CHAPTER III
LITTLE FLIES IN THE OINTMENT
On guard against the dangers of a city, or of doubtfulcompanionship, Betty Lee's parents had little to worry over; forBetty had a healthy mind and body, wholesome activities to occupyher time and girls very like herself for her best friends. Thematter of attention from the boys Betty seemed to be able to manageherself, though Mr. Lee took careful note of who and what the boyswere.
Betty Lee, junior, was now almost sixteen and attractive. Therewould be problems of love affairs some time, but not yet, it was tobe hoped, though Betty was mature for her age and had consideredherself as "going on sixteen" ever since her last birthday. Betty'sdreams of a Prince Charming were natural enough but not serious andnever connected with anyone in the flesh, unless a thrilling memoryof one Hallowe'en and of attention from a college youth on a lateroccasion could be considered as coming in the category of dreams.
Chet Dorrance had recovered from his first attack of being impressedwith a girl and was less "obvious" in his attentions to Betty. Buthe still preferred her society when he could get it, for picnics,class parties and the like, seeing her home or arranging for hercompany. Betty in her turn, had confidence in Chet, who was alwaysthe gentleman, and felt safely escorted when she was with him. Therewas nothing "thrilling" about the friendship and the girls rarelyteased Betty about Chet. Very little of what could properly betermed social life was permitted by any of the parents who were thesafe background of Betty and her friends. Contacts were chiefly atschool and in school activities, all very natural and pleasant.Another boy for whom Betty felt a real friendliness was ChaunceyAllen, Kathryn's brother. Chauncey had taken a sudden upward growthtill Kathryn looked like a little girl beside him and her vivaciousways were in contrast with his quiet though often droll speech andaction. He was active enough, to be sure, and was to play with thebasketball team after Christmas. From him, since she and Kathrynwere together so much, Betty heard all the boy news of the school,but Chauncey rarely engaged her society for any event. Indeed,Chauncey rarely bothered about girls, though he liked Betty, Kathrynsaid that since Chet fancied Betty, Chauncey would "let it go atthat."
In regard to Ramon Balinsky, whom Peggy had once thought sointriguing as a football hero, Betty was grateful to her father whenhe said that he would write himself, since "the boy might need afriend." "Perhaps he has some new trouble," said Mr. Lee that nightbefore dinner, when Betty caught him alone and asked what she shouldwrite. "Write a short friendly note, Betty, and I'll say the rest."
Before the church supper, then, much as Betty needed the time onlessons, she spoiled several sheets of good note paper in theprocess of getting the appropriate thing said. The note was writtenand pronounced a "friendly, modest little effort," by thecensor-in-chief. Betty then dismissed the matter from her mind,though occasionally thinking of Ramon's expression, "Golden Betty,"when as girls do, she spent some time in arranging her golden locksaccording to the most becoming of the approved high school styles.One had to look well in Lyon High!
But as Betty said sometimes to Kathryn or Carolyn, whenever she wasin danger of being spoiled by thinking she could do well inathletics, or looked nice, or felt "set up" about what somebody hadsaid, she always "got a good jolt of some sort, to bring her down apeg or two." And Kathryn or Carolyn would reply, "Life is like that,Betty!"
A little jolt was coming that evening, though Betty, satisfied thatshe could finish her lessons by rising a little earlier than usualthe next morning, happily started off with Chet, a little late forthe young people's supper. "Do you have to help any tonight?" askedChet, who knew that Betty was often called on by the committees.Chet did not belong to Betty's church, but had a little habit ofdropping in when something attractive was going on. The turkeysuppers were usually served by the ladies' committees, but this onewas entirely in the hands of the younger organizations.
"No, Chet, unless with the games. I'm going to help with theChristmas music and the tree and the Sunday school doings and I toldthem I couldn't do anything more this time. Is Ted coming tonight?"
"Yes. He's bringing his latest girl. She's a freshman, too, at theUniversity."
Betty made a little sound that might have been termed a giggle.Attractive Ted, Chet's brother, the first boy who had claimedBetty's admiring attention on her entrance to Lyon High, wasprobably not any more given to social relations with the girls thanmany of the other older boys they knew; but as he had a way ofcharming courtesy toward a young lady and a frank form of speechabout her, always complimentary, he was considered as being in lovewith one and another in rather rapid succession, a very foolishproceeding, as some of the girls said. Betty reserved her opinion.Ted was a "nice boy" and was doing well at the university.
"Does Ted keep up his music?" asked Betty.
"No. He hasn't any time for it with his freshman work."
"Would you believe, Chet, that I could be as dumb as I was aboutthinking that I couldn't join the orchestra until I was a junior?"
