Amber Brown Is Feeling Blue Read online

  I think about Jade, Alice’s six-year-old, and feel bad for her. Her father leaves before she’s born, never comes back, and never gets in touch.

  My dad went to Paris to work, but he’s always in touch, and he’s coming back.

  And Max cares about me, too.

  I feel bad for Jade.

  “So, Amber, what do you think?” Mom asks.

  I don’t want to tell her that I’ve been thinking about lots of stuff, especially that I was thinking about my dad and I was not listening to their conversation. I just shrug.

  “Amber,” Mom says, “don’t you want to go to Walla Walla for Thanksgiving? Won’t that be fun?”

  I, Amber Brown, am very surprised.

  Walla Walla for Thanksgiving…

  “Where is Walla Walla?” I ask.

  “Washington … the state,” Mom informs me.

  Walla Walla, Washington …. That’s so far away, I think. That’s also a lot of W’s.

  We have only four days off from school.

  “How are we going to get there? Where will we stay? Will Mom still make her sweet potato pie?” I love my mom’s sweet potato pie.

  Max answers: “I’ll buy the plane tickets. We’ll leave right after school ends. There’s a flight that leaves from Newark airport. We’ll arrive late in Walla Walla …. but, remember, there is a time difference between Newark and Washington State, so it won’t seem so late.”

  “And when we get there, we’ll bake the pie together.” Mom smiles at me.

  I smile back.

  The doorbell rings.

  There are four skeletons, one Easter bunny, two Munchkins, a Dorothy, and Toto at our door.

  I give them candy, pop a Tootsie Roll into my mouth, and go back into the dining room.

  The doorbell rings again.

  This time my mother goes to the door.

  Max says, “So, Amber, it’ll be fun …. don’t you think so? A trip across the country …. a new place to visit … and I really want you to meet my sister and Jade. After all, we’re all going to be family soon. We’re practically family now.”

  I think about it.

  I bet that any sister of Max’s is fun, and I’ll be going someplace I’ve never been before.

  My mother walks back into the room. “I just left a large bowl of candy outside the door, with a note saying, ‘Please do not disturb us. We’re having dinner….. So just take one piece of candy each.’”

  I, Amber Brown, giggle.

  Sometimes my mom is so funny.

  She actually believes that kids will take just one piece of candy each.

  Max and Mom look at me, waiting for my answer.

  I’ve never been away from home for Thanksgiving. It’s always been at our house.

  I think about it.

  I’ve never been to Walla Walla, Washington.

  It might be fun.

  “Oh, OK.” I grin. “I wanna wanna go to Walla Walla.”

  Mom and Max smile and start making plans.

  I eat another piece of pizza and sit for a minute to see if my stomach is going to explode. Then I go out to the porch and check and see if there is anything left in the candy bowl.

  There is.

  Only it’s not the candy we left out. That’s all gone.

  People have made trades.

  In the bowl are five apples, three boxes of raisins, one half-eaten Bit-O-Honey, and two granola bars.

  Trick or treat.

  Chapter

  Four

  I, Amber Brown, have overslept.

  I, Amber Brown, have a mother who has overslept.

  Maybe too much candy corn can cause a person not to wake up on time in the morning. But my mom didn’t eat candy corn, and she still didn’t come into my room and wake me up until 9:00 A.M.

  Maybe her excuse is that she stayed up late, talking with Max. I know that he didn’t leave until after midnight … and the reason I know that is because I was awake in bed, looking at “Countdown to Dad,” reading a book under the covers, and eating candy corn.

  I, Amber Brown, don’t think that I want to see another piece of candy corn until next Halloween.

  “Amber, get up. We’ve got to rush.” My mother sticks her head back into my room. Actually, she sticks her head and part of her body back into the room. I never understand why people say that someone sticks a head into a room …. and why the neck …. and shoulders …. are never mentioned. It seems so weird to think of just a head coming into the room.

  I think that the combination of Halloween, candy corn, reading, and not going to sleep until after midnight is getting to me …. that, and my very active imagination.

