Finding Home Page 7

  “No!” Liza’s jaw dropped. “That’s not allowed! I’m going to tell Ms. Nan.” Liza started to stand, but Kari reached out and stopped her.

  “Don’t!” If Samuel got in trouble, Ms. Nan might catch Kari, too. “I… it’s not our job to tell.” She hesitated. “Ms. Nan will catch him on her own. Next time.”

  For a second, it looked like Liza would tell the teacher anyway. Then she settled back in her seat. “Okay.” She crossed her arms. “I hope so.”

  Ms. Nan returned to the front of the room. She had a piece of paper in her hands.

  Was this the moment? Was Ms. Nan going to announce to the whole class that Samuel and Kari were cheaters? She closed her eyes for a long moment. Why had she done it? What was she thinking? The weight of her cheating weighed on her like a small mountain.

  Kari waited, but instead of talking about the quiz, Ms. Nan held up a sheet of paper. “Today at lunch there will be two tables with information about after-school activities.” She walked to the first row of desks. “I’m passing out a list of options. I hope each of you will sign up for something!”

  Kari was thrilled at this news! Finally! Now she could find out about soccer. Something she’d wanted to do since they arrived in Bloomington. But when Kari received the list she checked the front and back and her excitement fizzled. Dance. Jump rope. Basketball. Bowling. Horseback riding. So many things to do but…

  “Oh, no,” she whispered to herself. Then she tapped her new friend Liza on the shoulder. “No soccer!” She checked the list again. “I don’t understand. You can ride horses after school, but no soccer?”

  “True.” Liza studied her copy of the list. “Soccer’s in the spring.”

  Shock waves hit Kari and she felt her eyes grow wide. She was crushed. Ashley would be, too. Soccer was their favorite sister thing to do. “Well… this is devastating.”

  Liza giggled. “Not really. You can play later.” She pointed to an activity halfway down the front of the page. “You should swim with Mandy and me.”

  “Who?” Kari still didn’t have many names down.

  “Mandy Ling.” Liza looked over her shoulder. “She has the bangs. See, in the back row.”

  Kari looked around and a girl with glasses and pretty black hair gave Liza a thumbs-up.

  “You’d love it.” Liza sounded like the spokesperson for swimming. “Mandy was on the team with me last year.” She looked at Kari. “It’s the best.”

  “Hmm.” This was tough news. Kari couldn’t picture anything more fun than soccer. Her old school had an indoor field. Bloomington didn’t have that. Then it hit her. Maybe she didn’t deserve to play soccer. She was a cheater now, after all.

  Practically a criminal.

  The bell rang for lunch.

  “So, are you gonna swim with us?” Liza nudged Kari. The two of them walked together to the back of the line.

  “Maybe. I need to ask my sister first. She’s in fifth grade.” They stepped into the hall and headed for the cafeteria. “Soccer’s our thing.”

  The girl with glasses and bangs from the back of the class met up with them. “Hi!” She smiled at Kari. “I’m Mandy. Liza’s best friend.”

  “Hi.” Kari remembered to smile. “I’m Kari.” She kept her eyes straight ahead for a minute. So, Mandy was already Liza’s best friend. That didn’t leave much room for her. She held her books tight to her chest.

  Suddenly words from her father came into Kari’s mind. Be the friend you want to find. Kari straightened her shoulders. Dad was right. So what if Mandy and Liza were already best friends? Kari could be their other best friend.

  Even if she was a cheater.

  “So, Kari. Where are you from?” Mandy tilted her head to the side.

  Kari smiled. “Michigan.”

  “That’s nice.” Mandy skipped a bit when she walked. Like it was her own personal style. “We’ve lived in Bloomington for a while. But my dad is from China and my mom is from Chicago.” She grinned. “And Liza is from Atlanta.”

  “Yep.” Liza laughed. “We’re from all over.”

  “Exactly.” Mandy giggled and linked arms with her friend. It was the kind of happy giggle best friends do. Kari wanted to be in on the jokes. She wanted it so bad.

  As if Liza could read Kari’s mind, she turned to Mandy. “Kari’s thinking about swimming with us!”

  Mandy gasped. “Perfect.” Bubbles of enthusiasm came from her. “You should, Kari. You’ll love it!”

