A Rose for Melinda (3 page)

Name: Melinda Skye
Date: September 10
Mrs. Garner, 6th grade

This summer was a dream come true! I went to dance camp in Tampa for two whole weeks! My ballet instructor in Atlanta, Mrs. Houston, learned that prima ballerina Petrina Milicoff, who once danced with the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow, was offering summer classes to promising students. Mrs. Houston recommended me! My mother sent in my application plus a videotape of me performing. I received a letter of acceptance in June, right after school was out. I was so excited that I didn't sleep for days.

When the date finally arrived, Mom and I flew to Tampa, where I spent the hardest (and best!) two weeks of my life in a dance studio with Ms. Milicoff. Twenty-five girls were invited. Only three of us were twelve years old. Ms. Milicoff said I have “the
look of a dancer” (which is not too tall or too short, long neck, long legs, and small bones). She encour aged me to continue my training in Atlanta and said that when I turn sixteen, I should try out for the corps of a troupe that travels to Europe during the summers. Sixteen seems like a long way off when I want something as much as I want this!

The other thing that happened this summer is I made a new friend. In August, the house across the street was sold (it's been empty for ages!) and Bailey Taylor—who is exactly my age (her birthday's July fourth!)—moved in with her parents, her twin half sisters (six years old), a dog and two cats. When I found out she was coming to Rosswell Middle School, I promised to be her friend. Bailey doesn't dance; she plays the flute (but she hates to practice). She reads tons of teen magazines and knows
all
the latest fashion news.

That's most of what happened to me over the summer. It's changed me some. If possible, I want to be a ballerina more than ever.

Melinda,

I'm in boring English and decided to write to you instead of taking boring English notes. I mean, who wants to know
about Louisa May Alcott and her boring book? Besides, I already read one of her books at my school in Virginia. When we walk home today, let's stop off at the Jiffy Store and buy some teen magazines so we can figure out what's hot this fall. I have five dollars that I got for baby-sitting my bratty sisters.

Oh, before I forget, do you know Richie Manetta? He keeps staring at me and I don't want to let him know it matters. Unless, of course, he's really cool. Then I want to let him know it matters. But if he's totally a brick I will ignore him. Your word is the law!

Bailey

MELINDA'S DIARY

November 16

All Bailey talks about is getting a boyfriend. She asked me if I've ever had one and I told her I have a friend boy—a best friend who moved away but keeps in touch. That's Jesse, of course! He's not a boyfriend in the romantic sense. At least not for me. (He still sends me birthday and Christmas cards
from California.) OK, so maybe I'm being a little dis
honest, but Bailey asked a hundred questions, so I dug out my memory box and showed her pictures of him. (Good thing he sent his school picture this year!)

Bailey said he is really cute (which he is, but I never thought about it). And then she started pumping me about whether I'd ever kissed him and stuff like that. I told her I didn't want to get too personal, but she was like a dog with a bone and told me all about the boys she's kissed and blah-blah-blah. More information than I wanted. But it has made me think about being kissed. I wonder what it feels like? And as long as I'm thinking about it, I guess I'd rather kiss Jesse than any of the guys at school. Not that I'll probably ever see him again. Still, it's fun to think about.…

Not that I have time for a boyfriend. Ballet and school take up almost every minute of my life … except for the small part Bailey takes up asking dumb questions!

Hi and Merry Christmas!

Thanks for the photos you sent on the Web. You look really pretty in your ballet dress, and I know you must have danced really great in The Nutcracker this year. I still remember the time I
went backstage when we were in first grade. I thought you were pretty then too. I hope you remember.

I'm into skateboarding big-time and I'm in a competition in March, so I'm doing a lot of practicing at a park near my house where all us boarders hang. Mom's still in school and working. The other big news is that my dad remarried and now I have two stepbrothers. Dad wants me to visit them this summer in New York. I don't really want to go, but I'll have to. He tries to keep in touch, but now that he has a new family the divorce seems even harder on Mom.

I'll send you postcards from the city. Maybe we can e-mail each other too while I'm there. I know you'll probably be going to some dance school this summer, but I still think about the fun we had when we were kids. I sort of miss it. You have the best family and I used to wish my dad was more like yours. Instead, I have a dad that's like mine.

