Stepsisters Read online

  "Sounds great," Annie said as her mother headed for the kitchen.

  Alone now, Annie wandered into her own room and sat down in her desk chair. Her world seemed to be changing so fast. Soon her mother would have a new husband, and Annie would have not just a stepfather, but a stepsister as well. They would be moving to a new house.

  She thought again how startled she had been when her mother had told her that Walter and Cheryl were black. Does that mean I'm prejudiced? she worried.

  Annie thought carefully about the question. She was friends with Patty Gilbert and Andy Jenkins, who were black, and Rosa Jameson and Manuel Lopez, who were Hispanic, and she could honestly say that she didn't think about their skin colors or ethnic backgrounds any more than she did about, say, Jessica and Elizabeth's English and Swedish background.

  On a sudden impulse she opened her desk drawer and rummaged through the mess of papers inside until she found what she was looking for. It was a photo of Tony that she had tossed in the drawer after they broke up. Interesting that I kept it and didn't tear it into little pieces, she mused.

  She looked at Tony's strong nose, his cleft chin, his dark eyes. Tony was Hispanic. But Annie was surprised to realize that she had never, not once, thought about Tony as different in any way because of that. He was just Tony—a boy so obsessed with his running that he had even gone so far as to take steroids to improve his performance. With sadness, Annie remembered the personality changes and fits of anger that Tony had suffered as a result of the steroids. Luckily, with her and Elizabeth's help, Tony had eventually been able to stop taking the illegal pills.

  Tony . . . There was a heaviness in her heart as she thought of him. I really miss him, she thought. Before we broke up, he'd be the first person I'd have called with the news that Mom's getting remarried and I'm getting a sister.

  At that moment the phone rang. Automatically, Annie reached across to her night table and picked up the phone. "Hello?"

  "Hey, Annie."

  The sound of Tony's deep baritone sent a strong shock throughout Annie's entire body. Her heart began racing, and she thought wildly, Did he read my thoughts?

  "Uh, hi," she said, carefully keeping her voice flat.

  "How are you?"

  How am I? she thought. Missing you, that's how. But no way will I ever let you know that.

  "I'm fine," she replied in the same neutral tone of voice. There was a moment of awkward silence.

  "I wondered if you got my message yesterday," Tony said.

  Annie remembered listening to his message on the machine. He had said he wanted to talk, that there were some important things he needed to say to her.

  "No, I didn't," she lied. "The answering machine's been on the blink lately. We're missing lots of messages."

  "Oh," Tony said, sounding taken aback. "Well, I said that I wanted a chance to talk with you. About us, Annie."

  "I don't think there's anything to discuss," Annie said, using the last of her strength to keep her voice cold.

  "Yes there is!" Tony said urgently. "Annie, I really miss you. Messing up our relationship was the biggest mistake I ever made. I want to get back together."

  Annie didn't know what to say. That's what Robin told me this afternoon, she thought. But how do I know he means it? How do I know he won't dump me again the next time he sees a girl he likes?

  "Tony, I—I can't deal with this now," she said finally.

  "Is there a problem?" Tony asked anxiously. "You can tell me about it, you know. You were there for me when I needed you, and I want to be there for you."

  Annie was tempted to give in, to tell Tony how scared she felt about the idea of her mother marrying someone she had never met, and how nervous she was at the idea of a stepsister.

  "Annie? Whenever you want to talk, I'll be here," Tony said quietly, breaking the silence between them.

  "I do need some time," Annie acknowledged. "And I can't say how long it'll be. You see . . . my mom's getting remarried. And I'm getting a stepsister who's the same age I am."

  "Wow," Tony breathed. "That's great news! But I see how big a change that's going to be for you," he added seriously. "I know I haven't been . . . well, lately I haven't been the kind of friend I should be. But I've come to see things differently in the last couple of weeks, Annie. I feel like I've grown up a lot, I really have. And I'm here for you."

  The sincerity in his voice was almost too much for Annie. "Thanks," she said, choking back tears. "I have to go now," she added, almost inaudibly.

