Happy New Year, Trixie Belden!
By Mandy Floyd
14-year-old Trixie Belden stood in the middle of her family living room and began to check off her to do list. She wanted everything to be just right for the first ever Annual Bob-Whites of the Glen New Year's Eve party. This was a very special New Year's Eve for the Bob-Whites (or BWGs for short) for many reasons and, she wanted everything to be perfect for her eight guests.
Six of them would be the members of the Bob-Whites who were; her best friend Honey Wheeler also 14. Diana Lynch who was 13. Her brother Brian who was 17, her other brother and almost-twin Mart who was 15, Honey’s adopted brother Jim Frayne (17) and Dan Mangan who was 16. One of them was a friend of Mart’s and a member of his recently formed band. They were Ginger Garland age 13, Dan and Honey. The ninth guest was a new friend of Di’s and a mystery to Trixie. As she carefully arranged the snack trays, Trixie thought back over all that had happened that last year.
Her father, who had spent so many years of his life working at the local bank, had taken another job. He would now be working for the father of her best friend Honey and alongside Di’s father.
Di was elected as the youngest Freshman Class President Sleepyside Junior-Senior High School had ever had.
Mr. Wheeler, Honey’s father, had just recently brought a branch of a publishing company called Random House. And, one of the first things he did was give Mr. Belden and Mr. Lynch jobs as his new VPs. But the two biggest events for the BWGs by far had involved Trixie’s 11 year old brother Bobby and, two of the BWGs, Dan and Jim.
The branch of the publishing company that Mr. Wheeler now owned was in London, England. On his first visit Mr. Belden had taken Bobby and Di’s four younger brothers and sisters with him. And after meeting and making quite a few friends there Bobby and the Lynch twins convinced their parents to let them enroll in a local boarding school. It wasn’t an easy decision for Mr. and Mrs. Belden to make, as they loved all four of their children dearly. But this is what Bobby really wanted. Not only was the school he wanted to attend very hard to get accepted to but, he had had the grades to get in.
Two weeks into the school year, Sleepyside Junior-Senior high formed a genealogy group. While pouring over birth certificates, death certificates, news paper clippings, and with a lot of help from Mart’s pen pal Mandy from North Carolina, Jim learned that his mother’s father had once been married to Dan’s mom’s mother. Which would have made their mothers half-sisters, and Dan, Jim and Mandy first cousins.
Just as Trixie placed the last tray on the table the doorbell rang.
"I’ll get it," said Brian as he walked in the room. "I just saw Harrison pull out of the driveway, so it must be Di. Why don’t go you go tell Mart she’s here."
Trixie nodded and headed up the stairs. It didn’t take her long to find her "almost twin". As she passed by the bathroom she saw Mart, standing in front of the mirror with his head tilted back, carefully placing a contact lens in his left eye.
"Di’s just arrived," she said.
He blinked a few times, smiled and said, "Great. I’m right behind you." They took off together but as they reached the living room landing, they stopped. There standing just inside their living room doorway talking to Brian, was Di arm and arm with a boy who, looked to Trixie to be about Jim’s age. He was tall, dark hair and brown eyes. He was wearing a denim jacket with a copy of Webster’s dictionary sticking out of the pocket.
Just then Di looked up. "Hi guys," she said. "I want you to meet Bob Neastor from my Judo class. Bob this is Trixie and Mart Belden."
"Salutations," replied Bob.
Trixie was confused. "Di, you take Judo?"
"Today was our first class," she answered.
"Well, Bob it’s nice to meet you," said Mart, "I’ll be back," he added as he turned back up the stairs.
Trixie hesitated a moment."Go ahead help yourselves," she told them pointing to the snack tables. "I’ll be right back."
She then bolted up the stairs and made a dash for Mart’s room just in time to find him standing in front of his dresser with his sweatpants around his ankles. She softly knocked on the door, "Mart? Are you ok?"
"I’m just changing," he said without looking up.
"Are you going to be alright?" she asked again.
Mart took a deep breath and sighed. "I’ll live," he replied. Then, noticing the concerned look on Trixie’s face, he added, "All I need is this chair," he said picking up his desk chair," and maybe this thermos."
Trixie laughed so hard her sides hurt.
Minutes later, after Mart had changed clothes, they were again descending the stairs together. They reached the living room just in time to see the last of their guest arrive and hear their phone ring. Brian being the closet to the phone answered it. "Hello? Dad! How are you and Moms doing?" Upon hearing this Trixie and Mart ran to grab the extension in the kitchen.
"We’re all fine," said their father, "Bobby, too. I think he’s kind of homesick."
"Daddy, is Moms feeling any better?" asked Trixie.
"Trixie! How’s my pumpkin? I’m glad you’re on the line too. Where’s Mart?"
"I’m here," answered Mart.
"Good," said Mr. Belden. "Because I have something important I want to all of you. You know how your Moms has been kinda sick lately? Well I finally talked her in to seeing a doctor here and well; it looks like you’re going to be getting another brother or sister in about four and half to five months."
"Wow," was about all Brian could get out.
"That’s just what I said when I heard too," said Mr. Belden.
Trixie on the other hand was a little more verbal. "Oh Daddy," she exclaimed, "This is just perfectly perfect! Does Bobby know yet?"
After a long round of good-byes they started back toward their party guests when, Dan walked up to Mart. "We are going to play tonight right?" he asked. Mart nodded and, while Trixie shared the wonderful news about her Moms, Mart, Dan and Ginger got everything set up.
Mart sat down and started tuning his guitar. "Who wants to go first?" he asked his band.
"I would," said Dan, "If no one else minds. I finally found the words to this song I haven’t been able to get out of my head."
