I wanted my daughter to have friends — so I installed a pool
There she is. I see her from outside the window, bounding up the stairs with a colorful towel hanging from one arm. She looks exactly like Mindy, the same pert little nose and sparkle in her eye. But while Mindy is all grace and style, her daughter is confidence and wide-eyed energy.
Chayala Rosen, the second-most popular girl in the fourth grade. I say second-most because Aviva assures me that the most popular girl in the class is Huvi Kaganoff, Chayala’s best friend, and she’s trailing right behind Chayala. Aviva watches them both with her face flushed with excitement, vibrating beside me. “They really came over!” she says. “All these girls! At our house!”
“Right,” I say, keeping an eye on the car that idles by the curb, waiting for the girls to be let in. I can see Mindy Rosen in the driver’s seat, and I glance at myself in the mirror, making sure that my makeup looks good, that my sheitel falls past my shoulders in gentle beach waves.
Huvi cranes her neck to look around the far side of the house, and she must have spotted the tall, white fence, because she nudges Chayala hard and points. Chayala grins and says something to Huvi. They hurry down the path.
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