"Hey mom!" I greeted her, as I skipped down the stairs.
She looked up from her phone and smiled weakly.
"Hi honey!" She smiled.
I went behind her to see what she was doing, but she turned off her phone.
"Mom? What were you doing?" I asked.
"Nothing." She said.
I grabbed her phone and turned it on, running up the stairs.
"LEAH MAIRE WISH!" My mom yelled, running after me.
I laughed at her and ran into my room and locked the door.
"LEAH!" She pounded on the door, "OPEN THE DOOR!"
I looked on her phone and saw a set of texts.
Claudia Kishi.
hi lola. i was wondering if bubbles could come to the hospital. mimi's in the hospital and i really need some comforting.
I looked at the texts in shock.
I unlocked the door and my mom opened it.
"Is she gonna be okay?" I asked.
My mom shrugged.
"I-I dunno, Bubbles. Claudia really needs you though. So I suggest you go."
I nodded and gave her the phone.
I grabbed my phone, coat, and beanie.
"I'll be back soon." I told my mom.
I headed down the stairs and started my way to the hospital.
••••
"Claudia?"
Claudia looked up from her lap and saw me.
"Hi sweetie."
"Hi Bubbles."
I sat down next to her and wrapped my arm around her shoulders, while she cuddled into my side.
"Have you heard anything yet?" I asked.
"She's stable."
I nodded, letting a little puff out of my nose.
"She's gonna be okay."
••••
"So, we called all the girls, and we have all your jobs covered for the next couple weeks. And we'll give you the money anyways." Stacey explained to Claudia at her house.
"Honestly, I just want everything to be as normal as possible. Mimi's gonna be fine!" Claudia assured us.
I smiled and popped a piece of orange into my mouth.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that."
The three of us looked up and saw Janine.
"Hi Janine!" I waved.
"What do you want, Janine?" Claudia groaned.
"Merely to disabuse you of the notion that Mimi's recovery will be a swift and/or complete." Janine told her sister.
"You're saying she wont get better?" Claudia asked.
"Mimi is eighty three years old. Her likelihood of total recovery is low. We shouldn't dilute ourselves." Janine explained her thinking.
I made an O with my mouth an popped an orange into it.
"Can I have one?" Stacey whispered.
I smiled and nodded, placing one into her hand.
She popped it into her mouth with a smile.
"You think I'm delusional, you think Mimi's gonna give up, but I know her better than that, and that's why she loves me more than you!" Claudia exploded at her sister.
Janine held a hurt look on her face and rushed up the stairs.
••••
The three of us sat at the Kishi's dining room table, looking at Claudia's art.
"Ooh! Tootsie Pop!" I giggled, pointing at the painting.
"It needs more space at the bottom so it doesn't distract the judges." Stacey said.
The doorbell rang.
"I'll get it!" I smiled, skipping over to the door.
I opened the door and it revealed the Thomas', my mom and my sister.
"Hey Bubbles! Claudia's parents called and said to check up on her while they're at the hospital! I brought pizza!" Ms.Thomas smiled at me.
"We have cupcakes." My mom smiled, holding up her container of cupcakes.
"Oh! We're here too. No one called us, but, we have casseroles." Mr.Spier greeted, coming though the door.
"Oh! Hi!" I smiled.
Claudia rushed away from the table and over to him, hugging him tight.
"I'm so glad you guys are all here."
"What kind of casserole?" Ms.Thomas asked.
"Healthy. What kind of pizza?"
I headed over to Kristy and hugged her.
"Hello, Kristy." I smiled.
"Hey Bubs." She smiled back.
I headed over to Mary Ann.
"She's gonna be okay, right?" The anxious girl asked Claudia.
"Absolutely!" Claudia assured her.
I turned around and I saw Sam.
"Hey stranger!" I smiled.
"Hey, Bubbles."
I went over to him and hugged his neck, while he hugged my waist and spun me around.
I laughed at him.
••••
"STOP IT, SAM!" I yelled at the boy, slapping his hand away from the straws.
He put two straws in his nose and was blowing bubbles with them.
The girls laughed at him, while I was more concerned.
I dropped my fork.