"Why? Did you think that, Betty? I could have told you."
"Well, little country girl that I was, I believed everything thatwas told me, of course----"
"I haven't any such impression," laughed Chet, who thought Bettyquite capable of looking after her rights and privileges. He oftentold her that she was "little Miss Independence."
"I almost did, anyhow, Chet; and the summer after my freshman year,when I was taking up violin, you know, someone told me that--perhapsjust to joke me--and while I _thought_ that some of the boys andgirls I saw in it were freshmen and sophomores, I supposed it wasjust because they were specially gifted that they were allowed toplay. I wasn't especially gifted and as I was paying attention toall sorts of other things, I never found out till the _middle of mysophomore year_ that junior orchestra only meant _second_ to thesenior orchestra, sort of a preparation for it! It was just as well,for I needed more lessons and practice."
"Mother says that you play very well, Betty, and that meanssomething from her."
"Your mother is a dear. Mine is crazy about her."
Betty's mother would scarcely have used the same terms about herfeeling toward Mrs. Dorrance, with whom she had become very wellacquainted, but Chet understood the common parlance of the girls andwas not likely to assume that Betty's mother was perishing withadmiration.
They had been walking quite a little distance to catch a car whichwould drop them near the church. Now they swung on and finding aseat without trouble, watched the winter landscape as they rode andtalked. Some other young people whom they knew were on the car andquite a crowd came from this and another car just ahead, to swellthe numbers at the church. But as often happens, though they were alittle late, the supper, too, was not being served at quite theappointed hour and Betty and Chet sat down at the first tables tofind themselves with many others that they knew. And oh, that goodturkey and the full plates! "If you want plenty to eat for yourmoney, Chet," remarked the boy next to him, "just come to one of thesuppers here!"
But whom did Betty find next to her but Clara Lovel, the rivalcandidate for president of Lyon "Y"? Both girls felt a littleself-conscious. Betty and Chet had been seated first and Betty knewthat Clara, who came with Brad Warren, did not notice at all who wasnear her, when she whipped into a seat as she was joking with two orthree others. All were pretending to scramble for places. Clara wasinclined to make herself a little conspicuous as a rule and was nowrather over-dressed for the occasion, though going out with anescort might be considered as demanding special preparation.
As they were served almost at once, it was several minutes beforeClara noticed Betty. Betty, who was expecting it, observed fromClara's expression that her surprise was not an agreeable one, butBetty, who was picking up her fork, pleasantly said "good evening,Clara. This seems to be a good place to come for supper."
Clara's murmured reply was scarcely audible and she began to talk inan animated fashion with Brad, who leaned back in his chai
r,however, to say "how-do-you-do" to Betty and Chet. Supper engagedtheir attention, with the passing of rolls and butter, cream andsugar, the big dish of cranberry sauce and one or two other homeyand appetizing accompaniments of the turkey supper. But Betty didwish that she had a chance to tell Clara that she had not worked forthat office against her. Still, it was probably best not to mentionit. Clara was quite stiff in her necessary remarks as something mustbe passed, or when Chet, saying something to Brad, drew Clara intothe conversation.
Impulsively, at last, as they were finishing on pumpkin pie, Bettyspoke in a low tone, not to be heard in the midst of otherconversation about them. Chet was talking to the "waitress," who hadbrought him his pie and whom they all knew. She was a junior girl atLyon High. Brad had turned to the boy next to him with some questionabout the coming game.
"Clara," said Betty, "I've been wanting to tell you all evening thatI didn't do a thing to work for that being president of Lyon 'Y.'The whole thing was a surprise to me and it wasn't even mentioned tome till just before the election. I imagine that it was the surpriseof it to everybody that gave me the most votes--or something likethat."
"The girls who were there wanted you or you would not have beenelected," stiffly said Clara in reply. "But I really have so manythings on hand, with my sorority and all we do, and my part in theChristmas play, and my music and art, that I could not do justice tobeing president of anything. I really can't approve of a junior'sbeing president. I was very much surprised that the leader permittedit at all; but I'm sure that you will do very well and I hope thatyou get through with it without any trouble."
Clara's tone was very patronizing indeed, and as she was one of theolder seniors, Betty claimed afterward that she felt like a worm!"I'll do my best," Betty meekly replied, "and I hope that you willhelp out on the music at our programs. You play the piano sobeautifully. We need some good programs, too."
"Oh, I couldn't possibly act on any program committee," airily anddecisively said the senior, "but I might play for you some time."
