Horse Blues (6 page)

First of all, to get the conversation going, Simon would probably want to talk about the advanced calculus class he was no doubt taking by now. And forget going to a movie—that was way too normal for Simon. Lisa was sure he’d suggest staying home and looking at the stamp collection he was so proud of.

But there was something else bothering Lisa, too—something that, by comparison, made Simon Atherton seem like a pleasant problem to have. Lisa couldn’t quite put her finger on why, but it seemed as if Stevie and Carole were angry at her. But what had she done? Yes, she had suggested the resolutions, but they could have said no or backed out any time. And why should they care, when Lisa’s resolution was by far the most difficult? All Carole had to do was say no to chips and dessert; all Stevie had to do was treat Veronica like a normal human being. Yet they’d been acting as if they had agreed to run a marathon! Obviously, they just weren’t used to discipline.

Lisa set her lips in a thin line. Let them keep up
their complaining. Lisa, at least, was going to make something of this new year. She was going to get something accomplished and help Horse Wise while she was at it. She’d amaze Stevie, Carole, her mother, Mrs. Reg, Max—everyone—with how fast she’d learn to embroider! Not just to avoid Simon, but to
win
.

Lisa grabbed the embroidery book. She turned to the first page. It had a picture of a smiling woman wearing a turtleneck and jumper. The jumper was embroidered with animals, trees, and flowers in a complicated pattern. “Impress your friends with beautifully embroidered clothing and linens!” read the caption underneath the photograph.

Lisa grinned. She liked the sound of “impress your friends.” Humming excitedly, she turned to the index at the back of the book. There was no entry under “tablecloths,” but after a minute’s searching she found “kitchen and bath linens.” Under that heading, the book suggested the fishbone stitch:

Bring the thread through at (A) and make a small straight stitch along the center line of the shape. Bring the thread through again at (B) and make a sloping stitch across the center line at the base of the first stitch. Bring the thread through at (C) and make an overlapping
,
sloping stitch, which you will alternate with the French knots and previously mastered fly and coral stitches. Then return to point (A) and
 …

Lisa’s eyes began to swim. She couldn’t concentrate. She had a sudden flashback to a school day the year before. She’d misread her assignment pad and found herself sitting in class, taking a math test that she hadn’t studied for. Only the math test had been easier to figure out than these stitches.

C
AROLE
’
S STOMACH GRUMBLED
loudly. She hadn’t heard her father go into the kitchen, but it had to be almost dinnertime. After getting home from TD’s, Carole had eaten a turkey sandwich and an apple, forgoing her usual snack-sized bag of chips. Then, for an afternoon snack, she’d eaten a pear instead of the chocolate bar she would have preferred. Now she was starving. If only her father would—

“Carole! Hungry yet?”

Carole jumped up at the sound of her father’s voice. “Coming!” she yelled.

“Grab a coat. We’re going out tonight!” Colonel Hanson called.

Even better
, Carole thought. At restaurants it was
easy to eat a lot of food that wasn’t junk. “Where to, Dad?” she asked, coming downstairs.

“To Willow Creek’s finest,” Colonel Hanson joked. “Pizza Town!”

Carole’s face fell.

“Bundle up, it’s cold out,” her father said.

As she put on mittens and a scarf, Carole tried to think of a polite way to tell her father that she couldn’t eat pizza. Maybe she could just suggest a different place.

In the car on the way over, Carole said, “Are you sure you want to go to Pizza Town, Dad?”

“Yes sirree!” Colonel Hanson answered. “I can taste that pepperoni and sausage now—mmmmmm. Maybe we should get two mediums instead of one large for more variety. Plus we could have the leftovers tomorrow. What do you think?”

Before Carole could reply, Colonel Hanson rushed on. “Say, we still have to discuss the bake sale, too, don’t we? What do you want to make?”

Carole smiled in spite of herself. Colonel Hanson was definitely not one of the parents who needed to be coaxed into putting more time and energy into Horse Wise! “I thought we could make lemon squares,” Carole suggested.

“My feelings exactly,” Colonel Hanson said seriously.
“And I know someone else is bringing chocolate chip cookies, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make
double
-chocolate chippers, does it?”

