“What are you doing in here missy?” Hank asked Lenore. “Aren’t you still supposed to be in your room?”
“Uh…well…I…um,” Lenore stuttered. “I…um…was just…uh…leaving.” With that she jumped out of Brian’s lap, ran out the door and dove back into her room. Hank questioned, “Why is it everytime I turn around the two of you are sneaking around behind my back?”
Brian shrugged, “I don’t know; maybe you turn around at the wrong time.”
Hank glared at him, “Supper’s ready; I’ll go tell Lenore.”
“I’ll be down in a few minutes.”
A few minutes later the whole Katts family was sitting at the kitchen table eating pizza.
“Lenore, may I have the garlic bread?” Jessica queried politely.
“In a minute,” Lenore retorted. “I’m not done with it yet.”
“But, you’ve had five slices,” Emily pointed out. “You have to share.” Lenore stated sarcastically, “Really, I didn’t know that.”
“Bwian, can I have more pizza?” Tessa interrogated looking at him with her big brown eyes. “Pwease? I all out.”
“Here ya go Tessa,” Brian responded while placing a small slice of pepperoni pizza on her plate. “It’s little just like you.”
Tessa giggled, “Thanks Bwian; can you cut it into wee pieces like daddy does?”
“Sure sweetie,” Brian replied; he then cut her pizza into different little shapes. “How’s that?”
“It not like daddy’s,” Tessa complained. “It in stwange shapes.”
“It’s in hearts, circles, and stars,” he told her. “The circles are your cute little face, the stars are your eyes, and the heart means I love you.” She smiled shyly, “I wove you too.”
“Lenore may I have the garlic bread now?” Jessica queried impatiently. “It’s been five minutes.”
Lenore, who’d been paying attention to Brian and had been giving Tessa the evil eye, jumped. “What?” she asked. “The garlic bread? Oh, yeah, here.”
“Thanks,” Jessica replied taking the basket from her.
“Daddy, when are we gonna watch ‘Peter Pan’?” Emily questioned. “You said we’d watch it before supper, but we didn’t; you were too busy yelling at Brian and Lenore.”
“We’ll watch it after supper, before you go to bed,” Hank replicated, he then continued, “Lenore stop giving Tessa the evil eye! If you’re going to be like that then you can go to bed right now.”
“Like what?” Lenore asked pretending not to know. “I didn’t do anything.” “You did, and you know it,” Hank verified. “Now stop lying about it and finish eating.”
Jessica and Emily laughed as Lenore sulked and went back to eating her pizza. “Ha ha,” they said in unison. “You got into trouble!”
“Keep ya moths shut,” Lenore snapped.
The two of them continued to laugh and make fun of her. Stevie and Brian looked at one another in disbelief; they couldn’t believe that Emily and Jessica were getting away with bugging her. They knew that if the tables were turned and it was them making fun of one of the little ones, they’d be in a lot of trouble.
“Look, I’m Lenore!” Emily shouted holding two little saucers up to her face. “Like my gigantic reading glasses that are the ugliest things you’ve ever seen?”
Just then there was a knock at the door; Hank got up to answer it. As soon as he’d left the room, Jessica and Emily started singing.
“Lenore sucks, Lenore sucks!” They sang together. “Boy does she ever suck!” Hank came back with Kevin, A.J., Howie, and Nick then. “I’ve invited them in to help us finish this pizza since no one else seems to be eating.” He informed them. “Lenore I told you before to finish your pizza.”
“This is my third slice, if ya haven’t noticed dad,” Lenore retorted. “I finished the other piece while you were answering the door.”
They all sat down; no sooner did they sit down than did the girls start singing again.
“Lenore sucks, yes she does; she’s the suckiest thing you know,” they sang to the tune of Casper The Friendly Ghost. “Everyone in town knows, she’s the suckiest thing around.”
“Shut-up!” Lenore riposted. “Why can’t you two just leave me alone?”
“Wenore sucks, Wenore sucks!” Tessa shouted joining in on the fun. “Wook I’m Wenore!” Her sisters laughed as she held her cup up to her face.
“So, how’s it goin’ Stevie?” Kevin asked his cousin, ignoring the ruckus that the youngest three were making. “You enjoying the pizza?
“Pizza’s good,” Stevie replied. “Not doin’ to good though, I’m kinda grounded until Monday.”
“That’s too bad,” Howie rejoined. “Let me guess, you were late again?”
“Gee, how’d ya know?” Stevie pondered jokingly. “Aren’t I always?”
“Why are they whispering?” Nick asked, nodding towards Emily and Jessica who were now giggling hysterically.
“They answered his question by yelling, “Lenore loves A.J., Lenore loves A.J.!”
“I do not!” Lenore protested. “What the hell are you two talking about?”
“Lenore loves A.J., Lenore loves A.J.,” the two of them repeated. Continuing they sang, “She wants him, she wants him; really, really bad!” Lenore turned bright red as she screamed, “I DO NOT!!! NOW SHUT-UP!!!”
“See it’s true,” Jessica replicated looking over at A.J. “Why else would she be so defensive?”
Tessa continued the song for her sisters; “Wenore wants A.J., Wenore wants A.J.; weally, weally bad!”
“Because she loves him, she loves him,” Jessica and Emily joined in. “And wants to see what’s under his pants!”
‘This is the last straw!’ Lenore thought. “That’s it!” She screamed, as she slapped both of them in turn across the face, while jumping up. “I’ve had it, I’m not going to sit here and take it anymore! I’ve had it with you two making fun of me and getting away with it!”
“Lenore apologize to them right now!” Hank ordered as Jessica and Emily started to sob. “Then go to your room.”