  "I'll see you in school on Monday," Tony murmured, then hung up.

  Annie put down the receiver and allowed the tears to flow. But a couple of minutes later her mother knocked on the door and announced that dinner was ready. Annie hastily rinsed her face with cold water and went to the table.

  "Annie, what's wrong?" her mother asked, seeing her red eyes and puffy face.

  Annie just shook her head. She felt that if she tried to say anything, she would burst into tears again.

  "Honey, are you upset about me and Walter getting married?" Mrs. Whitman asked, a look of pain on her face.

  Annie snuffled and shook her head. "No. It's not that."

  "Then what's wrong?"

  "It's Tony," Annie said slowly. "That was him on the phone just now. He . . . he wants to get back together."

  "Ah." Mrs. Whitman sat back in her seat, speared one of the tortellini on her plate and looked at it, but didn't put it in her mouth. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked sympathetically.

  "Thanks, Mom, but not right now. I need to let everything settle for a while, OK?"

  "Sure, Annie. Any time you want, we'll talk."

  After dinner Annie went back to her room and tried to read the novel her English class had been assigned, but couldn't concentrate. Finally she picked up the phone and dialed Robin's number.

  Robin answered the phone on the second ring. "How's your history paper going?" she asked.

  "I got sidetracked," Annie said ruefully. That's the understatement of the year! she added to herself.

  "By what?"

  Annie could hear the keys of Robin's laptop computer clicking as Robin waited for Annie to tell her why she had called.

  "Tony called," Annie began. "Remember what you told me this afternoon, that maybe he thinks he made a mistake breaking up with me? Well, that's what he told me tonight on the phone."

  "And?"

  "I don't know!" Annie replied heatedly. "He sounded so sincere," she added in a softer tone.

  "What's the worst that could happen if you took him back?" Robin asked pragmatically.

  Annie sighed. "He could dump me again, stomp on my heart once more, and leave me in even worse shape than I am now. How do I know he means what he says, that he's changed? All these phone calls and everything he says—well, they don't mean much if he hasn't decided to commit himself to being in a couple."

  "Well, Annie, it is possible he's just playing some weird game with you," Robin conceded. "But think about what Tony's really like. Is it in his nature to do that kind of thing?"

  "No," Annie whispered, half to herself.

  "Maybe being away from you for a while was just what he needed to be sure you two are right for each other," Robin argued.

  "I wish I could be certain you're right. Being away from him sure has made me realize that I want to be with him," Annie admitted.

  "Guys are scared of commitment," Robin stated seriously. "I read an article about that in a magazine in the dentist's office the other day. There's, like, this myth that guys are supposed to have lots of girlfriends and treat them badly. Isn't that what movies and TV show, more often than they show nice guys who have steady girlfriends?"

  "That's true," Annie said.

  "Anyway, guys our age get the idea that by staying with one girl they're missing out on something," Robin went on. "Even Elizabeth Wakefield has gone through it with Todd Wilkins. They've broken up and gotten back together more than once."

  "Yeah," A
nnie said, sighing. "But I don't want to go running back to Tony just like that. Even though I've been sad since we broke up, I also feel more independent, somehow."

  "I know the feeling," Robin said. "Sometimes it's good to go it alone for a while. That's what happened with me and George. The time away from our relationship has helped me see myself more clearly."

  Annie felt her heart go out to her friend. Robin had had a battle with anorexia, even winding up in the hospital at one point, and had told her boyfriend, George Warren, that she needed a little distance from him so she could get her life together. So far Robin had been doing extremely well, eating healthily and maintaining a good self-image.

  "I haven't told anyone this yet," Robin confided, "but George and I have been talking on the phone a lot lately, and we're thinking about getting together the next time he comes home from college."

  "That's wonderful, Robin!" Annie said.

  "We'll see," Robin said. Annie could hear a note of hope in her voice. "At least I'm finally willing to explore the possibilities again. And that's what I think you and Tony should do," she added pointedly.

  "You think I should sit down and talk with him?" Annie asked hesitantly.

  "It's up to you. But it is still possible for you and Tony to be happy, you know."

