Holly's Heart Collection One (62 page)
The cool suede boots hovered in the back of my mind. If I put off buying another pair, I could afford something really special for Jared. If only I could just buy one shoe—the
right
shoe—I’d be set. The left one was perfectly fine.
With that thought, I pushed the box of wrappings and ribbons aside and headed for the suitcases. Just as I reached for the white overnight case, I heard someone behind me. I spun around to see the tail end of Carrie’s long hair flying.
“Not again,” I whispered. Then I realized if I acted cool, she’d never suspect my secret plan. It was perfect!
CALIFORNIA CRAZY
After supper I called my dad in California.
“Meredith residence,” he answered.
“It’s Holly,” I said. “Guess what? Carrie and I have decided to come for Christmas.”
“That’s wonderful news. Now, let’s see, when is school out?” he asked.
“We go till Friday, the seventeenth,” I explained, glancing at the calendar in the family room. “But Mom wants us back home before New Year’s Eve—we’re having our Christmas together then.”
“That’s great! You girls will be here for nearly two full weeks,” Daddy said. “That’ll give us plenty of time for a visit to Sea World and maybe a quick trip to Disneyland. It will be crowded, but I understand it’s worth fighting the masses to see the Christmas parade.”
“You’ve never seen the electric parade?” I asked, surprised.
“Too busy to take time off, I guess,” he replied.
I couldn’t believe it. If I lived that close to L.A., I would want to see the Christmas festivities at Disneyland
every
year. That’s the difference between my dad and me. He’s all work and very little play. It was a good thing Carrie and I were spending Christmas with him this year. Maybe we could keep him from working such long hours.
“Holly, do you know what Carrie would like for Christmas?” Daddy asked.
“Ask her to write a list,” I suggested. “I know she’ll have lots of ideas for you.”
He paused. “And what about you, Holly-Heart? Is there something special you want?”
I thought a moment about asking for a new pair of boots like the one I’d ruined in the toilet, but I changed my mind. “Whatever you get will be fine.”
I was reluctant to ask for anything. After five years without him under our roof, just talking to him on the phone and visiting him occasionally was a gift in itself. But there
was
something I was dying to have. It was the heart locket Daddy had given Mom thirteen years ago on Valentine’s Day—the day I was born. Somehow, when Daddy moved out, the locket had been packed with his things by mistake. Mom hadn’t minded that much, maybe because of their divorce. But I did. Anyway, there was no way I could gather the courage to mention it to Daddy. Only my diary recorded my true feelings about the necklace.
His voice interrupted my thoughts. “Is Carrie available? I’d like to speak to her.”
“Sure, I’ll get her. Just a minute.” I called for Carrie. Twice. At last she came running downstairs.
She took the phone, pushing her long golden locks behind her left shoulder. “Hello?” she said shyly.
I watched Carrie as she talked to Daddy. She hardly knew him. Daddy and Mom had separated when she was only four years old. It was hard for
me
to remember much about the years before the divorce, and I had been eight when it happened.
Carrie started naming off gift options for herself. She started with brand-name dolls, then listed book titles and computer software.
“Enough,” I whispered, motioning to her. I didn’t want her to sound greedy.
Shortly, she handed the phone back to me. “Here, he wants to talk to you.” Carrie scampered back upstairs.
“Hi, again,” I said into the phone.
“I’ll send the tickets well before your flight,” Daddy said. “Do you want to fly out Friday night or wait till Saturday morning?”
I wouldn’t think of missing the youth group party Friday night for anything! But I was hesitant to tell Daddy about it. He might think my social life was more important than spending the extra day with him. “Uh, we’ll fly out on Saturday if that’s okay,” I said.
“I might have a business lunch that day, though I don’t know for sure,” he said. “If so, I’ll have Saundra pick you girls up at the airport.”
I wanted to beg him not to send our stepmom, but I bit my tongue. Surely Daddy would leave his lunch meeting early enough to come for us himself.
“Well, I guess that’s it for now,” he said. “Oh yes, Tyler says hi. He’s looking forward to meeting Carrie, and he’s eager to see you again, Holly.”