"There goes my appetite."
"WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT!" Stacey laughed.
We all looked at her.
"H-HE'S BLOWING BUBBLES!" She laughed, pointing at me.
Me and Sam's faces went red, and I buried my head in my hands, while all the girls laughed.
••••
We all sat in Claudia's room, decorating cards for Mimi.
I was drawing a garden of flowers, because Mimi and I would have conversations about flowers for HOURS when it would rain.
"I'm done." Sam smiled.
I looked up at his drawing, and saw it was a blender.
"Is that a blender?" Stacey asked.
"It's this thing I draw." Sam waved off.
"He said when they move into Watson's, he's gonna make this...HUGE blender picture." I laughed, stretching out my hands.
"Oh! Cause nothing says 'get well soon!' like a blender." Kristy scoffed at her brother.
"Well, I think it's cool." Stacey smiled.
I got to the point KNOWING Stacey was gonna have a crush on Sam while I did too. But hey, who knows, maybe she'll find herself a Sam.
"Going back to what Bubbles said," Sam started, while I stuck my tongue out at him, "when we move into Watson's, yeah. I'm probably gonna make one that covers my whole wall."
"Are you getting excited to move?" Stacey asked.
Sam nodded, while Kristy scoffed.
"Kristy's worried that if our mom isn't stressed about money every single second of her life, she's gonna stop being a feminist," I snorted out loud, "or something. So it's better we all live on top of each other and go into crazy debt for college rather than compromise our values by letting mom marry a chill guy that totally loves her." Sam explained.
"Wow~" I sounded out, "make a TedTalk about you're life, Sam."
"And of course our famous Bubbles being sarcastic again. But, isn't that right, Kristy?" Sam asked his sister.
"Well, when you put it that way..." Kristy whispered.
Everyone laughed.
Louise stood up and came over to me.
"Bubbles." She whispered into my ear.
I looked up at her.
"I'm not supposed to tell you this, but-"
Sam grabbed Louise's arm gently and brought her into his lap, tickling her so she laughed.
I laughed at her, but that got me thinking...
What was she gonna say?
••••
"So, are you loving your new room?" Claudia asked Mary Ann.
"Oh yes! I still have to see it." I smiled.
"Oh, yes, totally, I just..." Mary Ann looked around the room, "I dunno. I think I just need to get used to it."
"That makes sense." Claudia assured her.
"Claudia?" Ms.Thomas started, walking into the room, "your mom called form the hospital. Mimi woke up."
I sighed in relief, as did everyone else.
I then looked over at Sam.
"Ha. Pay up, loser."
"What were you-What were you betting on?" Ms.Thomas asked.
"I bet that Mimi was gonna wake up tonight." I said, raising my hand.
"And I bet she was gonna wake up tomorrow morning." Sam added, slapping a five dollar bill in my palm.
I giggled and wrapped my arm around his shoulders.
••••
I stood in front of Claudia at her art show, straightening out her jacket.
"Oh, you are gonna do great, honey! I can sense it." I assured her.
"Ha! Get it? Cause your dress says honey." Claudia nervously laughed.
"Not the point, but yes, it does. You like pointing things out on my shirt, don't you?" I asked.
"Here they come." Trevor told us.
"Thank you, Trevor!" I smiled at him.
I looked down at Claudia.
"You are going to snatch the competitions weave, I just know it! Wooo!" I cheered.
"Good luck, Claud!" Kristy called out to her.
"Good luck!" Dawn and Stacey said.
I grabbed two of the threes girls hands and started to lead them over by Mary Ann.
That was until her crush, Logan, came out of no where.
I pushed the three girls aside.
"What the heck, Bubbles?" Dawn asked.
"Shhh! Look!" I whisper-yelled to her.
She looked over my shoulder and saw Mary Ann and Logan.
"Oooh!" She squealed.
"What are you doing here?" Mary Ann asked.
"My sisters showing pottery. Do you like this one?" Logan explained, pointing to a picture.
"W-What? This? What is it?" Mary Ann asked.
"Oh boy." Kristy sighed.
"Um, I...I think it's a basket of eggs." Logan told her.
