[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.I knew he’d be happy to hear that.I’d almost finished sweeping when Matt came back.He bent to help me scoop up the giant mound of trash, and then we spent a good hour packing up boxes and hauling them back to storage.This time, moving the boxes was faster because it looked like we had sold about half of the items.When this was done, Matt told me that I could go change my clothes and have an hour or two off, then, later, I could join the troupe for dinner in the main building.I was eager to have a little time to myself, so Ihurried back to the tent.I changed my clothes, sat down on my cot, and pulled out my journal to write about the day.As I wrote, I reflected on the interesting people I had met here.It was obvious that the circus folk considered each other family.Several times, I noticed people stepping in to help, even if it wasn’t their job.I also wrote a bit about the tiger.The tiger really interested me.Maybe I should work with animals and study that in college , I reflected.Then I thought once again about my extreme dislike of biology and knew I’d never make it in that field.Finishing with my journal, I pulled out a novel and read a couple of chapters.As I got to the end of a chapter, I flipped my book over to keep it open, a bad habit of mine.I know I should use a bookmark, but old habits die hard.I stretched and decided to wander around a little.Finding the dog kennel, I stayed there for about a half hour playing with the canine performers.They were quivering with excitement and energy as they barked and wagged their tails, trying to gain my attention.My favorite was a little poodle that kept jumping up for me to pet her head.It was almost time for dinner, and I could smell a delectable aroma coming from the big building.I found the shower area and went in to wash my hands.There weren’t any towels.I’ll have to ask Cathleen to loan me a towel.For now, jeans will have to do.Wiping my hands on my jeans until they were at least semidry, I wandered into the big building.Matt was setting up chairs around seven or eight long folding tables.One of the tables was set up with takeout food from an Italian restaurant.It smelled fantastic.I started to help Matt set up chairs, but he brushed me aside.“You worked hard today, Kelsey.Relax, I got this,” he said.Cathleen came over and said, “Come sit by me.We can’t start eating until Mr.Maurizio comes in to make the evening announcements anyway.”Sure enough, the moment we sat down, Mr.Maurizio strolled dramatically into the building.Huh…he’s histrionic all the time and not just for the show.It’s just his personality, I guess.“Favoloso performance, everyone! And a most eccellente job to all of our salespeople, eh? They sold more than half of our inventario! So, tonight is a celebration! Mangiare…fill your plates mia famiglia!”I turned to Cathleen.“I guess that means we did a good job, right?”She answered, “Yep…let’s eat!”I waited in line with Cathleen, then picked up my paper plate and filled it with Italian green salad, a big scoop of spinach-and-cheese-stuffed shells covered in tomato sauce, parmesan chicken, and, not having enough room on my plate, popped a warm breadstick in my mouth, grabbed a bottle of water, and sat down.I spied a large chocolate cheesecake for dessert, but I wasn’t even able to finish the dinner I had on my plate.After dinner, the older people started to wander off.As Matt and Cathleen started to clean up, I offered to give them a hand.Cathleen asked, “Are you going to stay over tonight or are you taking off?”“Umm…I think I’ll stay tonightif you loan me a pillow and a towel.”“Great!” She smiled as we finished stacking the tables and chairs.Cathleen strolled back to her tent, and Matt and I swept the floor.I hummed as I worked, happy to have made new friends so quickly.After the floor was clean and the tables and chairs stacked away, I moved to a quiet corner of the building and called my foster parents to tell them that I’d be staying the night.When I hung up, I approached Matt, who was putting all the leftovers in the fridge, and asked him about his dad.“I didn’t see your dad at dinner.Doesn’t he get hungry too?”“I took him a plate.He was busy with Dhiren [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]