by Coco Simon
I shuddered, remembering. “I didn’t know a kid could be so loud.”
“We should probably ask Emma, but I’m thinking that maybe little kids get better when they get older,” Katie said. “And besides, your dad is just dating her, right?”
“I guess, but he really seems to like Lynne,” I confided. “You should have seen him running around, doing everything. ‘I’ll get that!’ ‘I’ll do that!’ Like he’s totally in love with her.”
“Or maybe he’s just being extra polite,” Katie suggested.
I sighed. “I hope so,” I said. “If not, I’ll just buy a pair of earplugs.”
Then I switched on my computer. “So, we need to find pictures of the endocrine system, right?”
“No, I want to do a report on dinosaurs!” Katie said, using a little kid’s voice.
I started to laugh. “No, Katie, today we need to do a report on the endocrine system,” I said, using my best dad impression.
“No!” Katie yelled. “Dinosaurs! Dinosaurs! Dinosaurs!”
Eddie stepped into the dining room. “Wow, you girls are really excited about your homework, aren’t you?” he asked, and Katie and I started cracking up.
Katie totally made me feel better about everything, just like she always does. Which is just one more reason why I will always, always, always be her friend.
CHAPTER 15
Losing My Patience
The next day I kept my promise to Olivia, and we stayed after school to decorate her locker. I brought all the supplies we needed, like scissors and double-stick tape for the wallpaper, and a special hook for the mirror that wouldn’t ruin the wallpaper (like mine was).
There were still kids in the hallway, people who don’t take the bus or people who stay for after-school activities, and a lot of them were curious about what we were doing.
“Okay, so first we need to take everything out,” I said, which wasn’t going to be easy because even after only a few days, Olivia’s locker was a total mess. I started taking out crumpled-up papers, but Olivia just stood there with her back against the locker next to hers, watching people go by.
“Those girls look totally cool,” she said, nodding to two girls who walked past.
“Oh, I guess,” I said. “They’re a grade above us. I don’t really know them.”
Then this girl Hanna from our grade walked up.
“Hi, Olivia,” she said. “What are you doing?”
“Mia and I are totally redecorating my locker,” she said. “We, like, designed it from scratch. It’s going to be soooo cool.”
I noticed that Olivia said “we,” which was pretty annoying. It was also kind of annoying that she wasn’t actually doing any work. So I dumped a bunch of garbage in her arms.
“Here, throw this out,” I said.
Olivia stuck her tongue out at me in a sort of funny way and went to throw out her trash. I piled her books and makeup boxes onto the floor and then got to work measuring and cutting the wallpaper. While I worked, Olivia just kept talking and talking.
“I mean, those BFC girls don’t seem so bad,” she was saying. “Maybe one day we could sit with them, you know?”
“Count me out,” I told her. “I’ve been there before, and it didn’t work out, remember?”
Olivia acted like she hadn’t heard me, and she just kept talking about this cool outfit that Callie wore yesterday and wondering what Callie’s closet looked like. Then she started talking about Emma’s brothers.
“Matt Taylor is sooo cute,” she said. “You guys must see him all the time when you make cupcakes, right?”
“Sometimes,” I replied.
“And I heard Emma’s oldest brother, Sam, is totally gorgeous,” Olivia went on.
“Definitely,” I agreed. I was too busy to feel chatty. Every time I tried to get Olivia to help, she found a way to get out of it. Like, when I asked her to put the double-sided tape on the back of the wallpaper, she kept saying, “Oh no, I can’t get it to go on straight! You’d better do it, Mia. I’d ruin it.”
Basically, I ended up doing the whole thing myself. When it was done, it looked pretty great. The light looked cool shining on the mirror, and the wallpaper was totally hot. Plus, I had found these strands of plastic jewels, and I strung them from the top shelf so that they dangled down. The whole effect was very cool.
“Mia, this is ah-may-zing!” Olivia cried when it was all done. She started snapping pictures with her phone. “My old friends are not going to believe this. Thank you sooooo much!”
