Chapter 4

They hadn't made it that far down the street before they heard someone calling Mark's name. He turned around and groaned as a girl with bushy brown hair and glasses walked up to them.

"Hi Marky!" she said happily.

Mark smiled weakly. "Hi Nannette." he replied. The two of them had gone out one time to please her father, the town rabbi, and now she was practically stalking him.

Maureen glared at her. "Himmelfarb will you get lost?" she said meanly. "We were on our way somewhere."

"Ooh are they going to your house Marky?" Nannette asked. "I'll come too."

"Uh, no. We're going to Maureen's house and her father doesn't let her have guests except for me and Roger. And Antonia here lives next door. So I guess I'll see you latter Nannette." Mark partially lied.

Nannette pouted. "Okay. See you Marky." She kissed him on the cheek and turned to walk in the opposite direction.

"Aww Marky you should have let her come with us." Roger teased. "Then you two could kiss and Maureen and I could have had a laugh."

Mark reddened. "Why don't we go to your house and let your mother have you? Then we could all have a laugh." he snapped.

"Simmer boys." Maureen interjected. She turned to Antonia who was looking very confused. "That was Mark's girlfriend Nannette Himmelfarb." she explained.

"She is not my girlfriend Maureen." Mark said through gritted teeth. "I went out with her one time. And that was only because her father made us. I really can't stand her."

"Oh she wasn't that bad Mark." Antonia said as they walked up Maureen's driveway. "She seemed nice enough. She just looked very-" she broke off looking for the right word.

"Jewish." Mark supplied for her. "She looks very Jewish. None of the Jewish people I know are as Jewish as the Himmefarbs."

"Mark hates being Jewish." Roger stage whispered to Antonia.

"I do not hate being Jewish Roger!" Mark practically yelled. "Let my mother hear you say something like that and see how many times you get invited over."

"Sorry." Roger apologized. He turned his attention to Maureen, as she unlocked her front door and led them inside. "Your brother plays the keyboards right?" Maureen nodded. "Do you think he would join my band?"

"Oh you have a band?" Antonia asked.

"No." the other three replied simultaneously.

"I was just asking because I play the drums and I've been hoping for a chance to play in a band again." Mark, Roger, and Maureen all stared at her. "What?" she asked innocently. "I was in a band back in Manhattan. We were pretty good too."

"That's perfect!" Roger exclaimed. "Ant can play the drums, Peyton can play the keyboards, I'll play guitar and my best female friend can sing lead." He put on his puppy face and looked at Maureen. "You will sing lead right?"

"Why should I?" she asked coolly.

"Because you love me and you want me to be happy." Roger replied. Just then Maureen's older brother Peyton walked in from the basement where he slept now. He was a year older than his sister and was supposed to be in college but he was taking a year off. Roger batted his eyes at Maureen and nodded in her brother's direction. "Please?" he mouthed.

Maureen rolled her eyes and went into the kitchen after Peyton. "Hey bro." she said when he looked at her.

"Hi Mo. What's going on?" he replied warily. He was only to aware that his sister was a little bit crazy and went to great lengths to get what she wanted. "I see the guys are over that means Dad must be working late tonight."

"Mom too." Maureen told him. "So Roger's thinking of starting a band and he wants you to play keyboards." Peyton raised an eyebrow and frowned at his sister. He opened his mouth to say something but she cut him off. "Please do it. He'll never leave me alone if you don't. I'm going to sing lead and Antonia, the new girl from next door, will play drums. Please say yes. For me?"

Her brother rolled his eyes. "I'll do it. But only because I'm tired of sitting around the house all day."

Maureen bounced over and hugged him. "You could always go to college you know." she told him as she got ready to go back into the living room. "That would cure your boredom."

"Yeah but then I would be proving mom and dad right. You can't be the only one who sticks to her morals around here." he teased her back.

Maureen walked back out and smiled at Roger. "Peyton says he'll do it." she said. "And I guess I will too." She had always had a soft spot for Roger ever since they had first met back in sixth grade. Roger wrapped her in a tight hug.

Mark chuckled. "You know Roger, you are always acting like you're underprivileged or something. But if you're underprivileged then I must be homeless."