Ann Martin: Mallory On Strike

Twenty minutes later, the paste was gone but the floor still had a sort of filmy look to it. I ran a wet mop over it and hoped for the best. Then Suzi suggested we take Mamie to the family room to play with her dolls.

"Good idea," I said, lifting Marnie out of

the high chair and following Suzi to the stairs. But before we could take two steps, a high-pitched cry split the air.

"Mallory! Help me!"

It was Buddy. I had almost forgotten about him. I handed Marnie to Suzi and said, "Wait right here." Then I raced outside.

Buddy's bike was lying on the sidewalk in front of the house. He was hobbling barefoot across the lawn toward the front door.

"Buddy," I cried, rushing to his side. "What on earth happened to you?"

He was so upset, he could barely talk. "I was c-c-coming down the hill," he said, hiccupping. "Real fast. And my foot got caught in the spokes."

Buddy held his right foot out to me and I nearly fainted. It was covered with blood. I couldn't tell how badly it had been cut but, without going into gory details, it looked absolutely terrible.

I scooped Buddy up in my arms and hurried back into the kitchen. My heart was pounding in my chest, and I kept saying over and over to myself, "Don't panic. Don't panic."

Suzi and Marnie were standing side by side in the kitchen, their faces as pale as their brother's.

"I'm going to set you down on this chair,

Buddy," I said, pulling one out from the table with my foot, "and then I'm going to wrap your foot in a clean towel. All right?"

Buddy, who had stopped sobbing, just nodded as 1 settled him in the chair. I remembered from my first aid class that 1 was supposed to elevate his foot, so I grabbed another chair and slid it under his heel. Then I ran into the hall and found a clean white towel in the linen closet.

Suzi and Marnie hadn't moved a muscle. Finally Suzi asked, "What happened?"

"Your brother had an accident," I told her. I lifted Buddy's foot gently and wrapped it with the towel, remembering to apply as much pressure as possible to stop the bleeding. "I need you to be brave and take care of Marnie for me while I call the doctor. Can you do that?"

Suzi swallowed hard and nodded.

"Good. Why don't you take Marnie into the living room and look in my Kid-Kit?" I suggested. "I have some new coloring books you can show her."

"All right." Suzi's voice was barely audible. She took Marnie by the hand and led her out of the room.

My head was spinning. I went to the refrigerator and poured Buddy a glass of apple juice

and pressed it into his hand. "Here, Buddy, drink this. It'll make you feel better. I'm going to make a few calls."

He took a long drink, then said, "Thank you."

I picked up the phone and listened to the dial tone buzzing in my ear. I couldn't decide whether to call 911 or my mother. Then I heard a commotion at the front door.

"Mommy! Mommy!" Suzi cried, rushing into the hall. "Buddy's hurt. There's blood all over!"

"What?" Mrs. Barrett rushed into the kitchen, dropping several bags of groceries onto the floor. Buddy took one look at his mother and started crying all over again.

"Oh, Buddy!" she said, hugging him tightly. "You're going to be all right." Then she looked at me and said in a tight voice, "Mallory. What happened here?"

I drew in a deep breath and tried to keep my voice from shaking too much as I explained. "Buddy was outside riding his bike and caught his foot in the spokes."

Mrs. Barrett knelt next to the chair and carefully unwrapped the towel. "Where are his shoes?"

"I wasn't wearing any," Buddy replied with a sob.

"What?" his mother and I said at the same time.

When I saw him on the lawn I had assumed he'd kicked off his shoes after the accident. I'd had no idea that he was barefoot when I let him go outside. 1 was so busy with Mamie and the flour mess that I hadn't checked him properly. I felt terrible.

"Should I call the doctor?" I asked, trying to hold back my tears.

Mrs. Barrett examined Buddy's foot carefully. "The cut's on his heel. It's not very deep." She looked up at me and smiled thinly. "Luckily, it looks worse than it is. I don't think he needs to see a doctor."

"But it hurts, Mom," Buddy protested.

"I know it does, honey," Mrs. Barrett said, giving him another warm hug. "And I'm going to go to the medicine cabinet and find something to make it feel better." She stood up and added, "Mallory, could you watch Suzi and Marnie for a few more minutes until I take care of this?"

"Of course," I answered. "I'll stay as long as you need me."

Just then, I felt so awful that I was willing to move in with them. Anything to make up for being such an irresponsible baby-sitter.

Fifteen minutes later, everything had re-

turned to normal. Buddy was hopping around as if nothing had happened, a shiny Band-Aid on his heel.

After Mrs. Barrett paid me, I apologized again for letting Buddy get hurt.

"Don't be too hard on yourself, Mallory," she said, as I left the house. "These things happen."

Maybe they do, I thought to myself, but not to good baby-sitters.

A good baby-sitter would not have let Buddy go outside without his shoes. That accident would never have happened if I had been paying attention.

Chapter 8.

Jessi came to baby-sit for Claire and Margo, her Kid-Kit under her arm. I had an appointment with the orthodontist, and while he tightened my braces (Ow!) Mom took the rest of the kids shopping for clothes and shoes.

Claire met Jessi with a gleeful hug at the door.

"Boy, are we glad to see you!" Margo said.

Jessi was a little surprised at their greeting since they saw her almost every day. "Well, I'm really glad to see you guys, too!" she replied with a smile. She set her Kid-Kit on the floor. "I brought something special for you guys today."

"Me first!" Claire cried, reaching for the kit. "Let me see first." She opened the box and held up a doll. "Ooooh, Skipper!"

"Why don't we take Skipper out on the front steps?" Jessi suggested. "It's such a nice day. Then I'll show you what else I brought."

Jessi had put some picture books of horses in the box, along with several of her favorite animal puppets. At the last minute she had added the flowered crown that she had worn in the ballet Copp&lia.

Jessi had also included a brand-new box of colored chalk, which Margo found immediately. "Let's play hopscotch!" she said, running for the driveway.

"Me first!" Claire shouted as she followed her sister down the concrete drive.

Margo drew several boxes in blue chalk and then decided to try the pink and green. Claire looked on approvingly. "A rainbow," she said.

Margo turned to Jessi and asked, "Would you play, too, Jessi?"

"Of course/' Jessi replied. "I love hopscotch."

They each chose a flat stone from the side of the drive.

"We like playing with you," Margo declared.

Claire nodded in agreement. "Much better than mean, old Mallory."

Jessi looked surprised. "Why do you call her that?"

Claire tossed her stone and hopped two squares. "She's not nice."

"She never lets us in her room anymore," Margo added, "and she's always ordering us around."

Claire crossed her arms and stuck out her lower lip. "She's a big grouch."

"Well, I'm sure she doesn't mean to upset you," Jessi said, tossing her own stone and hopping three squares. "Maybe her teeth hurt her."

I know Jessi was just trying to be nice and make excuses for me. Let's face it, I had been a big grump with everyone, even with Jessi, my best friend.

"Your sister's always having her braces adjusted, and that can be pretty painful," Jessi continued, but Margo and Claire didn't look convinced.

"If her teeth hurt," Margo said, tossing her stone onto a square, "she should tell us."