So far, I had been shy about asking Olivia for the money for the locker stuff. But she seemed so happy that I figured this was a good time to bring it up.
“So, the forty-one dollars . . . ,” I said. “I kind of used my shoe savings to get your stuff, so if you could get it back to me soon . . . like tomorrow, maybe? It’s actually forty-one dollars and thirty-six cents. But I don’t care about the change.”
“Oh, of course!” Olivia promised. “I’ll bring it in tomorrow, I swear!”
But Olivia didn’t. When I got off the bus and walked up to her, I said, “So, Olivia, did you remember the money?”
“Oh my gosh, Mia, I’m soooo sorry!” she said. “I totally woke up late this morning because my mom didn’t wake me up, and I, like, rushed out. Tomorrow, I promise.”
“Oh, okay,” I said, trying to hide my disappointment. After all, she had an excuse.
Then when we were in homeroom, Olivia did that thing where she made me feel sorry for her. She turned to look at me with big, sad eyes.
“So, you know, Mia, I keep hearing you and Emma and Alexis and Katie talk about that party,” Olivia said.
“Yeah, well, we’re baking a lot of cupcakes for it,” I explained.
“Well . . . it’s just . . .” She did that pouty lip thing again. “I haven’t been to a single party since I moved out here. It’s soooo depressing. I feel like such a loser, you know? So I was wondering if maybe you could ask Emma if I could come.”
“Well, we’re not really hanging out at the party,” I said hesitantly. “We’re sort of working.”
“I know you guys don’t want me in the business, so don’t worry about that,” Olivia said. “But I’ll come and help and do whatever. Come on, we’ll have fun.”
“Well . . .” I wasn’t sure how my friends were going to feel about this.
“Oh, please, Mia?” Olivia asked, making a supersad face, the kind Jake uses on us when he wants an extra cupcake. “I really need to make some new friends in this town.”
“Okay, I’ll ask,” I promised, even though I regretted the words as soon as they came out of my mouth. But it wasn’t a terrible idea, really. It could be like a test, to see if Olivia fit in, in a Cupcake situation.
So homeroom went like it always does, and I went to my locker to get my math book, which I had forgotten to take out before. I turned the corner and saw Callie, Maggie, and Bella gathered in front of Olivia’s locker.
“You will not believe what I did yesterday!” Olivia said, opening the door.
I wasn’t sure if I heard right. What “I” did? Olivia hadn’t done a thing!
“Ooh, Olivia, this is fabulous!” Maggie squealed. “Look at that wallpaper!”
“I love the mirror,” Callie added.
“Yes, and I even put in a light so I can do my makeup,” Olivia bragged. She didn’t even mention my name! Can you believe that?
“Olivia, you totally have to decorate my locker for me,” Maggie said.
“Me too,” Bella added.
“That would be fun,” Olivia said. “I’ll start coming up with some ideas.”
How is she going to do that? I wondered. But I guess that’s her problem!
Anyway, I had to go to class, so I walked past Olivia’s locker and waved.
“Hi, Olivia. Showing off your new locker?” I asked.
A guilty look crossed Olivia’s face, and I knew she was wondering how much I had heard.
“Um, yeah,” she
said.
“See you later,” I said, and walked away. I was starting to wish that I hadn’t promised her I’d ask about Matt and Sam’s party.
CHAPTER 16
From Good to Bad Again
That afternoon we went to Katie’s house after school for a Cupcake meeting. Katie was kind of in a bad mood because Ms. Chen had announced today that we were going to play volleyball for a few weeks.
Katie is a fast runner, but she’s a terrible volleyball player. Whenever a ball comes to her and she hits it, it goes all over the place. For a while, she had a horrible time playing volleyball, but it’s been a little better because Emma, Alexis, and I are all in gym with her. So when we were playing, we made sure to run up and help her whenever the ball came her way.
Of course, we couldn’t help her when she served the ball. I don’t think she ever gets it over the net or on the right side. George Martinez (who I am sure likes her) teases her and calls her Silly Arms, but in a nice way, which cheers her up. But mostly she just hates volleyball.
