Staying Together

  “Yes,” whispered Flora.

  Ruby nodded her head in Min’s lap.

  “It’s been more than two years since they died,” Min went on, “but that doesn’t mean we miss them any less.”

  “I think about them every day,” said Flora.

  “Me, too,” Ruby managed to say.

  Min reached across Ruby for the shoe box. “Maybe this doesn’t belong in my desk,” she said finally. “Maybe it belongs down here where we can all look in it.”

  “Maybe we could put the things out where we can see them,” suggested Flora.

  “I don’t like them hidden,” added Ruby.

  “Fair enough,” said Min. She glanced at her watch. “And now I believe it’s bedtime. Past bedtime. Ruby, we’ll finish our talk tomorrow.”

  Exhausted, Ruby kissed Min good night and climbed the stairs to her room.

  Margaret Malone sat at the desk in her bedroom and stared at the wall. On the wall was a bulletin board and pinned to it were photos and greeting cards and a button that said CHICKEN LITTLE WAS RIGHT and a string of plastic beads and the letter telling her that she’d been accepted at Smith College. But Margaret didn’t see any of those things. Her mind was on the conversation she’d had with her sister that morning.

  While she and Lydia and their father had grabbed breakfast — her father had eaten his toast standing over the sink, and Margaret had entered the kitchen just as Lydia was getting ready to leave the house — Margaret had said, “I’m almost ready for the party. I even found confetti that looks like graduation caps.”

  “Oh, I meant to tell you,” Lydia had replied, “I can’t come to the party.”

  “What? Why? I told you the date two weeks ago.”

  “I know, but I forgot it, and then I accepted a sitting job and I don’t want to tell the people I can’t come after all. I’ve never sat for them before. They’ll think I’m unreliable if I back out now.”

  It had been on the tip of Margaret’s tongue to say, “So you’d rather disappoint your sister by skipping her one and only high school graduation party?” Instead, she’d said nothing as Lydia had breezed out of the house.

  “Do you want me to talk to her?” Dr. Malone had asked.

  Margaret had shaken her head. Now, at the end of the day, she was sitting at her desk, staring into space. She was supposed to be studying for final exams. Everyone kept asking her why she cared about her senior finals since she’d already been accepted at one of the top colleges in the country. But Margaret cared a lot. She didn’t want to spoil her record. She also knew that this was just one of the many things that set her apart from Lydia — who didn’t even care about her sophomore year finals and probably also didn’t care whether she got into any college whatsoever.

  Margaret’s father had offered to talk to Lydia about the party, but Margaret knew she had to do that herself. So the moment she heard the front door open and close she went downstairs.

  “Hey,” she said to her sister.

  “Hey.”

  “Guess what. I found this party site where you can order decorations and stuff for any kind of party.”

  “Cool,” said Lydia, who actually sounded vaguely interested.

  “So I ordered plastic cups with diplomas on them, and napkins with my name and class year on them, and favors that — well, I don’t want to spoil the surprise, since you’ll get one, too. And I’m still within the budget Dad gave me.”

  “That’s great, Margaret. Really.”

  “Lydia, won’t you come? Please?”

  “I told you I can’t. This job is important. I’m hoping to sit for these people all summer. I need the money.”

  “But it’s my graduation. And I’ll be leaving for Smith in four months. Less than four months.”

  Lydia sighed. “Well, maybe I can do both. I’ll come to the end of your party after I get home from sitting.”

  Margaret returned to her room. She was not going to let Lydia ruin the party. Her father had said she could plan a party for her friends, he had generously offered to pay for it, and Margaret planned to have a happy evening whether her sister was there or not.

  The nice thing about working at Heaven, Margaret thought two days later as she rang up a customer and handed him his bag, was that it was so straightforward. She didn’t have to think much about the time she spent there. She stocked the displays and stamped HEAVEN on the cardboard jewelry boxes and made change and that was about it. There were few decisions to be made, no feelings got hurt, and rarely was anyone disappointed by anything. She simply showed up, did as she was told, and left. And got paid for it. It was a pleasant, if dull, break from finals and sisters and major life decisions. Also, she enjoyed talking to the customers.

