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Authors: Bonnie Bryant
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dance! Isn’t it cute?” Mrs. Atwood worked part-time at a fashion shop in the Willow Creek Mall. She held up a fluffy angora tunic sweater with hearts embroidered down the sleeves. It was hot pink—very hot.
Lisa blinked. “Gee—I, uh—thanks, Mom!” she stammered. Lisa’s mother enjoyed shopping much more than Lisa did, so it wasn’t unusual for her to buy Lisa clothes on the spur of the moment. However,she usually bought preppy, conservative, little-girl things. This tunic was wild.
“Geez,” Stevie said when Mrs. Atwood had gone. “You’ll outshine Veronica! I think this is the same color as those breeches she was trying to impress Simon with.”
“Maybe she’ll loan me the breeches,” Lisa said. “Then I can be the same color from head to toe.” Her friends stared at her until they realized that she was joking.
“The same very bright color!” Carole said, starting to laugh.
Lisa pulled her sweatshirt off and tried the sweater on in front of her mirror. It reached nearly to her knees, but the sleeves and shoulders fit her well. It
was
very bright, but she kind of liked it.
“You’ll attract attention,” Stevie remarked. “People will think you’re on fire.”
Lisa stuck out her tongue, then went back to the mirror. “Should I really wear this? My mother might be disappointed if I don’t—and I kind of like it—but I never wear stuff like this.”
“Of course you’ll wear it,” Carole said firmly. “It’s cool. Wear your black leggings instead of your blue jeans, put your black turtleneck on underthe sweater, and tie your hair back with a black bow. That’ll tone the color down a little, and you’ll look fabulous.”
Lisa smiled. “Good idea! I think I will wear it. I was going to wear my red sweater again, and my turtleneck with the hearts. What are you going to wear, Carole?”
Carole shrugged. “I haven’t got anything with hearts on it. I thought I’d just wear the navy sweater Aunt Jessie sent me for Christmas.”
“Why don’t you wear my red one instead?”
Carole smiled. “That’d be great! Thank you. How about you, Stevie? What are you going to wear?”
Stevie scowled. “It’s hardly going to matter. The person I most want to see me isn’t going to be there.”
Carole and Lisa looked at each other. Lisa changed back into her sweatshirt, neatly folded her new sweater, and sat down on the floor beside Stevie. Carole sat down on Stevie’s other side.
“Haven’t you and Phil gotten this worked out yet?” Lisa asked. She felt a little bad; she’d been avoiding the subject with Stevie, even though she knew her friend was upset. Lisa just wasn’t sure she sympathized with her on this one—at least,not entirely. And it was hard to hear someone complain about her boyfriend when she didn’t have one.
“We haven’t worked anything out at all,” Stevie said. “I’ve talked to him every night this week, but we never get anywhere except into another fight. We keep having one of those did-not did-too conversations, like I used to have with my brothers, only these are more like ‘Mine!’ ‘No, mine!’ We’re not getting anywhere.”
“I remember having an argument like that when I was really little,” Carole said. “I was staying with my cousin, and we kept fighting over this funny windup toy. It got so bad that my mother finally went out and bought a duplicate so that we could each play with our own.”
Stevie gave her a despairing look. “That’s the situation we already have!” she said. “We’ve got two dances! What we need is only one!” She paused, then raised an eyebrow. “Maybe we could get Phil’s school closed by the county board of health. That might work.”
Lisa laughed, but she could tell that Stevie was just barely joking. If she got much more worked up, she might do something stupid. Lisa wouldn’t put it past Stevie to empty her brother Michael’sant farm into Phil’s school cafeteria, then call the county inspectors
Lisa blinked. “Gee—I, uh—thanks, Mom!” she stammered. Lisa’s mother enjoyed shopping much more than Lisa did, so it wasn’t unusual for her to buy Lisa clothes on the spur of the moment. However,she usually bought preppy, conservative, little-girl things. This tunic was wild.
“Geez,” Stevie said when Mrs. Atwood had gone. “You’ll outshine Veronica! I think this is the same color as those breeches she was trying to impress Simon with.”
“Maybe she’ll loan me the breeches,” Lisa said. “Then I can be the same color from head to toe.” Her friends stared at her until they realized that she was joking.
“The same very bright color!” Carole said, starting to laugh.
Lisa pulled her sweatshirt off and tried the sweater on in front of her mirror. It reached nearly to her knees, but the sleeves and shoulders fit her well. It
was
very bright, but she kind of liked it.
“You’ll attract attention,” Stevie remarked. “People will think you’re on fire.”
Lisa stuck out her tongue, then went back to the mirror. “Should I really wear this? My mother might be disappointed if I don’t—and I kind of like it—but I never wear stuff like this.”
“Of course you’ll wear it,” Carole said firmly. “It’s cool. Wear your black leggings instead of your blue jeans, put your black turtleneck on underthe sweater, and tie your hair back with a black bow. That’ll tone the color down a little, and you’ll look fabulous.”
Lisa smiled. “Good idea! I think I will wear it. I was going to wear my red sweater again, and my turtleneck with the hearts. What are you going to wear, Carole?”
Carole shrugged. “I haven’t got anything with hearts on it. I thought I’d just wear the navy sweater Aunt Jessie sent me for Christmas.”
“Why don’t you wear my red one instead?”
Carole smiled. “That’d be great! Thank you. How about you, Stevie? What are you going to wear?”
Stevie scowled. “It’s hardly going to matter. The person I most want to see me isn’t going to be there.”
Carole and Lisa looked at each other. Lisa changed back into her sweatshirt, neatly folded her new sweater, and sat down on the floor beside Stevie. Carole sat down on Stevie’s other side.
“Haven’t you and Phil gotten this worked out yet?” Lisa asked. She felt a little bad; she’d been avoiding the subject with Stevie, even though she knew her friend was upset. Lisa just wasn’t sure she sympathized with her on this one—at least,not entirely. And it was hard to hear someone complain about her boyfriend when she didn’t have one.
“We haven’t worked anything out at all,” Stevie said. “I’ve talked to him every night this week, but we never get anywhere except into another fight. We keep having one of those did-not did-too conversations, like I used to have with my brothers, only these are more like ‘Mine!’ ‘No, mine!’ We’re not getting anywhere.”
“I remember having an argument like that when I was really little,” Carole said. “I was staying with my cousin, and we kept fighting over this funny windup toy. It got so bad that my mother finally went out and bought a duplicate so that we could each play with our own.”
Stevie gave her a despairing look. “That’s the situation we already have!” she said. “We’ve got two dances! What we need is only one!” She paused, then raised an eyebrow. “Maybe we could get Phil’s school closed by the county board of health. That might work.”
Lisa laughed, but she could tell that Stevie was just barely joking. If she got much more worked up, she might do something stupid. Lisa wouldn’t put it past Stevie to empty her brother Michael’sant farm into Phil’s school cafeteria, then call the county inspectors
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