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ing and her dancing," Celine assured him

A cold drop of ice trickled along my spine

"What if I can't be a dancer?" I asked Would they send me back?

"Can't be? Don't be silly, Janet I told you, you have grace You already dance You dance when you walk, the way you hold yourself, the way you look at people, the way you sit Having been gifted with this nize it in someone else You won't fail," she said confidently "I won't let you fail I'll be your cushion, your parachute You won't suffer the sort of disappointed

Even more anxious, I squeezed er, I would pretendine the scent of her hair, the softness of her face, the warmth of her lips on my forehead Would Celine ever holdin a wheelchair make that too difficult to do?

I gazed out theat the scenery that flowed by It was as if the whole world had become liquid and ran past us in a stream of trees, houses, fields, and even people Few took any special notice of us even though I felt so special They should all be cheering as we go by I'm not an orphan anymore

"Looks like soe of dark clouds creeping toward us from the horizon

"Oh phooey," Celine declared "I want the sun to shine all day today"

Sanford smiled and I could feel the tension ease out of him

"I'll see what I can do," he said The way he looked at her, doted on her, I had no doubt that if he could, he would shape the weather and the world to please her There was love here, I thought, soht sort

When I finally set ht I had fallen into a storybook No one really lived in such a house, I thought, even as ent up the long circular driveith perfectly triray lampposts, the bulbs encased in shiny brass fixtures Celine hadn't been exaggerating They did havered maple trees with leaves that looked like dark rubies, and a pair of enor the ground to form a cave of shadows I could just make out the shape of two benches and a small fountain surrounded by the darkness Squirrels scurried around the fountain and over the benches, up trees and through the grass with a nervous, happy energy I saw a rabbit pop out from behind the trees, look our way, and then hop toward the taller grass

I turned to look at the house, a tall two-story with a porch that wrapped all the way around Two robins paraded over the four wooden front steps Alongside them was a ramp for Celine's wheelchair and a sparrow stood so still on it, he looked stuffed

It all seeht to life

"Home sweet home," Celine declared "We did a lot to ht it It's Victorian," she explained I didn't knohat that meant, but from the way she said it, I understood it was impressive

The house looked like it had been recently painted, a bright, crisp white The paired entry doors had lass in the top halves of each and all the s on the first and second floors had filmy white curtains in them Only the attic ere dark, hat looked like dark gray drapes pulled closed