polka dot wallpaper.
"No," Mom said. "I mean um..."
"God, I never noticed it before." Patricia
said.
"Never noticed what darling?"
"You even got me fat wallpaper!"
"Those are planets." Mom said. "You said you
were interested in astronomy."
"Everything you ever got me is fat !"
I imagined Mom was rubbing her eyes the way
she does when she's upset about something. Then she said to me
"Katie, tell mummy what Patricia is doing now."
I figured there was nothing wrong with
telling this; she was going to see it later anyway. "Now she's
dumping all her perfume and stuff out and making a muck with it on
her vanity."
"Katie, come and open the door so mummy can
come in."
Patricia shot me a scary look and said
"Katie, if you move one inch I'll make you stay in the closet."
"Katie?" Mom called out again, but I didn't
answer. "Okay Patricia," Mom said after a while. "I'm going to call
for some professional advice. Is that what you want?"
When no one answered I heard Mom go down the
hall and down the stairs really loud so we could hear but slowly so
Patricia could always call her back. She didn't.
"What's professional help?" I asked
Patricia.
"Who knows?" she said "I hope it's the police
then they can see how I'm treated around here. Besides, she doesn't
have to make a big show about going downstairs to call; she's got a
phone in her hand."
When Patricia was finished mucking up the
stuff on her vanity she came and fell down on the bed beside me and
shoved her face in the pillows. Maybe this was a good time to
discuss some of the important things. "So if you don't go to
school," I said. "will you still grow up?"
"Don't be silly."
"But then you'll grow up to be stupid so
you'll have to keep your room and that means I won't get it."
"Do you ever stop thinking about yourself?
Can't you see I have like a serious problem here?"
"Can I have your bike?"
She made that big sound again and I jumped
again. She stuck her head in the pillows and maybe she was crying
but I couldn't tell for sure. I looked at her and wondered if this
is what being a big kid meant, I wasn't sure I wanted to become
one.
After a few minutes she looked up at me.
here eyes were all red. She had been crying. "Think you could go downstairs and make me a
P&B sandwich?"
"Do you think you should be eating? You know,
when you're so worried about being fat and everything?"
"So you're against me too?"
I didn't want to make things worse so I
rolled off the bed and started for the door.
"Anyway," Patricia said into the pillow.
"I'll just order my clothes from a tent factory."
When I got downstairs Mom was on the phone.
She didn't see me at all. I made two peanut butter and banana
sandwiches, put them on a plate, got two glasses of milk and went
back upstairs, you know, invisible, like nothing happened.
"Didn't you make one for yourself?" Patricia
said as she took the sandwiches and wedged the chair back under the
door knob.
"No". I said, actually thinking one of
them was for me, but
it was better not to get her more mad than she already
was.
Patricia opened the curtains and the blind
and we sat there on the bed looking out the window and she let me
have half of one of the sandwiches. Once Patricia wiped here eyes
on her bread and I realized that you could blow your nose in bread
if you wanted to. I told her this and we both started to laugh,
which was a bit of a relief. After a while a yellow car came down
the street and turned into our drive. We couldn't see who was in
the car but we could hear Mom say something to them then they went
in the side door to the kitchen.
A while later there was a knock on the door.
It didn't sound like Mom's knock either, and it wasn't Mom's voice
either. "Patricia?" It was a man's voice. "Patricia, are you in
there?"
Patricia and me looked at each other. I made
a scared face; it was strange to hear a man's voice in our
house.
Then Mom's voice came through the door.
"Patricia honey, there's someone here from the school who
"No," Mom said. "I mean um..."
"God, I never noticed it before." Patricia
said.
"Never noticed what darling?"
"You even got me fat wallpaper!"
"Those are planets." Mom said. "You said you
were interested in astronomy."
"Everything you ever got me is fat !"
I imagined Mom was rubbing her eyes the way
she does when she's upset about something. Then she said to me
"Katie, tell mummy what Patricia is doing now."
I figured there was nothing wrong with
telling this; she was going to see it later anyway. "Now she's
dumping all her perfume and stuff out and making a muck with it on
her vanity."
"Katie, come and open the door so mummy can
come in."
Patricia shot me a scary look and said
"Katie, if you move one inch I'll make you stay in the closet."
"Katie?" Mom called out again, but I didn't
answer. "Okay Patricia," Mom said after a while. "I'm going to call
for some professional advice. Is that what you want?"
When no one answered I heard Mom go down the
hall and down the stairs really loud so we could hear but slowly so
Patricia could always call her back. She didn't.
"What's professional help?" I asked
Patricia.
"Who knows?" she said "I hope it's the police
then they can see how I'm treated around here. Besides, she doesn't
have to make a big show about going downstairs to call; she's got a
phone in her hand."
When Patricia was finished mucking up the
stuff on her vanity she came and fell down on the bed beside me and
shoved her face in the pillows. Maybe this was a good time to
discuss some of the important things. "So if you don't go to
school," I said. "will you still grow up?"
"Don't be silly."
"But then you'll grow up to be stupid so
you'll have to keep your room and that means I won't get it."
"Do you ever stop thinking about yourself?
Can't you see I have like a serious problem here?"
"Can I have your bike?"
She made that big sound again and I jumped
again. She stuck her head in the pillows and maybe she was crying
but I couldn't tell for sure. I looked at her and wondered if this
is what being a big kid meant, I wasn't sure I wanted to become
one.
After a few minutes she looked up at me.
here eyes were all red. She had been crying. "Think you could go downstairs and make me a
P&B sandwich?"
"Do you think you should be eating? You know,
when you're so worried about being fat and everything?"
"So you're against me too?"
I didn't want to make things worse so I
rolled off the bed and started for the door.
"Anyway," Patricia said into the pillow.
"I'll just order my clothes from a tent factory."
When I got downstairs Mom was on the phone.
She didn't see me at all. I made two peanut butter and banana
sandwiches, put them on a plate, got two glasses of milk and went
back upstairs, you know, invisible, like nothing happened.
"Didn't you make one for yourself?" Patricia
said as she took the sandwiches and wedged the chair back under the
door knob.
"No". I said, actually thinking one of
them was for me, but
it was better not to get her more mad than she already
was.
Patricia opened the curtains and the blind
and we sat there on the bed looking out the window and she let me
have half of one of the sandwiches. Once Patricia wiped here eyes
on her bread and I realized that you could blow your nose in bread
if you wanted to. I told her this and we both started to laugh,
which was a bit of a relief. After a while a yellow car came down
the street and turned into our drive. We couldn't see who was in
the car but we could hear Mom say something to them then they went
in the side door to the kitchen.
A while later there was a knock on the door.
It didn't sound like Mom's knock either, and it wasn't Mom's voice
either. "Patricia?" It was a man's voice. "Patricia, are you in
there?"
Patricia and me looked at each other. I made
a scared face; it was strange to hear a man's voice in our
house.
Then Mom's voice came through the door.
"Patricia honey, there's someone here from the school who
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