"Mommy, you said we can go to the park today. Curtis Weintraub said he has a surprise for me, and if I don't go, I won't be able to get it! Are we going yet?" I knew I was bothering her, but Curtis Weintraub said it was very big, and might even make me cry like a baby! I told him I bet I wouldn't cry, but he didn't believe me, so now I have to go to the park so show him. "Can we go now, Mommy?"

"Phoebe, please relax. We'll go; I just have to stop by the little store on the way out to buy more cigarettes. After that, you can have all the fun you want at the park- one hour maximum though, please."

"Yes, mother," I responded. I would've made a fuss over the cigarettes, but I really wanted to leave, and talking more would have just made her move slower.

She got her coin purse, and we were out the door. Mother got her smokes, and then we were off to the park. When we got there, I couldn't see that boy Curtis Weintraub anywhere, so I decided to go play on the slides to wait for him. As I was going up the stairs, someone pushed me down, and I fell. I was about to cry out from the pain that was shooting through my elbow, but turning around, I saw it was the lovely Curtis Weintraub. "Like my gift?" he said with a smirk. "Where are those tears I saw coming out of your eyes?"

Full of the newfound anger and resentment I had towards Curtis, I let out a wild scream that attracted much of the parents' attention. Of course, I didn't cry for real, but I let out a few fake tears to earn the pity of the clueless adults.

"Phoebe, what happened? Are you okay? What hurts, dear? Shall I call the ambulance?" My mother questioned. She was the epitome of clueless.

"Mother, that boy Curtis Weintraub pushed me down the stairs, and now my elbow's bleeding! Look, mother! Look how bad it's bleeding! You better make that boy apologize!" I knew I was just shooting off my mouth towards Curtis, but my elbow hurt, and I wanted him to receive all the blame. Plus, I did nothing wrong towards him, so why did he push me? Good thing I didn't cry; I bet that certainly showed him!

"Alright honey, I'll send his mother a letter later. Let's go home to clean this mess up."

"Thank you, Mother."

We hailed a cab home even though we lived so near to the park, but Mother wanted us to get home fast, so the cab it was. The weather was starting to get a little chillier compared to the warmth of this afternoon, so I was thankful for the shelter.

Once home, our maid nursed my wound, and finished it off with a big hunk of adhesive tape. "All better," she said.

Not quite, I thought. I'll have Selma Atterbury help me put ink all over his new windbreaker later. Payback!

The rest of the day continued peacefully, and that night, Mother tucked me into bed. "Sweet dreams, baby. Don't forget, you're going to the pictures tomorrow with your friend Alice and her mother. You don't want to be sleepy tomorrow, do you?"

"Of course not, Mother. Thank you and sweet dreams to you too!" She closed my door, and I closed my eyes, dreaming about Holden.

-^-

I awoke to the smell of pancakes- my favorite breakfast. The morning passed in a blur, going to church, coming back, having a wonderful lunch. Around three, Mother took me to the cinema to meet with Alice and her mother. Alice looked a bit sick, and I asked her what was wrong.

"It's nothing," she said. "It's just a little cold."

Mother paid for my ticket, kissed me goodbye, and said she'd be back to pick me up when the picture finished.

I sat between Alice and her mother, and started getting into the story, when all of a sudden, Alice's mother leans over me and whispers, "Alice dear, are you feeling okay? Are you feeling grippy?" It went like that throughout the entire film. Whenever something important came up, she'd reach over and ask Alice if she felt "grippy."

Over all, the picture was mighty swell; at least, the parts I heard.

Once we got home, Mother told me her and father would be leaving soon, and that they wouldn't be home until very late. She said they would be attending a party at Norwalk, Connecticut.

I said that was fine, and I would see her in the morning. A few minutes later, they left.

The rest of the night was uneventful, and so I got my clothes ready for school in the morning, put on some crazy new pajamas Mother got me, and went to bed.

Suddenly, in the middle of the night, I awake to someone calling my name. Strange, it sounds a little like…

"Holden!" I exclaimed. Boy was I surprised to see him. I have him a big hug; I was very happy he was here! "Whenja get home?"

We started talking; rather, I was talking, and he listened. I asked him why he was here today, and not Wednesday, but I shouldn't have asked; I knew the answer. Of course Holden got expelled again! What did he do this time? Fail his classes.

"Daddy'll killyou," I said to him. "He's going to kill you." I could tell he was getting frustrated with me, but I kept on telling him. "Daddy's going to kill you."

Holden said he understood, and that I should stop, but how could he understand if he failed all his classes? "Daddy's going to kill you."

He kept talking to me, but I wasn't listening. I wanted Holden to get through his school, and have a happy future. He can't do that if he's failing, though!

We talked a bit more, and when Mother and Father finally got home, Holden hid in my closet. "Don't tell Mom," he said. "She can't know I'm here."

Mother said goodnight again, and Holden came back out. We talked a little more, but eventually he said he had to leave. I asked him to come back soon, and he promised.

The next morning, I got ready for school. A little bit before we were released for lunch, I got a letter from the office.

Dear Phoebe, it said. I can't wait around til Wednesday any more so I will probably hitch hike out west this afternoon. Meet me at the Museum of art near the door at quarter past 12 if you can and I will give you your Christmas dough back, I didn't spend much. Love, Holden.

What?! He's going to leave again? No!

I went home for lunch, but instead of eating, I packed. I wasn't going to let Holden leave right after he came back! I'm going to have to day him!

I got to the museum, and saw Holden waiting for me. I knew that in order to make this plan work, I'd have to be firm in my choices.

At first, Holden said no, but eventually, agreed. I wanted to spend more time with him, so I pretended to be mad at him, knowing he would do all he could to make me happy.

We went to the zoo, and after, we walked to this little street in the park, and I rode the carrousel there. I asked Holden to ride with me, but of course he said no.

After riding a couple times, Holden gave me back my dough. "I'm not mad at you anymore," I said. I was tired of pretending. I took his red hunting hat out of his pocket, and placed it on his head. I'd take it back later.

After I was done riding, Holden took me back home. Waiting for us were my parents; I couldn't keep the secret from them that Holden was back, so they were stayed to see him. Eventually, Holden went to an institute because he kept saying he was depressed. We came to see him every week, and I could just tell that one day, Holden would get back to normal, and we'd have lots of fun, just like we did when Allie was here. Maybe he'd be fine in time for my Christmas play.