Friends ForNever (13 page)

“Do you have a robe? Can I help you find some clothes?” Libby asked me.

I pulled myself out of bed, feeling wobbly and faint. I couldn't stop shaking. In a daze I managed to find some clothes and put them on. I was on total autopilot.

Everyone was being really quiet. Libby started toward the door with me. “Can Nic come with me?” I croaked.

“Of course. That's a good idea.”

It took Nic five seconds to put her clothes on. Then we were out the door, walking down Middler Line. In the early morning everything felt fresh and cool. Even though I'd grabbed Nic's gray hoodie to put on, I still couldn't stop shaking. Nic hadn't said a word. We just walked briskly along, completely in step. Watching our feet move gave me something to concentrate on.

“It's my dad. He's . . .” I couldn't finish the sentence. He'd never written me back about wearing a helmet. Maybe he didn't get my letter. Maybe I'd sent it too late.

“You don't know that! It could be anything,” said Nicole. She put her arm around my shoulders. “Whatever happens, I'm right here.”

Now we were walking through the dewy grass on our way to the office. Who would call to give me the news about Daddy? Would it be my mom? Or maybe Grandma? Or possibly even some doctor from a hospital?

Had they called Blake, too? Not yet. They'd call me first since I was the oldest. Then would I have to be the one to tell Blake? If Mom and Daddy were still married, she would be making all the phone calls. But maybe that was my job now.

I realized I was about to live through the worst day of my life. As bad as the divorce was, it was nothing compared to this. And I had one other horrible, selfish thought: If something bad had happened to Daddy, today was my last day of camp.

We walked up the wooden steps to the office. Campers hardly ever came here. It was Eda's territory. The downstairs was the camp office, and Eda's living quarters were above that on the second floor. I knocked on the screen door. Eda appeared instantly, like she was waiting for me.

“Come in. You have a phone call.” She was completely calm about it. She didn't want to be the one to tell me.

Nic was about to follow me inside when Eda stopped her. “Why don't you wait out here for her? Give her a little privacy.”

I looked at Nic. “Don't move, okay? I want you right here when I get off.” I clutched her hand and gave it a tight squeeze.

She squeezed my hand back. “I'm not going anywhere.”

Eda took me through the door and into another room. Wood paneling on the walls. Desk. Chairs. Filing cabinets.

“There's the phone, sweetheart. I'll let you talk in private.” And then she disappeared.

The phone was an old-fashioned kind with push buttons on the base and a long, twisted cord. The receiver was lying on the desk, waiting for me. I sat down in the rolling chair and picked it up. I could hear my heartbeat pounding deep inside my head behind my eardrums. I propped my elbow on the desk to keep my hand from shaking.

“Hello?”

“Darcy?” Mom's voice said. “Hi, sweet girl!”

“Mom! What's wrong?” Tears were already rolling down my cheeks.

“I have some news for you!” she said in a singsongy voice. “Guess what? I'M PREGNANT!”

A weird, animal-sounding noise came out of my throat, and now I was bawling. “Mom! I thought something terrible had happened! You scared me to death!”

“I took the test this morning! And it came up positive! I ran straight to the computer to send you an e-mail, but then I thought, ‘This is too good for an e-mail! This news deserves a phone call.'”

I couldn't stop sobbing. Tears gushed out of my eyes, and my nose was running like a faucet. I had been so terrified. And now I had a gigantic, humongous sense of relief. But it made me even weaker and wobblier than the terror had. I had to prop both elbows on the desk to keep from collapsing in a puddle on the floor.

“So what do you think, sweet girl? Are you excited?”

“Are you kidding? This is the best news I've ever had in my life! I thought someone was calling to tell me Daddy got killed in a motorcycle accident!”

“Oh, honey. A motorcycle accident?”

“Yeah, didn't you know he bought one?” Now that they were divorced, Mom hardly ever knew what Daddy was up to.

“He needs a motorcycle like he needs a hole in his head!” Mom laughed. “I'm sorry I scared you. But isn't it exciting?”

“Are you sure, Mom? The test couldn't be wrong, could it?” When news was too good to be true, it always made me worry a little.

“It was most definitely a plus sign on the tester. I saw it and Paul saw it. Of course I'll go to my doctor ASAP and confirm it. And I've already calculated my due date. It's March seventh.”

“When can we find out if it's a girl or a boy?” I asked.

“Not for a while. Do we want to find out ahead of time? I didn't want to know for either you or Blake. I wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Yes, we definitely do! Or . . . maybe it would be fun to wait. Oh, gosh! I don't know! This is so exciting!” And this was just the beginning. I wanted to savor every single second. Years from now I'd be able to tell my little brother or sister about how I was away at camp when I got the great news.

“Mom, is everything going to be okay? I know you and Paul were kinda worried.”

“Well, love, my mother and my Nonna both had babies in their forties. We just have to cross our fingers and say our prayers and trust that everything will turn out all right.”

I let out a shuddering sob that had been trapped somewhere deep down inside. “Oh, I hope so! I'm going to be a big sister! Again!”

Mom giggled. I could tell by her voice that she was on top of the world. “You want to say hi to Paul?”

“Of course!”

Mom put Paul on. “Hey, Doodle-bug!” Paul always had weird pet names for everyone.

“Hi, Dad!” I shouted at him, and then I felt a little embarrassed. I never called him Dad, but I meant he was about to be a dad. Again. I figured it didn't matter what I called him, considering the circumstances. “Have you smoked any cigars yet?” I added to sort of explain the Dad remark.

“No, but I have been doing cartwheels. Just so you know, I'm pulling for a girl. We need another female in the house to balance things out more, don't you think?”

