Jill was almost giddy as we left the mall, seemingly light-hearted, and carrying her bag from the store.

"I got some real cute earrings," she was telling me. "You can borrow them if you want. Here-let me show you-"

She burrowed through her bag, and brought them out as Daniel put the truck into drive and pulled out of the mall parking lot.

And she pulled out a pair of flashy earrings, the sort that dangle nearly to the top of your shoulders when you're wearing them.

These looked like guitars, with sparkly stones on the part where the guitar strings were at.

Um, okay. Not my style at all. I hardly wore earrings that dangled at all, and for sure not any like these. I thought they

were downright gaudy, but Jill sure seemed to think they were something special.

I was still feeling put out at Daniel, even though we'd supposedly talked things out. To be honest, I didn't know just what

was wrong with me. I just wanted to go home. Even chores and homework sounded preferable to any more time in the cab

of Daniel's truck, with a Daniel that was out of sorts, just like I was, and with Jill, babbling on and on about earrings and

nonsense like that.

"What do you think?" Jill was asking me, as we drove.

"They're sparkly," I said, not meaning it as a compliment.

"I know. Isn't it great?" she said, not seeming to notice my lack of enthusiasm.

"Mmmm," I said.

"You can borrow them-maybe when you go out with your boyfriend-when am I gonna get to meet him, anyway?" she said, all

in one long breath.

I shrugged. "I don't know-"

"Probably on the weekend," Daniel interjected into the conversation. "Isn't Kenny usually around then, squirt?"

"He might be," I said vaguely.

"Well, I'm looking forward to meeting him," Jill said, smiling at me, and then laying her hand on Daniel's right knee.

I gave her sort of a half-smile-raised eyebrow look, that was meant to not neither encourage or discourage.

"We should go out together somewhere on the weekend," she rattled on. "Daniel and me, you and-Kenny, right? And maybe

Guthrie? Daniel says he dates a friend of yours."

"Kristin," I supplied.

"Right. Kristin," she said, with a nod. "Well, we could see a movie or somethin'. That would be fun."

I wasn't about to commit to any such a thing. I was starting to feel the beginnings of a headache.

"So-where do you two want to grab somethin' to eat?" Daniel was asking.

"Is there a nice Italian place 'round here?" Jill asked.

"There's the pizza parlor," I said, flippantly. "That's about as Italian as we get 'round here."

"Oh," Jill said, sounding a bit subdued. I glanced at her and then at Daniel and he was giving me a look, well, it wasn't a

good look. He looked irritated. Mad, almost.

I wrinkled my forehead at him, wondering what was going on now. Before I could ask or figure it out, Daniel

said, "There's a good place in Angels Camp that serves Italian."

"If that's what you want to eat," she said, and he squeezed her hand.

"Sure," he said. "Sounds good."

He didn't even ask me what I thought after that, and I rolled my eyes, wishing that I'd told him that I didn't want to

go along to Stockton. I could have called somebody else to come and pick me up.

7

So we went to U-Ghetti's, the restaurant in Angels Camp that serves Italian food. We were seated in a booth, and I was looking

around. I hadn't been here in a really long time.

Daniel and Jill were looking over the menu and discussing what they were going to order.

They both decided on spaghetti, and Jill was happy when she saw that there was panettone.

"I haven't had that in forever," she said.

As the waitress approached our table, Daniel looked across at me. "What are you gonna have?"

"I'll take the spaghetti, too," I said.

He nodded, and ordered three spaghetti dinners, and a plate of garlic bread, with salads on the side. When the waitress asked

about drinks, I said just water for myself, Jill ordered a Coke, and Daniel ordered a beer.

The drinks and salads were brought quickly, I guess because it wasn't all that busy yet for the supper hour.

I drank half of my water as soon as it was brought over.

Jill surveyed me over the top of her Coke glass.

"You can't have Coke, huh?" she asked me, sounding sympathetic. "Because your diabetes is so bad?"

"I can have it if I want," I said. "I just try not to drink it all the time. And it's not that my diabetes is so bad-"

I saw that Jill was listening, seemingly intently. I speared a cherry tomato with my fork, and put it in my mouth.

"I already had a Coke earlier," I finished lamely, and poured some more Italian dressing over my lettuce.

