The Farewell Season Read Online Free PDF Page B

was like another big brother to her—except he never gave her any grief. When she was little, I don't know how many times I heard her say, "Why can't you be like Rolf? He's nice!"
    When we sat down to lunch, Rolf and I were like a plague of grasshoppers, devouring everything put in front of us. I was kind of glad Rolf was there. Dad used to come home for lunch during summer football practice. Rolf being there helped distract me from his absence.
    "Man," Rolf said as he heaped his plate with a third helping of everything. "This is great!"
    Kirstin beamed.
    "I thought you might have one more mouth to feed," Rolf said, "but Eric didn't—"
    "Eff it, Rolf, give it a rest!" I slammed my hand on the table.
    "Eric!" Kirstin glared at me. "You know what Dad said about using the F word."
    "One, I didn't use the F word." I ground out the words through clenched teeth. "Two … Dad's not here!"
    "Hey, are we gonna eat or argue about vocabulary?" Rolf said, always eager to smooth things over. He stuck a fork into a huge piece of meatcake on his plate and answered his own question. "I'm here to eat."
    I was too beat to get into it more with Kirstin, so I mumbled something about eating.
    Kirstin ignored me by fussing over Rolf, and within a few minutes all was cool again, at least on the surface.
    After we wiped out the meatcakes, salad and grapes, Kirstin announced, "Time for dessert!"
    "Dessert?" Rolf clutched his stomach as if he couldn't eat another bite.
    Kirstin knew better, of course. She disappeared into the pantry for a minute, returning with a small plate of butter logs, rosettes and spritz cookies.
    "Hey!" I said. "I thought those were off limits until the Fair."
    " I made them," Kirstin said. " I can use a few for company if I want."
    I snorted. Rolf was hardly company, but Kirstin seemed to get some sort of thrill out of feeding him. Of course, he always vacuumed his plate clean, especially when the food was good, and I had to admit Kirstin's was.
    "Hey, I just noticed the time," Rolf said. "I've gotta go soon. I have to help pack tubes into boxes this afternoon."
    Rolf's family owns a seed and plant nursery. A lot of the business is mail order, so they have to grow some plants in tubes in order to ship them.
    Kirstin reached across the table and gripped Rolf's arm. "Why don't I go with you? I could help … and I need some plant food anyway."
    "Rolf doesn't need you hanging around," I said. "How would you get home? Mom's got the car and who knows when she'll be back."
    "No problem," Rolf said. "I'll bring Kirstin home when I pick you up for practice."
    "Yeah," Kirstin said. "You can stay home and watch the store just as easily as I can."
    "Hey, I'm really beat—"
    "Who isn't?" Kirstin jumped up from the table. "I've got to feed the goldfish. C'mon, Rolf. You can watch while Eric cleans up."
    "I said I'm tired."
    "I've got a few minutes," Rolf said. "It won't take long to clean up."
    "Well, if you'd rather wash dishes than help me feed the fish …." Kirstin said.
    "I'll help you feed the fish another time, Kirstin." Rolf started scraping plates.
    "Promise?" Kirstin tilted her head to one side.
    "Promise."
    "Okay, then." Kirstin smiled on her way out.
    "Kirstin gets away with murder," I griped, bugged that Mom wasn't around to let me off the hook. "You and I are both wiped out, and you've got a ton of work ahead of you at the nursery."
    "No big deal," Rolf said. "I clean up at home all the time. Besides, Kirstin did all the cooking. That's a lot of work."
    "Mmmph," I muttered as I wiped spills off the kitchen table. Sometimes Rolf was just too easy-going for his own good—and mine.
    About the time Rolf and I were done cleaning up, Kirstin came back inside.
    "We're outta here." Rolf placed his hand on Kirstin's back and guided her toward the front door. "See you at three, Eric."
    "Don't forget to listen for the buzzer!" Kirstin shouted on her way out the door.
    Right on cue, the buzzer sounded.
    I stepped into the shop just as