"Thank you," said Betty, feeling that she should never want to askClara, yet knowing that she should not feel that way. The mention ofthe sorority, of course, was to impress a non-sorority girl. Clarawas not a Kappa Upsilon, and Betty really did not know to whatsorority she did belong.
Betty had not noticed that another girl had come up behind Clara,evidently in time to hear most of what was said, but now one ofClara's senior friends leaned over to say, "Take the last bite ofthat pie, Brad. I want you and Clara to help start one of thegames."
"After this dinner?" queried Brad, springing up, for Clara hadrisen. And as Betty still sat by Chet, she heard Clara say somethingin a low tone to the senior girl, who said with the evident purposeof being heard, "The nerve of her mentioning it at all!"
It was not pleasant to Betty, who wished, indeed, that she hademployed "more sense." Probably it _was_ "nerve," but she had notmeant it so. She did not speak of it to Chet and entered the gameshappily enough, having learned a little lesson, however. She had notknown Clara well enough to bring up the subject; and probably it wasnot best to be so frank except with your best friends. Bettywondered about that. Clara probably thought that Betty was_gloating_ over being elected! Oh, another thing! Betty hadforgotten about how the seniors felt about being beaten inbasketball the year before. That class, so far as the girls wereconcerned, happened not to be so good in athletics. The presentjunior girls usually beat them and Betty was prominent among thosewho played basketball and hockey. Dear, dear, how complicated thingswere sometimes. And it was important for the "good works" of Lyon"Y" to have everybody co-operate! "I wonder if I have enough tact tobe president of _anything_," thought honest Betty to herself, as shesubmitted to having a fool's cap on her head, for some game andpuled Chet by saying that it was the "most appropriate cap she couldwear."
"What's the sense to that remark, Betty?" asked Chet.
"None," laughed Betty. "I'm just a little dippy tonight."
There was plenty of real fun and in a good safe place; but Bettytook cold from getting too warm and then rushing out to look at thestars without enough around her. A young university professorpointed out some of the constellations to a group of young people.It was interesting and Betty did not realize how cold she was untilChet said, "You're shivering, Betty Lee. Come right inside. They'vea one-cent grab-bag and we may draw whistles for tomorrow's game."
"Sure you can afford it, Chet?" laughed Betty as she followedobediently.
That Betty missed pneumonia was providential, her mother told her;but feeling that she was taking cold, Betty herself took the usualpreventives and went to bed. It was late, to be sure, and she hadintended to get up early the next morning. But she forgot to set thealarm on the little clock and woke only when her mother called her.She set a book before her at the breakfast table and studied on thestreet car as best she could; but what a poor beginning to the dayit was! There was nothing but the game to anticipate, so far aspleasure was concerned. Her throat tickled, but Carolyn, who alsohad a slight cold, had some cough drops. They positively could notmiss that game!
Betty was not sure of herself in recitation that Friday. Shestumbled through English, in which she was usually so good that herteacher looked surprised, but refrained from comment, as Betty wasone of her best pupils. Her mind would not work in "Math," but shemanaged to get through with a recitation in that. One bright spot inthe gloom was that there was no recitation in Latin. Miss Heath wasill, the substitute hadn't come, and they had study hall instead.
Betty, who liked Miss Heath, hoped that she was not too ill andasked Carolyn if it "wouldn't turn out like that!"
"The one lesson we got, Carolyn, we didn't have to recite and mystudy hall came too late to save me. I just about half recited thismorning!"
"Well, remember we've our Monday's lesson ahead, Betty."
"Sure enough. Aren't you encouraging?"
Betty and Carolyn shared a steamer rug, brought by Carolyn on someprevious occasion and kept in her locker. The weather had moderatedfrom the little flurry of snow and a cold day or two which they hadhad. But at that the game did not help Betty's cold any. She forgotit in the general commotion, enthusiasm, singing and cheering thatwent on, but her handkerchief was needed to catch the sneezes.
A wintry sun shone down on field and stadium. Several hundred boysand girls and their elders tensely followed the plays, but oh, atlast they won! It was by a narrow margin, for the Eagles wereplaying to keep the glory won the year before; but what shouts wentup from the Lyon High rooters when the last score was made and theboys carried "Kentucky" from the field on their shoulders."Kentucky" had made the last touchdown.
"And Kentucky will be on the team next year, too, Carolyn," saidBetty. "He's a conditioned senior, but they say he isn't going totry to make it this year. He's going to take some extra work hewants and stay another year!"
"Go home and put that cold to bed, Betty," was Carolyn's last bit ofadvice.
"Oh dear, I suppose I must. I can't afford to get sick with allthere is to do."
Betty Lee, Junior Page 3
