Holly's Heart Collection One (15 page)
I was heading down the hallway afterward when Mr. Keller, the choir director, came out of his office. “Holly!” he said. “You’re just the person I was looking for.”
He ushered me into his office, and I sat down. Perching on the edge of his desk, he explained that he needed an alternate singer for the tour to take the place of Alissa Morgan, who was moving. “You have a fine voice, Holly, but I didn’t choose you earlier because you were a bit younger. I wanted to give some of the older kids first dibs. However, now that Alissa is leaving, I need you. Can you attend all the rehearsals and catch up a little at home, as well?”
To sing in the youth choir I’d do anything! But then I remembered Daddy and his airplane tickets. I hesitated.
“Is there a problem?” he asked.
“Might be,” I said, still surprised at this fabulous turn of events.
“How soon can I let you know?”
“Two days. There are kids who would trade places with you in a flash.”
When Mom came to pick me up, I told her the fantastic news.
“What’ll I do?” I moaned. “Will Daddy understand if I don’t visit him?”
“You’ll have to decide that,” she said.
Carrie piped up. “You don’t
really
know him, anyway.”
“Speak for yourself,” I shot back.
“Girls,” Mom scolded. Then she said, “Holly-Heart, what about talking to the Lord about this? Pray for His guidance?”
Praying.
Hmm.
Something I should’ve thought of.
At home, I went to my room and knelt at my window seat. It felt good talking to God about everything again.
Then I thought of Daddy. I needed to tell
him
about the choir tour, as well. Mom was tucking Carrie into bed, so I went to her room to use the phone. It rang four times. When I heard his voice, I said, “Daddy, it’s Holly. Something’s come up.” I told him about the choir-tour opening.
“That’s wonderful news.” He sounded excited.
“There’s only one problem,” I said.
“What’s that?”
“The tour is during spring break.”
There was a short pause. “I guess we could plan your visit for another time.” Disappointment seemed to leap into his voice.
“What about this summer?” I suggested.
“Sure, that’s a possibility.” His voice revved up a bit.
“The tour will take us to L.A. So maybe you can come hear us sing during spring break.”
“You can count on it. We’ll be there.”
We’ll
…That meant I’d have to share him with Saundra. Even the way he pronounced her name gave me the creeps. Could prayer change my attitude toward her?
I wandered downstairs, looking for Mom. She was in the family room, curled up reading a book. “Daddy said he’d come to hear me sing with the choir…and he agreed that maybe I could visit him this summer instead.”
Mom merely nodded. “We’ll talk things over.”
“By the way, where’s Carrie’s last report card?” I asked.
“In the desk in my room. Why do you want it?”
I sat down beside her on the couch. “I thought Carrie could send it to Daddy. I feel funny about Carrie being left out of things with him. She’s his daughter, too.”
“How does
she
feel about it?” Mom asked, reaching over to loosen the clips in my hair.
“I’m not sure. I hope she doesn’t feel jealous. Jealousy is a miserable thing.”
Mom paused. “Now that your father has shown an interest again, maybe Carrie will want to know him better, too.” She brushed one side of my hair while I did the other.
“Why didn’t Daddy keep in touch with us more than just a note on a birthday card or tons of presents at Christmas?” This question burned inside me.
“Honey, I don’t understand that, either. But I
do
know he has paid his support money to the court registry faithfully every month all these years. That’s something lots of dads don’t do.”
She braided my hair in one thick braid.
“It’s still so hard,” I said, deep in thought, “but I’m more concerned with his salvation now.” It was true. Very few nights had passed recently that I didn’t say his name in my prayers.
“I feel very close to you tonight, Holly-Heart,” Mom said, giving me a hug.
“Me too.” Again, I felt sorry for Stan, Phil, Mark, and little Stephie. “Mom?” I said, thinking of their loss.
“Yes, honey?”
“I really do love you. Even though I can get sassy sometimes…always remember?”
“I’ll remember.” She hugged and kissed me, and I headed for bed.
At Wednesday night choir rehearsal, I was assigned a spot on the risers next to Jared! I couldn’t believe it. I wanted to lash out at him, but I kept my mouth shut except to sing, my hands firmly gripped on the music folder.
“What a relief,” Jared said between the first and second songs.
“You’re here. It’s like a miracle.”
“The only miracle I know is you haven’t been found out before now,” I blurted out.
“What do you mean, Holly-Heart?” He sounded so innocent.
“Don’t call me that.” I felt sick inside. Crushed. And fooled into thinking he was too good to be true.
We practiced five more songs for our tour repertoire before Mr. Keller dismissed us. Andie came right over to Jared, ignoring me. She acted like a mother hen, holding his crutches, helping him with his jacket.
I couldn’t watch this. In the strongest voice I could muster, I said, “Jared, you’re not welcome at my birthday party. I’ve thought about this a lot, and I’m sorry.” Heading for the church foyer, I waited for Mom, holding my breath and willing the tears away.
