by Coco Simon
Callie, Bella, and Maggie were all in the BFF club with Olivia. I should have known they would get involved somehow. I hoped Emma wouldn’t be hurt that I didn’t ask her, but there was nothing I could do.
Libby looked at her phone. “Are we done yet? I have to get to practice.”
“I guess,” Beth said. “Although, it would be good to get the posters done so we can start putting them up.”
She held up a flash drive and looked at me. “I brought the file with me so we can cut and paste that one line, print it out, and then glue it on the poster, like you said.”
“Do you think we can use the computer room to print it out?” I asked.
Beth shrugged. “We can check.”
As Beth and I were talking, everybody else was getting their stuff together and leaving.
“This will go fast if we all help,” I said, but everybody just kept talking and heading out the door.
“Let’s check out the computer room,” I said with a sigh.
We got lucky—I guess. Mr. Modica, the computer teacher, was still there, and he said we could use the computer and printer since it was for a school club. Beth made a file with the new location of the fashion show so that it fit on one line, and she did it so that the line repeated fifteen times on one sheet of paper. This way we only had to print seven color pages instead of a hundred.
Then we went to the art room, and we used a paper cutter to cut the lines into strips. We sat at one of the tables and used glue sticks to attach on the new lines.
While we were working, Eddie texted me.
Your meeting done yet?
I looked at the stack of posters in front of me.
Give me 1/2 hour, I texted back.
The time went fast because Beth and I talked about stuff, but by the time we were done and I got home, it was already dinnertime. I had a ton of homework, so I really didn’t want to do the perfect child thing and clear the table and stuff, but I didn’t want to jinx anything, so I kind of rushed through it. Then I finally got to start my homework, and I had to finish this huge lab report for Ms. Chandar in science and it took forever.
By the time I was done, I was so tired that I fell asleep really fast. When I woke up I was still so tired that Mom had to pull the covers off me. Maybe things were finally working out with the Fashion Club, but it sure was a lot of work!
CHAPTER 12
I Really Mess Up!
So the Fashion Club has decided on a theme for our show,” I told my friends the next day at lunch. “It’s ‘Bold Moves.’ ”
“That sounds exciting,” Katie remarked. “So are you using bold colors?”
I nodded. “We’re focusing on purple and turquoise.”
“Ooh, turquoise cupcakes,” Emma said. “I can just picture them. That could be very cool.”
“We could do bold flavors, too,” Alexis pointed out.
“That’s just what I was thinking,” I said. “You know I’ve been wanting to try that spicy chocolate recipe.”
Alexis looked thoughtful. “This might be a good time to try it, since we’re giving away the cupcakes for free, anyway. We could do a test batch on Friday.”
“Friday?” I asked. I had been so busy with Fashion Club that I wasn’t as up on cupcake business as I should be.
“We’ve got to bake those cupcakes for Harriet’s Hollow bookstore, remember?” Alexis asked. “She booked us a couple of months ago, and she wants fairy-themed cupcakes to go with a fairy-themed book display.”
“Remember, we figured out the designs?” Katie asked. “One is a strawberry cupcake with pink frosting and a yellow-and-white fondant magic wand surrounded by glitter sprinkles. The other one is a vanilla cupcake with white icing and purple-and-pink fondant butterflies.”
“Oh, right!” I said. It was all coming back to me. “So, I’ll bring the chocolate and chili powder for the cupcakes.”
“We need fondant, too,” Alexis said. “Probably a whole pack of the mixed colors.”
“I’m pretty sure I have that,” I said.
“Okay, then we’re set for Friday,” Alexis said.
“We can do it at my house again,” Katie offered.
“Sounds good,” Alexis said. “Dylan had a fight with Meredith and Skylar, and now she is in a bad mood, plus, she’s home all the time. I need a break.”
I nodded sympathetically. Alexis’s older sister was basically nice, but I knew she could drive Alexis crazy.