  Kari nodded. “I might.” The idea was sounding better all the time. Soccer would always be her favorite. But since that wasn’t an option, swimming could work.

  “And wait till you hear what happened!” Liza looked from Kari to Mandy. “Kari saw the boy in front of her cheating! Samuel! He got his answers from the kid beside him.”

  “No!” Mandy made a face. “I can’t stand that boy.” She gave Kari a sharp look. “You should tell Ms. Nan.”

  Again, a terrible choking feeling hit Kari. What had she done? Not only was she the most guilty one by cheating, but she’d told on Samuel. And now it was spreading! She didn’t even know the kid. Kari swallowed hard. What did her mom always say? Talking bad about someone else only makes you look bad in the end. The Bible called it gossip and it always hurt people. So now she was a cheater and a gossip.

  “Well?” Mandy turned to Kari. She was clearly waiting for an answer. “Are you going to tell the teacher?”

  “Probably not.” Kari took a quick breath and shook her head. “If… if he’s cheating, Ms. Nan will catch him next time.”

  As they walked into the lunchroom, Kari spotted Ashley at her same table with Marsha Howard. Ashley waved and just like that Kari’s thoughts flipped again. What if Ashley didn’t want to swim? They always did their after-school activities together.

  Kari bit her lip. What to do… what to do? She and her new friends stood in line for their food. Meat loaf and gravy and potatoes. As they left with their trays, Mandy turned to Liza. “I forgot to tell you. The swim coach wants us to eat in her room today so we can talk about our first practice.”

  “Sure.” Liza raised her eyes at Kari. Then she tossed her curly hair over her shoulder. “Come with us!”

  Kari glanced at Ashley. Since they couldn’t do soccer together, maybe it would be more fun to do their own sports this year. But, then… she couldn’t do that to her sister.

  “Wait…” Kari looked at Ashley and then back to Liza and Mandy. “I should probably ask my sister. In case she and her friend want to come.” She started toward Ashley’s table, and her new friends followed.

  Along the way Mandy raised one eyebrow. “There aren’t a lot of spots on the team.”

  Kari felt that sick feeling again. Was she supposed to choose Ashley or the new girls? The three of them walked over to Ashley and Marsha. Kari stepped up. “Um… Ash?” Kari looked at her new friends. “This is Liza… and Mandy. We’re going to eat lunch in the swim coach’s classroom. The three of us are going to do swim team.”

  “Just you three?” Already Ashley had a betrayed look on her face. It didn’t last long. She raised her eyebrows. “Fine. Go.”

  Kari shrugged. “I mean, you and Marsha could come, too.” Kari looked at Liza and Mandy, and then back to Ashley. “Or… maybe you two could try something different?”

  “I do gymnastics.” Marsha nodded. “I don’t like swimming.” She turned to Ashley. “You should sign up for gymnastics with me.”

  “Yes.” Ashley slid closer to Marsha. “Thank you for wanting me on your team, Marsha.” She glared at Kari. “You’re right. We can just do different sports this year.”

  Marsha looked happy. “Really?” She patted Ashley on the shoulder. “Best news all day.”

  Time was wasting. Liza was the first to speak up. “Kari! Let’s go!” Liza was a bit bossy.

  “Come on.” Mandy took Kari’s hand and started skipping her toward the cafeteria door. “The coach is waiting.”

  There wasn’t anything left to say
. “Sorry.” Kari looked at Ashley. “I didn’t mean you had to try something else.” The new friends were leaving. Kari had to go. “Never mind. We’ll talk later.”

  Ashley gave her a sad look. “See ya.”

  Kari gave her a slight wave and ran after Liza and Mandy.

  At the meeting, swim team started to sound more fun. They would meet at the city’s rec center and have access to the indoor pool… even on the weekends! Ashley would’ve loved such a chance. Maybe Kari could still talk Ashley into joining, too!

  But just then Coach Miller explained that after today’s sign ups, the team was officially closed to anyone else. Which meant, no Ashley. “We have all the swimmers we need for this year.” She looked around. “Let your friends know.”

  So that was it. Kari was on the swim team with her new friends, Liza, the friendly but bossy one, and Mandy, the happy bubbly one.