Carole laughed at her dad’s solemn tone. “No, Dad, I don’t think that would be a problem.”

“Phew. So, it’s decided then. I’ll run our choices by Mrs. Atwood as soon as possible. Boy, am I glad that woman is organizing it. Wow, all this talking about food has gotten me hungry.… Hey, I’ve got an idea! Let’s get the pizza to go. Then we can stop on the way home and rent a movie. How does that sound?”

“The movie sounds good,” Carole said slowly, stalling for time. “But maybe we should go to the vegetarian restaurant and get take-out salads instead.” She held her breath to see what her father would say.

“Ha-ha! Good one, Carole!” Colonel Hanson slapped his thigh. “And after that, I’ll steam some brown rice and vegetables!”

“But Dad—” Carole stopped. Her suggestion hadn’t produced exactly the reaction she’d expected.

Still laughing at what he thought was a joke, Carole’s father continued, “For breakfast, we can eat
raw carrots! Or some of that hot wheat cereal, right? No more Sugar Pops. And then …”

In vain, Carole tried to interrupt as her father went on making fun of “rabbit food.” After listening for a few minutes, Carole realized that she should have known better. Other friends’ parents had been hit by the health kick, but not her father. His idea of a healthy meal was ordering fried chicken instead of fried steak! Since her mother had died, Carole had pretty much gone along with her father’s eating habits. But now, with the New Year’s resolution, it was time to make a few changes.

“Dad,” Carole said, in a clear, firm voice.

“Don’t worry, honey—I haven’t forgotten the movie snacks! We’ll pick up some chocolate-covered raisins and microwave popcorn and Jujyfruits, too.”

Carole studied her father’s profile. He looked as excited as a little boy. She couldn’t wreck his plan with her silly resolution! Why had she ever let Lisa talk her into it in the first place? It was easy for Lisa. All she had to do was pick up a needle and thread for half an hour, not change her whole diet!

“It’s your last night of vacation. Might as well make it a classic Hanson movie night, huh?”

“That would be great, Dad, but listen, I have something to ask you.”

“Yes?”

Tell him
, Carole said to herself.
No more junk food!
“Can we make one of the pizzas mushroom and pepper?” she asked instead. How sinful could a vegetarian pizza be?

Colonel Hanson grinned. “Great. That ought to balance the pepperoni and sausage. Say, do you want to invite Stevie to join us?”

Carole was surprised at how emphatically she shook her head. “No thanks, Dad. I think it would be nice to keep it just the two of us.” The last thing Carole wanted was a member of The Saddle Club checking up on her! And after their conversation at TD’s, Carole had seen—and heard—quite enough of Stevie and Lisa for the day.

Colonel Hanson pulled into the parking lot of Pizza Town. “You know what? You’re right. And with only two of us, there’ll be more junk food!”

S
TEVIE GRABBED THE PLASTIC
bottle of bubble bath, opened it, and poured a long stream of pink liquid into the running tap water. Despite the less-than-thrilling morning, Stevie was in a good mood. First of all, she had a week more of vacation. Fenton Hall
was a private school. The school day at Fenton was longer, but so were the Christmas breaks and summer vacations. Knowing that Lisa and Carole had to go back the next day made Stevie appreciate her own last week even more. She would miss them at Pine Hollow during the day, but she wouldn’t miss homework and getting up at six-thirty!

Thinking of The Saddle Club made Stevie giggle. Every time she pictured Lisa or Carole calling up Simon Atherton to ask him out on a date, she cracked up. Because, of course, one of them was going to lose the bet. Meanwhile Stevie had thought up a perfect way to keep her own resolution. In answer to everything Veronica said, Stevie was going to smile and say, “That’s nice, Veronica.”

Stepping gingerly into her hot bath, Stevie giggled again. “That’s nice, Veronica,” she said aloud, practicing her line.

“ ‘My lesson with Johannes was incredible,’ ” Stevie mimicked.

“That’s nice, Veronica.”

