Chapter 6 Rebecca Almost Runs Away Jeremiah Cobb sat at the table by himself.
Mrs. Cobb had gone to help a sick neighbor and left him on his own for dinner.
It was still raining.
The sky was very dark, even if it was just five o'clock.
Looking up from his supper, Mr Cobb was surprised to see a wet, sad little girl standing at the door.
Rebecca's face was swollen from crying.
Mr. Cobb, she said, may I please come in?
His heart went out to her.
Rebecca, he said, why, you're wet as a washcloth.
Come right here and sit by the fire to warm up.
I've run away from the old brick house, Rebecca blurted out.
I want to go back to Sunnybrook Farm.
Will you keep me tonight and take me to Maplewood tomorrow on the coach?
I haven't got any money for the fare, but I promise I'll get it to you.
We won't quarrel about money, you and me, and we never had our ride together anyway.
I shall never see Milltown now, Rebecca sobbed.
What's happened, young miss?
Mr. Cobb asked kindly.
Rebecca took a deep breath and told him the story from beginning to end.
Mr. Cobb listened patiently and did not interrupt her, not even once.
When she was done, he said, poor little soul.
You will take me to Maplewood, won't you, Mr. Cobb?
She asked.
Don't you fret, one minute, we'll figure something out.
He got up from the table and poured her a cup of hot tea.
The two sat for a minute as Mr. Cobb thought about what he should do.
It wasn't an easy decision.
There was no doubt that Rebecca's aunts would be worried about her.
At the same time, he didn't want to upset the girl.
In the end, he made no decision at all.
He simply left it up to chance.
I suppose your mother would be happy to have you home, he said.
A tiny bit of fear crept up and into Rebecca's mind.
It grew larger the more she thought about what Mr. Cobb had just said.
She won't like it that I ran away, I suppose.
She'll be sorry that I upset my Aunt Miranda, but I'll try to make her understand.
I guess she sent you down here with a mind for schooling.
I suppose you'll have to go all the way to that school in temperance now.
There are only two months of school in Temperance and the farm's too far away from any other schools, Rebecca said sadly.
Oh, well, Mr. Cobb said, there are other things in the world besides school.
Rebecca sniffed loudly as she took a sip of her tea.
Yes, but Mother thought it would be the making of me to go to school, and to live with Aunt Miranda.
But I've failed terribly.
No matter how hard I try, Aunt Miranda still finds faults with me.
But sometimes I just don't think either.
It'll be nice to be back at the farm with all your brothers and sisters anyway, he said kindly.
It's too full.
That's the trouble.
Hannah's going to have to come to the brick house in my place.
Do you suppose Miranda and Jane will have her?
I should be most afraid they might not.
They'll be right upset about you going back home.
You can hardly blame them.
He looked closely at his little friend for a minute.
How do you like the school here?
This brought a smile to Rebecca's face.
She started to tell him all about her wonderful afternoon, about how much she liked Miss Dearborn and about the new things she was learning.
It would be a shame to leave all that on account of one little fight with your Aunt Miranda.
She's a sour one, that's for sure, but surely you can be a little more patient?
I guess I could try, Rebecca admitted softly.
Your Aunt Jane would be right sad to see you go, too, wouldn't she?
Rebecca nodded.
The two sat in silence for a minute until the rain stopped.
She finished her cup of tea and looked out at the sun breaking through the clouds.
I'm not going to Maplewood, Rebecca said.
I don't know if Aunt Miranda will have me back now that I've run away, but I've got to face her anyway.
Would you be so kind as to drive me back?
Your Uncle Jeremiah would be happy to take you back.
How about I bring up the load of wood I need to deliver?
That way you can sneak back into the house without them knowing.
Once you've had a good night's sleep, you can tell them what happened.
And that's exactly what they did.
As Rebecca quietly crept back into the house, she felt almost peaceful.
Mr. Cobb had saved her from error and foolishness.
She was more determined than ever to win Aunt Miranda's approval.
She would be the best girl she knew how to be and she'd make a good go of life in the old brick house.
