Free Cat by V. C. Andrews

night,
and then the fish fork which will be used first. Just to
the right of the plate is the salad knife, next is the
meat knife, which again, might not be there, and on
the outside is the fish knife Outside the knives are the
soup spoon and, if they have it, the fruit spoon.
Dessert forks and spoons should be brought in on the dessert plate, but they might have it out already. I don't know how formal they are, of course. You know what the butter plate is and how it's there for your bread. Remember not to put your elbows on the table or slurp your soup or talk with food in your mouth.
Any questions?'
"'No, Mother,' I said. I was dying inside,
knowing that all we actually were going to do was
open a few boxes of pizza and probably slap the
pieces on paper plates, and open bottles of soda. Now
I was even more terrified of her learning the truth. She
might accuse me of making a big fool out of her. "My teeth were practically chattering when it
was time for her to take me over to Kelly's house. I
was afraid she might go in with me, but my mother,
fortunately, is shy herself, and just let me get out of
the car.
"'Call me when it's time to come home and remember, don't overstay your welcome, Cathy. Oh,
wipe your mouth after every bite and always say
please and thank you when you're passed anything at
the table. Don't speak unless you're asked a question,'
she warned.
"'Okay,' I muttered with my head down and
hurried to the front door, praying no one else would arrive before my mother pulled away. No one did because they were already in the house. I didn't know Kelly's parents weren't home. Her father had taken her
mother out to dinner.
"In fact, when Kelly opened the door for me,
the music was so loud, I was afraid it might spill out
and reach my mother's car even as she drove away. "I was a little shocked. It was as if Kelly had
become a different person. She was wearing a blouse
tied at her waist instead of buttoned so some
uncovered waist showed, and a pair of jeans with no
shoes or socks. Here I was dressed in my best outfit. "'She's here!' Kelly screamed and the others
came out of her room.
"I guess I was standing there with my mouth
fallen open. Everyone laughed at me and how faunally
I was dressed. Everyone else was in jeans and Tshirts. I didn't know the boys, of course, and they
were quickly introduced. I was too nervous to pay
much attention to their full names. Michael was a tall,
dark boy with light brown hair and brown eyes, Tony
was a shorter boy, stout, with very light brown hair
and very nice blue eyes, and Frankie was a rather
heavy boy with black hair and dark eyes. Talia Morris
was there and so was Jill Brewster, girls I knew from school, but not very well. I found out that Tony was Jill's older brother and he had brought his friends.
Tony, Frankie and Michael attended public school. "My second shock came when I discovered that
the cups they held in their hands were not filled with
just Coke. Tony had brought a bottle of rum. A cup
was thrust at me immediately, and I held it like I
would hold a loaded pistol when I was told what was
in it.
"'I can't drink this,' I told them. 'My mother will
smell it on me immediately.'
"'Don't worry about that. You chew some gum
or gargle with mouthwash. We're very experienced
with all this,' Tony assured me. 'We even drink it at
school sometimes,' he added, laughing. 'Come on, join
the party.' He practically forced me to sip the drink. I
didn't taste the rum, but I know it was in there because
it wasn't too long before I felt myself grow lightheaded and a little dizzy.
"I guess I was fascinated by it all. The boys had
so many outrageous stories to tell about life at their
school. Compared to ours, it sounded exciting to be
there every day. I sat back on Kelly's bed and listened
and watched as they played music, smoked, drank
some more rum and Coke, always filling my cup as well. We devoured the pizza when it was delivered. I laughed a lot and for a while, I felt so happy and