I typed “CC cupcake baking Katie’s house” into the calendar on my phone, so I wouldn’t forget. I was feeling pretty organized—almost as organized as Alexis. Although really, I wasn’t.
I sort of have an excuse. The next few days turned out to be totally crazy. I had soccer practice two days this week, and after school today, Beth and I walked around downtown and put up the fashion show posters. Thursday night after practice, Mom took me to get the ingredients for the spicy chocolate cupcakes. And when I wasn’t doing all that stuff, I was doing tons of homework and trying to keep up the perfect child thing by cleaning up stuff without being asked.
On Friday, when we got to Katie’s, we started out with the test batch of spicy chocolate cupcakes. We melted dark chocolate bits in the microwave and added some ancho chili powder, which is spicy but also has a nice, deep flavor. For the icing we went with a lighter chocolate frosting, spiced with a little red chili powder.
We baked the cupcakes, made the icing, and while we waited for the cupcakes to cool, we ate some Chinese food that Mrs. Brown had ordered for us.
“Mmm, spicy chicken and broccoli,” Katie said, picking up her food with chopsticks.
Alexis shook her head. “You guys and your spicy food. Don’t get me wrong; I think the spicy cupcakes are a good idea for a bold theme. But maybe we need to do a vanilla cupcake with just bold colors for the icing, for the wimps in the crowd like me.”
“That’s a good idea,” I agreed. “Maybe we can do, like, a swirl of purple and turquoise or something. I’ll try to sketch it out later.”
Everyone nodded, and we went back to eating our Chinese food. After we cleaned up, we iced the spicy cupcakes. Then we cut one into pieces, so we could do a taste test.
“No, thank you,” Alexis said, holding up her hand. “I trust your opinion.”
I bit into mine. The icing was creamy, and the spiciness wasn’t too hot—just enough to make my lips tingle. When we experiment with cupcakes on the first try, we don’t always get it right, but I thought we had nailed it.
“I like it!” I announced.
Katie nodded. “Ith good,” she agreed with her mouth full of cupcake.
“Spicy but not too spicy, and nice and chocolatey,” Emma commented. “You really should try it, Alexis.”
Alexis shook her head. “Thanks, but no thanks. We should get the fairy cupcakes started before it gets too late. I’ll do both frostings.”
“I can do the vanilla cupcake batter first,” Katie volunteered. “Emma, can you chop up the strawberries for the strawberry cupcakes?”
Emma nodded. “No problem.”
“So, Mia, you should probably start rolling out and cutting the fondant,” Alexis said. “These decorations are kind of complicated.”
My stomach fell. “Um, I think I forgot to get the fondant,” I said meekly. “I thought I had some at home, but I was wrong, and then I forgot to buy it when I went shopping.”
Alexis raised an eyebrow. “Are you serious?”
“Maybe Mom can take us out to buy more,” Katie quickly suggested, but I knew it was no use.
“We can’t,” I said, looking at the clock. “They only sell it at the bakery supply store, and that’s closed now. I am so sorry, guys!”
Alexis shook her head. “Unbelievable.”
“We must have some fondant in the pantry,” Katie said, rushing to the closet in the kitchen where she and her mom kept all their baking supplies. She rummaged around for a minute and came out with a box of white fondant. “How about this?”
“What about the butterflies? They were going to be so pretty,” Emma said a little sadly, and I felt even more terrible.
“Let me look and see what Katie has,” I said, my brain spinning with ideas. “Is Harriet expecting butterflies?”
“Thankfully, no,” Alexis replied. “She said she trusted us to make some nice fairy cupcakes.”
“We’re out of a lot of stuff, so we can’t even make our own fondant,” Katie told me as I headed into the closet. “I’ve been baking a lot lately.”
I looked through the shelves, hoping to find some inspiration. Katie had colored sprinkles and glittery sprinkles, but the glittery ones were going on the magic wand cupcakes. She had mini chocolate candies, but those were not very fairylike, and some bins of gumdrops and other candy. And she had some red, green, and white cupcake papers left over from Christmas.
