.

  There are several reasons for all of those points.

  One is that Max put a twenty-dollar bill into the token machine and the three of us played until all of the tokens were gone.

  The other reason is that Max is really great on the bowling-ball machine and the basketball hoops. Brandi really scores on the rock-and-roll machine and I am the champ of the Skee-Ball machine.

  The other is that we’ve put all our tickets together ...... One thousand, two hundred and eighty-two points.

  Brandi and I look at all of the possible prizes.

  There are so many.

  Some need so many tickets.

  I would really like the cassette-player jukebox, but it costs too many tickets.

  Brandi and I keep looking at everything.

  Max looks at his watch. “Come on, girls. Make your choices. It’s time to go to the food court.”

  “In a minute, please,” I beg.

  Max doesn’t seem to realize that these tickets are the closest thing that Brandi and I are going to have to paychecks for a lot of years. Allowances are different somehow and we’re not old enough to baby-sit. So, our choices are important.

  Should we get one big thing and share it? Brandi and I have done that before. We sort of share a mermaid doll that Max bought for me after I didn’t win one in a burping contest.

  Should we each get our own separate things?

  “My stomach is starting to growl,” Max says. “You girls have five minutes to make your choices and then we’re going.”

  Max is beginning to sound like a father.

  Brandi and I make our decisions.

  We each get a small stuffed animal. She gets a dolphin. I get a monkey to go with Gorilla.

  We also get some candy, two heart rings, and three string friendship bracelets.

  Brandi puts hers on.

  I put mine on.

  We give one to Max, who looks at it for a minute like he’s not sure of what he’s going to do with it.

  He’s got that look on his face that some grown-ups get just before they say, “Thank you. I’ll put it away to wear sometime later,” and then they never do wear it.

  “Max
,” I say, “it’s a friendship bracelet and you put it on and never take it off. It’s a friendship bracelet and it means a lot.”

  He thinks for a minute and then he puts it on his wrist and smiles.

  The string just barely fits around his wrist.

  We go to the food court.

  Hamburgers.

  French fries.

  Soda.

  It’s a great Skunk Day.

  While we’re eating, Brandi goes, “Bulletin. Bulletin. Bulletin.”

  I put more salt on my fries. “Didn’t you report the bulletin already today?”

  “That was the skunk bulletin. This is one I forgot to mention because the other news was much bigger and much smellier.” Brandi picks up the catsup bottle and pretends it’s a microphone.

  “Overheard in the front office. Starting next week, the new housing development is opening. Families will be moving in. New students will be arriving soon. And the teachers thought it would be a good idea for all of us to ‘bond.’ Mr. Turner, please explain to the listening audience what ‘bond’ means.”

  Brandi moves the catsup-bottle “microphone” in front of Max.

  He talks into the “microphone.” “ ‘Bond’ means to make contact, become close.”

  Brandi takes back control of the microphone. “And now, sports fans, here is the big news. The teachers said that they are thinking of starting a sports league to get everyone doing things together .... and the fall and winter sport will be ............... ..... ta da ... BOWLING!”

  Max and I look at each other and laugh.

  We all go bowling, Mom, Max, and me.

  I, Amber Brown, am one of the world’s worst bowlers ... but we have a good time.

  Continuing, Brandi informs us, “And they’re looking for coaches for the different teams.”

  Brandi looks at Max.

  She knows we go bowling.

  Max starts to look at his hamburger.

  Brandi repeats, “They’re looking for coaches. It’s really only for Saturday afternoons.”

  “Please,” I say, thinking about how much fun it would be to be on a team with Brandi and some of the new kids ... once we meet them.

  Max sighs and then smiles. “Sure. Instant family. Instant bowling team.”

  I think about what Max has just said. He and Mom aren’t even married yet. He isn’t even living with us ... and already he thinks of us as family.

  For a minute, I wonder where my father is .... what he’s doing right now.

  And then I think again about the team and Max coaching it. “Bowling will be a ball.”

  Max groans.

  Brandi throws a French fry at me.

  And Skunk Day continues.

  Chapter Seven

  “I think we’re going to get married in April,” my mom says. “And then we’re going to Hawaii for our honeymoon.”

  “I’ve always wanted to go to Hawaii.” I pass the broccoli to Max and then applaud.

  My mom and Max look at each other.

  “Honey. It’s a honeymoon,” my mom says. “Max and I will be going, just the two of us.”

  I, Amber Brown, am very disappointed. I have always wanted to do the hula and see a volcano.

  “There’s a good chance that the Danielses will come to the wedding. If so, they may be staying in our house while Max and I are in Hawaii.Then you will be staying with them,” my mother tells me.

  The Danielses. Justin. My best friend from forever. My only best friend until he and his family moved to Alabama. (Then Brandi became my best friend who lives in New Jersey, where I live.)

  When my mom and I went down to visit them, we only stayed for a weekend. Spring vacation ... I’ll get to see them for over a week. That’s even better than hulas and volcanoes ... although Justin’s little brother, Danny, is a little like a volcano. By that time, the Danielses’ baby will be born. It will be so much fun.