  "I guess," Annie said. "I just have so many other things on my mind right now. . . ."

  "Yeah, like this stupid history paper!" Robin said with a laugh.

  Annie took a deep breath. "It's not only that, Robin. My mom just told me she's getting remarried."

  "You're kidding!" Robin shrieked. "That's great! When? What's the guy like? Is he really rich and really cute? Am I invited to the wedding?"

  "Soon; I don't really know; probably and probably; and of course!" Annie replied jauntily, catching some of Robin's excitement. Annie told Robin everything she knew about Walter Thomas and his daughter, Cheryl—except that they were black, she realized, after they had moved on to discuss the actual wedding, which Mrs. Whitman wanted to hold outdoors.

  Annie waited until Robin had finished talking about how much fun she had had being a bridesmaid at her cousin's wedding, and then said in a light voice, "Hey, Robin, I forgot to tell you something. Walter's black."

  "No kidding?" Robin answered. "That's wild. You know, people are going to have a hard time believing you when you tell them you and Cheryl are sisters!" She chuckled. "Maybe you should dress alike!"

  She doesn't sound like she thinks there's anything wrong with an interracial family, Annie thought, relieved. They chatted about Mrs. Whitman's marriage for a few more minutes, and then Robin hung up so she could finish the paragraph she was working on. Annie lay back on her bed, wedging the pillow under her head, and thought about Cheryl and Mr. Thomas and about how difficult it might be for them to create a new family and adjust to moving across the country.

  After all, Annie reasoned, Cheryl's leaving her school and her friends and coming all the way from New York to California. In some ways, things are going to be tougher for her than they will be for me.

  Annie also couldn't help wondering whether Cheryl was going to have a hard time in Sweet Valley because she was black. Annie rolled over onto her stomach and tried to think about whether any of her friends had ever said anything racist. No, they hadn't, but even so she couldn't stop worrying.

  Annie headed out to the living room, where her mother was watching television.

  "Hi," Mrs. Whitman said.

  Annie settled on the sofa next to her, cleared her throat, and said, "Mom, can I ask you something?"

  Mrs. Whitman clicked off the sound on the remote and turned to her daughter. "Shoot," she said.

  "It's about Walter and Cheryl being black," Annie said. "I told Robin that you were getting married, and when I told her that you were going to be part of an interracial couple, she seemed OK about it. She even made a little joke about no one believing me and Cheryl when we say we're sisters."

  Mrs. Whitman smiled.

  "Anyway," Annie went on, "then I started wondering whether Cheryl's going to have problems here because she's black. I don't think she will, but now I'm kind of worried because I keep thinking about the fact that she and Walter are black. I even felt kind of awkward telling Robin about it—it was like I didn't know how to say it, or even whether I should mention it at all." She paused and looked at her mother. "Does thinking like that mean I'm a racist?"

  Her mother hugged her. "No, it doesn't, honey. When we first realized we were getting serious about each other, Walter and I had a long talk about what our relationship would mean, both for us and for you and Cheryl. The fact of the matter is that black people and white people often have distorted images of each other, and that affects the way individuals deal with each other. It's unfortunate, but that's the way it is."

  Annie nodded. "There's always something in the paper or on the news about race."

  "Yes. Because of that—and because there are racist people out there—it's not surprising that everyone thinks about the issue a lot. But thinking about it is never bad, honey. Thinking about it and talking about it openly, without making any judgments ahead of time, are ways we can eventually get less uncomfortable about it." Mrs. Whitman gave Annie a hug. "Feel any better?"

  Annie looked at her mom. "Yes, I do," she said honestly. Then her mouth curved into a sly grin. "I guess you could say that the issue's not quite as black and white as I thought it was."

  Annie ducked, but her mother managed to bop her with a throw pillow anyway.

  Three

  "I can't believe the weekend's already over," Jessica mumbled as she came downstairs in her bathrobe late Sunday morning. She yawned as she went over to the refrigerator and peered inside, eventually selecting half a cantaloupe and some yogurt for her breakfast.

