DESPITE MY COMMITMENT to getting something going with the older boys, nothing new developed until the following Sunday. And even that day started out to be a big disappointment. It was raining—not a day for ice skating at all. The Gruesome Four sat miserably on the staircase in the hallway of my apartment building, not knowing what to do with ourselves.
My hallway was the place we often went to hang out when there was nowhere else to go. That was because my building was centrally located in the middle of Roz’s, Fran’s, and Jan’s, and because there was a candy store right on my corner in case we got hungry.
Of course we could hang out inside my apartment if we wanted to. But my apartment is small. There are only two bedrooms—one for my parents and one shared by my brothers, Ira and Joey, who are twins and can be very bratty. I sleep in the living room so there’s no privacy for us in my apartment at all. And today we were talking about private stuff. Like how we need to find a few eligible older boys.
Just when we were running out of ideas and things looked bleakest, I came up with this brainstorm. We would go bowling. There were always all sorts of boys at the bowling alley on a rainy day.
Unfortunately, half the other kids in the neighborhood must have had the same idea. The bowling alley was jammed, and we had to wait for ages until a lane opened up for us.
But the lane we finally got was well worth waiting for. There, bowling in the lane right next to us, were three teenage boys.
“They look pretty good from a distance,” said Fran, squinting through her glasses as we approached the lane.
“Well, don’t stare at them or anything,” I said. “We don’t want to look too obvious. Just pretend they don’t interest us at all.”
We purposely avoided looking at the boys as we sat down and put on our bowling shoes. I got up to bowl first.
I was very conscious of the fact that the boys might be watching me. I grabbed my bowling ball and took careful aim. Then I swayed up to the foul line, trying to make my approach look as sexy as possible in the hope that the boys might notice me.
They noticed me all right. Somehow, my finger got stuck in the ball, and I dropped it with a loud bang. Even worse, the ball landed in their lane, interrupting their game. Feeling like a complete fool, I ran after the ball and picked it up.
The boys all started laughing. I stood there, holding the ball and wishing I could disappear. Then I turned around to face them. “Just what’s so funny, anyhow?” I demanded angrily.
“Well, if you want to know the truth, Linda. You’re supposed to throw the ball down your own lane!” one of the boys answered. He smiled at me and came closer.
How did he know my name? I looked at him carefully for the first time. Why, it was Danny Kopler! I couldn’t believe it!
Danny lived in the apartment right above mine. When we were little, we used to play together all the time. In fact, when I was four and Danny was six, we were boyfriend and girlfriend in a baby sort of way. Once we got older, we went our separate ways. Even though we lived in the same building, I hadn’t talked to Danny for almost a year.
Boy, had he changed! He had gotten taller and chubbier. His voice was much deeper. You could see little short hairs on his face where he was already shaving. Danny was really starting to grow up. No wonder I hadn’t recognized him right away!
It was just too bad we had to rediscover one another under these circumstances. I was so embarrassed. I could feel my face flushing.
“Uh, hi, Danny,” I gulped. “What are you doing here?”
“Bowling, of course,” he answered. “I’m here with my friends.” He pointed to the two boys sitting on the bench. “This is Linda Berman, guys. And those two clowns are Marty Amstell and Louie Fields.”
Marty did kind of look like a clown. He was short and wore glasses. He had pale sickly skin with a scattering of pimples. But Louie was something else.
He was gorgeous! He had dirty blond hair that needed to be cut. It made him look lovable, like a sheepdog. His eyes were a beautiful blue, and they crinkled when he smiled at me. One look at him and it was as if none of the other boys I had ever liked before mattered at all.
For a moment I stood there just staring at Louie. He was wearing a soft-looking brown sweater. I could picture myself encircled by that sweater, just sinking into his arms.
“Aren’t you going to introduce us to your friends, Linda?” Danny’s voice shattered my delicious daydream.
“Huh?” I looked around and saw that the rest of the Gruesome Four, whom I had completely forgotten, were standing there waiting for me. “Oh, sure. That’s Fran Zaro, Roz Buttons, and Jan Zieglebaum,” I introduced. “We just decided to take up bowling. You know, good exercise and all that.” I tried to sound cool.
“Well, we’re just about finishing our games,” said Danny. “But we could hang around and give you girls some pointers, if you like.”
I looked at my friends. Roz and Jan didn’t look enthused. They were both so stuck on Sheldon that no one else mattered. But Fran was nodding her frizzy head joyfully. “Sure, I guess we could benefit from some expert skill,” I answered happily.
If I had known how badly I would bowl, I would have thought twice before saying yes to the boys. It really was humiliating!
While Marty kept score, Danny and Louie showed us how to take the right approach and how to release the ball properly. But the more I concentrated on their advice, the worse I bowled.
