Getting the Boot Read online

  Dr. Wainwright was still flipping through the pages of her artwork, squinting rather comically and turning them every which way. She hoped her drawings didn’t reveal that she was crazy or anything.

  “I’m not the expert Andrea is, but I think these drawings are absolutely marvelous. You have a wonderful, free style and a color sense that really reflects your exuberant personality. I think you’re a very talented young woman.” He looked at her over the top of his glasses, smiling.

  For once, Kelly was speechless. Now that he mentioned it, she had always gotten pretty decent grades in art. And Andrea always went out of her way to compliment Kelly in class. But she had never expected to receive such strong praise from Dr. Wainwright, especially today.

  “What I’m worried about, Kelly, is that you’re not making very good use of your free time here, and both the PIR and the S.A.S.S. program have high standards to uphold.” Dr. Wainwright removed his glasses and leaned across the desk toward her. “May I be completely open with you?”

  Brace yourself for impact. “Sure, I guess so.”

  “I’m sorry to say this, but I think that Joe Leahy is the worst person you could ally yourself with right now. His behavior has become increasingly erratic and irresponsible since he’s been here. I strongly suspect that he is the catalyst for your lateness and lack of preparation in class on several occasions. And I’ll wager he was one of the friends you were out with last night.”

  Kelly bit her lip. Dr. Wainwright knew far more than she had thought about her many missteps this summer. She wondered if Sheela had ratted her out. Dr. Wainwright was clearly waiting for her to speak, but she couldn’t think of a thing to say.

  “I had no choice but to notify your parents about your recent tardiness to your classes and your violation of curfew last night,” Dr. Wainwright said. “We want you to stay in the program, Kelly, but it’s school policy to keep parents informed about this type of behavior. They’re as concerned about you as we are.”

  A droplet of sweat crawled down Kelly’s back. So her parents knew. Kelly had thought she’d just have to explain what happened to the locket; now her upcoming conversation with them was going to be even more painful.

  Dr. Wainwright handed the sketches back to Andrea. “Andrea is putting together a small group of gifted students to paint a mural on the south wall of the dining room. It will involve a lot of hard work, and will probably take up much of your free time.

  “We’ve been thinking that a composite of some of Rome’s most cherished sites would create a beautiful vista. The decor down there, as you know, leaves something to be desired.” Dr. Wainwright gazed at Kelly with his lively blue eyes. “What do you say?”

  “It sounds great. What’s the catch?”

  Dr. Wainwright threw back his head and guffawed. Even Andrea’s mouth twitched slightly.

  “Besides your promise to be absolutely punctual to class from now on, there’s only one real catch. I must ask you to reduce your time with Joe to a minimum. Before the two of you get into real trouble, this friendship needs to go on the back burner. Otherwise, I’m fairly certain that one of you will end up heading home early.”

  Kelly nodded slowly. “I understand. And I think you’re right about me and Joe. I’ll take care of it.”

  Dr. Wainwright smiled sadly. “I know it won’t be easy, but it truly is for the best.”

  “I’m sure you’re right.” Kelly nodded. “And I think I’ll enjoy working on the mural.”

  “I know you’ll be a wonderful asset to the team,” Dr. Wainwright said. Andrea nodded and smiled in agreement.

  Kelly stood up to go. “Thank you for having faith in me.” She trudged up the four flights to her room, utterly drained. Kelly had envisioned so many ways this meeting would end, and none of them involved her staying. Maybe she really did deserve to be here; the compliments Dr. W and Andrea gave her had certainly seemed sincere. It was time to end the pity party and drag a few small victories out of the smoking wreckage of her summer.

  Joe appeared at Kelly’s bedroom door only minutes after she finished with Dr. W and immediately grabbed her up in a crushing bear hug. “I’ve been out of my mind worrying about you, babe. Where have you been? I’ve come up here six times already.”

  Sheela, who was sitting at her desk in the common room, rolled her eyes. She pointedly turned her back on them and returned to her reading assignment. Kelly shut the bedroom door. She had no idea what she was going to say, but she certainly didn’t want Sheela to hear it.

