Katy's Homecoming (14 page)

His grin returned. “No problem. I know we, uh, kinda had a fight the last time we talked.” Red filled his freckled face. “I got madder than I prob’ly should’ve. Didn’t like it much that you wouldn’t go to the singing with me.”

That was obvious.

“Still, my mom says I should appreciate your honesty. So …” His voice trailed off.

Katy waited to see if he would apologize for his awful behavior that day, but he didn’t. She didn’t say anything either. She didn’t have anything to say. She’d kept herself quiet a lot instead of talking today. A hysterical giggle built in her throat at the thought. She coughed a little bit to hold it at bay.

Caleb sighed. “Well, the milking’s done. Guess I should go on home.” He looked at her expectantly.

What was he waiting for? She said,“See you later then.”

Caleb nodded, his face sad. He moved toward the barn doors, his head low and his hands pushed into his trouser pockets. Just before he reached the doors, Katy experienced the sudden urge to call him back to ask if he wanted to stay to eat some supper with her.
I must be really lonely if I want to spend time with Caleb Penner!
She pinched her lips tightly and held the invitation inside.

Katy went into the house, washed up at the kitchen sink, then lifted the tin foil on the casserole dish resting on the corner of the counter. Chunks of chicken, peas, carrots, and rice swam in a creamy sauce. The casserole smelled wonderful, and Katy’s stomach growled. Then she looked at the empty table, and her hunger fled. She didn’t want to sit there alone and eat. She’d wait for Dad and Mrs. Graber.

She glanced out the window. Dusk had fallen, and the sky looked pale gray. Gloomy. It matched her mood. The hour felt even later than six thirty. When would they return? She had no way of knowing how long they would visit with Deacon Pauls, but it would be best to have the casserole hot and ready when they returned. She turned the oven dial to 300 degrees — high enough to warm the casserole but not so hot it would scorch — and slipped the dish inside. Then she went upstairs to change out of her dress. Even though she’d put on coveralls, her clothes still smelled like the barn.

Her school dress lay at the foot of her bed, and she quickly swapped dresses. Her nose wrinkling in distaste,
she scooped up the work dress from the floor and scurried to the closet. When she opened her closet to drop the dirty dress in her clothes basket, she glimpsed the green dress Cora had left for her. She paused, skimming her fingers along the sleek waistband then down the skirt.
Such a beautiful dress.
Right beside it, on a wooden hanger, hung the dress Mrs. Graber had sewn for Katy to wear in the wedding. Katy pulled both dresses from the closet and held them side by side.

The sateen fabric of the orchid wedding dress gave off a slight shimmer; the sequins on the emerald green dress flashed little dots of light. The caped bodice of the orchid dress ensured Katy would be modestly attired; the V-neck on the green dress ensured people would see more of Katy’s throat and chest than she’d ever exposed before. The skirt of the orchid dress fell to Katy’s mid-calf; the green one reached that length in the back, but the higher front meant Katy’s knees would show.

The seniors picked me so I could embarrass Michael.
The thought stung as much now as it had when Jewel told her about the prank. Katy put the orchid wedding dress back on the clothes rod and carried the green dress to her mirror. She held it to her front.
But the joke would be on them if I showed up in Cora’s emerald dress with my hair all done pretty and makeup on my face. And Bryce would be so surprised.
A smile slowly climbed her cheeks.

“Katy-girl?” Dad’s voice called from the bottom of the stairs.

Katy tossed the dress aside and dashed to the landing. “Yes, Dad?”

“Come on down and set the table,” he said. “It’s late.”

With a sigh, Katy tromped down the stairs. Couldn’t he at least thank her for taking over the milking before he started giving out orders? To her surprise, Mrs. Graber was nowhere in sight. “Where’d Mrs. — Rosemary go?”

Dad rummaged in the refrigerator, pulling out butter, bottled dressing, and a bowl of lettuce salad. “She went back to town.”

Katy retrieved hot pads from the drawer and opened the oven door. A wonderful aroma met her nose. “She didn’t want to eat with us?”