I knew it was Louie’s presence that was causing the problem. I got so nervous every time he came close to me that I could hardly breathe, must less aim a bowling ball.
But it turned out to be worth the humiliation. The boys waited until we had finished bowling, and then we wound up walking home together. On the way, I found out a lot more about Louie. He, Danny, and Marty had been in the same class in junior high, but now they went to different high schools. Danny and Marty went to Stuyvesant. Louie went to the Bronx High School of Technology. Like Huntington, both schools were special schools that you had to take a test to get into.
Their friendship was cemented by a common interest in math, of all things. Danny was a mathematical genius. He had even taught himself calculus. Louie and Marty both wanted to go into computers.
As we walked, I stood next to Danny. But as I listened to him talk, I kept looking past him. I couldn’t keep my eyes off Louie. His skin was so smooth; his eyes were so sparkling, and his hair shone with glints of gold.
It took me a while, but I finally got up the courage to talk to him directly. “So you go to Bronx Tech, Louie. How do you like it there?”
He shrugged. “It’s not bad—for a school. There are some really good teachers there—especially if you’re interested in math and computers like I am.”
“Really? That’s great. Math and computers always fascinated me!” I said enthusiastically.
“But Linda,” Jan began. “You never liked—oof!”
Sometimes Jan has no sense. I had to shove my elbow into her ribs to keep her from telling Louie that I never liked math and computers very much. After all, it wasn’t that I didn’t like math. It was just that I liked other subjects more. Like art and English and social studies and science. But math was starting to look a lot better to me all of a sudden. So was the idea which Louie had just given me—of changing schools myself and going to Bronx Technology.
“As a matter of fact, I’ve been thinking about taking the test for Bronx Tech this year,” I announced. “I’ve been getting kind of tired of going to school with only girls. Tech would be a perfect change of pace.” I looked at Louie when I said that, hoping for a positive reaction to my words.
But before he could say anything, Jan piped up again. “You mean you would leave me all alone at Huntington and go off to Bronx Technology by yourself, Linda?”
“Of course not.” I couldn’t believe it. For a moment I had been so dazzled by Louie that I let myself forget completely about Jan. But the answer to the problem was simple. “You can take the test for Bronx Tech, too, Jan. We can go there together. I’m sure we’ll both like it better than Huntington. Don’t you think so, Louie?”
“Me?” He looked at me strangely for a moment. Then he grinned this beautiful grin that caused my heart to positively pound. “Sure! Why not?” he said agreeably.
That was all it took. I was smitten. From that moment on I was madly, wildly, and completely blindly, crazy over Louie!
* * *
Why must parents be so difficult?
Bronx Technology is a good school. Every bit as good as Huntington. So I didn’t think my parents would put up any opposition to my changing schools.
No such luck. My parents are so old-fashioned they seem like they’re from another era. Education is the only thing that matters to them. “Forget changing schools,” my father said flatly. “You stay at Huntington where you can concentrate on your school work. Education and boys don’t mix!”
My eyes stung with tears of frustration. How could my parents treat me like a baby who didn’t care about my education? I always worked hard and got good grades, but that didn’t seem to matter to them. It just wasn’t fair!
I turned to leave the room in defeat. Then I decided to make one last attempt by trying an approach I knew my parents could relate to. “Please,” I begged. “Just let me take the test for Tech. We can decide later whether or not I should go. Right now I need the testtaking practice. For my future—when I take the college board tests.”
That was the right thing to say. The college boards are way up there in importance to my parents. My mother looked at my father and he shrugged helplessly. “If it means that much to you,” he mumbled.
I threw my arms around him and hugged him. “It does! It really does! Oh, Daddy! Thank you!”
* * *
Jan had even more trouble with her parents. Talk about old-fashioned. Her parents make mine seem practically modern. They would love to keep Jan a baby forever!
But once my parents gave in there was hope for Jan. She played it cool, crying to her parents about how awful it would be to have to travel all by herself once I went to Tech. The idea frightened her parents so much they agreed to let Jan take the test.
So Jan and I went together to take the test for Bronx Technology. We were very impressed. The school was in a new, modern building, not an old crumbling one like Huntington. The trip to Tech was shorter, too. But the best part was being in a school with boys once again. And walking down the hallways knowing that Louie could appear at any moment.
If I went to Bronx Technology, I could see Louie in the halls every day. I could ride to school with him on the subway. I might even eat lunch with him in the cafeteria. He would carry my books and put his arm around me and. . .
I was getting carried away. I forced my mind back to the test I was taking. After all, my dreams would amount to nothing if I didn’t pass the test!
The test was hard. It was even harder than the test for Huntington had been. Jan thought so, too.
But we tried hard not to be discouraged. After all, we had found the test for Huntington to be hard when we took it, and we had passed, anyhow. We just had to hope that we would make Bronx Technology, too.