Excerpt from Katie Kazoo Super Special: Who's Afraid of Fourth Grade "Look at this place!" Katie exclaimed as she walked into Emma's house. She blushed. The words had left her mouth before she could stop them. But she couldn't help it. Emma's house was so different from Katie's. At Katie's house, everything was neat and orderly. The coats were always hung up in the closet, the magazines were stacked on the coffee table, and the dishes were put away. But the Weber house was a mess! Baby socks were scattered on the floor of the front hall. There were toys everywhere. Katie had to be careful not to trip over a small truck or airplane as she followed Emma into the kitchen. The mess came from having babies in the house. Katie remembered how clean and neat Suzanne's house had been—before her sister Heather was born. After that, there were bottles and toys all over the Lock house too. Suzanne! Just the thought of her made Katie angry. She decided not to think about her anymore. Instead, she followed Emma into the kitchen. The kitchen wasn't any neater than the front hall. The sink was stacked high with unwashed baby bottles, and there were crumbs and part of an uneaten bagel on the floor just below the two high chairs. Katie bet Mrs. Weber never made Emma clean her room the way Katie's mother always did. Emma sure was lucky! She could be messy if she wanted to. But better than the mess was the fact that there were kids everywhere in the Weber house. By the time Katie, Emma, and Matthew got there, Emma's big sister, Lacey, was already home. The teenager was talking to one of her friends on the phone. Katie wasn't sure how Lacey could hear the person on the other end, since one of the twins was sitting on the floor, singing as he banged two pans together. Katie stared at Lacey. The fifteen-year-old looked so cool. She had her long hair up in a messy bun. She was wearing glittery eye shadow and lipstick. Katie really loved her low-slung jeans and her silver belly shirt. Lacey's outfit was so much cooler than Emma's brown suede loafers and well-worn overalls. Katie thought that when Emma got older, she'd be able to share Lacey's awesome wardrobe. Katie sighed. She didn't have anyone she could share clothes with. Katie waited for Emma to introduce her to Lacey, but Lacey didn't even notice that the girls had entered the room. She didn't even notice that the twin who had been banging pots on the floor was now standing on the kitchen table. "Tyler, get down from there," Emma said, setting the toddler on the ground. "I'm firsty," he told her. "Want juice." "Wouldn't Lacey get you a juice box?" Emma asked. Tyler shook his head and pointed to Lacey. "Talk. Talk. Talk." Emma sighed. "Lacey, get off the phone. It's your turn to help with the twins." Lacey shot Emma a dirty look. She did not get off the phone. Emma went to the refrigerator and took out a sippy cup filled with apple juice. "Where's Mom?" she asked Tyler. Tyler pointed up toward the ceiling. "Timmy made stinky." Katie looked confused. Emma laughed. "He means Mom's upstairs changing Timmy's diaper," she explained. Katie nodded. She smiled at Tyler. He looked adorable drinking his juice, and rubbing a small baby blanket against his cheek. Katie sighed. Emma was so lucky. She had cute little brothers, and a teenage sister too. Emma probably learned all about the latest styles and new music from Lacey. "You want a snack?" Emma asked Katie. "Sure. What do you have?" Emma peeked in the cabinet. "We have graham crackers, peanut butter, and raisins. Mom usually leaves carrots and celery in the fridge too." "Graham crackers sound good," Katie told her. "Me too!" Tyler slid across the kitchen floor in his socks. He crashed into Katie's legs. "Oops, sorry." Katie rubbed her knee. "It's okay," she assured him. She looked at Emma. "Is it always like this around here?" Emma laughed. "You should see what's going to happen when Timmy gets down here. He's the real troublemaker." Just then, Katie heard a woman's voice shouting down the stairs. "Timmy, walk down the stairs like big boy. You shouldn't slide down on your tush." "Bump. Bump. Bump," Timmy replied. He said "bump" every time he bounced down another step on his rear end. Timmy and Mrs. Weber came into the kitchen. Timmy looked at his twin brother. He noticed that Tyler had his baby blanket. Timmy didn't have his. That did not make Timmy happy. "WANT BLANKIE!" he cried out. "Emma, will you go upstairs and get Timmy's blankie? I swear I can't go up those stairs another time." Mrs. Weber let out a weary sigh. "I'm so glad your dad's getting home from this business trip tomorrow night. I could sure use his help around here." "I'll get the blankie, Mom," Emma replied sweetly. "Do you remember Katie?" "Welcome to the zoo, Katie," Mrs. Weber joked. "I haven't seen you in so long. Why don't you go into the family room and make yourself at home while Emma runs upstairs? It's quieter in there." She pointed toward a room in the back of the house. Katie looked at Emma. "Go ahead. I'll be right back," Emma assured her. As Katie left the room, she could see Mrs. Weber pull a package of chopped meat from the refrigerator. She was obviously starting dinner. Katie wondered how much food it would take to feed such a full house. * * * The family room was quiet. Sure, there were plenty of toy cars, trucks, planes, and stuffed animals all over the place, but there was no one there. Katie sat down on the fluffy black couch and relaxed for a minute. Now she knew why Emma wanted to do her math homework at the Carew house. Katie couldn't imagine how Emma got anything done with all the craziness going on in this house. Still, things were kind of exciting at Emma's. There was no way anyone could ever be bored or lonely here! Just then, Katie felt a cool draft on the back of her neck. She turned around and looked for an open window. But all the windows were shut tight. She looked up. There was no ceiling fan in the room. The draft was getting colder and stronger by the second. But it only seemed to be blowing on Katie. There wasn't any sign of a breeze anywhere else in the room. Katie gulped. This was no ordinary wind. This was the magic wind! Whoosh! A powerful tornado began to swirl all around Katie. Faster and faster it spun, growing wilder by the second. Katie had to grab onto the couch to keep from being blown away. She shut her eyes tight, and tried not to cry. And then it stopped. Just like that. Katie gulped. The magic wind was gone. Who had it turned her into this time? |