  The three girls walked back to class together after lunch and Kari’s heart was divided in half. It was the happiest day so far because she finally had friends. Real friends. But also she was a cheater. A crook. Something she’d never dreamed of being. And she had kind of betrayed Samuel. And her very own sister.

  If that wasn’t hard enough, the craziest thing happened at the end of the day.

  Kari watched Samuel turn to the kid beside him. “I saw your pencil was broken during the test.” He shrugged one shoulder. “I kept trying to get your attention to give you one of mine.”

  The boy laughed. “I didn’t know the answers, anyway. But thanks.”

  Kari felt the walls closing in. What was this? She had been wrong about Samuel! He wasn’t a cheater at all. He was only being nice. And now Liza and Mandy thought he was a bad guy! Not only that, but her new friends didn’t like people who stole answers. And she was one of those people.

  Kari-the-Cheater Baxter.

  She thought about telling the girls the truth about Samuel, how he really didn’t do anything wrong. But then she’d have to come clean about her own law-breaking. Maybe if she just never talked about cheating ever again, everything would be okay.

  Kari and her new friends walked together after class. Mandy was talking about her family’s summer trip to Chicago. But the whole time Kari could barely hear her over the truth screaming in her brain.

  The truth about herself.

  Things got worse on the way home, when Ashley barely talked to her.

  “Why are you being so quiet?” Kari whispered as they climbed out of their van and walked up the front steps.

  Ashley didn’t even look at her. “I’m surprised you want to talk to me since… you know.” She turned to Kari. “You have other friends now.”

  “That’s not fair.” Kari’s voice rose a notch. “I tried to invite you to swimming.”

  “I took Marsha’s offer.” Ashley tilted her head back. “At least she wants me on her team.”

  Usually when they first got home, the kids would sit at the kitchen table and do homework. But that would never work for Kari. Not today. She bounded up the stairs with her backpack and flopped on her bed. How had so many things gone wrong today?

  On a day that should’ve been one of her best?

  After a few minutes she stood and pulled her journal from her dresser. She sat cross-legged on the floor by the window and stared at the blank page. Then, the way it usually did, her pen began to tell God everything on her mind.

  I didn’t try to hurt Ashley’s feelings today. But here I am and now I feel like I’m carrying rocks on my shoulders. Ashley’s mad at me. She thought for a minute. Plus… I cheated on a test and I gossiped about Samuel. All of which I don’t think were my strongest moments. Her pen paused. But what choice did I have? I couldn’t get a bad grade because everyone expects—

  She was about to explain herself in writing when her bedroom door opened and Mom stepped in. “Kari? You sure were in a hurry to get up here. Why?”

  “Because.” She shut her journal and set it on the floor, fast as she could. “I have a lot on my mind.”

  “I see that.” Her mother came in and sat across from Kari on the corner of the bed. Her eyes looked soft. “Ashley is being very quiet. I asked her if she was okay and she said I should talk to you.”

  A long breath came from the bottom of Kari’s heart. “I said some things I can’t unsay.” The start of tears stung her eyes. She couldn’t tell her mother about the history test… or Samuel. Instead she told Mom how she’d made two friends in her class and how she hadn’t been very welcoming to Ashley when it came to the swim team.

  “I told her maybe she should try something different.” Kari hung her head.

  For a few seconds her mother didn’t say anything. When she did her voice was patient. “Did you really want Ashley to sign up for swimming?”

  “Not really.” Kari needed to tell the truth here. “I thought it might be fun if I had my own sport with my new friends.” A warm tear slid down her cheek. “I didn’t know how to tell her, Mom. It was just… with my friends there, it felt kind of mean.” She did a loud breath. “Just trying to figure out how to do this.”

  Her mom lowered herself to the spot beside Kari on the floor. She took hold of Kari’s hand. “Maybe you were trying to impress those girls. What do you think?”

  “Maybe.” The memory of the other situation came to her brain. “Also… I saw this boy cheating on our pop quiz. Or that’s what I thought, anyway.” A tear slid down her other cheek. She could at least be honest about this part. “I had that interesting news, so I told both the girls—Liza and Mandy.”