  “I just got totally reamed by Dr. W and Andrea. I had to wake her up last night to get into the building, and they’re both megapissed at me. They even called my parents.”

  Kelly was exaggerating; as far as she was concerned, Dr. W and Andrea had been incredibly fair with her. But she wanted to make Joe feel as guilty as possible. He deserved it after what he had put her through. “Now I have to work on some special mural project. Where the hell were you guys? You were supposed to come back for me, remember?”

  Joe’s face was the picture of remorse. Aargh. The last thing she wanted was for him to be sweet right now. “It was pretty bad, Kel. Laura puked for like an hour straight, and when we brought her home, her father basically threatened to kill me and Rod. We were all the way over by Trastevere, and we couldn’t get a cab. We didn’t get back till like four A.M.” He sat on the bed and looked up at her winningly. “How could you think I’d forget about you?”

  Kelly felt herself wavering, but shook it off. “Look, I covered your asses this time, but I’m not gonna do it again. I don’t even understand why I did it—anyone with half a brain would have hung you out to dry after what you did to me, not to mention poor Laura. You drugged us, for God’s sake! I don’t think I can trust you anymore.”

  Joe was hanging his head, but his face still wore its usual smirk. “Seriously, Kel, I think you’re making a big deal out of nothing, don’t you? I just wanted to make you feel better.”

  “How dare you say that! I was terrified, stuck at that club all by myself. And now Dr. Wainwright is making me work on some art project so he can keep an eye on me.” She paused, cheeks flaming. “He specifically said you and I shouldn’t hang out anymore.”

  To her surprise, Joe smiled broadly. “But that’s so cool, like Romeo and Juliet. Sneaking around is a great way to spice up a relationship.” He leaned in for a kiss, but Kelly pushed him away.

  “What the hell is wrong with you? Have you heard one word I said? Keep it up, Joe—you’ll end up getting expelled. We’re definitely finished.”

  Joe stared at her for a long moment, his eyes blazing with anger. Then his mouth twisted into a sarcastic smile. “Whatever, Kel.” He threw open the door and strode out of the room.

  Kelly slammed the bedroom door and fell back on her bed, sobbing. Her summer was completely ruined. In one lousy week, she had lost her locket, her boyfriend, and her oldest friend.

  She lay there for what seemed like hours. Finally, Sheela came in and sat down next to her. “I couldn’t help overhearing your conversation with Joe. That took serious guts, you know.”

  “You think so?” Kelly felt a small glimmer of hope. Maybe it was still possible to make things right with Sheela.

  Sheela nodded. “Joe can be as charming and persuasive as you—just in a creepy, weaselly way.” She handed Kelly a tissue. “If you didn’t have so much backbone, you easily might have caved. I’m proud of you.”

  If Kelly hadn’t been so miserable, she would have smiled. “That means a lot to me. Especially after—you know, everything. I’m really sorry I’ve been a jerk.”

  Sheela nodded and stood up. “Listen, Jarvis and I are going to the Borghese Gardens. Do you want to come? The view of the city at sunset is supposed to be really gorgeous.”

  “And romantic,” Kelly added. “I don’t think you need me tagging along on your date. It is a date, isn’t it?” Sheela didn’t answer, but her cheeks flushed purple.

  “Anyway, I have to tell my pare
nts I lost the locket. And Dr. W called them about my being late to class and stuff. They’re going to be furious at me. Might as well bite the bullet and get it over with.” Kelly wiped her eyes and reached for her cell phone.

  Sheela thought that ending things with Joe took backbone? Once Kelly realized what kind of person he was, it had almost been easy. This phone call, on the other hand, was going to be pure agony. She couldn’t make up for all the things she had done, but facing them was a good first step.

  Her father picked up on the first ring.

  “Hi, Dad,” Kelly said, trying to keep her voice from shaking.

  “Kelly, I was just thinking about you. Mom and I were planning to call you later today.”

  Kelly winced. Her dad was using his courtroom voice—a voice not to be reckoned with.

  “I heard from Dr. Wainwright earlier this morning,” he continued. “I wasn’t happy to hear that you broke curfew. And he says you’ve been late to class repeatedly. Is that true?”

