Chapter Four:

The weeks flew by and the cool, fresh weather of spring gave way to a warmer, muskier breeze that flew through the trees and woke me up in the mornings shortly after I decided it would be warm enough to sleep with the window open. My room began to look like it had during my teenage years: my clothes were strewn all over the place, my memorabilia of my baseball career was flung hap-hazardly on my desk, chairs, and bureau space. This was the sight I awoke to every morning and I had to admit I liked it a lot. The fact that no maid came in to clean it up every night was even better. The mess just went to show that a true person lived there. Of course, I wouldn't leave it like this. I would clean it up eventually so there would be plenty of room to mess it up again.

This lazy, unimportant thought drifted into my mind as I curled into a ball around my big, fluffy pillow and looked around my room. My heart ached gently as I gazed at all the old pictures that I had on my walls ever since I was younger. There was a picture of my old collie, Louie, and me. One with my older brothers, myself, and David Michael playing baseball in the backyard of my old house. And on the nightstand right next to me was a medium-sized frame that held two pictures; on the left side was a picture of the entire Baby-sitters Club at thirteen-years-old. The right side had us the day I came home and showed just how much we had changed. I still had a hard time looking at it just because it was so different.

Groaning, I pulled myself up. It was useless to cry about this anymore. It was not like I could reach back in time and get back all the years I had lost. And really, they weren't truly lost—I had some of my best and most memorable years playing baseball. There was really no reason for any regrets.

The rest of the school year flew by for my youngest siblings. On June 6th, Emily had her graduation ceremony at the SHS gym. My family and I cheered loudly as she stepped up to the podium to receive her diploma and then again as she stepped up to give her salutatorian speech. Emily spoke clearly and beautifully and I felt my chest puff up with pride.

The ceremony took a little over an hour and when it was over, the gym was positively crowded with so many crying students and parents I felt a little faint. Sam tapped on my shoulder and I looked up at him and he smiled and told me that we were all going to head to Emily's favourite restaurant to celebrate. We had special reservations for us and all of Emily's friends and he wanted me to get her while everyone piled into their cars.

I nodded and made my way through the crowd. It took some doing because every few feet I had someone stop me to ask for a picture or an autograph. I smiled graciously but by the time I reached the end of the gym where Emily stood with a bunch of her friends, all talking simultaneously with one of their teachers, I felt sweaty and slightly irritated from all the jostling about me.

"Emily!" I called out, my voice carrying over the other ones in front of me. Emily glanced over at me and smiled brightly. One of her guy friends tapped her shoulder and seemed to ask her something. Emily nodded and frantically waved for me to join them. I heaved a sigh and made my way over to where she stood.

"Emily, we're going to go to your party soon." I told her.

"I know. I'm sorry, but my friends were wondering if they could have your autograph." Emily told me. "They're all fans, especially Jamie."

At that name, I frowned slightly before I turned to look at the boy she called Jamie and gasped. Emily was a friend of my very favourite baby-sitting charges, Jamie Newton!

"Jamie!" I exclaimed. "Oh my…" I was speechless. I could barely recognize him. He was so grown-up. Such a change from the little boy that I used to sit for ever since he was a tiny boy playing with his little sister, Lucy. "I forgot, you're Emily's age. Congratulations on graduating!" I gave him a fierce hug and learned that he was the captain of the baseball team and the swim team.

"That's wonderful." I told him as I signed a bunch of papers for Emily's friends. "I'm so proud of you."

"I'm proud of you, too, Kristy." Jamie said.

"May I have an autograph, too, please?" another voice asked.

"Sure." I replied. I took the notepad that was offered to me but couldn't resist asking Jamie how his mother was, how Lucy was doing (she was just about to start high school), and what plans he had. He said that he was going to be going to Stamford University, where Emily was going too.

I nodded and looked down at the paper and finished writing, "To a great fan. With Love, Kristin Thomas." I wasn't exactly a poet but people always seemed to appreciate my sentiments.

"Thanks." The person said as I handed it back quickly.

I was about to be introduced to the rest of Emily's friends but the voice spoke up again.

"Ah, I see you use 'Kristin' when you sign. I recall you used to get on me all the time just because I teased you about it."

Feeling curious, I turned around to the person speaking. The moment I set my eyes on him, I wished that I hadn't. My heart leaped out of my chest and my stomach felt like it had just been set on fire and then it quickly froze over.

"Car—Cary…Retlin?" I choked out his name as if my lungs had suddenly collapsed and it took all my power not to pass out.

"Kristy, are you feeling okay?" Emily asked. "Should I get you some water from the refreshment table?" she started away.

"No, Emily, WAIT!" I screamed. I wanted to add, 'don't leave me here alone with him' but my mouth went try and I struggled to shake my head. "I'm fine."

Emily nodded and then turned to Cary. "Mr. Retlin, I want you to meet my older sister, Kristy."

"I know her." Cary said with a smirk.

"We've met before." I retorted, infuriated by his expression.

"Wonderful." Emily replied, completely oblivious to the tension that had suddenly exploded around me. "Mr. Retlin is my creative writing teacher for AP class. I couldn't write at all before I took his class but I'm much better now."

I nodded numbly, still staring intensely at Cary. Cary Retlin. My mind was frozen, completely inoperable at the moment. But my heart was pounding wildly and my legs were shaking. 'Get out of here!' my body screamed at me. Cary…the boy who had almost ruined my life when we were in high school. Who took away any ounce of self-respect that I might have had. The one who had catalyzed my decision to leave Stoneybrook. Here he was. Popping up like everyone had been doing since I came back.

Cary and I used to be arch rivals in middle school. Then when we got to high school we started… dating each other. It was one summer that I pushed out of my mind so that I wouldn't have to be tormented by it.

"…And Mr. Retlin is a big fan of yours, Kristy." Emily droned on. "He's always asking how you are doing, what we've heard from of you and—"

"Emily, I believe you're embarrassing your sister." Cary interrupted with a short laugh and smug look in his eye as he looked at me. It was the most disgusting leer I had ever seen and it took everything in my power not to punch him right in the nose.

Cary looked at me intently and cocked his head to the side. A clump of his dirty blonde hair fell into his eyes. Amazing. He still had that scraggly haircut from his preteen years…he probably never grew up. "Kristy—Kristin, you really don't look to well. Perhaps you could use some water."

I tried to shake my head but Cary had already turned and was heading away. Fine with me. I took hold of Emily's arm and pulled her away towards the entrance.

"Come on, Em." I told her.

"Kristy, Mr. Retlin—" she protested.

"It's his own fault for suggesting a drink when I told him I'm perfectly fine." I said, sounding more than a little bitter. "Besides, we have reservations at your favourite restaurant. We don't want to lose them."

I practically dragged Emily out the door but I could not help it. I had no intention of accepting any food or beverages from Cary Retlin.