Baby-Sitters Club 060 Read online

  "Why didn't you tell us you were going to have a makeover?" Dawn asked me.

  It was a fair question. But I felt something clench in my stomach. Dawn had not yet said anything nice. She was trying to be friendly, but something wasn't right. Did she think I looked terrible? Was she mad at me? Had I done something wrong before I left the house that morning?

  "Well, I didn't really decide for sure till the last minute," I began.

  "You just said you had been thinking about it for awhile," Dawn cut in.

  "Thinking about it," I said. "But you know me - " "I thought I did." Dawn jammed some bean curd in her mouth.

  "Well ..." I had the urge to apologize, but I knew that was silly. Apologize for what? Instead I just looked down and spread some vegetables on my pancake.

  Dad began talking about the things we had seen in the mall - the man dancing with the mannequin, the jazz band, and the lunchtime scene.

  The highlight was Dad's imitation of the drummer. He tapped his fork on the table, grunting, "Eh-eh ... eh eh eh eh." I started laughing, and Sharon looked at us with this curious smile, as if we'd just lost our minds.

  "Must have been funny," Dawn said, staring down at a cube of bean curd.

  Then Dad said, "By the time we went to the clothing store, I felt like taking a nap - " "Clothing store?" Dawn said, looking up. "You went to a clothing store, too?" "Yes," Dad said. "That's what's in all those shopping bags. Clothes. We went to some expensive place named after a young fellow who spells his last name with one letter." Dawn's eyes popped open. "You bought the clothes at Steven E?" "Yes," Dad said, rolling his eyes. "A dress, a sweater, shoes ..." "But -but it's right after Christmas!" Dawn said. "I mean, that place is so expensive, and - " "Oh, Mary Anne's going to pay for half," Dad replied. "And I won't forget to remind her." Dawn shot a look at her mom. I could tell Sharon wasn't thrilled about the expense, but she didn't really look angry.

  I'll never forget Dawn's expression, though. I could tell she wanted to seem nonchalant, but her face was tense. She actually looked hurt.

  My excitement faded. One thing about me, whenever I sense someone doesn't like me or is mad at me, I always assume I'm wrong. Most times I start to cry. Then I try to figure out what I did and what I can do to redeem myself.

  Well, that was the way I felt about Dawn just then.

  I could barely concentrate during the rest of the dinner.

  It was my turn to clean up the kitchen that night, and Dawn's turn to clear the table. When she picked up my plate, she didn't even look at me.

  I took some glasses into the kitchen and began loading the dishwasher. When I bent down, my hair fell across my eyes. I was startled. For a split second I thought a spider had fallen on me from the ceiling. I could tell I was going to have to get used to some new sensations.

  But there was one sensation I never would have predicted - I felt guilty.

  At first I didn't know why, but soon it hit me. Dawn was jealous of me. I should have seen it right away. Why was I so dumb? I shouldn't have bragged about what Dad and I had done. I shouldn't have let him buy me so many things. I should have suggested that Dawn come with us to the mall.

  My thoughts were tumbling around. I didn't know whether to talk to Dawn, or. wait for her to come to me, or ask Dad's advice.

  I decided to do none of the above. There was only one thing that would make me feel better at that point - talking to Logan. Just hearing his voice usually puts me in a good mood.

  I quickly finished up and turned the dishwasher on. Then I sat on the stool by the wall phone and called Logan's number.

  "Hello?" It was Logan's little brother, Hunter.

  "Hi, Hunter," I said.

  "Bary Add!" Hunter squealed. He has allergies to just about everything, so he always sounds nasal. "Logad! Logad! It's Bary Add! Bary Add, I got a didosaur backpack today!" "Wow, that's great - " "Hello? Mary Anne?" That was Logan. I wish you could hear his voice. It's really warm and cheerful, and he has this great Southern accent. (His family moved to Stoneybrook from Louisville, Kentucky.) "Hi," I said. "How are you?" "Almost thawed out," he said. "Dad and I were chopping up the ice on the driveway." "Sounds like fun." "Think so? We should have invited you over." "Yeah, I could have cheered you on!" "Big help." Logan laughed. "What'd you do today?" I wanted to tell him. I almost blurted it out. But I really wanted to wait and let him see it. "Um, Logan? I have a surprise for you." I heard a faint click. I figured Hunter or Kerry (Logan's sister) probably picked up the other line at his house.