“She’s eating with several of the ladies in town. They’re showering her with gifts this evening.”

Katy spun and gawked at Dad. “She’s having her wedding shower
tonight?”

“Yes.” Dad plopped the items on the table and looked at her. “What’s the matter?”

“I thought I’d be invited. I’m her attendant after all.” Katy’s voice came out louder and more angry than she’d intended.

Dad propped his hand on his hip and gave Katy a look that told her she’d better get herself under control. “With it being a school night, I told the ladies not to invite you. I knew you’d have homework, and if you went to the shower, you wouldn’t have time to finish it.”

I would’ve had time if I hadn’t had to milk the cows.
She was proud of herself for holding the argument inside.

“I thought it was best to have you stay home.” Dad softened his tone. “I’m sorry if you’re disappointed. I didn’t realize it meant that much to you.”

Katy blinked. She hadn’t realized it meant so much either, until she’d been left out. She thought about the
ladies all together, talking and laughing without her. Somehow the image got jumbled up with the senior class, talking and laughing about how they could use her to make Michael Evans look stupid. She had to blink more.

Dad put his hand on Katy’s shoulder. “I’m very sorry, Katy-girl. I should have talked to you about it and let you decide whether to go or not.”

Katy sniffed hard. She shrugged his hand away and reached into the oven for the casserole. “It doesn’t matter.” But it did matter. She dished up the casserole without speaking again, but her thoughts raged.
I might’ve gotten left out of the wedding shower, but I’m not going to get left out of being the attendant at school. They think they’re playing a prank on Michael. But just wait
—
the real prank is going to be played by
me
on
them.

Tuesday morning Katy watched for Shelby’s yellow Volkswagen. As soon as it pulled into the school parking lot, she trotted across the pavement and met Jewel as the girls stepped out of the car. “I need to talk to you.”

Jewel tossed her long hair out of her face. “And good morning to you too.”

Katy decided to ignore Jewel’s sarcasm.

“Hey, Katy, see you in class.” Shelby called over the top of the car. She lifted the handle on her rolling backpack and headed for the school. “‘Bye, Jewel. Talk to you later.”

“Yeah, right,” Jewel muttered. “As if we ever see her these days.” Then she offered a halfhearted grin. “‘Course, with her hangin’ with Jayden all the time, she isn’t checking up on me then running to her folks to rat me out.

It works pretty well, to tell ya the truth. Now —” Jewel headed for the school too. She didn’t have a backpack today. “Whaddid you want?”

Katy balanced her backpack on her spine and jogged alongside Jewel. “Are you still willing to do my hair for homecoming?”

Jewel came to a halt. She spun and stared at Katy. “You’re gonna do the whole dress-up thing?”

Katy nodded. “Yes. But I need you to help with my hair. I only know how to do a bun.” She gritted her teeth. A bun was for grandmas.
Nobody would be calling her a granny at homecoming!

An inappropriate exclamation flew from Jewel’s lips. She threw her head back and laughed. “This’ll be so sweet — wait’ll I tell Tony!”

Katy grabbed Jewel’s arm. “No! You can’t tell!”

Jewel glowered at Katy. “Why not?”

“Because …” Katy scrambled for a reason. She couldn’t tell Jewel she was trying to get even with the seniors. “I want it to be a surprise. Wouldn’t that be better?”

Jewel’s eyes gleamed. “Well, well, well, who would’ve thought little Miss Goody-Goody could be so conniving?” She laughed again. “Careful, girlfriend, I think I might be rubbing off on you.” The buzzer blared, and both girls hurried toward the school.

Katy said,“You won’t tell, right?”

Jewel flashed a grin. “Oh, don’t worry. You can trust me.” She dashed ahead.

Katy watched Jewel disappear into the crowd. She hoped Jewel would keep her secret. Katy slid onto her biology stool next to Shelby and opened her book. She heard a
sniff, and she looked at Shelby. Shelby’s eyes were red, and her chin quivered. Katy touched Shelby’s arm and whispered,“What’s wrong?”

