then, “Oh, hello, Mrs. Havard! How thoughtful of you to call.”
Liv emerged from the bathroom and crossed the navy and cream print carpet to stand by her mother and listen.
“Well, yes, we’d love to come by and meet you. Let me just get a pen and write the directions.”
Her mother hung up and announced, “We’re invited for tea.”
“Great—I’m ready. Maybe I can practice on their piano for a few minutes and still have time to find a place to run when we get back.”
Anthony was slouching on the sofa while Cal slept, stretched out on the floor beside him. He leaped over his friend and bounded to his sister’s side.
“I’m sure Mrs. Havard isn’t expecting all six of us, dear—she mentioned only Liv and me. But I guess you boys could come along if you like. They have a daughter a couple of years older than you. It should be fun for all of you to meet, and we can sightsee tomorrow. Maybe your father will want to rest—he has to work tomorrow.” She looked around the room, then put her finger to her lips and followed the sound of snoring that drifted in from the bedroom. She tiptoed in and came out smiling.
“They’re passed out on the bed. I put a blanket over them, and I’ll tape a note to the doorframe explaining where we are and what to feed Anna.”
The walk to the Underground station was fun, except for a silly thing that kept getting on Liv’s nerves. The buildings were quaint, the shops were interesting and the people-watching was fantastic, but Anthony and Cal kept irritating her by poking and pinching each other, saying, “Hey—we’re really in London!”
Why did it make her feel left out? Her parents had offered to let her invite a friend. She’d chosen not to.
She put it from her mind and walked beside her mother, past planters overflowing with greenery to fat white columns that marked the entrance to the station, which was filled with vendors. Beyond them were the turnstiles, and Liv tried her pass first. The machine ate the ticket and instantly spat it out on the other side of the turnstile, which opened for her as a red light changed to green. She was in.
The others did the same, and after a couple of false starts, followed by a quick consultation of a wall map, they were on the proper platform waiting for their train.
There had been plenty to watch on the way down. Small billboards advertising shows in the theater district, a saxophonist playing jazz, his case open and filling up with coins and bills. Purposeful-looking grownups, on their way to very important places.
And kids her own age or a little older, hanging out and traveling with their friends, laughing and talking, calling other friends on cell phones.
In the relative quiet of the platform, she looked at her brother and his best friend again, sitting together on the bench, joking, enjoying each other’s company. For the first time, she confronted the real reason she’d turned down her parents’ offer to let her invite a friend on this trip.
Popular and outgoing, she had always assumed she could have a friend any time she wanted—the time had just never been right. And when the trip had come up, she’d been too engrossed in her own problems to find one in a hurry. At least, that had been her excuse. In fact, she wasn’t sure she could do it.
What was the matter with her? She’d made friends quickly with Emily, a girl she’d met on a time travel trip to 1897. But the contact was short-lived, she reminded herself. She didn’t have to nurture the relationship by spending lots of time on it, the way Anthony and Cal spent so much time together. Maybe she was too selfish to have a friend.
On the other hand, maybe she could practice making a friend with the Havards’ daughter. How hard could it be? They’d probably have a lot in common—music, for instance—and it would be easy to arrange to spend time together, with Liv going over most days to practice on the family’s piano. Suddenly, the world
Liv emerged from the bathroom and crossed the navy and cream print carpet to stand by her mother and listen.
“Well, yes, we’d love to come by and meet you. Let me just get a pen and write the directions.”
Her mother hung up and announced, “We’re invited for tea.”
“Great—I’m ready. Maybe I can practice on their piano for a few minutes and still have time to find a place to run when we get back.”
Anthony was slouching on the sofa while Cal slept, stretched out on the floor beside him. He leaped over his friend and bounded to his sister’s side.
“I’m sure Mrs. Havard isn’t expecting all six of us, dear—she mentioned only Liv and me. But I guess you boys could come along if you like. They have a daughter a couple of years older than you. It should be fun for all of you to meet, and we can sightsee tomorrow. Maybe your father will want to rest—he has to work tomorrow.” She looked around the room, then put her finger to her lips and followed the sound of snoring that drifted in from the bedroom. She tiptoed in and came out smiling.
“They’re passed out on the bed. I put a blanket over them, and I’ll tape a note to the doorframe explaining where we are and what to feed Anna.”
The walk to the Underground station was fun, except for a silly thing that kept getting on Liv’s nerves. The buildings were quaint, the shops were interesting and the people-watching was fantastic, but Anthony and Cal kept irritating her by poking and pinching each other, saying, “Hey—we’re really in London!”
Why did it make her feel left out? Her parents had offered to let her invite a friend. She’d chosen not to.
She put it from her mind and walked beside her mother, past planters overflowing with greenery to fat white columns that marked the entrance to the station, which was filled with vendors. Beyond them were the turnstiles, and Liv tried her pass first. The machine ate the ticket and instantly spat it out on the other side of the turnstile, which opened for her as a red light changed to green. She was in.
The others did the same, and after a couple of false starts, followed by a quick consultation of a wall map, they were on the proper platform waiting for their train.
There had been plenty to watch on the way down. Small billboards advertising shows in the theater district, a saxophonist playing jazz, his case open and filling up with coins and bills. Purposeful-looking grownups, on their way to very important places.
And kids her own age or a little older, hanging out and traveling with their friends, laughing and talking, calling other friends on cell phones.
In the relative quiet of the platform, she looked at her brother and his best friend again, sitting together on the bench, joking, enjoying each other’s company. For the first time, she confronted the real reason she’d turned down her parents’ offer to let her invite a friend on this trip.
Popular and outgoing, she had always assumed she could have a friend any time she wanted—the time had just never been right. And when the trip had come up, she’d been too engrossed in her own problems to find one in a hurry. At least, that had been her excuse. In fact, she wasn’t sure she could do it.
What was the matter with her? She’d made friends quickly with Emily, a girl she’d met on a time travel trip to 1897. But the contact was short-lived, she reminded herself. She didn’t have to nurture the relationship by spending lots of time on it, the way Anthony and Cal spent so much time together. Maybe she was too selfish to have a friend.
On the other hand, maybe she could practice making a friend with the Havards’ daughter. How hard could it be? They’d probably have a lot in common—music, for instance—and it would be easy to arrange to spend time together, with Liv going over most days to practice on the family’s piano. Suddenly, the world
Similar Books
