The Baby-Sitters Club

Chapter 6

That Wednesday, as soon as I got home from school. . .    "Now where's that paper?" *flip flip* "Hey, Kristy! What are you doing?" "Look! Here it is! Our ad!" "Wow!" "Now if we can just finish putting up those fliers today, we might actually get some calls on Friday." "I know!" "Let's get Mary Anne to help us." "Okay, and Stacey." "No, Stacey's busy this afternoon." "What's she doing?" "Don't know. C'mon, are you ready?" "Let me see if Kathy's here yet. She's Baby-sitting for David Michael today." "Oh, good. Mom copied more fliers!" "That's the last flier!" "Now we just sit back and wait for calls."  Friday  "Come in!" "The phone's not going to run away, you know." "I know. I'm just so excited." ". . .So am I!!" "I've been waiting all week for today to come! Oh, this has got to work. We'll have customers. . . Won't we??" KNOCK KNOCK ". . . Probably Mary Anne." "Oh, right come in!!" Ahem. "I've been studying your sign from out here in the hall, and I'm wondering if possibly you've made a mistake." "What?" 'Well, I'm not entirely sure you have made a mistake. I'm trying to decide whether you need an apostrophe after the word "Baby-sitters." "You see, without an apostrophe, the word is simply plural, meaning the club consisting of the several or many . . ." "Hello, everybody!" Saved! "Hi, Stace!"   SLAM  5:29... RINGING! "I don't believe it!"  RINNG RING  "I'll answer it, I'll answer it!!" "Good afternoon. Baby-sitters club." "Kristy, its your mother." "Mom!! These are our business hours!" "You're not supposed to . . ." "What? You do? Oh. Please hold for a moment." "Mom needs a sitter for David Michael! Kathy can't come next Wednesday!!" "I've got our appointment book right here. Now let's see." "Mary Anne, you have a dentist appointment that day, and I have Art class. " "Kristy, that leaves you and Stacey." "What should we do?" "He's your brother." "But if you took it, you'd get to know some other people in the neighborhood. You'd probably meet my older brothers . . . ." "Brothers??" "But what'll you do while I Baby-sit? Sit and watch? " Hopefully, I'll get another job. . . . Hello mom?" "Stacey will take the job! Hey, where are you calling from? Oh, the office." "Quit tying up the line, Kristy!" "Mom, I have to go."   RING!   "Can I answer it?!!" "Good afternoon, Baby-sitters Club." ". . . I think you have the wrong number. There's no Jim Bartolini here."   RING!!!   "You get it, Kristy. You're the president." "Baby-sitters Club . . . Yes . . . Yes . . . Just a moment, please." "Do any of you know a Mrs. McKeever on Quentin court?" "No . . ." "Nope." "What's she got?" "Two kids, Buffy and Pinky." "Buffy and Pinky!" "Buffy and pinky?!" "They're three years old. . . . They must be twins." "She needs someone Wednesday afternoon. . . . I guess I'm the only one free." "Cool! A new client."  RING!   "Hello? . . . No, there is no Jim Bartolini here!"   RING! RII -- ❃ "Hello? Kristy, it's your mom again." "Mom? Did Kathy back out of her other afternoon, too? Oh. . . .Oh." "Oh, no." "Not me. I am not Baby-sitting for them. You know how I feel. Okay, but hang on." "Watson needs a Baby-sitter for his kids next Saturday. I'm not doing it." "I'll do it. I'm getting curious about them." "Fine. Sign yourself up for the job."   RINNG!! "Wow, 5:55. One last call!" "Hello? . . . What?!" "It's some boy on the phone. He says his name is Jim Bartolini. He wants to know if there've been any calls for him!" "You're kidding!" "What?!" "Oh, wait a SECOND!!" "SAM!! IS THAT YOU??" "No. It's Jim Bartolini. I was wondering if --" "SAM, YOU'RE A RAT!"   *Slam!*   "It's not FUNNY!"    I was not happy when I got home.    RING!   "Hi, Kristy! It's Claudia. Mrs. Newton called tonight. She needed a sitter for Thursday." ". . .  Yeah?" "So I took the job!" "That's great, Claud."      So just 'cause the main phone number is hers, she gets first crack at every job? Mrs. Newton always calls me first. At kest she used to. Well . . . At least I've got a new client! Pinky and Buffy Mckeever! I wish it were Wednesday now!