  Elizabeth, who as usual had gotten up early, grinned at her twin. "It's barely eleven o'clock, Jess," she pointed out. "You've got what's left of the morning, plus the afternoon and evening."

  "Well, I still have to get dressed," Jessica said.

  "There goes the afternoon," drawled Steven, the twins' brother, who was home from college for the weekend.

  Jessica pretended to toss her cantaloupe at him.

  "Melon attack! Take cover!" Steven said with a laugh. He grabbed a couple of paper towels and went out the back door. A moment later Jessica could hear the clanking sounds that told her Steven was working on his beat-up yellow Volkswagen.

  "I don't know how Steven can stand to drive that junky old thing," Jessica commented to her sister.

  "Well, some people get attached to their old cars," Elizabeth observed. "There are probably a lot of good memories in that heap. After all, he and Cara went a lot of places in it," she said.

  "Has he heard from Cara lately?" Jessica asked, scooping up a spoonful of blueberry yogurt. Steven's girlfriend, Cara Walker, had moved to London with her mother some time ago.

  Elizabeth shook her head. "I don't think he's gotten a letter from her in quite a while," she said. "Steven understands that she's busy with school and everything, but even so, I think he really misses hearing from her." Elizabeth picked up the newspaper from the table, and when she did she uncovered a greasy wrench lying on a rag. "Steven's crescent wrench—I bet he's going to need it. I'll be right back." She grabbed the wrench and headed out after their brother.

  Jessica pulled the newspaper over to her and began idly flipping the pages. She didn't stop to look at the article on local water shortages that Elizabeth had started to read, but went on until she came to a full-page ad for the department store in the Valley Mall. She scanned the ad quickly.

  "Hey, Liz," she called as her sister came back into the house. "Look at these great T-shirts." She held up the paper. "Want to go shopping with me later?"

  Elizabeth dropped back into her chair. "Didn't you just go shopping yesterday with Lila and Amy?"

  "Well, yes, but I wasn't looking for anything specific then."

  "Hmm. I'll think about it, Jess
."

  Jessica knew from the tone of her twin's voice, however, that she wouldn't think seriously about going shopping. That's the trouble with Elizabeth, Jessica thought with a sigh. There are some things she just doesn't take seriously enough.

  As soon as she finished eating, Jessica went up to her room to get dressed. After donning a scoop-necked deep-purple T-shirt and white shorts, she added a multicolored woven belt and a pair of amethyst earrings that her boyfriend, Sam Woodruff, had given her a few weeks earlier.

  "Not bad, Jessica," she told herself as she twirled in front of the mirror.

  She went over to the window to open it a little wider, and as she did she noticed the realtor taking down the FOR SALE sign on the lawn of the house next door. Just then a car pulled up outside, and the realtor waved.

  Jessica grabbed a pair of black leather sandals and headed downstairs.

  "Liz! I think we have new neighbors!" she said as she slipped on her sandals. "I saw the real-estate agent taking down the For Sale sign, and then a car pulled up in front. Let's go check them out!"

  "Maybe they don't want to be checked out thirty seconds after they arrive in the neighborhood," Elizabeth protested.

  Jessica turned around and faced her twin, puzzled. "Why not?" she asked reasonably. "I bet they're just as anxious to check out their new neighbors as we are! Come on." Jessica tugged on Elizabeth's arm and practically dragged her out the door.

  When they got outside, the car that was parked on Calico Drive in front of the house next door to the Wakefields' was empty, but Jessica could see the realtor standing in the doorway of the vacant house, talking with someone. Soon the realtor went inside, leaving the front door open.

  "Jessica, they're obviously busy," Elizabeth hissed as Jessica headed up the driveway.

  "It'll only take a minute to say hello," Jessica whispered back. She ran ahead of her sister up the driveway.

  She mounted the two porch steps and called out cheerily, "Hello? Anybody here? We're the people next door."

  Footsteps echoed in the empty entryway, and in a moment Annie Whitman appeared at the door.

  "Annie? What are you doing here?" Jessica said incredulously. "I was looking for our new neighbors."