“ ‘I’m the biggest snob in Pine Hollow.’ ”

“That’s nice, Veronica. Ha-ha-ha!”

Still chuckling, Stevie settled into the bath and let the bubbles close over her. There was another reason she knew she was going to win: When it
came to games or contests of any kind, she had a ruthless competitive streak. Usually she focused it on Veronica, riders from rival Pony Clubs, or her three brothers. But, Stevie thought slyly, there was no reason why she couldn’t put it to use against The Saddle Club. Or not exactly
against
—that sounded too hostile. But there was no reason she couldn’t use her competitive edge to win the bet.

As for Horse Wise, Stevie was sure the bake sale would make a lot of money. The main thing for The Saddle Club to worry about was getting new members—or getting old members like Simon Atherton to rejoin. Stevie snickered. Maybe she would call Simon personally to get the ball rolling. She could even butter him up a little—drop hints that Carole and Lisa really wanted to be friends with him again, now that he was back.

“Stevie, are you in there? Hurry up!” Stevie’s twin brother, Alex, banged on the bathroom door.

“Hold your horses!” Stevie yelled. “I’m taking a bath, and I’m not getting out anytime soon!”

“You’d better get out soon!” Alex yelled.

“Or what?” Stevie demanded.

“Or—or else!” Alex replied.

In response, Stevie stood up in the tub, reached over, and locked the bathroom door.

“Mom!” Alex screamed.

Stevie grinned delightedly. So far, this new year was starting out just fine.

“T
HIS IS THE WORST
new year ever!” Stevie cried. She was sitting at breakfast the next morning with her mother, father, and three brothers.

“Tell that to Miss Fenton,” Stevie’s mother said flatly.

“That’s right, Stevie, tell that to Miss Fenton,” Alex repeated.

“Alex,” Mr. Lake said warningly, “why don’t you, Chad, and Michael excuse us. This is between your sister and us.”

Grumbling a bit, the boys stood up with their empty cereal bowls and left the table.

“I just don’t understand why you didn’t tell me before!” Stevie wailed when they had gone.

“Miss Fenton only called last night, Stevie,” said Mrs. Lake. “And to tell you the truth, I think it’s awfully nice of the teacher to let you retake the test.”

“Nice!” Stevie scoffed. “More like torture! How can I study this week? It’s my last week of vacation!”

“You’ll find a way,” Mr. Lake predicted. “I’ll quiz you tonight on your vocabulary.”

“All of it? But that’s—”

“Case closed,” Mrs. Lake said. “Now try to have a good day.”

“Yeah, right,” Stevie muttered, staring miserably into her mug of hot chocolate. Overnight, her new year had gone from marvelous to horrible. Her parents had received a call from the headmistress of her school. Winter term was half over, and Stevie had done so badly on the French midterm exam that her teacher wanted her to retake it. The retake would be in a week’s time—the first day back. That meant that instead of just hanging out at Pine Hollow, Stevie would have to spend part of the week studying for it.

“Oh, Stevie, I almost forgot,” Mrs. Lake said, returning momentarily to the table. “Miss Fenton said
that there’s another girl who’s going to retake the test—Veronica diAngelo. Maybe you two could study together.”

Stevie stared at her mother as if she were a creature from outer space. “I’d rather walk on hot coals for the next ten years!” she cried.

A
S SOON AS
her parents left for work, Stevie got out her French book, shoved it into her backpack, and hightailed it over to Pine Hollow. French could wait. For now, she had her mental state to consider. And the only thing she could think of that would cheer her up was a nice, long ride on Belle. She groomed the mare quickly, eager to set off on one of the trails. The winters in Willow Creek were fairly mild, so even in January it was still possible to ride outside. The other bonus to riding outside was that Veronica diAngelo hardly ever went trail riding in the winter. She liked to stay warm in the indoor ring.

“Stevie! Hey, Stevie!”

At the sound of the high-pitched voice, Stevie cringed. With an effort, she managed to keep her voice pleasant, as the other girl caught up to her in the aisle. “Hello, Veronica.”

“Hey, Stevie. I’m glad I ran into you. My mother
told me you had to retake the French test, too,” Veronica said.