"How come?"

"Because Ms. Simon's husband is going on a really long trip, and she decided to go with him. So she has to leave school for awhile. She can't find anyone who'll take her place at the club, and Mr. Katz doesn't think he can run the club by himself." (Ms. Simon and Mr. Katz are the two teachers who volunteer their time with the Kids Club.)

"Becca, that's too bad," I said.

"I know." Becca's voice wavered and her lower lip quivered.

"Are you sure that's the only reason you're upset?" I asked, frowning.

My sister didn't answer me for a long time. When she did, her eyes were filled with tears. "You know what Vanessa Pike told me today?" she asked.

"What?" (Vanessa is another Kids Club member. She's a year older than Becca.)

"That one of the girls in the hospital who'll be getting toys from our drive used to be a club member."

"Well, that's nice. She'll — " I started to say.

"No! It isn't nice at all!" Becca interrupted me. "That girl is nine, like Vanessa. Her name is Danielle Roberts, and she's been in the hospital ever since last summer because she has leukemia. You know what that is?"

"Yes," I said softly. "It's cancer of the blood. Sort of. I mean, I think it's cancer of the things in your body that form blood."

"Right," said Becca. "Cancer. And she's only a year older than me."

"That's awful," I agreed. "But you know what? I'm pretty sure that lots of kinds of cancer can be cured now. Especially leukemia."

"Really?"

"Yup. I mean, it's still a terrible disease to have, but lots of kids recover from it these days. There are so many new kinds of medicine and treatments. I bet Danielle — "

Becca interrupted me again. "Then how come she's still in the hospital? She's been there a long time."