  “If they can’t come,” my mom says, “Aunt Pam will either stay with you here or you will go back with her after the wedding and stay with her in California.”

  I’m really beginning to like this honeymoon.

  “I have some questions.” I look at Mom and Max.

  Mom and Max look at each other and then look at me.

  “Here goes,” I say. “What do I call Max after you guys get married? What will my last name be? When is Max going to start living here? Am I going to always be an only child? Will we stay here? Will I still be going to Paris to see my dad this summer? Will I have to wear a dumb bridesmaid dress at the wedding?”

  These are questions that I’ve been thinking about a lot, ever since Max asked my mother to marry him and gave her a really pretty diamond and amethyst ring.

  Every time I look at the ring, I remember the diamond engagement ring and the gold wedding ring that my mom used to wear when she and my dad were married.

  I look at Max and Mom and wait for answers.

  Max starts first. “My name is Max. You’ve always called me that and that’s what you can continue to call me. And you will still keep your last name, unless you want to change it.”

  I think about how upset my father would be if I changed my name.... At least I think he would be upset. Anyway, I love my name ..... Amber Brown. It’s so colorful! If I changed it to Max’s name, I would be Amber Turner. It would sound like I was a stone mover-arounder ... Amber Turner.

  My mom says, “After Max and I are married, we will live in this town. For the time being, we’ll live in this house. As for your always being an only child, I’m not sure.”

  I, Amber Brown, like being an only child. It makes me very nervous just thinking about not being an only child.

  She continues. “As for visiting your father this summer in Paris, that’s already arranged.”

  “And the bridesmaid dress?” I bite my lip. “You’re not going to make me wear some dumb frilly thing, are you?”

  She shakes her head.

  “Are you going to be wearing some dumb frifly thing?” I ask her.

  “I did that once already and look where it got me.” She shakes her head again.

  I hate when she says something against being married to my dad. She hardly ever does that, but when she does, it really bothers me.

  She puts her hand on mine and says, “I’m sorry I said that. It got me my wonderful daughter.”

  I smile at her.

  She picks up some broccoli with a fork and tries to put it in my mouth.

  I, Amber Brown, do not like broccoli. I think that the only green stuff that people should eat is pistachio ice cream. My mother, however, does not agree.

  “Neither of us will have to wear dumb frilly things to the wedding. I promise you, Amber.” She puts some broccoli in my mouth when I open it to say “Thanks.”

  “I don’t have to wear a dumb frilly thing to the wedding, do I?” Max teases.

  My mom grins at him.

  The phone rings.

  “May I answer it?” I figure it’s Brandi with a skunk bulletin.

  My mom gives me permission and I rush into the living room to answer it. That way I can have some privacy for my call and they can have some privacy too.

  I pick up the phone.

  It’s not Brandi.

  It’s my dad.

  He asks me what I’ve been doing, how I’ve spent my day.

  I tell him about the skunks but I don’t tell him about Max.

  He knows my mother’s engaged because she wrote him a note, but I still don’t want to tell him what a great day I’ve had with Max. Somehow it just doesn’t seem right.

  I listen to his news and then we hang up.

  I stand there.

  I am so excited .... so excited.

  Then I get nervous.

  Somehow, I don’t think my mom is going to be as excited as I am.

  But I’ve got to tell her.

  I go back into the kitchen.

  “Mom,” I say. “Dad’s moving back and when he does, he wants me to live with him pa
rt-time.”

  Chapter Eight

  My mom, Sarah Thompson, has gone totally ballistic.

  I, Amber Brown, have never seen her like this.

  Clearing the table, she’s slamming dishes around.

  The bowl of broccoli falls to the floor.

  If I weren’t so upset by the way my mom is acting, I would be celebrating the fact that there will be no broccoli leftovers.

  A glass falls, breaks, and spills water all over the tablecloth.

  My mom puts down the dishes, sort of crumbles into a chair, and starts to cry.

  Max kneels down and puts his arms around her.

  Putting her head on his shoulder, she sniffles and tries to stop crying.

  I want to be hugging her, but Max is already doing that.

  I don’t understand why she’s acting like this.

  When my dad moved to Paris, my mom was mad at him. She said that he was running away from responsibility.

  I heard that fight.

  Dad had come over to the house to tell us that he was being transferred, that it wasn’t his fault ... that he would always support me financially and love me.

  They yelled so much, I started to cry.

  I start to cry now.

  Max stops hugging my mom and comes over and hugs me.

  It’s the first time he’s really hugged me like this.

  I put my head on his shoulder, sniffle, and cry. My nose drips on his jacket.

  My mother comes over and puts her arms around both of us ... a group hug.

  I sniffle again.

  My mother sniffles again.

  Her eye makeup has run all the way down her face.

  I sit down.

  “Amber,” she says, “I’m sorry. I don’t understand why I’m acting like this.”

  Actually, I, Amber Brown, am not sure I want to understand why she’s acting like this ... I just don’t want her to be acting like this. It’s so scary.

  She continues sniffling and speaking. “It’s just that everything is going so well. I love you. I love Max.”