I liked Mallory's offer a lot. I really did. But I was beginning to be suspicious of it. Did she have some other reason for wanting to bring her sisters to the Hobarts' on Friday?

"Does Ben get teased as much as his younger brothers?" asked Claud thoughtfully. (Now that we knew Ben went to our school, we kept our eyes out for him, but the eighth-graders don't have much to do with the sixth-graders.) "I don't think so," replied Jessi. "Do you, Mal?" Mallory, her face still fiery, just shook her head.

Jessi hid a smile. "What Mal is trying to say," she translated for the rest of us, "is that Ben is tall for his age, so he looks sort of . . ." "Menacing?" supplied Dawn.

"No! Just like someone you don't want to mess with. Plus, at Stoneybrook Middle School we're so busy changing classes and stuff that most kids just haven't bothered Ben. But at home it's different. When the kids are out in their yard, they're easy targets. And James and Mathew and especially Johnny aren't very good at defending themselves." "I bet Mal could help Ben feel right at home here in the USA," Stacey pressed.

Mal couldn't speak. She stared at the floor. The rest of us grinned at each other. And Stacey couldn't let up on Mallory.

"Come on, Mal. Admit it," she said. "You've got a crush on Ben." Mal gasped. And then she was saved by the bell. My own mother called needing a sitter on an evening when I wouldn't be home. Mary Anne lined Stacey up for the job.

Then Stacey immediately said, "Mal? Come on. Out with it. You know you've got a crush on Ben." "Well . . . well, maybe I -I do," Mal spluttered.

"He is cute," said Stacey.

Mallory twisted her head back and looked up at Stacey. "He's adorable," she corrected her. "He's even got cute glasses." Everyone laughed.