After the party
all of the girls
were picked up
in carpools, all of them except for Yolanda.
Yolanda stood next to the birthday girl’s father and took his hand every time she got a chance. When the birthday girl climbed onto her father’s knee, Yolanda clambered onto the other one.
Every girl in the first grade class was invited to the indoor playground. There was pizza and pop and a decorated cake. After the party all the girls were picked up by carpooling parents, all of them except for Yolanda. Ten, twenty, thirty minutes, she waited.
The child’s family didn’t have a phone so it fell to the birthday girl’s father to make sure she got home. He asked her where she lived.
“I don’t know,” she said.
“You don’t know the name of your street?”
“I’m not supposed to tell,” she answered.
He was anxious about driving a young girl through a part of town where his car, clothes and accent would raise suspicions. He considered contacting the police but that’s the last thing a six-year-old needs.
“You don’t have to tell me where you live,” he assured her. “There’s a game we can play. When you see a street you know, you should bark like a dog. If it’s a street you don’t know, you should go meow.”
The man weaved through nearby streets until the girl barked. She meowed, resulting in an immediate u-turn. The girl whinnied at the KFC and screeched like a peacock at the currency exchange — her rules for the game were more fun than his.
They crossed into the city and it became clear Yolanda’s family was hiding the fact that she lived outside the school district.
They pulled up to a huge u-shaped building. After the girl disappeared through the courtyard, an exchange of shouts followed. Yolanda got back into the car. This time she knew her way and they came to a three-flat with shingle siding.
“Let me know you’re okay,” he said when she got out.
A woman who was quite old and who favored one leg, worked her way toward the car. “Sorry it took me so long to get down,” she said. “Yolanda said it was just the best party.”
“Julia was thrilled she could come.” he replied.
“Maybe you’ll let Julia can come to Yolanda’s party.”
“Sounds good. When’s her birthday?” the man asked.
“That’s depends on who you ask.” she replied.
He wasn’t sure how to respond. “That’s Ridge Road up there?” he asked.
The woman who might have been Yolanda’s great grandmother or her great-great grandmother, or not, answered with a nod. When the car was halfway down the street, she barked.