"My brother has diabetes," Jill said. "He has to be really careful. It's like the list of things he can't have is longer than

the list of things that he can."

I chewed my mouthful of lettuce, thinking back to earlier, when I was fairly sure that Jill had told the room full of

family that there was only she and her sister in her family. No mention of a brother. I flicked a glance at Daniel, but

he only met my eyes in return, taking a drink of his beer, and not saying anything.

I just thought that was weird. Why would Jill say she had only one sister, and then later mention another sibling?

I ate my salad, and then most of my spaghetti when it was brought over. By the time I ate garlic bread, I was stuffed.

Jill talked the whole time. Throughout the entire meal. She talked to Daniel mostly, but would include me in some

of the stuff. I mostly just nodded, or raised an eyebrow in question. Stuff like that. She really hardly ate much at all.

I stayed quiet the rest of the way home. I was glad when Jill quieted down, too.

At the house, I got out, gathering up my backpack, and I heard Jill telling Daniel that she had a headache.

They were talking really softly, and I went on up the front stairs and into the living room. My classic 'foursome' of

greeters was there. Brian and Clare, Adam and Hannah.

Hannah smiled at me. "Did you have a good afternoon?"

"It was okay," I said, vaguely.

I set my backpack in the nearest empty chair.

"Did you eat?" Hannah asked.

"Yeah. Spaghetti at Angels Camp. Have you heard from Crane about how Ivy's mom is?" I asked.

"He called and said he was spending the night there. The hospital was going to keep Ivy's mother for overnight observation," Adam

said.

"She didn't break any bones, though," Hannah added.

"That's good," I said.

"It really is," Clare said. "With an elderly person, it's especially a good thing when nothing is broken."

"Where'd you leave Daniel and Jill at?" Brian asked.

"They're coming in," I said, shortly.

"Guthrie fed the goats and did the rest of your chores for you," Adam told me.

"Oh, okay. That's nice," I said. "Where is he?"

"Upstairs. He said he had a lot of homework to do," Hannah said.

"Speakin' of homework," Adam said. "Do you have a lot to do?"

"Enough," I admitted.

"You feelin' okay?" he asked me then.

"I ate a ton," I said, in answer. "More than anybody else."

Daniel and Jill were inside by this point, and Adam said, "You did, huh?" to me.

At my nod, he said, "That right, Daniel? Harlie says she out-ate you at the spaghetti place."

Daniel looked at Adam, and then at me, and then went on about the business of closing the front door, and helping

Jill take her jacket off.

"She ate good, alright," Daniel said.

"That's the place we keep talking about going to," Hannah was saying to Adam. "What's it called? U-something?"

"U-Ghetti," Jill supplied.

"That's right," Hannah said. "Did you like it?" she asked Jill.

"Yeah, it was good," Jill said. She gave everybody in the room a wan smile. "If you all will excuse me, I'm going up to

bed."

Adam nodded to her, and Hannah and Clare both said 'good night'.

Jill gave Daniel another weak smile, and he said, "Goodnight, babe."

"Goodnight, all," Jill said, and headed up the stairs.

When Jill had gone, Hannah asked Daniel, "Everything alright with Jill?"

"Yeah. She says she just ate too much," Daniel said.

Ate too much? Right. For someone who'd wanted Italian food specifically, and maintained that she was starving beforehand, Jill had

really eaten very little during the meal.

I had the thought that she'd been too busy talking to eat.

"Maybe Harlie ate Jill's share, huh?" Adam said lightly, teasing.

"Yeah. Maybe," Daniel said. Quietly.

Now, there's not a stupid McFadden in the whole bunch. Sometimes they can be a bit obtuse. But, not stupid, and usually not

totally unobservant, either. So, when Daniel gave a half-smile to the whole group, and said, "I've got notes I wanna write down. I

think I'll head on up, too. See ya all in the mornin'," well, this didn't go without raising curiousity.

"You feelin' alright?" Adam asked him, much as he had me just a few minutes earlier.

"Yeah. I'm fine," Daniel said. He clapped Adam on the shoulder, and dropped a kiss on the top of Hannah's head, and Hannah reached

up to squeeze his hand.

As he passed behind me on his way around the couch, he said, "Night, squirt." He headed on towards the stairs,

with a 'Night, Clare. See ya in the morning, Brian."

