Green Gravy (2 page)

It was after school.

Her mother waited at the front door. “How was your day?”

“I'm Student of the Week!” Carly exclaimed. “I have to tell the class all about me. About my life.”

She showed the paper with directions from Miss Hartman.

Mother smiled a happy face. “Would you like to show the class some baby pictures?”

“Yes!” Carly said. “And what else?”

“How about a picture of Snow White, our dog?” said Mother.

“Good idea!” Carly was excited. “Can I
take Quacker, my duck, to school?”

Her mother laughed. “A duck at school? I don't know about that.”

“But she's my pet,” Carly said. “She's part of the family.”

Carly went to look outside. The ducks, Quacker and Jack, were in their pen. They waddled through the dirt. They pecked at their feed.

“Well . . . maybe you're right,” she said. “Maybe it's not a good idea for a duck to go to school.”

Her mother studied the teacher's idea list. “What about your favorite foods?” she said.

“Sweets,” said Carly. “I love sweets.”

“Then we'll bake cookies for everyone,” her mother said. She was checking off the list. “Can we fit everything into a shoe box?” she asked.

“We'll try,” said Carly. “But not my duck.”

Her mother agreed. “Definitely not.”

“I know! I'll draw a picture of Quacker,” Carly suggested. “We have art class tomorrow.”

Her mother nodded. “I like that idea. Good thinking.”

Carly leaned over her mother's shoulder. She looked at the list. “Anything else?”

“It would be nice to show pictures of your whole family,” her mother said.

Carly thought about that. “OK with me,” she said. “But none of Jimmy.”

Her mother had a strange look. “Why not? He's your brother.”

“But he's in my class,” Carly said. “Everyone knows what Jimmy looks like.”

He looks like a sour pie
, she thought.
Because that's what he is!

“Why don't you think about it,” her mother said.

“I'll think,” Carly said. But she wasn't so sure.

THREE

At supper, Jimmy poked at his food.

Carly watched.

“Sit up and eat, son,” their father said.

“No like peas,” Jimmy said. He pushed his plate away.

Carly shook her head. “He's still upset.”

Mother perked up her ears. “Why is that?”

“Because of me,” Carly said.

Abby, her big sister, frowned. “What did
you
do to him?”

Carly jerked her head and glared at
Abby. “I didn't do anything. He's mad because I got picked for Student of the Week.”

“Good going for Carly!” Shawn said. He was Jimmy's Korean brother. His big brother.

Now Shawn was glaring at Jimmy. “Not good being mad at little sister,” Shawn said. He began to talk in Korean.

Jimmy covered his ears with his hands. “Carly make class wear green,” he whined. “She make us eat yucko green food.”

Abby and Shawn were laughing.

So was their mother, but not very long.

Their father spoke up. “Wearing green might be fun.”

“And just think of all the cool
green
foods there are,” said Abby.

“Yeah, like celery,” said Carly.

“And pears,” Shawn said.

“Yucko,” Jimmy said. His face was fussy.

“Spinach has a nice green color,” said their father. He was smiling now.

“So does broccoli,” said Mother.

“Lettuce is green,” said Carly.

“Yuck, yuck . . . yucko,” chanted Jimmy.

Their father frowned. “I want you to practice eating green foods. Starting right now, with your peas.”

Jimmy shot eye darts at Carly. He muttered something in Korean.

Then he picked up his spoon. One by one, he shot the peas across the table. Right at Carly!

Mother's eyebrows popped up.

Father scooted his chair back. “Time out,” he told Jimmy. “Let's have a talk in your bedroom.”

Jimmy's face got all purple and red. Both colors at once. He said, “Excuse, please,” and left the table.

“Whew! He's in big trouble,” Carly whispered.

Her mother put a finger to her lips. “Jimmy must learn to behave,” she explained.

“He's a sour pie,” Carly said.

“Calling names won't help,” Abby said.

Their mother agreed. “Let's be kind.”

Carly nodded her head. Mother was always saying words like that. Good-citizen words.

“It's not easy to be nice all the time,” said Carly.

