"Who are you talking to?"

I stopped in mid-sentence and whirled around to see Becca standing in the doorway, giggling at me.

"I'm talking to me, myself, and I," I said, smiling. "That's whom."

"I thought only crazy people did that," she said.

"Well, I guess I'm crazy, then," I said. "What are you up to?"

"I heard you singing before," she said. "That song about Yew Nork."

"I laughed. You meanNew York," I said. "New York,New York!" I sang out. "That one?"

"Right," she said. "Will you teach it to me?"

"Sure. Come on, I'll show you the dance that goes with it, too." I grabbed her and we faced the mirror. We sang and high-kicked our

way through three verses, looking like chorus girls in a Broadway show.

Afterward, we flopped on the bed. "Whew," I said. "That was fun."

"Yeah," said Becca. But she didn't sound too happy.

J glanced over at her. She was chewing on her thumbnail and looking as if she were about to cry. Kids can change their moods so fast!

"What's the matter?" I asked her.

"Nothing," she said, but she was still frowning.

"Come on, Becca, you can tell me," I said. "What's wrong?"

She sighed. "I'm being abandoned by my own family, that's what's wrong," she replied. A tear began to glisten in the corner of her eye. "You're going toNew Yorkthis weekend, and Mom and Dad and Squirt and Aunt Cecelia are all going to that wedding. And I'm going to be left behind, all by myself!" Her lip quivered, and the tear fell. "Nobody loves me," she said, giving a little sniff.

"Oh, Becca, of course we love you," I said, reaching over to give her a hug. "And nobody's abandoning you, or leaving you alone. You're going to be staying with the Pikes." I smiled at her. "You'll have fun there." "Will not," she said, sniffing again.