Your e-mails to me make me feel good. Have a good holiday and give a special hi to your great parents. Mom may take me up to the mountains to ski for a Christmas present!

Jesse

February 21

Jesse,

We had to make an emergency trip to Florida because my grandma is dying. I'm freaked. I really love her and I can't imagine never seeing her again. I'm so sad. So sad.

This is in two parts because Grandma died yesterday. The funeral is the day after tomorrow. I can't stop crying. More later.

Melinda

To all your family,

Jesse and I are so sorry about the loss of Melinda's grandmother and your mother, Elana. We both send our love.

With sympathy, Ann and Jesse Rose

Hi friend,

I'm so glad you're home from Florida and I'm so sorry about your grandmother. I was almost five when my grandpa died, but I remember it like it was yesterday.
Mom and Dad had just divorced and Dad had dropped out of our lives (whereabouts still unknown). Mom cried a lot. I was scared because I thought she might die too and then who was going to take care of me? Instead, she married Bill and had Brenda and Paula and talked about how much Grandpa would have loved seeing them and how they'd grow up and never get to know him. Which hurt my feelings because she never once mentioned how much he liked ME, or how much fun Grandpa and I used to have together.

Well, I didn't mean to go on about myself. Here's some happy news: My cat Bubbles is going to have kittens. Do you think your parents will let you have one? If so, you can pick out any one of the litter you want. Sort of in memory of your grandma.

Bailey

Bailey!

Mom said I can have the kitten! And I will always love her and take care of her. You are a true friend!

Melinda

MELINDA'S DIARY

April 4

I love my kitten! She's pure white except for a black mask around her eyes, like Zorro. Jesse tells me I should name her Zorita because she's a female. Zorita sounds pu-r-r-rfect, so that's her name.

How are you, Jesse?

I'm fine. How's Zorita?

Cute as ever. There's somebody here I want you to meet.

Hi, Jesse. This is Bailey. I'm over at Melinda's house and we're IM'ing you together.

Hi, Bailey. Melinda says you play the flute.

That makes me sound so nerdy, and I'm not. I'm a real babe!

Yes, she's Bailey the Babe. All the guys at school think so. Ouch! Bailey just slugged my arm for telling you she's popular with the boys.

Don't slug Melinda! I'll be forced to polish you off like I did Toby Gillman. That's a story you can ask Melinda to tell you sometime.

Who's Toby? Someone tell me!

I just told her he was my tormentor in first grade. Now she's really impressed because you defended me. You were my hero!

That was then. What about now?

You still are!

Oh p-u-l-ease! I know
when I'm being shut out. Nice to meet you J. Adios.

Write me when you get back from New York. Okay? I'll keep my fingers crossed that you like your “new” family.

I hope so too.… Bye.

TO: Ballerina Girl
Subject: My New York Trip

The visit is over and I'm glad to be home. Because NY could never be home for me. The first week was awkward, everyone being extra polite and all. My stepbrothers, Richie and Darrin, didn't know how to treat me. They played games on their computer until Dad chewed them out for ignoring me. Neither one is very athletic. Dad got all over them, but it didn't make them want to hang with me at all. If we did do something together, it was just to be polite. His new wife, Donna, was nice to me, but she works, so she was not there during the day much.

Dad took ten days off work and we took trips into the city and out to some woods for hiking. That was okay. Sight-seeing highlights included the top of the Empire State Building, the ferry to Staten Island and the Statue of Liberty. One day Dad took us all to Yankee Stadium for a ball game, but it rained! We sat around for an hour waiting for it to clear up.

Truth is, Dad and I don't have much to talk about. We're strangers. That really hurts. When he put me on the plane home, we just stood there looking at each other. He said, “If you ever want to spend a summer here, just say the word.” I know he wanted me to hug him, but I didn't want to. So I just said thanks and got on the plane. When I was younger, I used to dream about him begging me to come live with him and I would say no, hoping to hurt his feelings real bad. I still feel he shouldn't have left me and Mom. He shouldn't have. Your parents are so perfect. Maybe this is hard for you to under-stand—but thanks for being there to let me get it off my chest.

Jesse