“I am sorry, Jenny,” Dad said before I could brush by him. “I didn’t mean to hurt you. And I promise never to come in your
room again without your permission.”
“Stop it,” I said. “You’re making me misty.” Which he was.
He clamped a hand over my shoulder. “Forgive me?”
I shrugged. “Can I put a lock on my door?”
“No,” he said.
It was worth a try.
“But your mom and I decided to put in another phone. Maybe here at the end of the hall so you and Vanessa can share it.”
“Really?” My heart soared. “All right!” Then my spirits sank. It was too late. Now there was no one to hold a deeply private
conversation with.
Vanessa and Mom were already sitting at the table, chatting away. As I slid in, Vanessa said to Mom, “Is that what you guys
were whispering about behind my back at putt-putt? Geez, Dad.” She glared at him.
Mom and Dad both looked sheepish.
Van said to me, “I can’t believe it. If he ever did that to me, I’d disown him.”
Dad slithered into his chair.
“I’m sorry about ripping up your music,” I told her. “For a minute, I thought you were the snoop.”
“Yeah, Mom told me that, too. Don’t worry about it; I already had that piece memorized.”
Dad said, “Could we put this behind us and move on?”
I decided to twist the knife. “He’s pleading temporary insanity, Van. What do you think?”
Vanessa looked him over. “Why temporary?”
“Good question,” I said. “It must be true, though, because did you hear, he’s going to buy us a phone?”
“What?” Her jaw unhinged. “Awesome.” She smiled. Spreading Cool Whip over her waffle, her smile vanished and she added, “Like
anyone would ever call me.”
“Yeah, me either.” I plopped a waffle on my plate.
Van met my eyes. I sighed and answered her unspoken question. “We broke up.”
Everyone kept eating, not looking up. Trying, I guess, not to press on my one big bruise, inside and out. It didn’t work.
“Don’t you want to know what happened?” I asked.
In unison they all said, “Yes.”
Mom added, “If you want to tell us.”
So, even though they probably knew most of it, I began at the beginning. I told them about Mrs. Jonas and the stolen money.
About Ms. Milner’s money and the starving orphans in India. About how the presents from Kevin coincided with the thefts, so
that I thought he’d done it. Same with the circumstantial evidence against Max. Then how Max and Prairie thought
I’d
done it, and covered my butt by returning Ms. Milner’s money. I told them almost everything, except the part about losing
weight. Some things really are private.
The horror story held them rapt, especially when I got to the part about Lydia confessing. They couldn’t believe it.
“So Ms. Milner got all her money back?” Mom said, refilling her cup of coffee.
“And more. Like three times as much.”
“And what about Mrs. Jonas?”
Yes, Mrs. Jonas. “Well, when I called Lydia last night, she said she and her mom were still talking. They were going to figure
out a way to pay Mrs. Jonas back for everything.” Knowing Lydia’s mom, it was going to cost more than eighty-five dollars.
More than money. This expression Lydia had used came back to me: Two more weeks of total living hell. I wanted Lydia to know
that if she got grounded for life, we could always move the Snob Squad headquarters to her house.
Even though Lydia kept sniffling and blowing her nose, the relief in her voice was evident. It’s like Oprah says: Confession
is good for the soul.
“Unbelievable,” Vanessa said. “It’s always the person you least suspect.”
“Tell me about it,” I replied. My eyes met Dad’s. His drilled a hole in the tabletop. “It’s a good thing Lydia told her mom
herself because you know how this kind of stuff gets out. It’s like nothing we ever do is a secret from our parents.”
“Oh, Jenny,” Mom said.
“I’m not keeping secrets from you,” I informed her, and Dad. “It’s just that some stuff is personal. And private.”
“That’s the truth.” Vanessa folded her napkin in her lap.
“I know that,” Mom said. “Your father and I have been discussing this with Dr. Sid, too. We all have private lives, and we
shouldn’t expect you to share everything with us.”
That sounded like Dr. Sid. But why did it take a trained professional to tell them something so obvious? Maybe it wasn’t obvious.
Maybe I had a career ahead of me in psychology.
Mom reached over for Dad’s hand. “We’d just like you girls to know we’re here for you, if you need us.”
Vanessa’s eyes met mine. “We know that,” we said together.
