Betty Lee, Freshman Part 13

"If you _do_," threatened d.i.c.k, shaking a fist, though, grinning, as he disappeared altogether from his position in the kitchen door, and they heard him scampering down the hall.

"Now he'll get out a book or something," said Betty to Janet, "and settle down for awhile. The point is, we really think it better to have Doris, at least, at home, to amuse Amy Lou and keep her out of Mother's way a little; and since they didn't want to go to church with us, it's all right. Oh, you are going to enjoy the service, I think. One of our very best preachers is to give the sermon at the sort of union service of the churches; and it's in one of the very prettiest churches, too, with a big vested choir and everything! There will probably be some grand solo, or quartette, or something special, and we want to get there early enough to hear the chimes."

"Sue and I will get ready, then, right awayshall we?"

"Please, and I'll whisk into something and we'll be off in a jiffy, when Father's ready to go."

In such active fas.h.i.+on Thanksgiving Day began for this household and its guests, with everybody in fine spirits. The air was cold and d.i.c.k was hoping for snow. "Gee, I bet the boys are skating up home," said he as he followed his father to the garage.

"I doubt it," replied his father, "but you're not going to get as much snow and ice as you want here, I suppose."

Three happy girls, warmly clad, climbed into the machine with Mr. Lee and they were soon whirling on their way toward the church, whose service was almost as new to Betty as to her guests, with beautiful music and an impressive message. And then came the return to the warm house, the smiling mother with her face a little flushed from frequent bastings of the turkey, and the good old-fas.h.i.+oned Thanksgiving dinner, which makes every one thankful whether he was in that mood before or not.

As usual, Mr. Lee stopped to let his pa.s.sengers enter by the front door, while he drove to the garage, and Betty was rather surprised to have her mother open the door for them, though probably the night latch was on.

Mother kept things locked up as a rule, since coming to the city.

"Hang up your wraps here in the closet, girls," breezily directed Mrs.

Lee, "and go into the living room to meet our guest."

"Guest!" thought Betty as she gave her mother an inquiring look. Who in the world had come?

"It is one of the boys that your Father knows, Betty," replied Mrs. Lee, speaking softly in reply to Betty's unspoken question. "It seems he asked him to come for Thanksgiving dinner and forgot to tell meso by all means make him welcome. I think he goes to one of the high schools and works in between times."

Betty, wondering, and guessing at the cordiality which her mother must have used to cover up her ignorance and make the boy feel at home, followed her mother from the hall to see a tall, rather heavy boy rise and stand a little awkwardly to be introduced. Dark eyes, unsure of a welcome, met Betty's. Whywhy, it was the "Don!"

From the rather sober, polite girl who was ready to make a stranger welcome, Betty became a wide-awake, welcoming friend. Her mother, in a low but cordial voice, was mentioning a name that Betty had heard but never remembered, and then she was giving the girls' names to the guest.

"Why, Mother, _this_ is the hero of our champions.h.i.+p game!" Betty was stretching her hand out with a smile. "Does Father know it? And where is d.i.c.k? He ought to be wors.h.i.+pping at your shrine!" Betty hardly knew what she was saying in her surprise. The other girls, following Betty's example, shook hands with the tall lad, who seemed to lose a little of his shy att.i.tude under this complimentary greeting. It was nothing so unusual, to be sure, for the Lees to have some lonesome body to share their Thanksgiving dinner, yet her father's forgetfulness and the surprise of his acquaintance with the "Don" were two unexpected features of the situation. But trust Mother to handle it!

"d.i.c.k went off somewhere almost as soon as you went to church, Betty,"

Mrs. Lee was saying. "I'm glad to know that he will find a friend in Mr.

Balinsky. Please excuse us all for a few minutes. I'm going to ask the girls to help me take up our dinner. Mr. Lee will be in shortly and Amy Lou will keep you company, I suppose."

Amy Louise, who had reached the point of showing one of her picture books to the "big boy," soberly nodded a.s.sent. Doris was nowhere to be seen, but she was found cracking nuts for the top of the salad and announced to Betty, "We have everything ready now, I think."

"Well, you certainly have been a help to Mother," said Betty warmly, "and did you know that Ramon Balinsky is the 'Don'?"

"Why Betty Lee! How wonderful! No, I never saw him close enough at school; and then you couldn't tell, on the field, in his football clothes! My, won't d.i.c.k be simply stunned? I'm going to see where he is and call him!"

"His name has been in the school papers, but we've always called him the 'Don', so for a minute I didn't know him, all dressed up, too, in his Sunday clothes, I suppose. He usually looks so dingy at school, but Mother says he works, so of course, poor kid!"

"Maybe he doesn't have enough neckties and s.h.i.+rts, Betty," added Doris, in a sepulchral whisper. "Bet he'll like our dinner all right!"

d.i.c.k needed no rounding up, for he breezed into the back door just then, to be told by Doris to, "just go into the front room and see who's going to be here for dinner!" And the girls busy with trips back and forth, from kitchen to dining room and dining room to kitchen, smiled to hear the whoop with which d.i.c.k welcomed the older boy. It was not loud, but enthusiastic, and an immediate sound of conversation in d.i.c.k's boyish treble and Ramon's deeper tones indicated, so Betty whispered, that d.i.c.k was finding out everything that they "wanted to know but wouldn't ask."

