Ann Martin - Stacey's Broken Heart

"Face painting!" Claudia cried. "I have my face painting sticks. I could do that while everyone finishes getting ready."

"Great!" Mary Anne agreed. "And I'll bring out Dad's tapes of Mexican music and play them on the portable player. It'll make things seem more festive."

As Mr. Spier's tape, Sounds of Mexico, came on, Claudia took out her face paints and unfolded her director's chair. "Free face painting!" she cried. "Free face painting. This hour only."

The group flocked around her. They watched her work on each kid. Jessi and Mallory came around with paper cups of their fruit punch and gave them out free.

Meanwhile, Abby flew around putting things together. She strung up piñatas, draped crepe paper, tacked signs on booths. Mary Anne and Jessi helped her, but they quickly realized they'd never get it done fast enough.

"Kristy asks associate members to pitch in when we can't do everything ourselves," Mary Anne said to Abby. "I'll call Logan and Shannon to come help us."

Abby wished everyone would stop talking about Kristy. It made her feel as if she weren't in charge at all. She felt as if Kristy were in charge even though she wasn't there.

"Why don't you call Anna?" Mallory suggested to Abby. "She cares about the orphanage, too. She might even be able to round up a few-friends from her orchestra group.".

Abby really wanted to do this on her own, but she had to admit she needed help. Claudia couldn't paint faces for hours, and that's how long it would take to do everything that had to be done.

Mary Anne ran into the house and phoned Logan. Logan agreed to help and said he'd call Shannon. Then Abby got Anna on the

phone. Anna said she'd come right over with Shannon and that she'd try to recruit a few more people she knew.

Mallory came in to get more punch as Abby hung up the phone. "I'll call Ben Hobart," she said. "He might be able to come over and help."

"Good idea," said Abby.

Within the hour, Logan and Ben arrived. Shannon and Anna came right after them. Three friends of Anna's showed up, too. "Just tell us what to do," Shannon said to Abby.

Abby gave everyone a job. Mary Anne kept the music going and Claudia kept painting faces. Logan finished painting signs. Shannon and Anna used hammers and nails to finish putting booths together. Ben helped Mallory and Jessi set up the refreshment table.

When the Pikes arrived, Mallory put the triplets and Vanessa to work. Vanessa was in charge of sitting at the spin-art booth where people would get to make their own swirling paint creations on an electric wheel. The triplets were each in charge of a different game. Byron took the beanbag toss (which Abby was still working on, stitching up little bags filled with dried beans). Jordan manned the ring toss, and Adam was in charge of the water balloon game in which people tried to burst a

water balloon on a picture of a distressed, red-faced person overheating from eating a hot chili pepper.

Abby noticed that Claudia was painting the last kid on her line. It was Jamie Newton and she was giving him the tiger face he'd requested. She glanced at Abby with a worried, "what now?" expression, but Abby gave her the thumbs-up signal.

Everything was ready to go.

By then, people were flooding in. Abby could see that — based on the number of people there — they were going to raise a fortune for the orphanage. Kids were already paying a quarter for a chance to bat at the hanging piñatas with a long stick. She heard a water balloon splat against the face of the chili-pepper eater. "A winner!" Adam cried, handing the boy one of the colorful Pogs that they'd bought as prizes. (And for which Abby had requested yet more donations in order to afford.)

Abby slumped against a tree and took a deep breath. Everything was going well. This festival was going to be a success. But had she made it a success? Or had all the Kristy thinkalikes saved her? It was an unsettling question.

Abby had been confident she could handle things — and handle them her way. She was

sure Kristy was a fanatic who overdid everything.

Now she wasn't as sure. Maybe Kristy knew more about running things than Abby had realized. But Abby was willing to learn, although she'd probably never admit it to Kristy.

Chapter 14.

I woke up early on Sunday morning even though I didn't have to. I opened my eyes and lay in bed on my side, listening to the city sounds — the traffic, sirens, people on the street — and gazed at the morning sunlight streaming into my room. It was my last day in the city before returning to Stoneybrook. I wanted to savor every last minute of it.

Normally, I'd have been looking forward to getting home after a week away. I missed Mom and my friends.

But this time, when I got home, I'd have to deal with Robert.

That was something I did not want to face. As long as I was here I could pretend that nothing had happened. Or that something would change. Robert would see that Andi was a boring little twit and break up with her before I even got home.

Propping myself up on my elbows, I thought about that. It might happen. It was certainly possible.

And then I was suddenly completely overwhelmed by the most unbelievable thought — a totally startling, completely shocking realization.

The idea of Robert breaking up with Andi didn't make me happy. In fact, the thought disappointed me.

Could it be? Was it possible that deep down — deep, deep, deep down — I was glad to be free of Robert?

Oh, sure, at first it had been a terrible shock. No one likes to be lied to by a person she trusts. And no one wants to be cast aside for someone else. It shakes your trust and hurts your pride.

I'd miss Robert like crazy.

But ... still and all ...

There was Ethan.

It wasn't as if I was madly in love with Ethan or that I would have broken up with Robert to go out with him. Now, though, I was free to see more of Ethan if I wanted to. I liked that idea. I liked Ethan.

So, if I liked Ethan, I supposed I couldn't blame Robert much if he liked someone else. (I could still blame him for lying to me, though.)

Dad knocked loudly on my door: "Are you up, Stace?"

"Yes!"

"Are you into going to brunch?"

"Definitely! I'll get ready."

"Give me half an hour to shower and change," he called.

I dressed in black skinny pants and a light pink cardigan. (Another of our Bellair buys.) After picking through my perm, I put on some tannish-pink lipstick and a pair of bead earrings. Then I dragged my suitcase out from under the bed and started packing. I packed fast, throwing my clothes in hastily. Somehow, packing slowly and thoughtfully would have given me time to think about going home. Despite my realization, I was still feeling shaky about it.

By the time Dad was ready, so was I. "Where to?" he asked.

"Somewhere by. the Museum of Natural History," I replied. "I'd like to say good-bye to Grace and Henry before I go."

"I know just the place," Dad said. We took a cab to a cafe on the corner by the museum and had a great brunch. I ordered eggs benedict. "Dad, I owe you an apology," I said as we ate.

"For what?" he asked, wiping his mouth with a cloth napkin.

"Last Sunday, in the museum ... I acted like a little brat."