The others nodded as Dan handed out his sheet music, stepped up to the microphone and started to sing.
"I got me a brand new car waiting in the driveway. Shinin’ like a bright new star. I been wishin’ on it everyday to take me away from here. So I called in to where I work, told a little white lie. No my back don’t really hurt but that’s my alibi. My temporary ticket to anywhere but there. Call it an early weekend. Call it goin’ off the deep end. Call it what you want I made up my mind… I don’t have to be me till Monday. Friday, Saturday, Sunday
"I ain’t gonna face reality. Three days without punching a time clock. Three nights of goin’ non stop. No work and all play. I don’t have to be me, till Monday. Yeah, I can do what I wanna do, be who I wanna be. I got no one to answer to as soon as I turn the key. A cash machine, gasoline and we’re outta here. Call it an early weekend. Call it goin’ off the deep end. Baby you and me we can leave it all behind… I don’t have to be me till Monday. Friday, Saturday, Sunday. I ain’t gonna face reality. Three days without punching a time clock. Three nights of goin’ non stop. No work and all play.
I don’t have to be me, till Monday. Oh……Three days without punching a time clock.Three nights of goin’ non stop. No work and all play. I don’t have to be me, till Monday. I don’t have to be me, till Monday. I don’t have to be me, till Monday. I don’t have to be me, till Monday."Next Mart started singing,
"Every rose has its thorn. Just like every night has its dawn. Just like every cowboy sings his sad, sad song. Every rose has its thorn. Listen to our favorite song paying on the radio. Hear the D.J say love's a game of easy come and easy go. But I wonder does he know? Has he ever felt like this? And I know that you'd be right now if I could've let you know somehow. I guess, every rose has its thorn. Just like every night has its dawn. Just like every cowboy sings his sad, sad song. Every rose has its thorn."
As soon as Mart had finished he handed the microphone to Ginger.
"Somewhere beyond the sea, somewhere waiting for me. My lover stands on golden sands and watches the ships that go sailin'. Somewhere beyond the sea
he's there watching for me. If I could fly like birds on high, then straight to his arms I'd go sailing. It's far beyond the stars it's near beyond the moon. I know beyond a doubt, my heart will lead me there soon."We'll meet beyond the shore. We'll kiss just as before. Happy we'll be beyond the sea, and never again I'll go sailing. I know beyond a doubt, my heart will lead me there soon.
"We'll meet (I know we'll meet) beyond the shore. We'll kiss just as before.
Happy we'll be beyond the sea, and never again I'll go sailing.
No more sailing. So long sailing. Bye bye sailing..."Next, it was Honey’s turn,
"In our times of trouble, We only had ourselves, Nobody else. No one there to save us. We had to save ourselves. And when the storms came through. They found me and you Back to back together. And when the sun would shine It was yours and mine. Yours and mine forever. Oh how the years go by. Oh how the love brings tears to my eyes. All through the changes the soul never dies. We fight, we laugh, we cry. As the years go by.
There were times we stumbled. They thought they had us down. But we came around. How we rolled and rambled. We got lost and we got found. Now we're back on solid ground. We took everything. All our times would bring. In this world of dangers. 'Cause when your heart is strong, You know you're not alone,
In this world of strangers. Oh how the years go by. Oh how the love brings tears to my eyes. All through the changes the soul never dies. We fight, we laugh, we cry. As the years go by. There were times we stumbled. They thought they had us down. But we came around. How we rolled and rambled. We got lost and we got found. Now we're back on solid ground. And if we lose our way,
Any night or day, Well we'll always be where we should be. I'm there for you.
And I know you're there for me. Oh how the years go by. Oh how the love brings tears to my eyes. All through the changes the soul never dies. We fight, we laugh, we cry. As the years go by. There were times we stumbled. They thought they had us down. But we came around. How we rolled and rambled. We got lost and we got found. Now we're back on solid ground."
After a long and loud round of applause Jim said, "I don’t know about anyone else but I think ready for those ice cream sundaes." Everyone nodded in agreement and followed him into the Beldens' kitchen, except for Trixie. She waited behind as everyone else left the room and walked over to the fireplace.
The wall beside the fireplace was where the Beldens hung their family photos. For the first time in years, Trixie stood there and looked at each one. There were her parents the day the got married. Moms on the day she bought Brian home from the hospital. Dad and Brian on the day Mart was born. Trixie and Moms the day Bobby came home. I guess we’ll be adding to this wall again soon, she thought.
She then turned and walked threw the kitchen doors just in time to see Jim scooping the ice cream, "I think I’ve it n…" He stopped. Right in the middle of the sentence just as the huge scoop of ice cream he had been fighting out of the box went flying and landed right in Trixie’s hair. Jim blushed. "Trixie, I’m sorry I didn’t see you there. I…." He never got a chance to finish, as Trixie made a bee line for the table, and picked up a can of Reddy Whip. "You wouldn’t," he said.
Trixie only nodded as she took aim and fired right down his shirt.
Jim stood quite for a moment then said," You know you really can’t have ice cream without," he paused as he reached around Trixie to get something off the table," A nice jar of these." He added as he turned a jar of cherries up side down on Trixie’s head.
"But you know," Trixie continued, "You really can’t have a sundae without ..."
"You wouldn’t dare," Jim said just as Trixie made a grab for the jar of hot fudge. Jim ran around the table as Trixie started to follow. But just as Trixie reached the spot where Jim had been standing she slipped. The next thing she knew the jar of hot fudge was sailing threw the air covering both Jim and her as it landed on the table with a thud. Trixie looked up at Jim and doubled over laughing. Jim walked over, put his arm around her and kissed her forehead.
This, Trixie thought later as she washed off in the kitchen, Will be the best year ever.
The End