Mr. Lee came in from the garage and held up his hands as he heard Ramon's voice. Then he pretended to be frightened and whipped outside again into the little back hallway where the refrigerator stood. "You are forgiven, sir," laughed his wife. "Come and carry the platter with the turkey to the biggest place I've prepared, and do not drop it on pain of dire consequences!"

"Honestly, Mother, I forgot all about it, but you don't mind, do you?"

"Not a bit. I supposed he was some lonesome youngster that you had found, but you can tell me all about it later."

"I knew you would have a big dinner as usual"but Mr. Lee now accepted the hot platter with the turkey and reserved further remarks for the future. And soon both young and older heads were bowed around the long table while Mr. Lee said grace.

"Our heavenly Father, we thank Thee for these evidences of Thy goodness and bounty and for all the mercies of the yearfor health and strength and work and human love and friends.h.i.+p. Bless us all as we offer our grat.i.tude. Forgive us if we have not served Thee well, strengthen us for the future, and keep us in Thy care, for Jesus' sake. Amen."

Ramon's solemn black eyes looked respectfully at Mr. Lee as he raised his head after the blessing; but Amy Lou made them all smile by a long sigh and a little leap in her high chair as her father picked up the carving knife and fork There was plenty of conversation at once, in which Ramon could take part if he liked; but no one expected anything, it was evident, and the chief interest, it must be said, centered in the good dinner, with compliments to the cook. Never was there such good dressing, or a turkey so well done and juicy at the same time. The cranberry jelly was a success and Betty's mashed potato was a marvel of whiteness. It was fortunate that there was plenty of gravy. Janet had brought the spiced peaches from the home town and felt much honored that Ramon liked them better than the cranberry jelly with his turkey, not that he said so, of course.

As usual, there were too many things, but there would be other meals, as Mrs. Lee said when her husband told her that n.o.body was eating "the other vegetables" and that dressing and mashed potato would have been enough. Ramon cast a look at the great dish of grapes, oranges and other fruit on the buffet, with a little bowl of cracked nuts and a plate of fudge, and then viewed the hot mince pie before him. "You must have a piece of Mother's pumpkin pie, too, Ramon," said Betty. "She always bakes pies for the suppers and things at home, church suppers, I mean.

And do you remember, Mother, the time we had the dining hall at the fair?"

"Do I?" smiled Mrs. Lee. "Our aid society made enough money to buy new dishes and carpet the church, but oh, how we worked!"

"I think that it is cake where your Mother excels," said Mr. Lee, "but I suppose we shall not have any this noon."

"If you want it, Father," said Betty.

"We shall reserve that for our supper lunch, Betty," said Mrs. Lee, "and we want you to stay for that, Ramon."

"Thank you, madamthat would be too much, I'm sure. I expect one of the boys, I think. II ought to call him up, I suppose, for he was to come for me at three-thirty or four and I may not be able to get back to where I board by that time."

"Call from here, Ramon," said Betty. "Oh, Mother, I'm glad you did put those fat raisins in the mince meat!"

But all the conversation did not center upon the food. Mr. Lee drew out in the course of the dinner some facts from Ramon in which the girls were very much interested. He had, indeed, come to America directly from Spain, but his father was Polish and Ramon had seen Paderewski in Poland. He had attended school for several years in a small eastern town where he studied "English and American," he said.

"I was so behind in everything English, you see, that I had to be put in a lower grade at first than I would have been in in my own country; but I made three grades in one year because I could do the mathematics and such things; and so when I learned to read and speak your language pretty well, it was not so hard. A friend of my father's brought me here, but he died."

"Oh, do you understand all the football language now?" asked d.i.c.k.

"He certainly must, d.i.c.ky, or he wouldn't have done what he did,"

suggested Betty, who did not think that d.i.c.k should have asked that question. But Ramon only laughed a little.

"I know most of it now, d.i.c.k," Ramon replied, "and I can stand being punched or kicked without wanting to knock the player down. Is that what you call 'good sport'?"

"Yep," said d.i.c.k. "That's good football."

"Do you expect to finish high school here?" kindly asked Mrs. Lee.

"If I can," answered Ramon.

After dinner all but Betty and her mother went into the living room to visit; but the two made short work of putting away the food and making neat piles of the soiled dishes, and soon they joined the rest. Amy Lou was sleepy but would not leave the scene without a fuss. Consequently she was permitted to stay. Ramon called up the "boy," who proved to be Ted Dorrance.

A little music and a few quiet games were all that the time afforded before Ted alighted from a big car and ran into the yard and up the steps to ring the doorbell. Betty answered the ring and friendly Ted strode in. "Can't stay a minute," said he, "the 'Don' here?"

"Yes, come in."

"In a moment. Say, Betty, I'd like to have a hand in giving the girls a good time. How about a little fun tonight? Chet has an idea."

"I'm sure we are free for anything, Ted, and it is good of you. Father and Mother say that Ramon must be brought back here for supper tonight, so why can't you come, too? Or, I tell you whatwould some of you come for a taffy pull? Come to supper, too, of course."