Brian and Clare both said a goodnight, and I did, too.

"What's up with Daniel?" Brian asked me, when Daniel had gone.

"I don't know," I said. After all, it wasn't a lie. I didn't really know what was wrong with Daniel. Not exactly. He was aggravated

with me, sure, and I with him. But, I didn't think that was what sent Daniel upstairs so early, and not being his usual self. Usually,

he would have sank down on one of the couches and hung around to talk with them all, even if he and I had had words. Not that that

was very common. Because, it was not.

It was very uncommon. And, it made my stomach hurt that it was happening now.

"He didn't say anything?" Brian asked me, still obviously wondering what was going on with Daniel.

"Not really," I said.

"Maybe he's just tired," Hannah allowed. "That long drive could just now be catching up to him."

"Yeah. He'll be alright after a good night's rest," Adam said.

"I better get started on my homework," I said, picking up my backpack to sling it over my shoulder.

"Sit down here with all of us and do it," Hannah suggested. I could tell she really wanted me to do that, but I wanted to

be alone. I felt all unsettled, somehow.

"I've got a lot of work-" I said, not wanting to hurt her feelings.

"We'll be quiet," Hannah promised with a smile. "Won't we?" she asked, looking at Adam.

"We could be," Adam agreed.

"Well-" I said.

"You can go on up to your room if you want to," Adam said, quietly. I shot him a look, and I knew that he knew. How I was really feeling,

I mean.

I nodded, grateful, and gave Hannah a half-smile. "Maybe I'll come back down later," I told her.

Hannah nodded, and I knew she understood, too. Maybe not as much as Adam, but she knew I needed my space.

I went upstairs, to my bedroom, and changed to a pair of cut off shorts, and old t-shirt. After that, I just laid on my bed

for a few minutes, starting at the ceiling, instead of getting right to work. After I'd decompressed or whatever for a few minutes,

I settled into getting my Phycology finished. That wasn't too bad. I answered the questions on the Anatomy worksheet. That left

only Trigonometry. I did the first three problems, and then stood up to stretch, leaving my books and papers on my bed. I found

a pair of socks and put them on, and then pulled my boots on.

I went out, pulling my door closed. I looked down the hall towards Crane's bedroom, thinking about going to talk to

Daniel. I decided against it, though. Instead, I went down the back stairs. I could hear voices in the kitchen. Clare and Brian were

there, along with Hannah. Clare was sitting on Brian's lap at the table, holding a strawberry up to Brian's mouth, and then pulling it back out, teasing him.

Hannah was busy rooting thru the silverware drawer. I stood there for a couple of moments, then I spoke up.

"Bri, can I ride the four-wheeler up to the cabin?"

Brian stopped teasing with Clare to look at me. "Now?" he asked, seeming surprised.

I nodded. "Yeah. Just for a little while. I haven't seen Evan and Nancy much lately. I just want to say hi."

I could tell that Hannah didn't want me to. She stopped searching for whatever it was that she'd been looking for in the

drawer, and turned to listen.

"Not for long, Hannah," I preempted any protest she might make.

"They'll be here for supper tomorrow night," Hannah said, and I knew that was her suggestion that I wait.

"That's good," I said, but I kept my eyes on Brian. "Can I?"

"It's goin' on seven now," Brian pointed out.

"I won't stay long," I said. For the third time. I couldn't explain it all right at that moment. But, I wanted to be outside,

and I did feel like seeing Nancy and Evan.

"Homework done?" Brian asked me.

"Everything but Trig," I said honestly. "I'll get it done."

He looked considering, and I said, "Please, Bri," quietly.

Brian nodded. "Yeah. Okay. Be back before it gets dark. That means leave up there before it starts gettin' dark, alright?"

"Yes," I said. "Thanks."

I went out before Hannah could say anything more, though I knew she wouldn't tell me I couldn't go, or anything like that.

She wouldn't try to ride over Brian.

I went quickly to the barn, stopping long enough to rub Fat Clarence on his belly. Warrior followed me as I rode out

on the four-wheeler. I'd thought for a couple of moments that I wasn't going to be able to get it started, but I finally did.

I drove at full speed once I was out of sight of the house, letting the wind whip thru my hair. The part that wasn't covered by my

ball cap would be a mass of tangles, but I didn't care right then.

7