On Thursday morning I got up really early. Quietly, I pulled a purple folder out from between the box springs and mattress of my canopy bed. I’d told Andie about destroying our original Loyalty Papers, but she didn’t know there was a duplicate copy.
It was time to confront Andie with the truth about Jared. I cut out the paragraph referring to one of us backing away from a guy to save our friendship. In a hot pink marker, I circled it and wrote,
I’m willing. Jared’s not worth the destruction of us!
There, that should speak loud and clear. I folded it neatly and slipped it into a business-sized envelope. Licking it shut, I labeled the envelope,
IMPORTANT! PRIVATE!
I would slide it into her gym locker during warm-ups.
With my birthday party only two days away, things just had to work out between Andie and me. And soon.
BEST FRIEND, WORST ENEMY
On the snowy walk to school, I couldn’t stop thinking about Andie. Would she accept my note? What could I do to make her see what a two-timer Jared was?
I was heading up the sidewalk to school when I heard someone call my name. I turned to look.
It was Jared. He sat on the brick wall surrounding the courtyard leading to the school’s main entrance. His bum leg was sticking out, supported by one crutch. In his hand lay a single long-stemmed rose.
“Holly-Heart,” he called again. “This is for you.” He held it out.
“Give it to Andie,” I shot back.
He ignored that. “I know it’s a little late, but happy birthday.
And…I’m sorry about your aunt.”
“Not sorry enough.” I folded my arms.
“I know what you’re thinking,” he said. “But things aren’t the way they seem.” He shifted his bad leg off the crutch.
“You must think I’m totally dense, Jared. I don’t want any of your explanations. What you did was unforgivable. I thought you were better than that.” I turned to go.
“Honestly, Holly, Andie and I are
just friends,
” he insisted, holding the rose out farther.
“Is that what you told her about me?” I glanced around. “Where is she, anyway?”
Jared frowned. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong with me. You’re the one with a problem.” I remembered, with a twinge of pain, how perfect things were…just a week ago,
before
I’d left for Aunt Marla’s funeral. The outside temperature added to the cold, painful reality of seeing Jared for who he really was. I shivered, pulling the collar of my coat against my neck.
“C’mon, Holly.” He held the sweet-smelling rose out to me again. “I want you to have this.”
The rose—his attention—was so hard to resist. But I had to. “Don’t do this,” I pleaded, turning to go, leaving him sitting alone. Opening the doors to the school, I refused to look back.
During PE I found time to slip back down to the girls’ locker room. Quickly, I opened my locker and found the long envelope with the copy of the clipping from the Loyalty Papers. I hurried to Andie’s locker and slid the envelope through the slits in the door.
Now
she’d have something to think about. Maybe she’d even call me and request a face-to-face meeting. I was desperate to get my best friend back!
After school, I noticed Jared in the stairwell. He’d cornered some girl. I couldn’t see who, but it wasn’t Andie. Whoever it was, I could tell they were involved in animated conversation.
Way to go, Jared. Fool someone new.
Peering around the corner at them made me hurt all over again.
Billy Hill zipped past, nearly knocking me over. “Excu-use me,” he said. Together, we walked toward the front entrance. “You look depressed.”
“It’s Jared. Mr. Flirt himself is attempting to charm yet another girl,” I said, referring to the stairwell scene. “Why did
I
fall for his empty words?”
“Don’t be hard on yourself,” Billy said, “Jared’s just some guy, that’s all.”
“But he’s two-timing Andie. If she only knew!”
“If I were Jared, I’d stick with Andie,” he said, and then, realizing he’d let something personal slip, he blushed.
He likes Andie!
I thought. Perfect. I shifted my books from one arm to the other.
“The way Jared was talking in class, you’d think he was stringing you along, too.” Billy was covering his tracks.
I scuffed my shoe as hard as I could. “His brain’s definitely warped.”
Just then a fabulous idea struck. “Wouldn’t it be fun to catch Jared at his own game? You know, teach him a lesson?”
“Yeah,” Billy laughed. “Like how?”
We pushed the front doors open. The smell of woodsmoke filled the air.
“I have an idea, but let’s talk later,” I said. We headed home in opposite directions.
Cutting through the school yard, I noticed Marcia Greene making fresh footprints in the snow. She wore a heavy tan parka. The hood was tied tightly, framing her face, and in her mittened hand she had a single, long-stemmed red rose.
So
that’s
who Jared had cornered. Marcia Greene and I were destined for a heart-to-heart talk. Andie too. Wait’ll
she
heard about this—precisely what I needed to convince Andie of the truth. I decided to wait until after supper to phone her. That would give her a chance to get finished with homework before I dumped the bad news on her.
When I got home from school, Carrie had stacks of artwork and old report cards piled on the table. She must’ve heard about my chat with Mom last night. That Daddy might like to see some of her progress.
“Carrie,” I called to her, opening the fridge.
She bounded up the stairs and into the kitchen. “You’re home.
Good.”
“Want to make a package to send to Daddy?”