Jennifer watched helplessly as her family walked out of the hospital room. She hated not being able to speak, because at that moment, more than ever, she had so many

things to say. Stupid tonsillectomy. Even the promise of all the ice cream she could eat wasn't appealing at that moment. She had bigger things to worry about.

She was glad when the nurse finally realized that the note she was holding in her hand was for her parents and she was happy that they returned to the room and hugged

her, but it wasn't enough. She wanted to tell them-and her whole family-how sorry she was for the way she'd hurt them. Now it was too late. Of course they were being nice

to her; she was in the hospital. They were supposed to be nice. But what would happen when she got home and was able to talk again? She wasn't sure if she could wait that

long to apologize.

"Get some rest." The nurse said as she turned out the light. The order made Jennifer roll her eyes. What else could she do in a hospital besides rest? She lay against the

pillows and stared at the ceiling, wishing there was something-

A beam of light streamed from the window, barely illuminating the nightstand beside her. And on top of it lay a pad of paper and a pen. She might have hurt everyone in her

family, but she could at least apologize and tell them that she loved them. She should have been nicer to them in the beginning. Because if she had, she wouldn't be feeling

this way.

Carefully she reached over and snatched the pad of paper and pen from the nightstand and then turned on the nightlight over her bed. If she couldn't apologize with her

voice, then a written apology should be the next best thing.

Carefully she started on the first letter; this one to her dad:

Dear Dad,

I'm very sorry for getting so mad when you told me that I couldn't go to the movies with Chrissie on a school night. The truth is that I'd already asked Mom and her answer

was the exact same as yours. She didn't want me going out two nights in a row on a school night either. I should have listened to her instead of asking you-hoping that you'd

let me go.

I'm sorry for all of those mean things I said to you, but especially for what I said about your tie. It was very nice-and not right wing at all. I love you.

Love, Jennifer

The second letter was for Alex

Dear Alex,

I meant what I said before. You would have made a great Stanley in that Streetcar play. Okay, so your southern accent did sound like Deputy Dog, but maybe if I would have

helped you rehearse more, you would have gotten the part-and Melanie Parker. I'm sorry I was so mean to you. You're always helping me when I ask for it and I know you

don't always want to. After all, I am just your little sister. But from now on, whenever you need help, I'll help you. And I promise not to close the door in your face. I love

you.

Love, Jennifer.

The third letter was to Mallory,

Dear Mallory,

I'm sorry. I know you don't know what I mean, so I'll tell you. And I'm sure you'll be mad once you know, but I'm used to that-your being mad at me that is.

I'm sorry for ruining your date with Kevin. I know you really liked him-and you really did look pretty. I'm sure he thought so too. I was just mad because you promised that

you'd play checkers with me and then you went out with a boy.

Ever since boys came into your life, you don't have time for me. Sometimes I feel like you've forgotten about me. Well, even if you have, I could never forget about you.

You're the best sister ever. I love you.

Love, Jennifer.

And the last letter was to her mom.

Dear Mom,

I'm sorry that I didn't do the breakfast dishes. I really did forget, but I shouldn't have gotten so mad at you and said all of those mean things to you. I'm proud of you for

going back to work and being so good at what you do. I know you work long hours and I shouldn't have been so selfish. I just miss you being at home all the time and I'm

jealous that Malory and Alex got more of your attention that I have. I'm sorry about that. I love you.

Love, Jennifer

All of that writing made her tired so she put the pad of paper and pen back on the nightstand and drifted off to sleep.

(The Next Morning)

"Good morning Jennifer. Ready for breakfast? I have a chocolate shake for you!"

Jennifer slowly opened her eyes and smiled at the nurse who stood at her bedside, holing the biggest chocolate shake she'd ever seen. She could definitely get used to this!

She tried to speak, but of course no words would come-and it hurt her throat. The nurse smiled.

"I know. You shouldn't try to talk for a few more days. And then it won't hurt so much. This will make you feel better. "

Eagerly Jennifer took the shake from the nurse and began sipping it.

"Oh and before I forget, your family is here. "

Jennifer's eyes widened and she put down the shake.

"What's wrong? Don't you like it? I can have them make you a different flavor. Vanilla, perhaps?"

But Jennifer shook her head.

"Okay, well we have vanilla, chocolate, peanut butter-."

Jennifer waved her arms back and forth.

"You want to go swimming?"

Oh brother, this nurse didn't know anything about sign language! She shook her head and pointed to the pad of paper on her nightstand.

"Oh, another note for your family?"

Jennifer nodded enthusiastically.

"All right, well which one is the note?"

Jennifer spread her arms wide.

"All of this? Okay, well I'll leave you alone and see if I can get this to them."

Jennifer leaned back against the pillows and sipped her shake. What if the nurse couldn't find her family? They'd never know how she felt or how sorry she was for hurting

them. She blinked and her cheeks were wet. Oh great, now she was crying. She stared out the window, trying to be happy that the sun was shining. But it was impossible.