I remembered the nine-year-old boy—our stepbrother—who lived in my father’s house on the beach. Tyler was one of the best reasons to visit my dad and his new wife. Last summer when I visited, Tyler and I had made a fabulous sand castle.
Saying good-bye to Daddy, I thought about the castle on the beach. Tyler and I had designed a blueprint on paper before we ever started building. It had taken three hours, but our Castle Royale was magnificent, complete with tiny toothpick flags, tinfoil windows, and Popsicle stick balconies. A true work of art!
Tyler had marched around the castle like a soldier on guard duty. He said he was in charge of his creation. That’s when I told him the story of our beginnings. Adam and Eve. It was hard to believe, but Tyler had never heard the Genesis story. Here was a kid growing up in a posh beach house on the West Coast, and he’d totally missed the creation account in the Bible! Tyler and I talked for a long time about it. It was strange discussing things like that with a kid. But Tyler wasn’t just any boy. He was very bright, and I looked forward to seeing him again.
Tyler’s mother, Saundra, was another story. There was something about her that made me want to turn and run. Maybe it was that bright red lipstick of hers—I never saw her without it the whole time I was there! Maybe it was the way things had to be absolutely perfect around her. Not just her makeup and hair, but everything, right down to the cloth napkins on the table at
breakfast
! I felt sorry for Daddy. Why had he chosen someone so different from Mom?
These were just a few of the many questions that continued to haunt me about Daddy and his new life. But…The Question, the one buried deep inside my heart, was so mixed up with the pain of lost years, I was sure I could never bring myself to ask it.
CALIFORNIA CRAZY
It was two days before the Christmas party. I got up extra early and packed my backpack with textbooks, notebooks, and…yes, my diary. Lately I’d been taking it to school and writing in it during study hall, far away from the eyes of super snoopers.
I pulled a pen out of my bag, then tiptoed to the bathroom, letting Carrie and Stephie sleep. I felt my diary key dangling on the chain under my nightshirt. Wearing it was the only way to secure the greatest secrets of my life.
I’d changed my mind about hiding the diary in an overnight case. It was too inconvenient, for one thing, and I didn’t trust Carrie not to look in the crawl space. I was convinced she’d go to great lengths to keep up with the ongoing happenings between my friends and me. So I changed my tactics. I began sleeping with my diary.
The idea had come from a dream I had. Not only was my diary beside me in bed, it was tied to my wrist with a sound alarm cued for activation by the slightest tug on the string. It worked well in the dream, but in reality I simply tied the diary to my wrist. I wasn’t smart enough to wire it for sound.
In the bathroom I lowered the toilet lid and sat on it to write in my diary.
Wednesday, December 15. I can’t wait to see Jared’s expression when I give him my Christmas gift. It’s fabulous! I bought a cool cloth-covered book with blank pages at Explore Bookstore yesterday. (I borrowed the cash from Stan for now.)
Today I’ll transfer the poems from my diary to the new book during study hall. I’m calling it,
A Heart Full of Poetry: At Christmas.
I keep wondering who Jared’s secret pal is. He’s keeping it a secret from everyone. Another big question is: What will he give me for Christmas? Even though he hasn’t mentioned it, I’m sure he’ll surprise me with something. It’s going to be so exciting when we exchange gifts at Pastor Rob’s house on Friday. There’s a huge redwood deck off the kitchen with a great view of the mountains. Maybe Jared and I can give our gifts to each other outside on the deck, by ourselves. I’d feel a little less shy that way.
I closed the diary, locked it, and put the chain around my neck. Stashing my diary in my backpack, I undressed and hopped into the shower.
At school, my best friend, Andie, was waiting at my locker. “Where have you been?” she demanded breathlessly.
I glanced at my watch. “Am I late?”
“No, but I have to talk to you.” She pulled me down the hall and into the girls’ rest room.
I leaned my backpack on the edge of the sink. “What’s going on?”