  “Amber, move it,” my mother says in a voice that really says “Move it …. and I mean NOW.”

  I “move it” immediately, jumping out of bed, taking off my pajamas, and quickly putting on clothes.

  I rush down the steps.

  Mom puts a peanut butter sandwich in my mouth and hands me a glass of orange juice. “I’ll give you the money for lunch. Let’s go. I’ve got a major meeting in forty-five minutes.”

  Quickly I eat, grab my knapsack, put some candy corn into it (just in case I change my mind about not having any until next Halloween), and rush out to the car.

  Mom gets into the car and says, “Seat belt on.

  While we ride to school, my mom keeps talking about how late we both are and how excited she is that we’re all going to Walla Walla.

  I think about how late we both are, how much fun it will be to fly to Walla Walla on Thanksgiving, and how gross it is that I forgot to brush my teeth …. and my hair.

  Borrowing Mom’s hairbrush, I try to get my hair to look good, or at least not to look like one of those dumb troll dolls.

  It’s too hard to think straight this early, I mean, late, in the morning … when we’ve overslept and I’m late for school … and my breath smells and I look like a troll doll.

  I hold my hand over my mouth so that the air goes up and my nose can smell my breath.

  It smells of candy corn, peanut butter, and morning mouth.

  I wonder if I can get a pass to the nurse’s office. I think she keeps emergency toothbrushes next to the Band-Aid box … or I can always put a Band-Aid over my mouth.

  “We’re here,” Mom says. “Please hand me your notebook so that I can write you a note.”

  I look in my pink knapsack and realize that I’ve left my notebook (with my homework in it) by my bed.

  Mom and I rush into the school and explain why I’m late to the school secretary, who writes me a pass.

  I walk down the hall, checking on my breath when no one’s looking.

  Walking into my classroom, I see that everyone is standing by Mrs. Holt’s desk, talking to a kid who I don’t know.

  She’s probably one of the kids who just moved into the new housing development.

  Hal Henry was the first new kid in our class this year. Mrs. Holt has told us to expect more.

  So I guess this person is one of them.

  I look at her.

  She’s got brown hair, blue eyes, and she’s not very skinny.

  She looks like a perfectly nice new kid.

  “She’s here,” Hannah Burton announces to the class in a voice that is much too sweet for the real Hannah Burton.

  “AMBER BROWN has arrived ….. late, but here,” Hannah says. “Let me be the one to introduce you two.”

  “Hannah, I can do that,” Mrs. Holt says softly.

  Hannah continues anyway: “AMBER BROWN ….. meet KELLY GREEN.”

  I start to smile and say hello and then it hits me.

  The new person is named Kelly Green.

  KELLY GREEN.

  Chapter

  Five

  I, Amber Brown, am flummoxed.

  Flummoxed. Flummoxed. Flummoxed.

  The other night, Max used that word, and when I asked what it meant, he helped me look it up in the dictionary.

  It means confused and perplexed. (We look
ed that word up, too.)

  I am so flummoxed.

  How can there be another person in my class with a totally colorful name?

  How much chance is there of two people with two names that are colors being in the same class?

  I love having my unusual name.

  There’s a lot in my life that’s changing.

  My dad is moving back.

  Mom and Max are going to get married.

  I’ve been in the fourth grade only two months, and I had to get used to a new teacher, Mrs. Holt.

  With all of the changes in my life, I would like for some things to stay the same.

  My name is one of them. It’s unusual. It’s colorful. It’s me, Amber Brown.

  “Amber Brown. Kelly Green.” Hannah Burton is smiling. “Let the Color Wars begin.”

  Hannah Burton is one of those people who is happiest when other people are unhappy, especially if she helps cause it.

  If Hannah Burton were given a colorful name, it would be “Dirtball Mud.”

  The only war that I must deal with is the one that Hannah and I have …. It’s a not very civil war. I don’t want to be part of it, but for some reason, Hannah is always saying disgusting, mean things.