  "Surprise? What is it?" Logan said.

  "I can't tell you," I answered.

  Then I heard Dawn's voice. "Some surprise!" "Dawn?" I said.

  "Sorry," she replied. "I picked up the other extension by - " "What do you mean, some surprise?" Logan insisted.

  "Well, it's just - " Dawn began.

  "Dawn!" I warned.

  "It's not that earth-shattering, Mary Anne," Dawn said. "I mean, we all get haircuts." "A haircut?" Logan piped up. "You got a haircut?" I could not believe what was happening. "Dawn, I wanted to show him!" "Oh," Dawn said. "Sorry. 'Bye, Logan." The phone clicked again, and she was gone.

  Sorry was about the last thing she sounded.

  "What happened?" Logan pleaded. "Did you do something crazy, like cut it all off?" "Well," I said, "not all" "But it's real short, right?" "Yeah, but - " "Why did you do it?" I couldn't keep my feelings to myself anymore. "Why is everyone so upset about this?" I cried. "I was so happy! I couldn't wait to show you! Now I feel like I did some awful thing." Tears welled up in my eyes.

  "Oh, Mary Anne, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound like that," Logan said. "It's just a shock, that's all. I can't wait to see it. Can I come over first thing tomorrow?" "Yes," I said. "I - I have to go now." "Okay, I'll see you around nine-thirty." "Okay. 'Bye." " 'Bye." I hung up, half-expecting myself to burst into tears. That would have been the old Mary Anne's usual response. But my eyes were dry. I was annoyed. Annoyed? I was actually angry. How could Dawn be so rotten?

  I decided I'd go into my room and wait for her to apologize. And if she didn't, fine. I had no desire to say another word to her, anyway.

  Chapter 7.

  I did talk to Dawn that night. I asked, "Where's the toothpaste?" (I had to. She had brought it into her room by mistake.) But that was it.

  We kept our distance on Sunday, speaking to each other only when necessary. Dawn did not apologize or even mention what had happened the evening before.

  The good thing was that Logan did come over that morning. And guess what? He said he loved my hair! Boy, did that make me feel better.

  Well, the count was in my favor: three for my new look (four including Tigger) and one against. But Monday would be the big test. The whole world would finally see the New Mary Anne.

  Well, at least SMS would.

  On Monday morning I put on some makeup. No, I don't ever wear makeup to school, but I thought I'd try just this once. Then I brushed my hair and used a tiny bit of hairspray.

  Dawn was eating her whole-grain puffed cereal and lowfat yogurt when I sat down to breakfast. I broiled some bacon and made myself some sweet, gloppy French toast.

  (I wasn't really doing it to be mean. That was what I wanted to eat, and I wasn't going to bend over backward just because that stuff turns her stomach. Besides, she was almost finished eating.) I plopped my breakfast plate down at the table. A greasy piece of bacon slipped off. I picked it up and ate it.

  "Gross," Dawn said.

  "Good morning," I said.

  We left separately for school.

  I had butterflies as I walked into SMS. I half expected the entire eighth-grade class to be in the lobby, waiting to laugh at me.

  But I got over that. I was very mature. I refused to be ruffled.

  "Ucccccchhh! What happened to you?" My ruffles came back.

  Just my luck. Of all the people to run into first, it would have to be Alan Gray.

  In case you don't know, Alan is known by many as the J
erk of Eighth Grade (and that's one of the nicer names). Why? Let's just say maturity is not his strong point. Plus he's been trying to get back at the entire BSC ever since he lost a bet to Kristy and had to be her personal slave for a week.

  "Hello, Alan," I said calmly.

  "Well, at least they didn't scalp off your voice box!" was Alan's witty response.

  "No, they didn't," I replied, heading for the hallway. "See you." The day was off to a wonderful start.

  I managed to escape to my locker without anyone else seeing me. But just as I opened it, I heard a wolf whistle behind me.

  Now I was upset. Hadn't Alan said enough already? Why did he have to follow me? I turned around, not knowing whether to yell at him or cry.

  It was Logan.

  "Who's the new girl?" he said with a smile.

  I smiled back. "Hi. You still like it?" "Love it. I still can't believe how different you look!" With a straight face, I replied, "What was wrong with the way I looked before?" "No - I meant - well, you know - " "You thought I was ugly, and you didn't tell me?" Logan had this hurt-puppy look on his face.