“Paula Miller’s up to something,” she whispered, checking under all the stalls—looking for feet, no doubt. “I ran into her downtown after school yesterday.”
I peered into the mirror, checking my hair. “What’s so earthshaking about that?”
Andie continued, her dark eyes flashing. “Paula said she was buying a Christmas present for her secret pal.”
I hadn’t the faintest clue where Andie was going with this. “Get to the point,” I said, looking at my watch. Seven minutes to first period.
“Just listen,” she said. “This morning I saw Paula hiding a Christmas present in her locker. I sneaked up behind her locker, and guess what I saw?”
Andie was dying to inform me; I could tell by the pre-explosive look on her face. “So, tell me,” I said, playing along.
Andie grabbed my arm. “Holly, brace yourself. The tag on Paula’s gift said,
To Jared W.
” She sighed. “Do you still want to rush off to first period?”
I was burning-up mad. “Jared’s
my
secret pal!” I shouted. “What’s she trying to prove?”
“Beats me,” Andie muttered. “Maybe she’s faking it—like she drew his name or something. Might just be her latest attempt to win points with him.”
I shoved my hair over my shoulder. “Won’t she freak when she finds out who really drew Jared’s name?”
Andie turned and looked in the mirror, touching her dark, layered curls. “Jared’s not dense. He’ll figure it out when you give him your gift at the party.” Andie’s smile gave way to a grin. I could tell she was enjoying this strange turn of events. I, on the other hand, was dying to know why Paula Miller was launching another attention-getting campaign at Jared!
“I can’t believe she’d do that,” I said as we rushed to our lockers. “Paula’s gotta be out of her mind to mess with Jared. He won’t bite—not after the scrutiny test I put him through last month.”
Unless…Was something going on between them I didn’t know about?
My fears began to diminish when I saw Jared waiting at my locker. “Hey, you look fabulous,” he said, using my word. “Ready for the party?”
“Can’t wait.” I dropped off the books I didn’t need and slammed the locker door.
He leaned over and whispered, “Me too.” He flashed that adorable grin of his and offered to carry my books.
“You’ll be late to class,” I protested. But he reached for them anyway, walking me to science, then darted off to beat the bell.
Excited, I hurried in to find my assigned seat. None of Paula Miller’s foolish plans could change Jared’s and my friendship!
Mr. Ross stepped up to the podium, beginning his lecture on molecules. I tried to listen, but my mind kept wandering back to Andie’s latest sleuthing efforts. What was Paula thinking, buying a present for Jared and passing it off as a secret-pal gift? And why would she risk bringing it to school, when someone like Andie was sure to see?
Hurrah for Andie, the truest friend ever—always looking out for me. Maybe she would keep an eye on Paula while I was in California visiting Daddy. Who knows what that girl might pull with Jared left here all alone.
I yanked my three-ring binder out of my backpack and began to take notes, scribbling to keep up with Mr. Ross. His lectures reminded me of a hundred-yard dash. He spoke in spurts, leaning on his wooden podium. Then he took a long breath and traipsed around his desk before he began lecturing again—faster than ever. At least I didn’t have to stare at his smudged glasses anymore. Ever since he started dating Miss Wannamaker, my creative writing teacher, he’d replaced his glasses with contacts. A sure sign of love.
After science, Jared rushed over to me in the hall. “Holly-Heart, what color are you wearing Friday night?”
“Probably pink,” I said, my cheeks growing warm.
“Your favorite color, right?” he said.
I nodded. What was Jared up to? I imagined him presenting me with a pink corsage. “Wait,” I said, changing my mind. “Maybe I’ll wear red, you know, for Christmas.”
Jared shrugged his shoulders. “Well, which is it?” he teased.
“Poinsettia pink,” I said, laughing.
“What’s that?”
“It’s sorta dusty, you know, a cross between a rose color and…”
Just then Paula Miller bumped into Jared. Her books went flying, with a little too much assistance on her part. Jared stooped down to pick them up, and as he did, Paula leaned over and asked him to meet her after lunch. Honestly, she didn’t
speak
her request. It was a definite purr. And right in front of me!