The door opened and she turned to see her dad walk through the door. He was smiling and holding a piece of paper. She recognized it instantly. It was the letter she had

written him. He sat down on the bed beside her.

"How are you feeling sweetheart?"

When she started to cry again, he hugged her close. "It's all right. I got your beautiful letter. Thank you."

"I-." the word wouldn't come, but he smiled.

"I know… and I'm sorry too. You're right. That tie was right-wing. Even Alex said so. But I promise, you can go to the movies with Chrissy as soon as you've recovered. Not

on a school night, but on a weekend. Is that fair?"

She hugged him again, and held on for a long time. But then he drew back.

"You know, there are some more people who want to see you. I'll be back later, okay?"

She nodded as he kissed her head and walked out of the room.

The door opened again and this time her mom came in.

"Hi honey. Are you feeling okay?"

Again she opened her mouth, but her mom shook her head. "No, don't try to talk. It's still too soon. But I want to talk to you, is that all right?"

Jennifer nodded, motioning for her mom to sit down.

"Jennifer I'm sorry I've been gone so much. It's just that this job is a lot of work and I'm still learning how to juggle my family and everything. But I never meant to make

you feel like I was abandoning you. I don't like being away from you either. You, Alex, Mallory or your father. But don't worry. While you're recovering I'm going to be home a

lot more often. And we'll play games and watch movies and eat ice cream… how does that sound?"

Jennifer smiled and threw her arms around her mom.

"I love you, Jennifer. I love you very much."

Unable to say what she wanted to say, Jennifer hugged her mom tighter.

"All right, I should probably see what your father is up to. But you still have visitors in the hallway. Want me to send one in?"

"Yes." Jennifer mouthed.

A few minutes after her mom left the room, the door opened again. Jennifer smiled at the sight of her sister.

"How are you?" Mallory asked. "Oh wait, that's a dumb question since you can't answer me!"

Jennifer shook her head.

"May I?"

Mallory sat down and Jennifer smiled when she noticed that her sister was holding the letter.

"Look, I read your letter and-I'm not mad. I promise. I mean, yeah, I liked Kevin and all that but to be honest, we don't have anything in common. You're right. I was just

pretending to like documentaries and stuff to get him to like me. But what fun would it be going to see boring movies like that all the time? Don't worry about him. There are

plenty of other guys in school. I'm sorry I made Kevin think that you were a baby. And I could never forget about you, Jennifer. I think I just forgot about myself. You're my

little sister. You're supposed to look up to me and I went and messed it up. For the record you're the best little sister a girl could have."

Jennifer hugged Mallory tightly.

"Hey, when you get home, we'll have plenty of time for checkers and whatever you want to play. How about that?"

Jennifer nodded. She could hardly wait.

"Well, I guess I should get going. I have a… study date."

Jennifer knew better. It was a date-date. But she had to admit that Mallory really looked pretty.

She was about to fall into a deep sleep again when the door opened.

"That nurse has some nerve!" Alex said. "Making fun of me for fainting! Has she ever fainted while giving blood? I doubt it but if she did, I wouldn't make fun of her. Mallory

on the other hand-."

Jennifer sighed and leaned her head against the pillow. Apologizing to Alex was the hardest of all.

He reached into his pocket. "Hey, listen, um, I got this note from you and… well, I just wanted to come in here and talk to you about it. Are you up for that?"

Jennifer shrugged.

"Okay, great. May I?" He gestured to the bed and then sat down. "It's not your fault that I didn't get the part in 'A Streetcar Named Desire.' It just wasn't right for me. And

besides, Melanie Parker-well, she's seeing Robert Smithers, so there was no chance of us hooking up anyway. But I appreciate you saying that I would have made a great

Stanley. As far as my helping you, you don't have to thank me for that. I'm happy to do it. I love you, Jennifer. You're my little sister. I'd do anything for you. Anything at

all."

He hugged Jennifer tightly. "Hey, maybe when you're feeling better we can do something like go to the movies or whatever. Just the two of us?"

Jennifer nodded enthusiastically. And then she grabbed the pad of paper and pen from the nightstand.

"You writing more letters? Need me to deliver them to anyone for ya?"

Jennifer tried not to smile as she wrote as fast as she could. And then she handed the pad to Alex. His eyes scanned the words and then he smiled.

"Really? Sure, I'll be happy to do that. Let me just tell Mom and Dad."

Jennifer settled herself into bed as Alex left the hospital room. A few minutes later he returned. "Scoot over, will ya?"

She did as he asked and he sat on the bed next to her. She leaned against him and closed her eyes while he read told her a story about the stock market.

It only took a few moments to put her to sleep, but Alex kept right on talking, and that was okay with her because she loved him-and the rest of her family-more than

anything in the world.

THE END