"Eggs." Mary Ann awkwardly chuckled, while I face palmed, "Bye!"
She ran over to us.
"Oh, goodness. That was like a car crash. I couldn't look away." I sighed.
"Uhm, you spoke!" Dawn assured Mary Ann.
"I don't get it! New hair, new clothes, new room, but-"
"You didn't just magically become Stacey. Mary Ann, can I asked you something?" Kristy interrupted Mary Ann.
"Do you even like your new room?"
"I-I do..."
We all gave her a 'really' look.
"...in theory. I dunno. I guess it just doesn't feel like...home."
"Home is what YOU want it to be, Mary Ann. Not Stacey, not Claudia, but you. It took my mom six tries to get me a room I liked, SIX. TRIES. She's still trying on Louise! Point is, she wants us to be comfortable in our rooms, and we all want you comfortable in yours." I explained to her.
Mary Ann nodded.
••••
"Hey Louise!" I smiled, walking into her white room.
She looked up from her coloring table.
"Oh! Hi Bubbles! Say hi, Carmelita."
She took her frog and made her wave to me.
"Hey, Carmelita!" I smiled, waving to her.
"Oh! You're just in time. Tea time!" Louise cheered, going over to her plastic kitchen.
I walked over to her very very small table and pulled out a tiny chair, sitting down on it.
"Cream or sugar?" Louise asked.
"Uhm, both, please!" I smiled.
"Don't be ridiculous. You're getting sugar."
"Oh." I whispered.
She walked over with a cute little cup and plate and handed it to me.
She handed one to Carmelita too.
"Cheers!" Louise smiled, holding up her cup.
I held mine up too and bumped her cup with mine, pretending to sip it after.
"So, Louise," I started, placing my cup on the table, "what were you going to tell me at the Kishi's?"
"What? I didn't say anything? What are you talking about?" She quickly answered.
"You're answering stuff very quickly. Hiding anything?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at her.
"No! No." Louise waved off.
"I'll get to the bottom of this." I whispered.
I pushed myself aggressively away from the table, causing my chair to fall backwards and me to roll out of it.
I got up quickly.
"Call me Scooby-Doo, Louise, cause me and the gang are getting to the bottom of this mystery."
••••
"Mimi!" I cheered, as I rushed into the Kishi's house and hugged the older woman.
"Hello, my Bubbles." She greeted me.
Kristy hugged her next.
"I made you a afghan, but I ran out of yarn, so I guess it's a scarf!" Mary Ann told Mimi, placing it on her neck.
"Thank you! Beautiful!" Mimi smiled.
"Hi, Mimi." Stacey smiled, hugging her, "so glad you're better."
"You okay, Mimi?" Claudia asked her grandmother.
"I...tea." Mimi told her granddaughter.
"Call me when it's ready and I'll bring it upstairs." Claudia smiled.
Mimi headed to the kitchen.
"She's doing great." Mary Ann told Claudia.
"Yeah, she it." Claudia smiled.
"Claudia, you've always-"
I heard the phone ringing.
"The phone." I whispered.
"What phone?" Kristy asked.
"The nineteenth century phone in Claudia's room is ringing!" I told her, running up the stairs.
"THE PHONE!" All the girls shouted, following behind me.
I rushed into Claudia's room and grabbed it.
"Hello! Babysitters Club! This is Leah 'Bubbles' Wish speaking!" I greeted the person on the other line.
"Hi there, Leah! It's Mrs. Pike."
"Hi there, Mrs.Pike! What's up?"
"Well, we were wondering if you and a couple more of the girls would like to come on a trip to Sea City with all eight kids!"
"Sea City?" I asked in awe.
The girls eyes widened.
"Are you serious?" I laughed.
"Yes! Yes I am!"
"I mean, we'll have to ask!" I told her, over the whispers and giggles of the girls.
"Okay! So we'll leave at-"
I sat down on Kristy's chair and began writing all the details down on the notepad.
What I didn't know, was that the three girls that were going?
They were in for a wild ride.
And of course...
It involved me.
A/N
Ayyye!
Guess who deleted six chapters of this book and now has to re write them?
Huh?
*points at me*
This girl!!