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Show Peppermint Monday It was a relief when the bell rang. I didn't like English, Mr; Sonders pitchless voice, or sitting by Billy Crowley, but they were better than listening to any more of Renae's giggles. Andrea thought so too,because she scurried toward the middle school in double time. She was even drinking the last of her tomato juice as she went. "See you in P.E.," Renae shouted as she ran off. She turned before entering the side door that took her to pa's history class, and waved. I could picture her in pa's class, nodding her head at his comments and raising her hand every time he asked a question. If she worked at it hard enough, she could replace Elizabeth Howell as pa's pet. Mrs. Richards smiled at me when I came into the gym. That was unusual because Mrs. Richards was not known for her pleasantness. Besides that, I didn't have on my regulation gym socks that she always insisted on. My sockswere home in my bedroom,somewhere. I'd had to wait for Barton to get out of the bathroom, and I hadn't had time to look for them. My room had a lived in look, and I liked it that way. Sometimes, however, it did take a while to find things. "I hear you have a cousin visiting from Ohio. I was bom in Ohio. Akron." I smiled politely. I didn't know what she expected me to say, so I didn't say anything. Ohio meant nothing to me. I'd only been there twice. It wasn't as if I got homesick thinking about the place. We'd passed through Akron on the way to Barton's, but we only stopped long enough for Jason to use the bathroom at a run-down service station. The place had hardly made a lasting impression on me. "Of course that was a long time ago." Mrs. Richards chuckled and dribbled her basketball. She had a faraway look and I guess she was back |
