Ann Martin - Baby-Sitters Club 058

"What did you find?" asked Dawn, peering over his shoulder.

"A book. A book for me! It's called How to Become Mr. Muscle!" "You want to be a strongman?" "I want to look like Arnold Schwarzenegger. That would be way cool." "Who's Arnie Swarteneggy?" asked Suzi.

"A movie star. Everyone likes him." Buddy was frantically cutting the order blank out of the magazine when the Barretts' bell rang.

"I'll get it!" cried Suzi.

"Make sure you know who's at the door before you let them in," Dawn cautioned her. "Look out the window first." Suzi disappeared up the stairs to the first floor. Buddy filled out the form. And Dawn cried, "Don't eat the Kleenex, Marnie!" "Once," said Buddy absently, "Marnie ate so much Kleenex she threw up." "Ew," replied Dawn, and was saved from a disgusting conversation when Suzi returned to the rec room with Matt and Haley Braddock, who live in the neighborhood. Haley is nine and Matt is seven. Matt and Buddy are good friends, but they usually need Haley around when they get together. This is because Matt is deaf and communicates using sign language. Buddy (and most of the kids who spend time with Matt) know some sign language, but not enough for long or complicated conversations.

Matt and Haley bounced into the rec room carrying armloads of comic books, a supply of envelopes, and Haley's address labels.

"We found wart-remover this morning!" Haley announced, at the same time signing, for Mart's benefit.

"You guys have warts?" asked Dawn, removing a hunk of Kleenex from Marnie's fist.

"No, but I bet someone we know does." "Hey!" exclaimed Buddy. "Here's a simple kitchen tool that allows you to make your own garnishes for gourmet meals." "How much?" asked Haley.

"Two ninety-five. You can make radish rosebuds and all sorts of things." Buddy filled out the order form.

When Jake Kuhn arrived with his comic books he said, "I found a kit that lets you grow your own catnip!" "When did you get a cat?" asked Dawn.

"Well, we didn't. But . . . hey, Mary Anne has a cat, doesn't she?" "Yes," agreed Dawn, hiding a smile.

"Ooh, pumpkin seeds!" exclaimed Suzi as the bell rang again.

Nicky and Vanessa had arrived. They strutted into the rec room, looking important. "Guess what came in the mail yesterday," said Nicky.

All heads turned toward him.

"Something came!" said Jake, awed.

Nicky nodded. "I got the mail myself, and when I opened our box, I saw a big envelope. My name was on it. It is so, so cool to get mail. I opened the envelope, and inside was ... a tube of stain remover." "I got something, too," Vanessa spoke up. "Freckle-remover. I used it last night before I went to bed. Do I look any different?" Haley leaned over and studied Vanessa's nose. "I think your freckles are paler," she said.

Vanessa nodded. "In two weeks they should have faded completely. They will vanish from my face. I can't wait." "Lucky ducks," said Jake. "None of my stuff has come yet." "Mine either," added Buddy. "Maybe tomorrow." "Really?" shrieked Suzi. "Really? I might get mail tomorrow?" "You all might," Dawn told her. "You guys will be getting mail for days." "Awesome," said Buddy, and returned to his magazine.

Chapter 5.

This is how much I like math. I don't even mind math tests. I don't even mind studying for math tests. On Monday my class took a V.I.T. (Very Important Test). It was one of the ones that counts for, like, a fifth of your report card grade.

I had studied hard on Sunday and I knew the material. Our current unit is pre-algebra. To me, figuring out what x and y equal is like solving a mystery. (I wish I could convince Claudia to think of math that way, but she won't do it. Once I even told her to call herself a Math Detective, but she just looked at me like I'd lost my mind.) I concentrated on my test paper. X=3Y+4. If y equals . . .

"Mr. Zizmore? Mr. Zizmore?" The school secretary was calling my teacher over the PA system. It crackled loudly.

I jumped a mile, and my hand jerked off the paper, leaving a pencil trail.

"Yes?" replied Mr. Zizmore importantly.

