CHAPTER 21: Claudia
I returned to Chicago on Halloween afternoon. My first real art show was scheduled to open the next night, November 1st, and would run until Christmas. I still remember when Rosie Wilder and I had that art show in my parents' garage, until it was ruined by Alan Gray, who my friends and I considered to be the Pest of the Planet, and still do. The only difference between that one and this was that there was not only more artwork, but also actual refreshments.
After dinner, which was take-out from the local Japanese restaurant, I opened the fridge. There, next to the milk, was my absolute favorite dessert in the world, custard pie. I cut myself a slice, poured myself a glass of milk, and took my snack into the living room. After setting them on the coffee table, I looked toward the portrait of Mimi that I'd painted when I was twelve. Sure, it was a little faded and yellowed, but it still looked as fresh as it did when it was first painted.
"Hi, Mimi," I said, picking up the pack of cherry-flavored Virginia Superslims that were beside it. "Sorry about the cigarettes. It's just that I'm a little nervous about tomorrow night. After all, it's my first art show. And I mean formal art show. A lot of big-shot critics, professors, and artists will be there. I guess I picked the wrong week to quit smoking, huh?
"Oh, Kristy and Jason are doing all right. They'll be having their first baby in a couple of months, and Mary Anne and Logan's baby is due a few weeks after that. I can't wait for them to meet Mallory and Ben's twins! I just wish I could've been there for Mal when she was having them. She said that after they were born, she was out cold for almost 24 hours. At least she didn't have to see the doctor sitting there like Johnny Bench!
"Well, wish us luck tomorrow night, Mimi. I never would've been able to do any of this without your support, love, and your believing in me...I love you."
As I sat on the futon and lit my cigarette, I smiled up at the portrait. I knew Mimi's spirit would always be with me.
When I arrived at the Chicago Art Museum, I saw Ashley Wyeth, my friend since eighth grade—and no relation to the artist, Andrew Wyeth, by the way. (She once told me that if she had a dollar for every time someone asked her that, she could by a condo on the beach.) Ashley understood me as an artist, and tried to get me to quit baby-sitting—and the BSC—to focus on art. Nowadays, she lives across the hall from me in our apartment building, and is an artist, too. She works full-time, and I work part-time during the school year and full-time during the summer.
"Hi, Ashley!" I called.
"Hi," she answered. "All set?"
"Yup."
We walked up the steps to the entrance, and standing near one of the columns were Shannon and Bart. They were taking their honeymoon in Chicago, and must have decided to stop and see the artwork. "Hi!" I called.
"Hi, Claud; hi, Ashley," Shannon said as they came over.
"How's it going?" I asked as we finished hugging.
"Well, the doors will be opening in about half an hour, but I think people will like it," I answered. "You know, you're the first ones here."
"Really?" Bart asked.
I nodded. "I can't wait for other people to see it. How do you like Chicago?"
"We love it," Shannon said. "So far, we've been to the top of the Sears Tower and the John Hancock Building—even though we didn't see those spirits from the Poltergeist movies, and we went to a Bulls game last night. This morning, we went shopping on the Magnificent Mile. Tomorrow, we're going to the Medieval Times, and leaving the day after that."
"Great. Well, I hope you enjoy the show," I said.
"I'm sure we will," Bart grinned. Then he turned around and pointed to a sculpture in the window. "Say, Shannon and I were just wondering about this one."
"Oh, you mean the one made of rotini pasta?"
"That's the one," Shannon answered. "And it has a very clever title, too: 'Rotini Surprise'."
"Thanks," I grinned. "In case you're wondering, it's supposed to be that potted plant that Jackie Rodowsky knocked over when Stacey was baby-sitting for him the week after we came back from Australia. Remember when I told you about that?"
I guess I should explain something here. You see, the summer after I'd graduated from SMS, Unity Insurance, the company that Kristy's stepfather recently retired from, had sent him to Sydney to open a branch of their office. The BSC had been invited to go, and we got to meet our Australian counterpart, a baby-sitting club called Baby-sitters, Inc., which was started by Kelly Hobart, the Hobarts' cousin. And to this day, we still keep in touch with them. In fact, the last time I saw Kelly was at Mallory and Ben's wedding a couple of years ago. At the time, she was getting ready to start her junior year of college, where she was majoring in special education. She now teaches that particular class at a high school in Sydney that's near her home.
The only ones who weren't on that trip were Dawn, Jason, Logan, and Shannon. Dawn was in California, Logan and Jason were visiting relatives in Kentucky and New York, respectively, and Shannon and her family were on a cruise to Alaska.
Okay, back to our discussion. "Do I!" Shannon laughed. "And Stacey said all that dirt landed all over her brand-new white sandals, too! She told me about it the next day."
"I'm jut guessing, but Stacey's sandals never really looked white again, did they?" Bart asked.
I shook my head, still laughing. "And the moral of the story: never wear anything white to the Rodowskys'."
"I'll keep that in mind," Shannon managed to gasp out between laughs. "By the way, have you heard from them lately?"
"Actually, yes," I said. "Shea messaged me on Facebook last night, and said he has an audition for Julliard in two days. Jackie and some of his friends are on a backpacking trip across Maine, and Archie just made the tumbling team at SHS."
"Really? That's great!" Shannon grinned. "I'll have to drop them a line sometime."
A little while later, Ashley looked at her watch and said, "Well, we should get going. The doors will be opening soon, and we need to make sure everything's ready to go."
"Thanks," I said, and ran off.
A few minutes later, the doors opened, and everyone trickled inside. As I watched people look at my artwork, as well as partake in the hors d'ouvres, canapés, wine, champagne, and punch, I said a silent prayer, thanking Mimi again for always believing in me, and being there for me. I can quite honestly say that none of this would've been possible if it weren't for her, and I knew that she was proud of me.
