Lauren Takes Leave by Gerstenblatt, Julie (ebooks children's books free txt) 📕

“Like ‘Feed the World’!” Kat adds.

“Ooh!” Jodi says, interrupting our cheering. “Brainstorm!”

“What?” I ask.

“Can’t tell. I want to talk to Len privately and see whathe says first. And then I’ll surprise you guys.”

“Shall we rendezvous by the coffee urn in the back of theplane?” Lenny asks, already standing.

“Sounds lovely,” Jodi says, stepping over me and Kat toget to the aisle.

Kat sighs. “It’s nice that at least one of us has gotsomething good lined up.”

“You call the school yet? Talk to Martha?” I ask.

“Nope. Chicken,” she says. “You call Doug yet?”

“Bwack,” I say, trying to sound like the chicken that Iam. Then I remember what Doug said to me last night on the phone. I quicklyreplay the conversation for Kat, to see what she thinks he meant.

“Wait, wait, wait,” she says, shaking her head, “Heactually said, ‘Say hi to Kat and Jodi for me’?”

I nod.

“You sure? I mean, it was loud in that place. Maybe youmisheard him and he said something like, ‘I hide my cat in jury duty.’”

“What does that even mean?” I ask.

“I have no fucking idea. It sounded better in my head.”

“Blue chips? Peanut mix?” a stewardess asks, pushing hercart up the aisle.

Kat turns to her with urgency. “Do you serve shots? Like,of very strong alcohol?”

“Kat,” I say, “drinking won’t solve our problems.”

“True, that,” she says, taking a few of the mini bottlesoffered up by the stewardess. “But it’s fun anyway.”

I put my hand on her wrist. “Please don’t.” She looks overto me and drops the bottles onto her tray, where they clink and roll around. “Ineed your help. Your sober, real help with this one. Doug knowssomething; I’m not sure what he knows, and I’m not sure how heknows whatever he knows. Plus, Martha’s been calling me and e-mailing me andleaving messages with Doug asking as to my whereabouts. If the woman couldtext, she’d be doing that, too. I lied to my family, I lied to my employers. Ithink I might be coming home to a blitzkrieg.”

“Maybe,” Kat says. “But then again, maybe not.”

A few minutes later, Jodi and Lenny return from theirconference. Lenny immediately sits and takes out a notebook, flipping to anopen page and writing quickly.

He laughs aloud to himself. “I’ve got the best song pickedout…”

“Lenny, surprise, remember?” Jodi says. Still standing inthe aisle, she asks me to fish her camera out of her bag and hand it to her.“Come on, Len, let’s do this.”

Lenny rolls his eyes and sighs, finishing whatever noteshe was jotting down. “This takes some time, Jo, some planning and carefulthought. I know it looks effortless, but it’s not. It’s hard work.”

“Whatev, dude,” she says, rolling her eyes right back athim in mock exasperation. I have no idea what they are planning, but if itinvolves Jodi, Len and a camera, then gyrating hips and a gangsta beat can’t befar behind.

Len nods to himself, content with some thought, before hestands and moves with Jodi toward the back of the plane.

A gloomy New York sky greets us as we make our descent.Jodi gets teary-eyed as we say our good-byes at the baggage carousel. So muchbonding has happened in the past day that it’s really hard to see our smallgroup go their separate ways.

Some security guards are consulting with Jodi about theplans for transporting her grandmother to a funeral home in Westchester. Ithink about Sonia Goldberg’s funeral, planned for Sunday morning, and then rememberour original plans for Saturday night. “Jo, you’re not still planning toparticipate in the temple event tomorrow night, are you?” I ask.

She looks confused, then upset. “Of course I am!”

“I just thought, what with your grandmother andeverything, you might have, you know, changed your mind about dancing?”

“Lauren,” Jodi says, stepping closer to me. “Tomorrownight is probably even more important now that my grandmother is gone.”

I’m not sure why that is, but I’m not going to argue. Inod instead. “Right. Well, then, Kat and I will see you there.”

“And Doug?” Jodi asks.

“Depends on how much he hates me right now,” I say. Justthinking about seeing him makes my stomach ache.

I turn to Lenny and try to shake his hand, formal butpolite, like people who’ve just met at a technology seminar and now hope tokeep in touch.

“Hug me, douche,” he says, enfolding me in a giantembrace.

The fact that this statement brings tears to my eyes showsjust how demented I am right now. I know that I can’t go back to having Lennyas my dirty pen pal, and I’m not quite sure that I am ready to just be hisfriend. So this feels like a real farewell.

“I guess this is it,” I say into his shoulder. “See you atthe next high school reunion?”

“Oh, I’m pretty sure we’ll be seeing each other soonerthan that,” he comments cryptically.

“Shake,” Kat instructs, putting out her hand toward Lennyin a farewell gesture.

“I thought you hated me,” he says.

“Nah, just hate what you stand for. Stood for. Tried todo,” she says awkwardly, which is unlike her. “You know what I mean. Now thatyou aren’t trying to break apart Lauren’s marriage, you’re growing on me.”

“Aww…you’re making me blush,” Lenny jokes, grabbing Katinto a bear hug so big that she momentarily disappears. She emerges flushed,and tries to hide her embarrassment by grabbing her luggage and heading towardthe exit.

I don’t know if I’ve ever seen Kat blush before, not evenwhen she told me about kissing Shay. MC Lenny’s mystical charm.

I give Lenny a final wave and start following Kat, sinceshe’s my ride.

“You guys…” I hear Jodi call. She sounds weird, likesomething’s not right. Kat stops near the exit and turns. Lenny and I turn,too. “You guys!” she calls again, louder this time, more frantically.

I spot Jodi leaning against a small sundries kiosk,looking like she can’t stand up. I drop my bag and run across the length of theluggage-claim area to where she is. “Jodi,” I ask, propping her up against myarm, “what happened?”

“Can you breathe, can you see? Are you hallucinating?” Katasks, coming up behind me.

“Should we call the paramedics?” Lenny asks. Turning tome, he says, “Sit her down so