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babysitters101

Kristy called Liz Lewis, just because Liz was listed first on the flier. She put her hand over the mouthpiece. “It’s ringing,” she whispered to us. “One … two … thr– Hello? Is Liz Lewis there, please? … Oh, hi, Liz. My name is – Candy. Candy Kane. … No, no joke. … I got your flier for the Baby-sitters Agency. I’m supposed to sit for my little brother tomorrow and – ” Kristy paused, and the rest of us watched the wheels turning “ – I just got asked out on a date.”

Mary Anne started to giggle. She grabbed a pillow from Claudia’s bed and buried her face in it to muffle the sounds. Kristy turned away so she wouldn’t have to see.

“From three to five,” Kristy was saying. (Liz must have asked her when she was supposed to be sitting.) “He’s seven years old. His name is, urn, Harry. … Twenty-eight Roper Road. Will you be baby-sitting for him? The flier said – Oh, I see. … Mm-hmm. … I’ll be at KL5-2321. Oh, but only for about ten minutes. Then I have – I have another date. … Who with?” By that time, Claudia was laughing, too, and I was on the verge of it. Kristy glanced at us helplessly, not sure what to do about her “date.” Then she simply pulled a name out of the air. “With Winston Churchill,” she replied, taking the chance that Liz wouldn’t know who he was. Apparently she didn’t. “Yeah, he goes to high school,” continued Kristy nonchalantly, getting into her story. “A sophomore. Football player. … Me? I’m in seventh. … Yeah, I know.”

I had to leave the room. I couldn’t stand it any longer, and I didn’t want to ruin Kristy’s call. I closed Claudia’s door, ran to the bathroom, laughed, and returned.

Kristy was saying, “Okay, five minutes. … Yeah, later.” She hung up. Then she began to laugh, too. “You guys!” she exclaimed. “Don’t do that to me when I’m on the phone.”

“But Winston Churchill?” I cried. “The high school guy you’re dating?”