“Absolutely!” I was secretly pulling for a girl too.

“But don't mention that to Blake. He'll feel outnumbered when Jon and Tony aren't around. And even if it is a girl, remember: You're still my first daughter.”

Now I was really sobbing. Before Mom and Paul got married, he'd taken me aside and said, “I don't know anything about raising girls, kiddo. You'll have to help me out.” But he'd been a natural. He drove my friends and me to the mall without trying to butt into the conversation, complimented me on my clothes, and talked Mom into getting a cell phone plan that gave me unlimited texting.

Paul and I talked for a few more minutes before he put Mom back on the phone to say good-bye.

“I'm sorry I called so early, but I wanted to catch you before you got busy with your day.”

“That's okay! I'm
so
glad you called!” And I was. It had been worth being scared to death. Now I couldn't get over how happy and excited I was. “Are you going to call Blake, too?”

“I'll probably just e-mail him. He's a boy, you know, so I don't think he's going to be nearly as excited as you are. This whole pregnancy thing will be something fun for you and me to share. How's everything else? Are you having a good time?”

“The best! As always! And now it's even better! Maybe this year I won't cry so hard on the last day. Because I'll have something exciting to come home to.”

Mom just laughed. “Well, keep having a great time, and I'll keep you posted about all my news. I love you, sweet girl.”

“I love you too, Mommy! Bye.”

When I hung up the phone, my ear was hot and sore from the receiver pressing against it. My nose was still gushing like a fountain. I raced out of the room and banged open the screen door.

When Nicole saw me, she actually jumped a little. She had this terrified look on her face. “Oh my God, Darcy!” she gasped, seeing my teary face and runny nose.

“No! It's not what you think! That was Mom on the phone! She's pregnant!”

I grabbed Nicole and squeezed her, almost knocking both of us off balance.

Nicole looked completely stunned. “Oh. So it's good news then.”

“Yes! She was going to e-mail, but she didn't want to wait. I am so happy!”

“Wow. That's a surprise,” said Nic. She still looked kind of numb from the whole thing. She just kept staring at me with enormous eyes. “Why were you crying?”

“Oh, I just got so emotional. You know, one second I think I'm getting the worst news of my life, and then it turned out to be the happiest.”

Nic nodded, but she kept quiet. Then we heard the big bell on the dining hall porch clanging, and we looked down to see Eda tugging the rope. That meant it was eight o'clock.

“Whew! I'm still shaking from the scare. Oh my God! I don't know what a heart attack feels like, but I think I had three of them this morning.”

“Yeah,” Nicole agreed as we walked up the hill toward the cabin.

“You should've heard my mom. She sounded so happy! And Paul said he was doing cartwheels. Her due date is March seventh. How am I ever going to wait nine months for this baby to be born? I'll have to put a new countdown clock on my blog
.
”

Nicole was quiet for a minute. “Then you won't have a countdown clock for camp to start next year.”

I laughed, because right now the last thing I was thinking about was camp starting
next
year. “The baby will be born before camp starts next year. First things first. You know what else I want to do? I want to get a notebook at the camp store and start recording every single thing that happens with this pregnancy, starting today.”

When we walked into the cabin, everyone was in the middle of doing morning chores for inspection. All eyes turned to me, and everyone paused.

“My mom's having a baby!” I shouted, and then something really amazing happened. Everyone started whooping and shouting and applauding like crazy. They crowded around me and gave me hugs and pats on the back. I almost started crying again.

“Congratulations!” said Patty. “I love babies.”

Libby gave me a big hug. “What wonderful news! Be sure to give your mother my best the next time you write to her.”

I grinned. “I will. I'm going to write her later today.”

“B'sha'ah tovah,”
said Sarah. “That's Hebrew for ‘May the baby be born at a good time, and not in the backseat of the car on the way to the hospital.'”

My mouth fell open. “Really? That's what it means?”

She smiled at me slyly. “More or less.”

“I have a nephew, Eli, who's five months old,” said Jamie. “My sister sent me some pictures last week—I can't believe how much he's changed since I saw him.”

“I wish I lived close to you,” said Whitney. “I'd help you babysit.”

“Is your mom having any morning sickness yet?” asked Ashlin.

“I don't think so! She just found out this morning.”

“Be sure to send all of us announcements when the baby's born,” said Natasha. “And pictures.”

“I will!” I promised.

We were all chattering away about baby showers, names, and baby clothes. But something didn't seem quite right. Something was missing.

And then I realized what it was.

There was a big, empty, yawning space. Nicole had been really quiet ever since we got back to the cabin. While everyone else congratulated me, wished me happy thoughts, and talked about babies, my Best Friend Forever had not said one single, solitary word.

“Do you see what I see?” asked Nic, nodding at the handful of girls wandering around while we stood in line outside the camp store. “Over there. Mary Claire—in the pale blue T-shirt. She's all by herself.”

Small groups of girls were scattered up and down the hill and along the road as they walked to the tennis courts or the lake or the cabins. But when I saw Mary Claire, she was alone. We were far enough away that she didn't notice us, and we couldn't go say hello to her without losing our place in line.

“I guess your advice didn't work. She looks pretty friendless,” observed Nicole in a satisfied tone.

“Why are you happy about that?” I asked.

“What makes you think I'm happy about that? I feel really sorry for her. I should've had a little talk with Alyssa. It was a big mistake to tell her to be friendly to the girl who's making her miserable.” Nic followed Mary Claire's aimless walk with her eyes.

“Okay, fine. After we're done here, we'll go find Alyssa and stuff her in her trunk. That'll solve everything.”