  “Hi, Margaret!” called Flora one hot afternoon when, even though it was only May, people were already seeking air-conditioning. Flora closed the door quickly behind her and sagged against the checkout counter. “Min said it’s supposed to be ninety degrees tomorrow. Actually, she said, ‘Lawsy, it’s going to be ninety tomorrow.’”

  Margaret laughed. “Can I help you with anything?”

  “I’m looking for a present for my friend Annika. You know, my old friend, the one who visited last summer?” Margaret nodded. “Except that I really don’t know what to get her.”

  “What kind of jewelry does she wear?”

  “I’m not sure.”

  “Does she have pierced ears?”

  “She said she was going to get them pierced, but I don’t know if she did.”

  “Are you sure you should be shopping for her in a jewelry store?”

  Now Flora laughed. “No.” Then she added, “Oh, we got the invitation to your party! Thank you. We’re all coming.”

  “That’s great!”

  “I’ve never been to a graduation party before. Who else will be there?”

  “Well, apart from my dad, let’s see —”

  “Lydia’s coming, isn’t she?”

  Margaret shook her head. “She can’t. She’s going to be busy.” Then she added, “You’re lucky. You and Ruby are so close. Lydia and I used to be close, too, but after Mom died we sort of drifted apart. I thought the opposite would happen. I guess … I don’t know. Anyway, like I said, you’re lucky. You and Ruby are the closest sisters I’ve ever known. Even after everything that’s happened to you. Or maybe because of it … Flora? Are you okay?”

  Flora had stepped away from the counter. Margaret saw a bright pink blush creep across her face. “Yeah,” Flora said and then paused. “You and Lydia really used to be close?”

  “As close as you and Ruby.”

  “Wow.”

  “I always thought one day things would be the same again, that we’d just drift on back together. But that hasn’t happened.”

  “Maybe it will,” said Flora in a small voice. “It still might. You never know.”

  “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “Yup. Just hot. So who else is coming to the party?”

  “Almost everyone at the Row Houses and six of my friends.”

  “But not Lydia?”

  “No. Well, she might come for a few minutes at the end. The truth is, she could come to the party, but I don’t think she wants to.”

  Flora nodded. “I’d better go,” she said. “See you later. Thank you again for the invitation.”

  Margaret watched Flora leave Heaven and wondered what was wrong.

  Olivia sat on her front stoop and watched the world of Aiken Avenue as it came to life on the first day of Memorial Day weekend. She called good morning to Mr. Pennington as he hurried down his front walk, being gently pulled along by an exuberant Variety. She waved to her neighbors across the way, who clearly planned to spend the day working in their flower beds. She watched the Fongs leave for Main Street, all of them apparently off to work together, Mr. Fong pushing Grace in her stroller, and Mrs. Fong walking their two corgis, who, catching sight of Variety, strained at their leashes and barked before touching noses
with him.

  Olivia yawned. She felt pleased and lazy and excited all at the same time. The day was bright and warm, but not nearly as hot as it had been. When Olivia had come downstairs that morning, her mother had announced, “Off goes the air-conditioning. We’ll open all the windows!” Now, as Olivia sat outside, her parents’ murmuring voices drifted to her through the living room window. Above her, two barn swallows chattered to each other in the maple tree. Olivia breathed deeply and caught the scents of pine and lavender and newly turned earth and sun-warmed flagstones. It was a perfect spring day.

  On top of that, only two and a half more weeks of school were left, and the final few days would be devoted to assemblies and a field trip and cleaning out lockers. So really, Olivia thought, it’s like nine days are left. Several of them would consist of tests and the presentation of projects, but Olivia chose not to think of those things at that particular moment. The long weekend stretched ahead of her and she planned to enjoy it. Maybe she would help out at Sincerely Yours later, but only if she felt like it. She knew she wouldn’t actually be needed. And this brought to mind another happy thought: Her parents had recently told her that despite the difficult year, the store seemed to be holding its own. Very few changes had been made after all, and the summer’s tourist business, which officially began that very day, would only improve things.

  Olivia yawned and stretched and glanced up as Min opened her front door and leaned outside to bring in the newspaper. “Hi!” Olivia called, but her mood darkened slightly. The only bad things in her life at the moment were right next door: Flora and Ruby, who were still mad at each other.

  “Or at least Flora is still mad at Ruby,” Olivia had said to Nikki the previous day as they left school together.

  “The fight was about an owl!” Nikki had exclaimed. “A glass owl. I don’t get it.”

  “I don’t think we know the whole story.”

  “We know that Ruby did something wrong —”

  “According to Flora,” Olivia had interrupted.

  “Well, anyway, Flora said Ruby told Min what she’d done, so now everything is out in the open.”

  “But their fight doesn’t seem to be over.”

  “Things are better, though, don’t you think?” Nikki had asked tentatively. “They seem a little better.”

  “But not the same as before.”

  “No, not the same as before.”

  Now, replaying this conversation in her mind, Olivia jumped to her feet. With great determination she marched inside, found the phone, and brought it into her room. She dialed Nikki’s number. “Okay,” she said the moment she heard her friend’s voice, “we have to do something about Flora and Ruby. And this time we really have to do something, not just talk about it.”

  “Good morning to you, too,” replied Nikki.

  Olivia laughed. “Sorry. Good morning. It’s just that I was thinking about Flora and Ruby, and, I don’t know, the long weekend is here, and school’s almost over, and everything should be great. But it’s like there’s this wall between us, and Flora and Ruby. And we didn’t put it there.”

  Nikki sighed. “I know what you mean.”

  “So I had an idea: Maybe it’s time to carry out our plan.”

  “What plan?”

  “The one we came up with when we were talking about going on a Saturday adventure.”

  “The plan we thought could blow up in our faces?”

  “Well, yeah. Only now I don’t think that will happen. Things are different. Flora and Ruby have started to work out their problem.” Olivia paused. “Look. What’s the worst that can happen?”

  “What we said before: Flora and Ruby will wind up mad at us for interfering.”

  “But then they’d be mad at each other and mad at us. Do you really think that’s what they want?”

  “No.”

  “Besides, by now it feels like the fight has been going on forever. At this point I really don’t think we have anything to lose.”

  “I’m not sure I agree with you,” said Nikki cautiously. “But I don’t think that not interfering has gotten us anywhere, either.”

  “Excellent! So let’s go back to our original plan.”

  “Pizza?”

  “Well, no, not pizza. But inviting them to something — and not telling Flora that Ruby is invited and vice versa. And we have to come up with something really special, something they’ll both definitely want to do.”

  “The mall?” suggested Nikki.

  “Nah. Too hard to talk there. And I think we’ll need to talk.”

  “Not pizza?”

  “It has to be better than that.”

  There was a long pause, and finally Nikki said, “I have an idea. What if we had a sleepover at my house tonight? We’ve never done that before, and … Ooh, I know. We could sleep outside! I’ll have to ask my mom about this, but I’m sure she’ll say it’s okay.”

  “A campout in your yard? Wow, that would be fun,” said Olivia slowly.

  “It’s different.”

  “Flora and Ruby would both really want to come.”

  “We’d have a chance to talk.”

  Finally, Olivia exclaimed, “It’s brilliant!”

  “Now we just have to make it work. How are we going to get Flora and Ruby — separately — to my house?”

  “Let me think for a sec.” Olivia frowned and turned her face toward the ceiling. “Okay. How about if you call Ruby and invite her — after you check with your mother, of course. Tell Ruby you’re only inviting her. No one else. Then I’ll call Flora and tell her we’re having an end-of-seventh-grade sleepover, just the three of us. That way she won’t be suspicious when I don’t mention Ruby.”

