Chapter Twenty-One

Sydney was finding high school difficult. Not so much the homework but because of one particular boy. Jonas Ingberg has been writing her notes and leaving them in her locker. Notes telling her how pretty he thinks she is and how they should get together sometime. However whenever she would approach him, he would ignore her or tell his friends that she was some kind of stalker. They would all laugh and snicker behind her back. There was a dance coming up and she had hoped Jonas had been sincere in his compliments as she had wanted to go to the dance with him. He hasn't asked and didn't seem like he was going to either. Sydney had turned down other invitations from other boys in the hopes that he would eventually ask her. She was growing frustrated with the mixed signals Jonas was giving her.

The night of the dance finally arrived and her Dad had arranged for a limo to pick her up along with her friends. Sydney was a little disappointed that she was going without a date but she trusted what her Dad told her, that there would be other dances and other boys. Eventually she would meet someone who would appreciate her and she was going to take her Dad's advice not to obsess about the boy who wasn't man enough to go for what he wants. She had thought Jonas was that boy; however he spent the entire night avoiding her and the one time she asked him to dance, he turned her down. After that she joined her friends on the dance floor and just enjoyed herself. She was oblivious of the stares and looks that Jonas was giving her from his corner of the room.

"Sydney, what's up with that guy?"

"What guy?" Sydney asked baffled.

"Him" her best friend said, pointing towards Jonas.

"Oh him. He's the one who left all those notes in my locker."

"He's cute. Why don't you ask him to dance?" her friend suggested.

"I did. He said no."

"Then why does he keep staring at you?"

"I dunno. He's a jerk. He probably thinks it's funny. Unfortunately when I was a kid I had a huge crush on him. He probably remembers how I would follow him around. I guess it's pay back."

"Well I think he's a creep."

The night of the school dance was also Beverly's birthday. Both William and Jessica were a little sad knowing their youngest was no longer a baby. Jessica was feeling the familiar longing to have another baby but she agreed with William that six kids were enough and the house was already bursting at the seems. They just added on a second bathroom hoping that would help getting all the kids ready for school in the mornings. 
 

Now that Beverly was a child and too big to sleep in her crib anymore, Sydney felt it was time to assert herself again and ask for her own room. She approached William the next morning.

"Dad now that Bev is a too big for her crib, isn't it about time I get my own room?"

"Sydney your right. Thank you for being patient for so long." William commended her.

"You have no idea how often I wanted to ask but didn't"

"I have a pretty good idea." William commented "I still want to talk to Beverly about it. So if you can wait another day, we'll make the switch this weekend."

"Why this weekend? Can't we do it tonight?" Sydney started to whine.

"No" William continued "Tonight after school you and your Mom will go shopping for new bedroom furniture. Then there's the wait for them to deliver it. So the earliest would be Saturday."

"Can't I go shopping with you?"

"Honey, your Mom is looking forward to this shopping trip with you. You'll have fun."

"Yeah but I'd have more fun with you."

Later that morning William was outside in the garden with Beverly.

"Daddy I love being in the garden, it's so pretty. Do you think I can learn how to grow things?"

"Sure princess. Here let me show you a few things to get you started." William began to show her how to weed and care for the plants. While they worked in the garden, William asked her "

Honey now that your older, how would you like to share a room with Evelyn?"

Beverly stopped weeding and looked at her Dad considering what he asked. "I suppose it might be fun. But why can't she share a room with Sydney?"

"Well honey, a while back I made Sydney a promise that when her mother had a baby girl, she would get her own room. Well Sydney has been waiting to have her own room ever since you were born and big enough to sleep in a real bed. Now it' time I keep that promise."

"We'll have bunk beds right?" Beverly asked.

"You'll have the bunk bed that's already in Sydney's and Evelyn's room" William confirmed.

"Ok. As long as I get the top bunk" Beverly agreed.

"I think that can be arranged."

"Then I guess it's ok."

"Thank you honey for being such a good sport about sharing a room with Evelyn." William said giving Beverly a hug.

Meanwhile Robert has been missing from a lot of family chaos. He likes to withdraw to secluded areas so that he can be alone and read. Lately the best place to find solitude has been in his room of all places. Casey and Gene seldom played in the room as Casey preferred to paint and Gene liked playing outside.