“If I could go back in time, I would find the inventor of volleyball and convince him to keep his game to himself, so it wouldn’t torture kids like me,” Katie said as we were sitting around her kitchen table. She had her head in her hands and looked superbummed.
“I’m not sure if anyone actually invented volleyball,” Alexis said thoughtfully. “I mean, it’s basically just hitting a ball back and forth. I bet cavemen did that.”
“With what? Rocks?” Emma asked. “I don’t think cavemen had volleyballs.”
“You know what I mean,” Alexis protested.
“Don’t worry, Katie. It’s only for a few weeks,” I assured her. “Plus, we’re in your class now, so we can make it fun.”
Katie sighed. “I will never use the words ‘volleyball’ and ‘fun’ in the same sentence.”
Alexis brought us back to business, as usual. “So, we need to make up a schedule for the party on Saturday. We’re baking on Friday night, right?”
“Right,” Emma said. “Mom was wondering if we could do it at one of your houses, because she needs to get our house ready for the party.”
“We can probably do it here,” Katie said.
“And what about the shopping?” Alexis asked.
“Mom and I are going to get everything tomorrow night,” Emma replied. “We have to go shopping for the party, anyway. I’ll bring it all with me on Friday.”
Alexis gave us each a sheet of paper. “I printed out a copy of the final shopping list. I need everyone to check it and make sure we’re not forgetting anything.”
We all studied the list for a minute. Katie spoke up first.
“Looks good to me. But maybe we should put down that we specifically need creamy peanut butter. Chunky won’t work so well.”
Emma nodded and wrote on her list.
“I think it’s fine,” I added.
“All right,” Alexis said. “So we bake, decorate, and pack on Friday night. The party starts at three, so we should probably get to Emma’s by one or two to set up.”
“We should probably put on the chocolate basketballs on Saturday,” I said. “They might get soggy if we stick them in the icing the night before.”
“Okay, so then we’ll get there at one thirty?” Alexis asked, looking at Emma.
“That’s fine,” Emma replied. “I’ll double-check with my mom.”
It looked like we had a plan, which meant our meeting was about to end, and I still had something to bring up. I was definitely nervous about it.
“So, I need to ask you guys something,” I said. “I know we don’t want Olivia in the business, and I get that. But she feels really left out, and she asked if she could help with the party. She doesn’t want money or anything, she just wants to come and hang out. She’s lonely.”
Katie started chewing on her finger and didn’t say anything. Emma looked at Alexis, and then Alexis spoke up.
“I don’t know, Mia,” she said. “I mean, does she really want to hang out with us or just you? She doesn’t seem very interested in the rest of us.”
“I know, you said that before,” I said. “But maybe it’s because she doesn’t feel welcome because we have this club and she doesn’t belong to it. Listen, I know she’s not perfect, but she doesn’t have anyone else at the school to hang with.”
“Well, if she wants to help . . . ,” Emma said hesitantly. “I guess I could check with my brothers to make sure it’s okay . . . since it’s their party.”
“Do we really have to?” Katie whined. “I mean, we sit with her every day at lunch. Isn’t that good enough?”
Suddenly I felt a little angry and fed up.
“Why is hanging out with Olivia such a big deal for everybody?” I asked. I looked right at Katie. “It’s, like, every time I want to make a new friend, you try to sabotage it. I’m not Callie, Katie. I’m not going to dump you.”
Katie looked really stunned. Alexis and Emma exchanged a look, but didn’t say anything.
“I’m going text Eddie to pick me up,” I said, and I walked outside. I didn’t like feeling this way. Mostly, I felt confused. Why couldn’t everybody just be friends? Why did it have to be so complicated?
It also bugged me that I was sticking my neck out for Olivia while I was kind of mad at her too. It definitely was not cool of her to tell people that she had decorated the locker herself. And she still owed me that forty-one dollars!
I texted Olivia that night.
Sorry 2b a pest, but I no how hard it is 2 remember things in the am. Can you bring in the money 2mrw?
She replied right away.
I.M. So Sorry. Keep forgetting! 2mrw for sur.
