Karen's Mistake Read online

  “Take that! And that!” said Hannie. “I am never falling in love again! It hurts too much.”

  “You sound like a Nate Bellows song,” I said. “Remember the one called ‘Hurts So Bad’?”

  “It hurts to listen to that song,” said Nancy. (She does not like Nate Bellows’s music either.)

  “This taught me a good lesson about love,” said Hannie. “The lesson is to keep away from it!”

  “I do not think all love hurts,” said Nancy. “You just have to pick a better person.”

  “Maybe you are right,” said Hannie. She was losing steam. She was not crying or mad. She was starting to sound like Hannie again.

  All this made me think of Nannie. I began to wonder if it was hard for her to be in love too. I did not think so. At least not because of Mr. English. But maybe I was making things hard for her.

  I had been feeling very sorry for myself. I had been thinking about how I would feel, losing Nannie, instead of thinking about Nannie being happy. It was time to fix some things.

  Even if Nannie moved away, and even if she decided to leave me out of the wedding, I did not want to hurt her. I needed to forgive Nannie.

  It was the perfect plan for getting my new year back on track.

  Karen’s Mistake

  I ate dinner at Hannie’s house, then went home. I felt much better because of my new attitude. I also had a very good plan.

  I was going to be grown-up and face my problem straight on. I was going to talk to Nannie.

  Even though it was Friday night, Nannie was home. (I had heard her say that Alice and her father were going to a show in New York City.)

  I knocked on Nannie’s bedroom door.

  “Come in,” she said.

  She was on her bed reading.

  “May I talk to you for a minute?” I asked.

  “Of course,” Nannie replied. She put her book down and took off her glasses. Then she patted the bed beside her. “Come sit down.”

  I sat next to Nannie and drew in a big breath. I needed to talk fast because I had a lot to say and did not want to forget anything.

  “I am sorry I have been in a funny mood lately,” I said. “It really is okay that you are getting married. I hope everyone will have a wonderful time at your wedding. And I do not want love to be hard for you. I want you to be happy.”

  There. I had done it. I thought I had done a pretty good job too. That is why I was surprised at the expression on Nannie’s face. She looked as if she had not understood a word I had said.

  “Karen, what are you talking about? Who is getting married?” asked Nannie.

  “You do not have to keep the secret any longer,” I replied. “I can see how you feel about Mr. English. And I heard you talking about the white dress and the limousine. I know you are getting married in Florida.”

  “My goodness. I had no idea you thought I was getting married,” said Nannie. “I am not. The white dress is for a friend of mine who lives in Florida. It is a favorite dress that does not fit me anymore, and I know she would like it. The limousine is going to take everyone to the airport when we go to Florida. It is not for a wedding party. And while I like Mr. English very much, the only plan we have when I am in Florida is to play a round of golf together.”

  Wow. Nannie had even more to say than I had. She said it all slowly and I understood every word. But it took a minute for it to sink in.

  “Does that mean you are not in love with Mr. English?” I asked.

  “He is a nice man and I enjoy his company. But I do not know him very well yet. And I am in no hurry to marry. I am very happy with the family I have,” said Nannie. She gave me a hug and said one more thing I was happy to hear. “If I ever get married, you will be an important part of my wedding party, Karen. I would not have it any other way.”

  I gave Nannie an even bigger hug back.

  Happy New Year, After All

  I woke up on Saturday to the sound of snowflakes brushing against my window. I looked out my window and saw the snow piling up in the yard. Yippee! My new year was turning out to be pretty great, after all. There were no snowy mornings like this in Florida. I love Connecticut in the winter!

  Knock, knock.

  “Come in!” I said.

  “I want to make a snow fort!” said Andrew. “Will you help me?”

  “I will get dressed and meet you downstairs,” I replied.

  Delicious smells were coming from the kitchen. Waffles. And syrup. And coffee. (I do not drink coffee but I like the smell.) I walked downstairs to the kitchen.

  “Come have breakfast,” said Nannie. “Then you can go outside.”

  There was no way I was passing up Nannie’s waffles. Andrew wanted some too.

  While we were eating, the doorbell rang. Once. Twice. Someone wanted us to answer in a hurry.

  Sam opened the door and let Hannie in.

  “Would you like to join us for some waffles?” asked Nannie.

  “No, thank you. I can only stay a minute. I have to show Karen something,” Hannie replied.

  She held out a shiny new magazine. It was open to a picture of Josh By-Gosh. I had heard his name on the radio all week.

  “He is so cute!” said Hannie.

  “You thought Nate Bellows was cute too,” I reminded her.

  “Who needs Nate Bellows when there is Josh By-Gosh,” said Hannie. “I am in love!”

  I could not believe what I was hearing. “I thought you said you were never going to fall in love again.”

  “I never expected there would be someone like Josh,” said Hannie. “Do you want to come over and help me write a letter to him? Maybe he will read it and write back to me.”

  “I am sorry, but I cannot come over. I promised Andrew I would build a snow fort with him,” I replied.

  “Okay, I will talk to you later,” said Hannie.

  After she left, I told Nannie about Hannie and her broken heart.

  “That was just yesterday, and now she is in love again,” I said.

  “Love is unpredictable. It can be painful. It can be wonderful,” said Nannie. “The one thing I can say is that the real thing is worth looking for.”

  “Hey, Karen? Are you finished talking about mushy love stuff? Can we go outside?” asked Andrew.

  I looked at Andrew and at Nannie. I loved them and the rest of my family very much. I loved my friends too. For now that was enough love for me.

  “Come on,” I said to my little brother. “We have a snow fort to build.”

  About the Author

  ANN M. MARTIN is the acclaimed and bestselling author of a number of novels and series, including Belle Teal, A Corner of the Universe (a Newbery Honor book), A Dog’s Life, Here Today, P.S. Longer Letter Later (written with Paula Danziger), the Family Tree series, the Doll People series (written with Laura Godwin), the Main Street series, and the generation-defining series The Baby-sitters Club. She lives in New York.

  Copyright © 2000 by Ann M. Martin

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  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, livin
g or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  First edition, 2000

  e-ISBN 978-1-338-06290-8