  “Yes, Dad,” Kelly whispered. “I’m really sorry.”

  “You should be. You promised us you’d keep up your grades and make a real effort this summer. This is especially embarrassing for us since Dr. Wainwright is a friend of Sheela’s father.”

  “I know,” Kelly said quietly, her eyes filling with tears. “I’m going to try harder. I promise.” She took a deep breath. “Is Mom around? I need to talk to her about something else.”

  Kelly’s heart was hammering so hard she could almost hear it.

  “She’s working the overnight shift at the ER to cover for another one of the nurses. She’s not home yet.”

  “Oh.” She’d just have to tell him and get it over with. “Actually, Dad,” the words rushed out, “it’s Grandma’s locket. I was out with a friend the other night, and it must have slipped off my neck. I don’t know how. Mom’s gonna hate me.” Kelly’s voice quavered.

  There was silence on the other end of the phone. “Dad?”

  “I’m here, hon.” Kelly heard him sigh. “Your mom will love you no matter what, but she is going to be upset. I’ll talk to her when she gets home.”

  Kelly felt a rush of guilt. If she hadn’t been so intent on partying with Joe, she might have noticed when the locket fell off.

  “I know how much it meant to Mom. I can’t believe how badly I’ve messed up everything.” She sniffled.

  Her father sighed again. “Listen, everyone deserves an appeal now and then, so consider this your get-out-of-jail free card. I’ll let this slide for now. But I don’t want to get another call from Dr. Wainwright, unless it’s to tell us how great you’re doing. Understand?”

  “Completely,” Kelly said, nodding into the phone.

  “Honey? I’ve got a brief to write this morning for a new case. Can we talk again later?”

  “Sure,” Kelly said, relieved that the conversation was almost over. “And Dad? Tell Mom I’m really sorry.”

  “I’ll make sure to.”

  Kelly shut off her phone, wondering what else she’d have to apologize for before this summer was over.

  To: [email protected]

  From: [email protected]

  Subject: Your grandmother’s locket

  Dear Kelly,

  Dad told me what happened with Grandma’s locket. I can’t pretend that I’m not heartbroken that it’s lost, and I’m certainly not happy that you were breaking curfew when you lost it. Maybe, if we’re lucky, it will still turn up.

  I’ll call you tomorrow so we can talk more. Please don’t forget the promise you made us about sticking to your studies. Dad and I know how hard you worked to get into the program, and we’d hate to see you lose out on the great opportunities there. We just want you to do well.

  Love,

  Mom

  Kelly smiled as Andrea loaded her six mural painters onto the metro for a trip to an art-supply shop near the Pantheon. She was excited not to be spending the afternoon cooped up at school. Having her free time so strictly regimented was actually a big relief. At home, her weekend plans were usually squared away by Tuesday afternoon, dinnertime at the latest. Only a week after her split with Joe, Kelly was already feeling the same odd desperation—loneliness, mere mortals called it—creeping up on her again, as it had when she first arrived in Rome.

  As they rode the train, Kelly checked out the other members of the group. The male-female ratio totally sucked—five to one—and the lone guy was Dai, an intense Japanese kid from Kelly’s Italian class. He was absorbed in sketching a wildly detailed, sci-fi creature of some sort on the back of his notebook. Gabriela, whose sneakers were spattered with paint, was obviously a serious artist—Kelly had seen her stuff hanging up in the art studio. Hildy and Veronica, whom Kelly had never seen talking to anyone except each other, were deep in a heated discussion about the “lines of incongruity” evident in Botticelli’s works. Compared to them, Sheela was a party animal. Kelly was almost relieved to see Goth Girl, otherwise known as Marina, finishing off the group. At least Kelly had spoken to her before, even if the conversation had failed miserably.

  Andrea laid out her plans for putting together the mural. “This week, we’ll travel around the city, choosing landmarks to include in the piece. Then you’ll each make preliminary pencil sketches. When those designs are finalized, you’ll ink over the lines, copy them onto film, and project the images on the wall. When that’s all done, we’ll be ready to paint.”