  Suddenly she remembered what Mandy had said. I can’t stand that boy. And Kari’s tears came like rain. “I found out later that the boy was only trying to help some kid with a new pencil.” A couple quiet sobs shook her chest. Because even now she couldn’t tell her mother she was a cheater. “And now Liza and Mandy think he’s a bad kid. And it’s all my fault.”

  Kari covered her face with her hands. After a few seconds she felt her mother’s arm come around her shoulders. It took a minute, but finally her tears slowed down. Kari lowered her hands and looked into her mom’s eyes. “What should I do?”

  “Well… you’re right. You can’t unsay those things, honey. But there is something you can do.” Mom put her hand along Kari’s cheek and used her thumb to wipe away some of Kari’s tears. “You can apologize to Ashley. And you can tell Liza and Mandy the truth about Samuel.”

  Kari’s heart still hurt even though she wasn’t crying anymore. The rocks remained. “Yes.” She gave her mom a sad look. “I can do those things.”

  Mom’s smile started in her eyes. “That’s my girl.” She turned a little so they were facing each other. “Now you see why we don’t talk bad about other people.” She reached out and took hold of Kari’s hands. “God wants us to use our words to spread kindness and love.”

  Why hadn’t she thought of that before? Kari nodded. “What about Ashley?”

  “Just talk to her. And remember something, sweetie.” Her mom paused. “You barely know those girls. Ashley is your best friend. She always will be.”

  Her mother was completely right. If only Kari could tell the truth about her own cheating. But that would make her a criminal, and she didn’t ever want her family to think of her that way. She took a slow breath. “Thank you. I needed to hear that. About Ashley.” Kari didn’t want to look into her mother’s eyes very long. Not with all the rocks. Also she wasn’t sure she had the strength to go back downstairs. She might start crying again. “Can you ask Ashley to come up here? I need to talk to her.”

  “Sure.” Her mom leaned close and kissed Kari’s cheek. “It’ll all be fine. Remember, an apology builds a bridge between two people who have distance.”

  “I love you, Mom.” Kari stood and a quiet voice whispered in her heart. Tell her the truth. Tell your mother about the cheating. But Kari refused to listen.

  Even so, her mother hugged her. After a few seconds Kari looked up. “How did you know I needed you just n
ow?”

  This time her mom’s smile looked happy. Like everything really would be okay. “That’s a mother’s job. To know when her kids need her.”

  Kari watched her mom go. Her heart should feel lighter, but it didn’t. It was the first time she hadn’t told her mother the whole truth. And she had the most wonderful mother.

  Yes, in a few minutes she would apologize to Ashley and they would be best friends again. Then tomorrow she would tell Liza and Mandy the truth about Samuel. After that she would be more careful about her words. Because once they’re said, there’s no way to unsay them. Not ever.

  But none of that would change the one fact she wasn’t willing to talk about.

  Kari Baxter was a cheater.

  10 The Mud, the Menace, and the Mentos

  ASHLEY

  Ashley wasn’t sure if she was awake or not. She was in her bed, and she could hear the storm outside. But instead of Bloomington, she was back home in Ann Arbor. Her old walls surrounded her, and she could smell the familiar air. The rain sounded just like it had in Michigan. She felt warm and wonderful and cozy.

  But then bit by bit Ashley opened her eyes and looked around. Her heart sank to her feet. No, she was not home, after all. She was here.

  In the big, cold bedroom in Bloomington.

  Ashley sat up. Water pelted the window like popcorn.

  Normally, today would mean wearing rain boots to school. But Mom had announced last night that their boots were still in the unpacked boxes in the garage. So, the Baxter children were stuck wearing tennis shoes.

  The problem came when Mom dropped them off.

  One minute Ashley was waving goodbye to her mother, not paying attention to the ground, and the next, she stepped right in the middle of a deep muddy puddle. She gasped and looked down. “No! This can’t be happening.” Both her pretty white shoes were covered in mud.

  Luke and Erin ran to their classes. Only Kari stayed to see how the muddy shoes tragedy was going to play out. She stared at Ashley’s shoes. “That’s a lot of mud.”

  “I’m a disaster, Kari. A muddy mess.” Ashley put her feet out in front of her and leaned back.