I grabbed the gumdrops. I picked out a pale yellow one and started slicing into it to make little sort of round pieces. They could look like butterfly wings, maybe, but I didn’t love them.
Fairies . . . fairies . . . , I thought. I closed my eyes, thinking about all the fairy books I had read when I was little. Fairies have wings and magic glitter, and they hang out on flowers and use toadstools for tables . . . That was it!
“I have an idea,” I said. “Katie, let’s use these white cupcake papers for the vanilla cupcakes, okay?”
“Okay,” Katie said, nodding.
“What are you going to do?” Alexis asked.
“I’m thinking we could make the cupcakes look like toadstools,” I said. “They’ll be perfect, because Harriet even has little chairs in her store that are painted like toadstools. Then we can do a layer of red frosting on top, and then dot them with white icing circles.”
“That is kind of perfect,” Emma said.
“I like it,” agreed Katie.
“Let’s do it, then,” Alexis said. “I’ll make a batch of vanilla icing and dye most of it red, but leave some plain on the side for the dots.”
I still felt bad about forgetting the fondant, but I felt a lot better once I had solved the problem. I got to work rolling out the white fondant for the magic wands, since it was going to take a lot of time to cut them out and paint them.
At one point I looked up from the fondant and saw Alexis whispering to Katie and Emma. Katie was giving me an I’m so sorry look.
I guess I was feeling a little frazzled, because then I sort of snapped.
“I’m sorry about the fondant, okay?” I said, looking right at Alexis. “How many times do you want me to apologize?”
Alexis looked up guiltily. “I didn’t mean to talk behind your back,” she said. “It’s just, we can all see that this Fashion Club thing isn’t really working out for you. It’s interfering with the Cupcake Club.”
“That is so not fair,” I protested. “You’re in the business club, and Emma has modeling and dog-walking jobs and is in band and everything.”
“She only forgot the fondant this one time,” Katie said, sticking up for me.
“I know, it’s just . . .” Alexis’s voice trailed off. “The Fashion Club is new, and Beth isn’t the most organized person in the world, and from the outside it seems like the club is kind of a mess.”
“Well, the Cupcake Club would probably be a mess too, if we didn’t have you,” I pointed out. “Nobody is as organized as you. You’re like a superhero with amazing organizing powers.”
Katie and Emma started to giggle, and then I started giggling too. Alexis had a smirk on her face, and I could tell she thought it was funny too.
“I know that,” Alexis replied. “It’s who I am, and I’ll own it. But you need to admit that the Fashion Club is a hot mess right now.”
“Fine,” I said. “It’s true. But it’s getting better. We have a place for the fashion show, and the posters are up, and the clothes are picked out.”
“I believe you,” Alexis said. “Just, if you need any help, let me know, okay?”
“Okay,” I said, and I knew Alexis could probably be very helpful if we asked her. But there was a part of me that wanted to prove that we could do it on our own, you know?
“The vanilla cupcakes are ready for the oven,” Katie announced, changing the subject. She’s good at that.
Then Emma plugged her iPod into the little red speaker on the kitchen counter, and the music got us pumped up as we worked. In the end the cupcakes looked fabulous. The magic wand cupcakes were pink and sparkly, and the toadstool cupcakes looked like they came out of a fairy tale.
“We are awesome,” Alexis said, looking over the finished cupcakes in their carriers.
“Yes, we are,” I said, and I felt good, because the cupcakes were perfect even though I had messed up—and things were cool between me and Alexis again. Smooth sailing. At least for now.
CHAPTER 13
My Secret Plan Is Busted
Saturday morning I had soccer, so Katie and Emma delivered the cupcakes to Harriet’s Hollow. I was kind of jealous that I didn’t get to go, but Katie sent me tons of photos. The cupcakes looked adorable with all of the books and fairy decorations that Harriet had set up, and Harriet loved them and made a big deal over them, which was nice.
After I got my soccer gear together, I climbed into the backseat of Mom’s car. Mom and Eddie were in the front seat, arguing again.