  “That’s good,” said Nikki. “But how are Flora and Ruby going to get here? Min can’t drive them together or they’ll figure out what’s going on.”

  “Well, I’ll tell Flora that my dad can drive both of us. I’m pretty sure he’ll be able to.”

  “Great. And I’ll ask Ruby if Min can bring her over. My mom won’t be able to pick her up. She has to work today.”

  “Oh, you know what? We’re going to have to tell Min what we’re doing. She’ll have to be in on the plan. That’s okay, though. I have a feeling she’ll like it.”

  “Now we just have to hope that Flora doesn’t mention the sleepover to Ruby, and Ruby doesn’t mention it to Flora.”

  “That won’t happen. That’s the only good thing about their fight.”

  By lunchtime, all the plans were in place. Nikki had phoned her mother at Three Oaks and gotten permission to host her very first sleepover, and a campout at that. Nervous and excited, she had called Olivia back with the news. “Mom said yes! Oh, this is going to be so much fun. You guys have never slept over before.”

  “I’ve never slept outside before,” Olivia had said.

  “Mom’s going to stop by the store on the way home and get hot dogs and stuff. We can cook out, too. Should I call Ruby now?”

  “Definitely.”

  So Nikki had invited Ruby to the sleepover, and fifteen minutes later, Olivia had invited Flora. Driving arrangements were made, and by five-thirty that afternoon, Olivia and Flora were on their way to the Shermans’. Twice Flora glanced at Olivia and said, “Are you all right? You look kind of funny.”

  “Just excited, I guess. I’ve never been to an outdoor sleepover.”

  Olivia then consulted her watch four times before her father pulled into the Shermans’ driveway. If all went according to plan, Ruby and Min would arrive in half an hour.

  Mr. Walter had barely applied the brakes when Olivia flung her door open and shot out of the car. Nikki flew across her yard. “You’re here!” she cried breathlessly.

  Flora watched her friends and frowned. “You guys, we just saw each other yesterday.”

  “I know, but this is going to be so much fun!” shrieked Olivia.

  “Mom bought stuff for s’mores!” added Nikki at top volume. Then, catching the look on Flora’
s face, she added graciously, “Come on inside. Put your sleeping bags and things downstairs. We’ll set everything up outside later.”

  The next half hour was spent trying to calm down both Mae and Paw-Paw, who seemed as excited as Nikki and Olivia.

  “Can I sleep outside, too?” Mae wanted to know.

  Mrs. Sherman was in the middle of explaining why she could not, when Paw-Paw let out one loud bark, and Mae left her mother, ran to the front door, and cried, “Someone else is here!”

  Olivia reached for Nikki’s hand and gripped it. She tightened her grasp when Mae said, “Hey, it’s Ruby! I didn’t know she was coming, too.”

  “Neither did I,” said Flora, narrowing her eyes at Nikki and Olivia.

  “You stay here,” Nikki commanded Flora, and ran outside. A minute later, she returned with Ruby. Min’s car was disappearing down the lane.

  The sisters stood in the Shermans’ kitchen and glared at each other.

  “Now, before you say anything,” said Olivia, “just listen to Nikki and me, okay?” No one said a word, so Olivia continued. “You …” (she gave her full attention to Flora and Ruby) “have to make up. Nikki and I have been talking about this, and we hate seeing you so mad at each other. We all used to be friends, and now it feels like we’re coming apart. I miss what we used to be. Nikki does, too. So would you please make up?”

  “Okay,” said Flora instantly.

  “What?” said Olivia and Nikki.

  “Okay. I’m sorry. Ruby, I don’t want to keep fighting. Do you?”

  Ruby shook her head.

  “Is the fight over, then?” asked Olivia.

  “Yeah,” said Ruby.

  “Wow,” said Nikki. “That was easy.”

  “Would you guys please stop crying?” begged Nikki.

  “Only Flora and Ruby are crying,” pointed out Mae, who was sitting at the kitchen table, openly staring at the older girls. “Is this what you do at sleepovers?”