  He was taking me so seriously. "No! I didn't mean that - " I couldn't stand it any longer. I started to giggle- "Ohhhh, you're in trouble." Logan wrapped his arm around my neck, pretending to get me in a headlock. I ducked away, laughing. (Logan may be a semi-jock, but he's gentle as a mouse.) Standing just to our left were Bruce Scher-merhorn and Justin Forbes, two eighth-graders I know. Their jaws were practically scraping the ground. "Mary Anne Spier?" Bruce said.

  "Hi," I replied.

  "Wow . . . hey," Bruce said.

  Wow . . . hey? Well, he was smiling and nodding, so I guess that was meant to be a compliment. I said, "Thanks," and linked arms with Logan.

  We walked together to my homeroom, which happens to be about twenty-seven miles away from my locker. Which meant we had to pass a lot of people on the way.

  Now, finally, was the Moment of Truth. The Great Unveiling.

  You know what? Some people didn't even recognize me! Erica Blumberg kept giving Logan this suspicious glance, as if he'd found a new girlfriend. Shawna Riverson walked right by me.

  I'll tell you when I really started feeling good. It was when Cokie Mason actually dropped her books and gasped. (Cokie used to have a major crush on Logan. She dated him, back when he and I had split up.) "Hi, Cokie," I said nonchalantly.

  "Wow, you look fantastic!" she exclaimed.

  Maybe she wasn't so bad after all. She did give me my second Wow of the day.

  "Thanks!" I said.

  Well, "thanks" was the word I used most on the way to my homeroom. I felt like a movie star. Imagine, me, drab old Mary Anne! No one had ever fussed over my looks before. And now everyone was paying attention. One of the teachers even came out of her classroom to compliment me.

  To tell you the truth, it was a little embarrassing. Logan said my face was like a blinking red stoplight. But by the time we finally turned the last corner to my homeroom, I was enjoying myself.

  That was when I saw Claudia, Kristy, and Stacey. They were walking toward us, chatting. My heart started racing. I couldn't wait to see the looks on their faces. "Hi!" I called out.

  Stacey looked up. "Hi, Mary Anne. Hi, Logan." She raised an eyebrow. "It's shorter than I thought. Did Joyce do it?" She didn't seem surprised at all, "Yeah," I said. "Um . . . did she mention it to you or something?" "No," Kristy said. "Dawn did." Ooooooh. It figured. I should have specifically told her not to say anything! Not that it would have mattered. She knew I'd wanted to surprise Logan, and that hadn't stopped her.

  "I can't believe you went to the hairdresser without us," Claudia said, with a scolding sort of smile.

  "I'm sorry," I replied. (I couldn't help it, the words just flew out of my mouth.) "Well, what do you think?" Claudia and Stacey gave each other a Look. Kristy smiled and shrugged. "Mary Anne, you knucklehead . . . we said that cut wasn't you." Kristy was trying to sound as if she were joking, but she meant it. I knew that tone of voice.

  Some best friend.

  "It's okay," Claudia said.

  "It'll grow out," Stacey added.

  Funny, their comments were sort of mean, but they didn't look mean. Their faces even showed a bit of sympathy. Sympathy! I think that was the worst thing of all. "Yeah," I said. "I guess." "Oh, well," Kristy said, looking at her watch. "See you at lunch." " 'Bye," I said.

  " 'Bye," the other three said.

  I felt awful as I watched them walk off. It was as if they had taken my heart out and stepped all over it.

  "They're nuts," Logan whispered. "I think they're just jealous." I didn't believe that for a minute. Maybe all those people in the hallway had been lying to me, just trying to make me feel good. "Logan, do you really like my hair?" Logan held my shoulders gently and looked me in the eye. "I really do. But that shouldn't matter. Mary Anne, you don't need to listen to what anyone says. You're the one who has to like it. If it makes you feel good, that's what counts." Leave it to Logan. He was right. I liked the way it looked, I liked the way it felt. "Yeah," I said. "Thanks." "Okay, I better go before the bell rings. 'Bye." " 'Bye!" As he turned to leave, I saw Dawn sitting in homeroom. She caught my eye, then looked away.

  Suddenly I remembered the BSC meeting that afternoon. "Oh - Logan?" I called down the hall.

  "Yeah?" he said, turning back around.

