joyfully each time he hears his name. One of David Michael's very first words was even "Yew-ee." (Louie soil responds if someone calls him that.) And Louie has always loved David Michael right back. Maybe he somehow sensed that David Michael was the only one of us Thomas kids who got cheated out of a father, since Mom and Dad got separated not long after David Michael was born. Who knows?

Louie followed David Michael and me down the stairs and into the kitchen. "Mom," I said, "Louie's limping," but already his limp seemed less noticeable.

"I guess so," Mom said slowly, watching him. "It's hard to tell. We'll keep our eyes on him."

As soon as breakfast was over, things became hectic. Charlie and Sam got in the station wagon and left for the high school. Mom and Watson drove off, in separate cars, to their jobs. And David Michael and I waited at the end of the drive for our school buses. It was only7:45 , but I felt like I'd been up forever.

David Michael's bus was right on time. He climbed on and waved good-bye to me from a window in the very back. He loves to sit in the backseat. My bus should have been just behind David Michael's, but it wasn't. By7:55 ,

it was later than it had ever been. It better hurry, I thought. Homeroom starts at8:30 . Sharp.

For awhile I worried about what to do if the bus didn't come at all. Call Stacey's house? Stacey's mom was one of the few I knew who didn't work and might be at home. Then I wondered how long I should wait before I called anybody.

Before I reached any decisions, something interesting happened. The front door of a house across the street opened and a girl about my age stepped out. She was carrying a knapsack, and wearing a blue plaid jumper over a white short-sleeved blouse. She walked down her driveway and stood across the street from me. She must have been waiting for a bus, too, but not mine. I was the only girl in this neighborhood who got picked up by the bus toStoneybrookMiddle School .