Stacey got stuck with — oops, I mean Stacey got the job. I thought maybe it wouldn't be so bad for her. Maybe she and Rosie could get into a really exciting conversation about math (yawn).

I was wrong.

The job started well enough. Stacey wanted to make a good impression. She raced to SES after school so she wouldn't keep Rosie waiting. She arrived a moment after the final bell had rung. As the kids streamed outside, Stacey took a good long look at the photo of Rosie I'd given her (I had asked Mrs. Wilder to give me a copy of Rosie's professional photo, because Stacey had never met Rosie).

It wasn't hard to spot that thick red hair. Rosie was with a group of four other girls, all chatting away.

Stacey could hear every word. They were talking about Disney World. "I wasn't even afraid of Space Mountain," one of them said.

"Neither was I," said another. "It was fun."

"I know," said a third one. "I've been there five times. My grandparents live near there."

"I've been there three times," piped up a fourth girl.

"I had a picture taken with Mickey Mouse,"

said the second girl. "He was really an actor, and I could see his eyes through the costume."

Finally Rosie spoke up. "I had to wear a costume like that, too."

"At Disney World?" the second girl said. "They let kids work there?"

"No," Rosie answered loudly. "In a commercial. It's for cat food, and it's airing next month. I wear this kitten costume, and I feed some food to a real cat, then I take off my mask and the cat runs away — "

"What's that got to do with Disney World?" asked the third girl.

"I bet you've never even been there, Rosie," said the fourth one with a sneer.

Rosie grew red in the face. "Well — it's only because I have a career! I'm too busy to do baby stuff like go to Disney World — "

"Cut it out, Rosie," the first girl said. "You're just jealous."