In Trouble by Ellen Levine Read Free Book Online

could hear the coffeepot rattling as she scooped tablespoons of grounds into the basket. She came back and sat in a chair by the table. She began to wipe the tablecloth, as if crumbs, invisible to the naked eye, were lurking.
    “I heard you and Aunt Sheila talking about Mrs.
    Hanson helping somebody, so I thought—”
    “Jamie, you’re a young woman now,” she said. “I want you to talk to me when you . . .”
    I didn’t know where to look.
    “. . . become intimate with a boy.”
    I must have turned scarlet, because Mom said, “I’m not rushing you, but when the time comes, I’ll make an appointment with the doctor.”
    “I don’t need a doctor. There’s nothing wrong with me.”
    “Sweetheart, this is serious. You don’t want . . .” she gestured with her hand, “what happened to your friend.” I think I’ll become a nun . Scruffy left, and I picked up my books, but Mom wasn’t finished.
    “Has your friend talked to her parents?” I pictured Mrs. Reilly wringing her hands and Mr.
    Reilly charging around their house, waving his newspaper, hollering at Elaine and Mrs. Reilly and the furniture.
    “No way that would work.”
    And no way could I tell her it’s Elaine. A promise is a promise.
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    “This girl’s really scared, and I thought maybe you’d know somebody who could help. She says her father will kill her and her mother’s counting Kotex.” I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Mrs. Reilly locked in the bathroom with Elaine, waving a Kotex box, and Mr. Reilly outside, pounding on the door. Then I got angry at Mom because I couldn’t tell her. About anything.
    “You wouldn’t understand,” I said. “Not everyone wants to talk to their mother.”
    He lifted my sweater and unhooked my bra . . .
    Run!
    Grandma came out of her bedroom, took one look at me and glanced quickly at Mom. “What’s wrong?”
    “Later,” Mom said.
    Grandma poked at hairpins on both sides of her bun.
    She’s lived with us my whole life, and I can read her pokes.
    The number of times equals how serious she thinks something is. Right now, only three.
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    12.
    “Later” meant Mom, Grandma, Dad, and who knows, maybe Uncle Maury, and why not Aunt Sheila and Uncle George—for Pete’s sake. Pretty soon the whole world would be talking about “Jamie’s friend who got in trouble.”
    I opened my trig book, but I couldn’t get into the world of sine and cosine. Elaine, the hypotenuse; me, one arm; Mom, the other. A heck of a messy triangle. Terrible pun. I closed the book.
    I started to pace in the small space between the bureau, the bed, and desk. On and off the rug, in front of the desk, around the chair.
    “Hey, didn’t you hear me?” Stevie stood in the doorway, his hands on his hips.
    “What are you talking about?”
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    “I’ve been yelling for the last five minutes. Would you keep it down! You’re scraping the floor real loud,” he said as if talking to a moron.
    I looked down at my shoes.
    “The taps, Jamie, the taps. Come on, give me a break.
    I got a test tomorrow.”
    “Sorry,” I said. But I guess he didn’t believe me, because he clapped his hands under my nose. It was like an alarm going off in your face. “Hey, cut it out!” I swatted at him, but he darted away.
    I grabbed my turtle bank and spilled the coins on the bed. When I pushed the quarters, dimes, and nickels into the center of the quilt, I decided it was probably enough.
    There was no way I’d ask Stevie to borrow money.
    I tiptoed down the hall, past the bathroom, past the living room. Mom was in the kitchen with Grandma, who was heating water for tea. They were talking in low voices.
    I had no idea what Grandma would say. What would they all say? Mom and Aunt Sheila at least knew someone who could help. But would they want to help if they didn’t know the girl?
    The only one I could count on was Lois. I opened the front door. “See you later,” and I ran for the staircase next to the elevator before anyone could