  The group followed Andrea several blocks to a pretty little art store hidden away on a cobblestoned alleyway. Outside the door, an easel held an oil painting of the street they were standing on. The art shop was the central focus of the painting.

  Kelly leaned over it, admiring the artist’s deft brush-strokes and the way hues were subtly mixed to perfectly capture the warmth of the stones and the brightness of the red geraniums that sat outside the door. She didn’t realize how absorbed she was until Andrea put a hand on her shoulder. “What do you think?”

  “I wish I could paint like that,” Kelly said. “I wonder who did it?”

  Kelly thought she saw a hint of color rise in Andrea’s cheeks. “Actually, I painted it. Whenever I’m in Rome, I stock up on art supplies here. Signor Carelli has always been so kind to me, I made this as a thank-you.”

  “It’s amazing,” Kelly said.

  Andrea ushered them into the store, where an elderly man—presumably Signor Carelli—kissed Andrea noisily on both cheeks. He gave them the run of the store, and Andrea showed them all different kinds of materials: chalk sticks called Conte crayons, glass bottles filled with jewel-colored inks, and a variety of paints and pigments.

  Hildy and Veronica ran over to a shelf of antique print books, while Dai browsed through some posters by a modern artist named Giorgio de Chirico. Marina had picked up a book on angels, and was studying each picture so closely her nose ring practically scraped the page. A Goth who was into angels? Go figure.

  Kelly wandered around the store, picking up brushes and pens and examining the artwork on the walls. Everyone else in the group seemed to have a real passion for art; Kelly didn’t even know if she had her own style. Maybe with this mural, she could really make something that was special, like Andrea’s painting of the store.

  Finally, armed with large pads and a handful of pencils and Conte crayons, the group continued on to the Pantheon, which Kelly hadn’t seen yet. Andrea explained that the building combined a Greek-style temple with a Roman dome. It was pretty amazing: a huge, impressive hunk of stone plopped right in the middle of a crowded piazza.

  The Pantheon was the best-preserved ancient building Kelly had seen so far. Pieces of the original marble facade still clung to the two-thousand-year-old walls, and a row of elaborate pillars framed gargantuan bronze entrance doors. But the most striking part was the vast, domed roof. Andrea said it was one of the greatest feats of engineering in the world. The builders had built it on a huge, round hill of dirt, and then took the earth away when construction was completed.
/>   Inside, the dome was equally impressive—when Kelly looked up at it, a ray of sunlight beamed all the way down to her feet.

  “The hole in the center of the roof is called the oculus,” Andrea told them. “It provides all the light in here, and as the sun travels west through the sky, the sunshine moves around the room.

  “As an art historian, my favorite fact about the Pantheon is that the Renaissance painter Raphael is buried here.” Andrea walked over to his alcove, which was watched over by two stern men who looked like older versions of Swiss Guards. A bunch of other big shots were also entombed in the building, a practice that was pretty common in Europe. Kelly found it utterly creepy.

  After they had checked it out completely, the group sat down at a café in the bustling square outside, ordered cappuccinos, and began sketching. “Remember,” Andrea said, “I want you to feel free to draw in your own style. Whether that’s anime, Abstract Expressionist, or Pointillist, so be it. Don’t worry about stuff like proportion and perspective yet—this is a warm-up. We’ll draw first and decide how to put it all together later.” As they worked, she snapped photos of the building from different angles and occasionally peeked over their shoulders.

  Marina leaned over toward Kelly. “What’s your glitch, Katie? I didn’t know Head Cheerleader Barbie was into mixing paint. Aren’t you worried you’ll ruin your pretty outfit?”

  “Actually, it’s Kelly.” She was a little miffed that Marina still couldn’t remember her name. “Dr. Wainwright thought I had too much time on my hands. I broke curfew a bunch of times to go clubbing and he found out about it. So here I am. As for my glitches, I have way too many to mention.”

  Marina looked impressed. “Killah Kelly. I think I underestimated you.” She held up a hand. “What do you think? ’Eighty-one Pontiac Firebird, graphite gray.”