  "Are you coming to the meeting?" "I hadn't planned on it. Why? You want me to?" How did he know? I smiled and nodded. "I don't think I can face it alone. You know . . ." "Okay!" he said. "Anyway, I'll see you at lunch. 'Bye!" " 'Bye!" T walked in the classroom. I could tell right away that Dawn had heard me. She was shaking her head and staring out the window, with a teeny little smirk on her face.

  Chapter 8.

  The weather report had predicted heavy snow for Tuesday. They were right about the heavy part, but they were wrong about the snow. Freezing rain fell the whole day long. No matter how hard you tried, you couldn't feel warm or dry - inside or out.

  So there was Claudia, inside the Arnolds' kitchen, cold and bored silly. Marilyn was practicing scales over and over, Carolyn was still working on her contraption, and the last drizzlings of the storm tapped against the windows.

  After listening to the clanking downstairs, Claudia was getting curious. She went to the top of the basement stairs and shouted, "Do you want something to eat?" "No!" Carolyn shouted back.

  "I can bring it down." "No!" "Can't I just come down?" "NO! I told you this is top secret!" Claudia rolled her eyes. "But you let Mary Anne and Marilyn see it a few days ago." "I wasn't working on the secret stuff back then! Please leave me alone!" "All right." Claudia slunk back to the kitchen table. In her shoulder bag was a Nancy Drew book she'd just finished reading. With a sigh, she pulled it out and started reading it again.

  By the end of the first chapter, Marilyn finished practicing. She bounced into the kitchen and said, "Let's go see the time machine!" "Noooooo!" Carolyn screamed from the basement.

  "I think she means no," Claudia said.

  "What a party pooper," Marilyn replied with a pout. "I know, let's invite someone over!" Good idea, Claudia thought. Stacey was sitting at the Braddocks', just a couple of blocks away. "We could try Matt and Haley," she said. "I don't know if Stacey'll want to take them out in this weather, though." "The rain's almost stopped!" Marilyn squealed. "Call them up!" It turned out that Stacey was happy to bring the kids over. In a few minutes she and the Braddocks appeared at the door, soggy but excited.

  "Hi!" Haley and Stacey shouted.

  "Hi!" Marilyn replied. "Come in!" Matt beamed and made a motion with his hand. A small, low noise came from his mouth. (Matt has been deaf since birth. He goes to a special school in Stamford, and speaks with sign language. I haven't caught on how to do that, but Jessi's really good at it.) They hung their coats in the closet and came into the kitchen.

  "Don't let them downstairs!" Carolyn's voice floated upward.

  "What?" Marilyn said in an
exaggerated loud voice. "Let them come downstairs? Okay! Let's go, guys!" "No!" Carolyn shrieked. "Don't! I said don't!" Marilyn giggled. "Come on," she said to her friends. "Let's play." The three of them ran into the rec room.

  Stacey and Claudia went into the living room, flopped onto the sofa, and gabbed for awhile. (Claudia didn't mention what they were gabbing about, and I didn't ask, but I have a pretty good idea. . . .) Well, the topic must have been very interesting (harrumph), because they lost track of the kids.

  "Claudia?" Stacey said. "Do you hear anything?" Claud sat up. "No." "That's what I was afraid of. What are they doing?" Stacey stood up and headed out of the living room.

  She stopped when she heard scurrying footsteps outside. "Why are they - " There was a burst of giggling from the side of the house. Stacey and Claudia looked out the window to see Marilyn, Matt, and Haley, with their coats on, running down the driveway.

  "Come on," Claudia said. She dashed to the closet, grabbed their coats, and called down to let Carolyn know they were going outside. Then she and Stacey bundled up and left through the back door.

  The rain had stopped, but it was still freezing. Claud and Stace walked around the side of the house, looking for the kids.

  They found them on their knees, peering through a small basement window. Haley signed something to Matt, and he laughed.

  I should explain, Matt's laugh is ... well, unusual. It's sort of a cross between a loud squeak and a goose's honk. (He can't help it, he's never heard what it sounds like!) Anyway, it made Marilyn crack up. Haley thought it was pretty funny, too. As for Matt, I think he likes the way his laugh affects people. Their reaction makes him laugh even more.

  But Carolyn had heard it, too, and she had a different opinion. "Knock it off!" she called from the basement. "Get away from there!" The three spies raced away. They saw Claudia and Stacey, but they ignored them. They headed for the green slanted door that led into the basement from outside.