“You’ve already had pizza two days this week,” Mom was telling Eddie. “That’s just not healthy.”
“But I like pizza,” Eddie said.
Mom turned around to look at me. “We’re going to the Salad Factory for lunch, Mia,” she informed me, and Eddie glanced at my mom and frowned a little.
Uh-oh, I thought. Maybe the perfect child thing I was doing wasn’t enough. Had there been any unusual stress in the house lately? I wondered. Not really, except for my crazy schedule. Maybe that’s what was stressing them out. But I couldn’t help my schedule, could I? I mean, I like all the things I do outside school.
I’d just have to try harder to be more helpful, I resolved. When we got to the Salad Factory, Mom and Eddie were smiling and stuff again, but to be honest, it didn’t really sink in that they were getting along. I was too worried about the possibility that they might get divorced or something. That’s all I could think of as I ate my salad of lettuce, avocado, broccoli, chicken, and shredded cheese.
When we got home I took a quick shower, and then I made sure to put my dirty soccer uniform in the laundry room. When I was dressed, I got out the vacuum cleaner and started to vacuum the living room rug. Tiki and Milkshake usually get their little white hairs all over it, so it needs to be vacuumed a lot. I usually complain when Mom asks me to do it, but that was before.
When I finished and put the vacuum cleaner back in the closet, Mom called out to me.
“Mia, can you please come see us in the kitchen?”
I went into the kitchen and saw her and Eddie sitting at the kitchen table. Of course, I started to worry.
This is it, I thought. They’re going to tell me they’re splitting up.
I was shaking a little bit as I sat down at the table.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Mia, we’re wondering what you’re up to,” Mom said frankly, and I was surprised. “You’ve been so . . . helpful lately. Not that that’s a bad thing—it’s good. But it’s a little suspicious. At first we thought you did it because you wanted the Women’s Club’s space for your fashion show, but then you kept on doing it.”
“Shouldn’t I be insulted?” I asked. “You’re acting like I’ve never done anything nice before.”
“Of course you have,” Eddie said. “But you’re like a cleaning machine these days. What’s up?”
I looked at Mom and Eddie. Could I really tell them what I’d been thinking?
“Come on,” Eddie pr
essed. “Is it another pair of expensive shoes?”
That really did insult me, and I angrily blurted out, “No!” I turned to Mom. “It’s because you and Eddie had that big fight about Eddie’s sister or whatever, and it reminded me of you and Dad when you were fighting before you got divorced, and then I thought maybe you and Eddie were going to break up, and . . .”
I almost started to cry, but I kept it in. I just stopped talking, because I was afraid to say more out loud. Then I sighed.
“I know people get divorced because there’s stress, so I thought if there was no stress . . .”
Mom and Eddie looked at each other, surprised.
I saw Mom take a really deep breath.
“I’m so sorry we argued in front of you,” Mom said in a gentle voice. “We’re adults, and we shouldn’t do that. But please don’t be worried. In any relationship people will argue. We get cranky and stressed out sometimes. It happens to everyone, but Eddie and I always talk things out. We have a strong relationship, and you don’t have to worry.”
They both looked at me. I believed them, but there was a little part of me that was still a little worried.
Then Eddie gave Mom a squeeze. “I love this lady, Mia. She’s not getting away from me. You’ve got nothing to worry about.” He planted a big kiss on her, and she started to giggle.
I went from sad to grossed out in two seconds flat. I hate it when Eddie and Mom get all gooey and in love like that. (Even if it means they’re not breaking up.)
“Okay, okay, I get it!” I yelled, making a face.
Mom and Eddie laughed.
“I hope the next time you’re worried about something you’ll tell us about it, or at least one of us,” Mom said. “Is everything else okay?”
I thought about my answer. “Well, Dad and his girlfriend, Lynne, broke up. And I guess that made me a little sad.”
Mom gave Eddie a knowing look. “I understand. Maybe that brought back some bad memories for you, mija.”
Mom gave me a big, long hug, and I felt a lot better.