  Hannah Burton is a disgusting, mean thing, and I’m not going to let her start a fight that isn’t even there between Kelly and me.

  “Kelly Green.” I look at Kelly and say, “It’s really nice to meet you.”

  Mrs. Holt smiles and says, “Amber, I want you to be Kelly’s special guide.”

  “I was hoping that I could be the guide.” Hannah Burton is using her sweet voice. “After all, Amber has so much to do …. what with her having to devote so much extra time to getting organized.”

  And then Hannah Burton whispers something.

  I think it’s “…. and having to remember to brush her hair.”

  I put my hand to my hair and then remember that my teeth aren’t brushed.

  It’s not my fault that Mom and I overslept.

  It just happens sometimes to everyone.

  Mrs. Holt looks at Hannah. “No, I really want Amber to show Kelly around … but I’m sure that there will be time for you, on your own, to talk with Kelly. It would be NICE of you to be helpful.”

  I, Amber Brown, swear that Mrs. Holt put extra emphasis on the word NICE.

  It definitely would be nice if Hannah were nice.

  I don’t think Hannah Burton has a nice bone in her body.

  Actually, she does have nice hair, though …. which she is always fluffing and telling everyone is so nice.

  I run my fingers through my hair and then put my hand over my mouth to hide my morning breath, and I say, “I, Amber Brown, would love to show Kelly Green around the school.”

  Kelly smiles at me. “And I, Kelly Green, would love to have Amber Brown show me around the school.”

  Kelly Green not only has a colorful name, but she has just talked the way that I, Amber Brown, talk. That’s a little weird.

  I, Amber Brown, am the only one I know who says things like “I, Amber Brown.” And I, Amber Brown, am getting a headache.

  This is not a good day. I can’t believe that so much stuff is happening. Oversleeping ….. not combing my hair … forgetting my homework.

  This day is turning into a nightmare.

  Maybe I’ll get lucky and this will really be a nightmare.

  Maybe I didn’t oversleep this morning. Maybe I haven’t gotten up yet, and this is all just a very bad dream.

  I, Amber Brown, pinch myself really hard and hope that this is just a nightmare and that my mom will soon wake me up for real. And I won’t have overslept. And I will have combed my hair. And I won’t have morning mouth. And I won’t have left my homework at home. And Kelly Green will only be part of a very bad dream.

  The pinch hurts. It really hurts, really really hurts.

  This is not a bad dream.

  This is my life.

  Chapter

  Six

  I, Amber Brown, am giving Kelly Green a minitour, the one from the classroom to the lunchroom.

  She is telling me about herself. “I just love my parents. My daddy is a lawyer, and my mom is an accountant …. but she’s staying home to take care of my little sister, Linda.”

  I’m glad that they didn’t name her sister Lime …. Lime Green.

  “And,” she continues, “we have a new baby brother. He’s so cute, and I help take care of him.”

  I ask her if his name is Oliver, Olive Green, for short.

  She giggles. “No, silly. His name is Joey. Do you have brothers and sisters?”

  “Nope,” I say. “I’m an only child.”

  “That’s so sad,” Kelly says.

  “I don’t think so.” I don’t know why, but I want to step on Kelly’s shoes, which look brand new. “I like being an only child.”

  I don’t think Kelly should say that it’s sad that I’m an only child.

  I don’t tell anyone that sometimes I do wish I had a younger brother or sister but that I don’t think that’s ever going to happen.

  Next she tells me about her sheepdog.

  I, Amber Brown, tell her that my mom is allergic to dogs …. and probably to sheep, too.

  “Oh, that’s so sad. Your mom would probably be allergic to our cat, Fluffy, too.” She frowns.

  I don’t tell her that I think Fluffy is a stupid name for a cat.

  I don’t know why Kelly Green is annoying me, but she is. She’s got two parents who are still together, a sheepish dog …… a fluffy cat ….. probably her brother and sister are fluffy, too. Her life sounds so perfect…. I bet she never oversleeps … or has morning mouth.