"Is Stacey McGill in class?" "Yes," he said again. He turned to look at me, and so did every student in the room. They were curious. Also, they were glad for the interruption in their test-taking. I heard sighs, knuckles cracking, feet shuffling.

"Would you ask her to come to the office, please?" "I'll send her at the end of the period," Mr. Zizmore replied. "She's in the middle of a test." "No, it's important. Please ask her to come now, and tell her to stop by her locker on the way and pick up her coat." "Okay." Mr. Zizmore turned to me again. "Did you hear that, Stacey?" I nodded, confused. I'd been concentrating hard on the math problems, and now, suddenly, I was told to abandon them and report to the office - with my coat, which could only mean I was leaving school.

Feeling the eyes of my classmates follow me to Mr. Zizmore's desk, I handed him my paper. "It's only half-finished," I said.

He smiled. "Don't worry. You're a good student. We'll straighten this out tomorrow." He paused. "I hope everything's all right." "Thanks," I replied. Then I dashed out of the room, ran to my locker, grabbed a few things from it, and hurried on to the office.

Mrs. Downey, one of the secretaries, was waiting for me. "Hi, Stacey," she said as soon as I appeared. She led me into an empty office.

"What's wrong? Something is wrong, isn't it?" I cried.

"Your mother - " Mrs. Downey began to say.

"My mother? What about my mother?" "She collapsed a little while ago. She was at a job interview at a company downtown and she just - collapsed." Fell over? Fell down? Fainted? What?

"Where is she now?" I demanded.

"At the hospital, hon," said Mrs. Downey. "Mrs. Pike phoned. Mallory Pike's mother. She said she's a good friend of your mother?" (I nodded.) "Okay. She's on her way over here to pick you up. Then she'll drive you to the hospital. Do you have all your things with you?" "Yes," I whispered.

"Good. Take a seat on the bench by the door. Mrs. Pike should be here any minute. I'll get you a glass of water." I sat on 'the bench clutching my coat and wondering why people hand out glasses of water during a crisis. I didn't even notice the stares of the kids who passed by in the hall.

When Mrs. Pike arrived, I jumped up and ran out of the office without bothering to greet her. Halfway down the hallway, I called, "Where are you parked?" and kept on hurrying.

"By the front door, sweetie," Mrs. Pike replied. "Stace, it's okay. Your mother is going to be okay." "But Mrs. Downey said she collapsed." "I know. The doctors will take care of her, though." Maybe. But doctors are not magic. I know that.

Mrs. Pike drove to the hospital as fast as she could without getting arrested. She managed to find a parking space and we rushed inside, following signs to the admittance desk.

"Where's my mother?" I asked breathlessly, leaning over the desk. "She was just brought in. Her name is Mrs. McGill. I don't even know what's wrong with her." The man behind the desk pointed down the hallway. "She's still in the emergency room, but - " "They'll let me see her, won't they? I'm her daughter." "Go ahead," said the man.

Mom was lying on a gurney (I know terms like that because of the unfortunate amount of time I myself have spent as a hospital patient) in a tiny room off the waiting area near the emergency entrance.

She was by herself.

"Mom?" I whispered. Her eyes were closed, so I didn't know if she was asleep or just resting or what.

She opened them slowly. "Hi, honey." "Mom, what happened? Are you hurt?" My mother shook her head slightly. "No, but I feel awful." She coughed.

I put my hand on her forehead. "Hey, you're burning up!" "I know." "Is it the flu or something? You know flu season is here. Mom, did you ever get your flu shot? You made me get one." "I don't think this is the flu, Stacey." "Where are the doctors?" I demanded. "Why are you here alone?" "Doctors and nurses have been coming and going," Mom told me. She glanced up and noticed Mrs. Pike standing in the doorway. "Hi, Dee," she said weakly. She sounded like she might cry. "Thank you for bringing Stacey here. I appreciate it." Mrs. Pike smiled. Then she stepped into the room and clasped Mom's hand.