Shelby shook her head, gesturing to the front of the room where their teacher stepped up to begin his lecture. Katy had a hard time concentrating, knowing Shelby was upset about something. When class was over, she stayed close to Shelby as they moved through the hall to their next class. She asked again,“What’s wrong?”

Tears welled in Shelby’s eyes. Katy had never seen her friend so distraught. Shelby whispered,“Jayden … He —” She gulped twice. “He broke up with me this morning.”

Katy’s jaw dropped. “He did? But why?”

Shelby swished the tears away with her fingertips. “He said he isn’t ready to date one girl exclusively. But that’s just an excuse.”

“How do you know?”

Pink streaked Shelby’s face. “Because last night he came over and we were watching a movie … He came on to me—you know, kissing and stuff. And I said I didn’t want to.” The girls reached the history classroom, but they paused outside the door. Shelby drew in a deep breath. “I know I shouldn’t be sad about breaking up with someone who only wanted to see what he could get from me. I mean, honestly, why should I bend my morals to do something I really don’t want to do just to please some guy? Girls who do that only end up regretting it. But I really liked Jayden. It hurts that I wasn’t worth more than that to him.”

Katy had no idea what to say to comfort Shelby. So Katy gave her friend’s arm a squeeze that she hoped would communicate her sympathy.

Shelby offered a wobbly smile. “Oh, I’ll be all right.” She sighed. “I guess this means I’m not going to the homecoming dance, though.” Shelby headed through the classroom doorway. Katy followed. Shelby said over her shoulder,“But you can still go — Bryce will bring you to my house afterward. And I hope you and Bryce will have lots of fun. I’ll stay up Friday night so you can tell me all about it when you get back to my house.”

Katy considered telling Shelby she probably wouldn’t be going with Bryce. Although he hadn’t come right out and said he didn’t want to take her after all, his behavior had done a good job of letting her know. It might make Shelby feel better to know Katy wasn’t going either. Katy opened her mouth to share her own hurt, but Shelby interrupted.

“I’m really glad you’re going, Katy. I hope you’ll have a great time. I know Mennonites don’t usually dance, and I hope it won’t get you in trouble with your church or anything, but still …” She sighed again, leaning on the desk and resting her chin in her hand. “At least I can be happy for you.” A sad grin curved her lips. “You’re kind of living a Cinderella story, you know? Getting to go to the ball with the handsome prince and all.”

Katy swallowed the words she’d planned to say. Why make Shelby feel even worse? She glanced around, searching for Bryce. She found him on the back row in the corner — as far from her as he could possibly get. But to her surprise, he was looking right at her. And this time, when she met his eyes, he didn’t turn away. He just looked at her, his face serious. Almost sad. Could he have possibly overheard what Shelby said?

The teacher said,“Miss Lambright?”

Katy spun to face the front. “Yes, Mr. Neelly?”

He waved a piece of note paper. “I’ve been instructed to send you to the gymnasium.”

Katy frowned, confused.

Mr. Neelly raised his eyebrows. “Practice for homecoming — they need all of the royalty.”

“Oh!” Katy jumped up and reached for her backpack.

“You can leave your things here. You’ll be back before the bell rings,” Mr. Neelly said.

A couple of kids snickered. Katy didn’t even glance at them. But she couldn’t help sneaking another quick look at Bryce. His eyes seemed to follow her out the door. Her heart pounding, she hurried toward the gym. She reached the big double doors at the same time as two older boys. Katy recognized one of them, Tony Adkins. She skidded to a stop, wanting them to go in ahead of her, but to her embarrassment, Tony swung one door open.

He winked and gestured for her to go in. “There ya go, cutie.”

Katy ducked her head and scurried through the doorway. The two boys laughed. Katy considered turning around to tell them to knock it off. But instead she gathered her courage and flashed a quick smile over her shoulder. They laughed again, nudging each other. They were rude, but Katy didn’t really care. The last laugh would be on them when she showed up Friday night looking like any other high school girl.

With a smile, Katy hurried over to join the others.