"Martin, Ann M - Baby-sitters Club - Super Special 01 - Baby-sitters on Board!" - читать интересную книгу автора (Martin Ann M)

So we played Ping-Pong. I'd only played a few other times (the McGills have a Ping-Pong table in their basement), but Parker must have played a lot. Anyway, he was good. And we were a good team. We kept beating the other couples. I nearly died when Kristy and her old man friend took their Iturn playing against us,
but I managed to psych Kristy out.
"Whoo-ee," I teased her. "Who's your boyfriend?" It was mean and I knew it, but Kristy had been mean to me on the ship. She'd been rude and messy and had made jokes about contaminating me. So I was glad to be able to psych her out.
Parker and I won the tournament. We were awarded a huge tin loving cup, which Parker said I could keep. After that, we ate lunch at the cafe and then we went back to the Sun Deck for a swim. We lay on the lounge chairs, drying off in the hot sunshine.
Somehow we started talking about divorce. I told him about my family. Then he told me about his. "You're lucky," he said. "At least your mom isn't remarried. I ended up living with my dad after the divorce and what did he go and do? He got married to this lady who has two little boys. They're five and eight. Right away, I asked to live with my mom instead. My parents said okay, but only for a month. I just moved back in with Dad a couple of weeks ago and he took me and my stepmother and the two brats on this trip so we could get to know each other better. What a
stupid idea. I spend as little time with them as possible."
"How do you know the boys are brats then?" I asked him.
"Come on," said Parker. "All little kids are brats. Especially stepkids."
"I don't know," I said, trying to be patient. "My, um, friend Kristy" (I guessed I could still call her that) "just got a stepfather, a four-year-old stepbrother, and a six-year-old stepsister. And she loves them. Well, she loves the kids anyway. She's getting used to her stepfather."
"Remarriages are just plain bad ideas," said Parker flatly. "My mom's feelings are hurt, and my whole life has changed. Dad's being selfish."
It was hard to admit, even to myself, but I kind of thought Parker was the one who was being selfish. I didn't say so, though.
At that moment Parker suddenly jumped up and said, "Enough sitting around!" (I bet he meant enough talking about divorces and marriages.)
We went to the video arcade. We watched a movie in the theater. Finally, we found one
of those booths where you can have your picture taken. I went in first and crossed my eyes and stuck out my tongue. Parker went in next and made monkey lips and flared out his nostrils. Then we squeezed in together and took two normal pictures of us smiling. We each kept one normal photo, Parker kept the goofy one of me, and I kept the goofy one of him.
What a wonderful day.
Parker and I decided to spend at least one day together at Disney World.
Was this love? Was Parker my first true boyfriend?
I decided that the answer to both questions was yes.
Mary Anne.
The triplets are in trouble.
Last night when they got back from Treasure Cay, they were all excited about something and they kept running through the ship. I didn't know then what they were doing, but whatever it was, they sure were noisy about it. They ran from deck to deck, thundering up and down stairs and occasionally knocking into people.
Finally one of the stewards caught up with them. He gave them a talking-to and led them back to their parents' cabin. The triplets stood by sheepishly while the steward spoke to Mr. and Mrs. Pike. When the man left, Mr. Pike called Stacey and me into the room. He explained what had happened.
"And so," he finished up, "the triplets are back in your care."
"Da-ad!" exclaimed Adam unhappily.
"Adam," Mr. Pike warned him. "You're in hot water already. Don't make it worse." He turned to Stacey and me. "At least for tomorrow," he said, "you'll have to watch all the kids except Mallory."
"Okay," said Stacey. "No problem."
"Right. We'll divide them up," I added.
We gathered the Pike kids in the cabin I was sharing with Vanessa the Slow and Mallory.
"Here's how we'll do things," Stacey told the kids. (She's better at taking charge than I am.) "Unless you all want to stay in one big group, Adam, Byron, and Jordan will go with Mary Anne, and Nicky, Vanessa, Claire, and Margo will stay with me. Mallory, you're on your own as usual."
Mallory smiled.
But Nicky jumped up and cried, "Just one change. Can I go with the triplets and Mary Anne? Please?"
The triplets looked at us eagerly Ч like they actually wanted Nicky to join them.
Stacey and I glanced at each other. I didn't mind being in charge of the four boys even though it would be a tougher job than taking care of Vanessa, Claire, and Margo. But what
was this sudden friendship between Nicky and the triplets? Usually, the triplets can't stand Nicky.
We decided not to question it.
"Fine with me," I said.
"Fine with me," Stacey said.
My day with the boys began early. And we were quickly joined by David Michael Thomas. The five kids seemed to be in an enormous hurry and they were very excited about something.
"Just what are you guys up to?" I asked as I chased them up a flight of stairs. "And slow down. No running. That's how you got in trouble last night."
The boys halted at the top of the steps. Byron drew a rumpled piece of paper out of the pocket of his shorts. He glanced at the others. "Should we tell her?" he whispered.
"I guess so," Adam whispered back. Then, raising his voice, he said to me, "Promise you won't laugh. And promise you'll listen to us and believe us."
"I promise," I said.
"A fisherman laughed," Adam persisted, "and Dawn didn't even pay attention."
I didn't know what they were talking about, but I said, "I promise," as strongly as I could.
The boys told me about the treasure map. In all honesty, it was a little hard not to laugh. I mean, treasure hidden on an ocean liner? And a stowaway pirate? But I have heard of stranger things, so I held my laugh in.
"Well? What do you think?" asked Byron.
"I think," I replied seriously, "that there isn't much chance of finding a treasure or a stowaway on the Ocean Princess Ч "
The boys groaned.
"But," I went on, "if s true that you don't know what that map is for, so you might as well look around the ship."
"WHOOPEE!" cried the boys.