Dear Polly,
I have a great interest in who you shook hands with after counting nine stars for nine nights. As your good friend, I think it is important that I know whom your future husband is going to be. One has to be sure he is worthy of you.
I will gladly tell you my person if you would be open to divulging yours. That way we’ll both be in the know.
Your chum,
Snip
“This is why he was so upset with you?” Mollie asked, when Maud showed her Nate’s note during math class later that afternoon.
“He thinks this is our secret?” Mollie laughed. “Boys really don’t know anything, do they?”
“No.” Maud stared at the note for a long while. She remembered the night of the literary in November, the way they had held hands after she had counted to nine stars, the way he had kissed her hand. “I didn’t realize he was this serious.”
“Of course he’s serious.” Mollie giggled. “He is like the proverbial cow, moo-ning over you.”
“What do I do?”
“Write him back. You’re both so much better at expressing your feelings on paper than you are in person.”
Mollie was right; Maud and Nate had always found it easier to write letters. That night she read over Nate’s letter and then wrote:
Dear Snip,
I’ve considered your proposal, and while I don’t think it was fair, I will consider telling you, but you will need to tell me who yours is first.
Yours,
Pollie—with an “ie”
(Since that is the only way to spell it.)
The next day at lunch, Maud and Mollie sat down with Jack and Nate, who were in the corner playing cards. It was too cold outside, so Miss Gordon had allowed them to have recess indoors.
Grandma would have been so proud of Maud’s composure, for even though her heart was pounding, she kept her feelings hidden. Mollie said later she looked as cool as lemonade on a summer’s afternoon.
Nate picked up a card and placed it on the makeshift crate he and Jack were using as a table.
“Maybe this will clear some things up?” Maud said, and handed Nate her note. He took it, read it, and cleared his throat. Without a word, he slipped the note into his pocket and said, “Maud, we need to concentrate on this excellent game of cards. Right, Jack, let’s not allow these girls to distract us.” Jack said nothing, as usual, but smiled slightly and placed his card down.
Infuriated, Maud and Mollie went back to their desk and discussed the issue at great length. Then, after hours of excruciating waiting, and right before Miss Gordon called the end of day, Maud found a little piece of paper sticking out of her reader.
Dear Polly—with a “y,”
I’m glad to see that you’re willing. Your proposition is certainly interesting, and I am willing to take it under advisement—but with one caveat. You must do something else for me in return. I am the one taking all of the risk, telling you something before you tell me, and that carries more weight than whatever you might say.
So here is my position: you must answer fair and square, without any further evasion, the truth of your nine stars. Of course, as I am a gentleman, you can ask me a question and I pledge I will answer it—only after you tell me yours.
Your friend,
Snip
After school, Maud quickly made her excuses to Mollie and ran home, going straight to her room to think. What was Nate going to ask next? The only way to resolve the issue was to agree to his demands. Sitting down at her desk, Maud carefully crafted a response, and then slipped it to him on their way to school the next day.
Before lunch, a note was tucked into the pocket of the sweater hanging on the back of her chair.
Dear Polly—with a “y,”
After much consideration and folly here it is: you were the person I shook hands with after counting nine stars in nine nights. It was the night of Reverend Mr. Carruthers’s lecture when Jack and I walked you and Mollie home and I took your hand for a moment—do you remember?
Now to my question about your nine stars, and a followup: Which of your boyfriends do you like best? And is he your nine stars?
Snip
Maud almost tossed the note at Nate’s head. The nerve! She had never dreamed Nate would be so bold. What was she going to do? Of course she liked Nate best. He was the most intelligent boy in the school, but to tell him so—in a letter? In words? That was something she wasn’t sure she was prepared to do…or something she could do. She would ask him the same in return, and then he would let the whole thing drop.
Dear Snip,
I will tell you that while it has been difficult for me to get to the nine stars, it appears the fates have aligned and—yes—it was you. As for your question, I will only answer it if you answer the same one in reverse: Which of your girlfriends do you like best?
Pollie
Maud gave Nate the note before school. He went off to read it, but soon came back all sheepish and said, “I think this is getting kind of out of hand, Maud, don’t you think? Shall we let it all drop?”
“I don’t know, Nate. You’ve certainly given me much to consider,” Maud said.
Nate stuck his hands in his pockets and blew soft puffs of cool air. Maud wondered if she had taken it too far. “I only meant…” She stopped. She certainly wasn’t going to apologize; he was the one who had put her in this situation. But she also didn’t want him walking off either. She sighed. “All right, Nate. Yes, let’s drop the whole thing.”
“Excellent,” he said. “Let’s go in?”
It was a short reprieve. Later that afternoon, she found another letter in her history book, tucked between a passage about Sir Walter Raleigh and Queen Elizabeth.
Dear Polly,
I have thought out this matter thoroughly and have reconsidered my decision. I will answer your question, but you must answer mine. It isn’t fair for a body to back out of a bargain. It doesn’t show good comradeship, and aren’t we good comrades above all else?
Snip
Dear Snip,
Fine, but only if I see your note first.
Pollie
Dear Polly,
I’m not fond of this idea, but I shall cater to this one demand.
Snip
That evening, Maud—after much pacing and some dark looks from Pensie, who had come over for their nightly walk and was annoyed when Maud wouldn’t tell her what was wrong—sat down to write another note.
Dear Nate,
You have a little more brains than the other Cavendish boys, and I like brains—so I suppose I like you best—though I don’t see why after the trick you’ve played on me.
Maud
She would give it to him only when Nate had given her his note. And as she blew out her lamp, she thought: If he has another girl’s name, I’ll never forgive him.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN