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Ð"Jane, wait," Kelly called after me. "I've been looking for you. I haven't
seen you since Friday night."
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Apparently she hadn't noticed me ducking behind Marnie and stepping into
classroom doorways when I spotted her coming down the hall.
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Î"Did you have a good time with that gorgeous guy you were with?" Kelly asked.
"Are you and he serious?"
0 "A good time?" I echoed. "I guess you could say it was a dance I won't soon
forget." The feeling of Adam's mouth so close to mine was still haunting me.
"That's exactly the way I feel," Kelly said. "A night to remember always."
®"A nightmare is more like it," I mumbled under my breath as I bolted out of
the office.
È On the way home I figured out a way to get my column written. First I'd
write a "Kelly" article: I'd say all the positive, admiring, gushy things
about Adam and his teammates that were bubbling up inside me. Then I'd write a
second article, an analysis of the game from a negative point of view. I'd
treat the second piece like a writing exercise--do it like the essay our
English class had to write when we were studying satire--even force myself to
take some unfair shots. Once I had the two contrasting views on paper, I'd
weave together the most reasonable statements from each and produce a balanced
column.
¨ It would be a lot of work, but I'd do it. I'd get this piece written if I
had to cut it out and paste it together word by word, letter by letter. No
guy, no crazy romantic dreams, would keep me from doing my job!
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Fifteen
@ There! the second article was done. Save and exit. Now I had two versions of
yesterday's game, written by Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I glanced at my watch:
just three o'clock. Before trying to blend the two different perspectives into
a fair analysis, I'd give myself a well-deserved break.
v I headed outside to shoot baskets. Grandpa was at his doctor's appointment,
Mom at work, and the little kids of our neighborhood still in school. It was
peaceful in the back alley, with nothing but the sounds of birds twittering
and the ball thumping on the concrete, its friendly bang and swish through the
basket.
I missed a shot and the ball bounced into Mrs. Bean's yard, rolling under
her forsythia. I followed it into the yard, then got down on my knees to
retrieve it from under the bush. "Big Mama!" .
dFrom far back in the branches the cat stared at me
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Ü with large, unfocused eyes. She was lying on her side, her front paw was
oozing blood, and there was more blood on her hindquarters. Her tail was a
dark, wet mess. She looked as if she'd been attacked by another animal, chased
and bitten several times. When she tried to lift her head, it wobbled. She
gazed at me helplessly, then dropped her chin in the dirt again.
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Panicked, I ran to Mrs. Bean's door and pounded on it, hoping she was home,
hoping she could help me get Mama to a vet. I rang her bell, then screamed up
at the window. No response. Coach was at practice and the school office shut
down. Marnie would also be out on the playing field. I ran home and called
Stacy. I couldn't have been coherent, but somehow she figured out what I was
saying.
F I was back at the bush, talking gently to Big Mama, when the Saturn came
flying down the alley. Stacy had thought to bring a soft quilt, a shower
present still lying in its silver gift box. We worked the quilt under Big Mama
as gently as we could, then lifted her up and laid her in the box.
V"Has she lost a lot of blood?" Stacy asked.
¢"I don't know. How much blood do cats have in them? She's breathing really
fast."
Æ"She might be in shock," Stacy said. We wrapped the blanket gently around the
cat to keep her warm.
j I rode in the backseat with the box next to me, trying to hold it steady.
Stacy ran a red light and nearly did a two-wheeler into the parking lot but
got us to the vet in one piece.
bWe carried her in the entrance of the building as
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` fast as we could without jarring the box. I guess the look on our faces told
the guy at the desk all he needed to know. He took us straight back to an
examining room. "I'll get Dr. Grefe," he said.
When we lowered the box onto the examining table, Big Mama meowed pitifully.
Stacy ran a finger behind the cat's ear, trying to soothe her.
@"Where's Grizzly?" she asked me.
2"At practice. At school."
H"I'd better get him. You stay here."
j As Stacy was on her way out, Dr. Grefe came in. He was a big man with a
beard and warm blue eyes. "Let's see what we've got here," he said, his voice
calm. "What's your cat's name?"
,"Big Mama," I croaked.
F "Big Mama," he crooned. "Looks like you got into some nasty stuff, Big
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