CHAPTER 13: Charlotte's Visit

After lunch, the doorbell rang. Kristy went to answer it, and I was right behind her.

There stood Charlotte Johanssen. The BSC used to sit for her, and now she's a member, as well as Becca Ramsey's best friend. Becca had also been in the Stoneybrook Kids, and since she just turned twelve, her replacement is Myriah Perkins, who just turned ten, since the age range is seven to eleven.

I've known Charlotte for a few years. I first met her when there was a Little Miss Stoneybrook Pageant here in town. To this day, I can still see Margo Pike peeling a banana with her feet, and eating it, while reciting "The House That Jack Built".

Anyway, this was a beauty pageant for girls between the ages of five and eight, similar to the Miss America Pageant, only without swimsuits and eliminations after each round. At the time, Claire Pike, another Stoneybrook Kids member, and Myriah Perkins were five; I was six; Margo Pike was seven; and Charlotte was eight. For the talent portion, I'd worn the flower girl dress from Daddy and Elizabeth's wedding and sang "The Wheels On The Bus". (Dawn Schafer, another of Kristy's friends, once told me that when she saw me in that dress, she thought I was going to sing a love song or something.) Charlotte was going to recite a portion of Charlie & the Chocolate Factory, but she forgot her piece, ran offstage in tears, and asked to be taken home. Kristy says Claudia still blames herself for forcing Charlotte into it, and both of us made our parents promise to never show the video to anyone, except our families. As it turned out, Myriah ended up being the first runner-up, and some little girl named Sabrina Bouvier—a real pageant-head, according to Claudia—ended up being Little Miss Stoneybrook.

Oh, that reminds me. As I may or may not have mentioned before, Kristy used to coach a kids' softball team called Kristy's Krushers. My brothers and I, along with several of the BSC's sitting charges, were on the team. As Kristy explained, the team was for kids who were either too young or too scared to try out for Little League—which some of us are gradually doing. Charlotte, along with two other girls named Vanessa Pike, Mallory's sister, and Haley Braddock, had been our cheerleaders.

Okay, back to Charlotte being at the door. "Hi, Char," Kristy said. "Come on in."

"Thanks," Charlotte said. "Hi, Karen."

"Hi," I whispered.

"How's your voice?"

"Oh, it's getting there."

The three of us went into the living room and sat down: Charlotte and I on the couch, and Kristy in the armchair.

"So, you're doing okay?" Charlotte asked as soon as we'd sat down.

"Yeah, for the most part," I answered.

"I was about your age when I had mine out," Charlotte said. "I know what it's like." I figured that if anyone would know about that, Charlotte would, since her mom is a doctor, and I'm sure she's seen her share of surgeries.

"Thanks," I said, managing a tiny smile. "Did Becca tell you about our trip?"

Charlotte nodded. "How's Jason?" she asked.

"Well, it's been a couple of weeks since his surgery, and he still has to take it easy for a while. But other than that, he's doing all right."

"Good."

"Did she tell you anything else?"

"Well, other than Jason's first words when he woke up from surgery, no."

The three of us got a good laugh. Bebe had told everyone that when Jason woke up from surgery, he'd started singing "Good Morning, Starshine".

"What was the first thing you wrote?" I asked.

"Well, I'm not too sure, but I'm told that I wrote, 'Did I miss the operation?'" she answered.

"Well, at least you didn't write, 'Am I alive?'" I grinned.

Charlotte smiled, then checked her watch. "Well, I can't stay," she said. "I promised Stacey we'd go to Washington Mall and do some serious shopping."

Stacey is another of Kristy's friends. I'm told that she'd not only been Charlotte's favorite baby-sitter, but also Charlotte was crushed when Stacey moved back to New York, then thrilled when she returned to Stoneybrook. Stacey also has diabetes, and I'm told that Dr. Johanssen helped her through some rough patches. Charlotte also says she and Stacey are almost like sisters.

"Well, have fun," I said.

"Thanks."

"See you later."

"'Bye, Karen."

As Charlotte let herself out, I thought it was nice of her to come and visit.