“I understand,” said Mother. “But it's good to keep trying.”

Carly blinked her eyes. “You should've seen Jimmy pouting at school.”

Mother patted her long curls.

“I wish Daddy would come to school on St. Patrick's Day,” Carly muttered.

“What for?” Abby asked.

“To make Jimmy wear green,” said Carly. “And so he'll eat a green lunch.”

“Who cares about that?” Abby said.

“I care,” said Carly. “It's
my
special day!”

“You should hear yourself,” said Abby. “If Jimmy's a sour pie, what's that make you?”

“A sour SOMEBODY,” answered Carly. She sat up straight. She wiped her mouth with a napkin.

“Girls, girls,” their mother said.

Abby got up from the table and went to the sink.

Carly wondered what her sister was thinking. She probably thought Miss Hartman should change her mind. Maybe someone else should be Student of the Week. Someone not so sour!

“Am I a sweet girl?” Carly asked her mother.

“Most of the time,” Mother replied.

Abby returned to the table. “Nobody's perfect,” she said.

“You think
you
are,” Carly whispered.

Abby frowned. “That's not true!”

“Oh, really?” Carly felt a fuss coming.

So did their mother. “All right, you two. Clean up the kitchen.” She went to the living room.

Carly carried two dishes to the sink. She spied the water spray. She thought about spraying Abby.

When Abby wasn't looking, she picked up the sprayer.

She aimed.

“Better not,” Shawn warned.

But Carly didn't listen.

Swoosh!

Water splashed on the back of Abby's head.

“Hey!” Abby shouted.

Carly dropped the sprayer and ran to her bedroom.

She closed the door and pushed against it. “I'm a sour Somebody,” she whispered to herself.

She waited for Abby to pound on the door.

No sound came.

She counted to twenty-five.

Still nothing.

But soon her mother's voice came through the door. “I need your help in the kitchen, please.”

Slowly, Carly opened the door.

There stood her mother. And drippy Abby.

“Somebody needs to say ‘sorry,'” her mother said. “Then you may wipe up the kitchen floor.”

Carly did a gulp.

She was NOT a good citizen. Not one bit.

FOUR

It was Tuesday afternoon.

Art class!

Carly loved art.

She liked to daydream before she made a picture.

Daydreaming was like night dreaming. Except not quite. It happened when you were awake. It was the best kind of dreaming. Because you could plan it.

Well, sorta.

Carly stared out the art room window. Staring was a big part of daydreaming.

That's when she got an idea.

It was a GREEN idea. Another one!

Tomorrow was her special day. It was also St. Patrick's Day.

“I'll make a Pinch Rule,” she whispered.

Dee Dee tapped her on the arm. “Who are you talking to?”

“Myself.”

“How come?” asked Dee Dee.

“I'll tell you at recess.”

“Tell me now,” Dee Dee insisted.

“OK,” Carly said. She whispered in Dee Dee's ear.

“What?” Dee Dee asked. “I didn't hear you.”

The art teacher was coming. Time to get to work.

“Tell ya later,” said Carly.

She picked up her sketch pencil. She made a picture of Quacker, one of her pet ducks.

Then Carly stopped drawing and looked at the sketch.

Sker-runch!
She wadded up the paper.

She tried again. Her duck looked like a too-fat bowling pin.

Ducks are too hard
, she decided.

So she daydreamed. And stared a lot.

She thought about tomorrow. She thought about the Pinch Rule.

Sour-Pie Jimmy was sitting across the room.

She stared at him, too.

He didn't want to wear green tomorrow. He'd said so last night. He was going to spoil everything!

Now he was drawing something. He was working very hard.

When Jimmy looked up, she caught his eye.

Carly made a mad face. Capital M!

But Jimmy grinned back.

He held up his drawing. It was a clover leaf. A RED one.

Whoever heard of that?

Carly knew he was making fun of her green-day idea.

You'll be sorry,
she thought.

The Pinch Rule was going to be great.

By afternoon recess, everyone would know about it.

Especially Sour-Pie Jimmy.

Boy, was he gonna get it tomorrow!