It was like Disney, this magic moment. Except rather than the four of us bursting into song, the doorbell sang.
“Criminetly, who’s that?” Dad grumbled. He scootched back his chair and stood. “If it’s another Bible thumper, they’re going
to find out what a real thumping is.”
“Ooh, scary,” I said to Van. We both faked shudders.
“You want the last waffle, Jenny?” Mom asked, passing me the plate.
“No, thanks,” I said. “I’m watching my weight.”
Mom dropped her jaw. Well, geez. Why did she think I was keeping a food diary?
Dad appeared in the doorway. “You have a visitor,” he said.
When I looked up to see who he meant, I gulped a grapefruit. My fork fell out of my hand and clattered to the floor.
“Hey, Jen,” Kevin said.
“I
can’t stay long because my mom and I are on our way to Utah to visit my grandma and grandpa. But I wanted to tell you something
before I left.”
Three sets of blood-sucking eyes from the living-room window attached themselves to Kevin and me on the porch. Before I could
suggest we go for a walk, or a run, Kevin sat on the front stoop.
I sank down beside him. Slowly, so he wouldn’t see my legs jiggle to a stop. He was already giving off weird vibes. “So, how
are you?” he asked.
“I’ve been better,” I answered.
He looked at me, then away. It confirmed what I already knew. The only reason Kevin would come by was to get his gifts back.
“I’m sorry about Saturday night,” he said. “I was a jerk.”
My eyes bounced off the concrete.
“After I thought about what you said, I could see how you might’ve put two and two together.”
“And come up with five,” I muttered.
He chuckled. Sobering fast, he added, “I took out some money from my savings to buy you that stuff. And my aunt Rachel paid
me for helping her move. And”—he lowered his head and his voice—“the necklace didn’t cost ninety-five dollars. I just put
it in a box I found in the garage. I didn’t steal anything from anybody.”
My ears burned. My whole insides felt like they were on fire. “I know you didn’t, Kevin,” I said. “I’m sorry I accused you.
It was stupid. I don’t want you to think I don’t trust you.”
“Do you?” He stared into my eyes. Real hard, like he was trying to look deep down inside.
“Yes,” I said. “And that’s the honest truth.”
He exhaled a long sigh. “I don’t know who took that money, but it wasn’t me. In fact, I put some of Ms. Milner’s money back.
As much as I could. I left an IOU for the rest. For the starving orphans in India…” He shook his head. “I saw those pictures
in her room.”
At that moment I fell in love with Kevin Rooney all over again. In unison, we both asked the same question: “Do you forgive
me?”
It cracked us up. Kevin added, “I can’t believe I acted like such a jerk.”
“Me, neither,” I said.
He drew back from me.
I added quickly, “I mean, I can’t believe
I
was a jerk. For suspecting you.”
That made us laugh again, even though it wasn’t really funny. Without warning, Kevin leapt to his feet. I scrambled up after
him. He reached over and took my hand. The feel of his skin against mine sent a tingle up my arm. Then he took my other hand,
and the tingle extended to the tips of my toes. “I’m going to be gone for like three weeks.” He made a face. “But I’ll call
you, okay?”
From Utah? Where is Utah? I wondered. Then I thought, Who cares? It’s long distance. He’s going to call
me
long distance.
“I’ll call you every day,” he said. Without warning, he leaned forward and kissed me.
I can’t tell you how long the kiss lasted because I lost consciousness. When my eyes opened, I was surprised to find myself
still standing. I could’ve sworn I’d blasted into space.
Kevin smiled at me. His cheeks were all red. “See you, Jen,” he said.
Just like that. See you, Jen. It held promise.
As he sprinted down the sidewalk and up the street out of sight, blood began to flow through my veins again. In my peripheral
vision, I caught a movement in the front picture window. The curtains fell back into place. Oh, great. So much for privacy.
I slammed through the front door, screaming, “When can we get that phone?”
Dear Dreaming of Delicious Days and Freedom from Diet Food Forever Diary
,
I can’t wait to tell you what I did on my summer vacation. As soon as it happens, you’ll be the first to know
.
They say love is blind, but I don’t believe it. I think love gives you something like X-ray vision, so you can see beneath
the surface to what’s deep down inside
.
And that’s the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth
.