  I bet she thinks her name is so perfect, too … but I don’t.

  I continue giving the tour to Kelly as we walk to lunch. “And this is the nurse’s office. If you don’t mind, I need to stop here for a minute.”

  “Sure.” Kelly giggles.

  Kelly Green giggles a lot.

  Sometimes I don’t know why.

  She just giggles.

  I rush into the nurse’s office and beg Mrs. McDowell for an “emergency toothbrush.”

  She hands me a package filled with a toothbrush and a tiny tube of toothpaste. She also hands me a comb.

  Mrs. McDowell is prepared for any emergency.

  I’m so glad that the PTA gives her some extra money so that she can buy stuff like this.

  I rush into the bathroom and brush ….. and comb.

  My teeth are so glad that she’s got the toothbrush and toothpaste.

  And I bet everyone who can smell my clean breath will be so glad.

  My hair is also happy.

  I come out of the bathroom and watch a little kid barf all over Mrs. McDowell’s desk. It’s the same kid who barfed when we had the skunk smell in our school.

  I watch Kelly watch the kid barf, and then I watch Kelly barf.

  The kid barfs again…..

  Oh, great….. Ping-Pong barf.

  The nightmare continues.

  I, Amber Brown, don’t barf, but this whole scene is making me feel pretty sick.

  Mrs. McDowell is busy holding the little kid’s head.

  He’s still barfing.

  I just want to get out of there. I don’t know what to do.

  Kelly helps me decide. “You better go to lunch now, Amber. I guess I won’t be having lunch after all. I think I have to go home. I always get sick when I see someone else get sick.”

  I look at her.

  She’s got barf dripping down her clothes and on her shoes.

  Kelly Green is not giggling now.

  I bet they were new clothes, because this is her first day of school here.

  I, Amber Brown, feel bad for Kelly Green, but I’m glad that she’s going home.

  That’ll give me another day to get used to her being in my class.

  I leave the nurse’s office, go into the cafeteria, buy my lunch, and go over to the table.

  Bra
ndi is saving two seats, one for me and one for Kelly.

  I whisper to her and tell her what’s happened.

  “Wow,” she says. “What a lousy way to start at a new school. I’m not even going to do a bulletin about this. It would only make her feel bad.”

  Brandi just moved here a year ago, so she always worries about new kids. She wants to become a television reporter, and practices by announcing news bulletins whenever she can.

  Hal Henry comes over to our table. “Where’s Kelly?”

  Tiffani Shroeder looks at Hal. “Why? Do you want to ask her out?”

  Hal blushes. “Get real. We’re only in fourth grade. The only people you know who date are your Barbie and Ken dolls.”

  It’s Tiffani’s turn to blush. She hates it when someone teases her about her Barbie and Ken dolls.

  Everyone does, though …. especially her little brother, who is always beheading her Barbies.

  Hal explains: “She’s my new next-door neighbor, and her mom makes the best cookies. She promised to give me some for lunch. So, why isn’t she here? Did you give her an elevator pass and tell her to find the elevator?”

  When Hal first got to the school, that’s what one of the sixth-graders did to him.

  Sometimes Hal Henry can be very gullible.

  I tell him that Kelly’s gone home, that she got sick from watching the little kid barf. “Kelly got so sick … her face turned green.”

  I think about what I’ve just said, and think it’s kind of funny. Kelly’s name is Green. Her face looked a little green …. and then very pale …. but first it looked green. Even her puke looked a little green. I wonder what she ate for breakfast.

  Then I tell him how it was like Ping-Pong barf.

  Hal laughs and then rushes off to tell everyone else what I’ve just told him.

  “Kelly has turned really Green!”

  Then I hear him say something about Ping-Pong barf, and all the boys laugh.

  Brandi looks at me. “Amber.”

  “Yes?” I ask.

  “That wasn’t very nice.” She frowns. “Now everyone is going to tease her.”