Tx! I typed.
I hoped she would remember this time. Because I really didn’t like how things were going.
I was kind of mad at Olivia. I was kind of mad at Katie. Emma and Alexis were annoyed with me. Unless I could figure out how to work things out, I wasn’t going to have any friends left in Maple Grove at all!
CHAPTER 17
Did She Really Do That?
I got another text that night, from Emma.
Matt & Sam say Olivia can come.
Tx! I typed back. She will be excited.
I thought about texting Olivia, but I figured I could just tell her in person at homeroom. I knew how happy she would be. So maybe things were working out after all. I mean, Emma could have lied and said her brothers didn’t want Olivia to come. So maybe my Cupcake friends were finally coming around about Olivia. (Or Emma and Alexis were, at least.)
So the next morning I decided to face the day with a positive attitude. I was worried that the bus ride with Katie would be awkward, and at first she was a little quiet, but luckily, the new season for this cooking competition show we both like had just started, so we talked about that for the whole ride. It was obvious we both wanted to put the argument we had the night before behind us.
Then when I got to homeroom, I talked to Olivia.
“So, you can help at the party on Saturday,” I said. “Can you get to Emma’s house by one thirty?”
“Ooh, Mia, thank you!” Olivia said, practically knocking over her desk to hug me. “Just text me her address, and I’ll be there. Oh my gosh, I’m not sure what to wear. Can I come over to your house today to see if you have anything I can borrow?”
I mentally went through my schedule in my head. “Um, sure,” I said. “Meet me by my bus, okay? We’re just going to wear team shirts and jeans to go with the sports theme. But maybe we can think of some cool ways to accessorize.”
Olivia nodded, but I could tell she wasn’t really listening, and instead she was mentally going through my closet.
“Maybe I can borrow that cute skirt you have with the ruffles,” she said, mostly to herself. “I have a shirt that would go great with that.”
I noticed Olivia didn’t say anything about paying me back the money, and I felt weird asking her again. So I let it slide. If she brought it with her, I cou
ld always get it from her after school at my house.
In gym third period, Ms. Chen made me and George team captains. I made sure to pick Katie, Emma, and Alexis for my team. George picked Olivia for his team before I had a chance. When Ms. Chen wasn’t watching, one of us Cupcakers switched places with Katie, so that she would never have to serve. I could tell that she was grateful, and it made me feel good.
When the game was over and we all walked to the locker room, Olivia walked up to me.
“Oh my gosh, now I know why George calls Katie Silly Arms,” she said. “She looks totally ridiculous out there! I’m surprised she didn’t whack you in the face.”
I stopped walking. “Olivia, Katie’s really sensitive about that. George can tease her because they’ve been friends for a long time.”
Olivia shrugged. “I’m just saying. It’s sooo obvious because she’s such a klutz!”
We have lunch right after gym, and I thought Olivia would spend the whole time talking about Matt and Sam’s party and what she was going to wear. But when I walked into the cafeteria, I was surprised to see Olivia sitting at the BFC table!
Maybe she’s just talking to them about something, I thought. I bet she’ll move over to our table in a minute.
But I unpacked my hummus and crackers and carrot sticks, and Katie unpacked her P-B-and-J, and then Emma and Alexis came to the table with trays of spaghetti and meatballs. Olivia stayed at the BFC table. I glanced over and saw that her lunch bag was open and she was eating sushi.
Alexis noticed too and raised an eyebrow.
“Well, that’s interesting,” she said. She looked at me. “Did she tell you she was changing tables?”
“No,” I admitted. “But I guess she’s free to sit wherever she wants, right? I mean, it’s good that she has other friends, right?”
I believed what I said, but at the same time I was kind of hurt. I mean, I thought I was Olivia’s best friend at the school. So why wouldn’t she at least tell me she was sitting with the BFC? And was it permanent?
It’s just lunch, I told myself. No big deal. And in a way, it was nice that she wasn’t sitting with us. Katie was a lot more relaxed and Alexis wasn’t rolling her eyes or shooting looks at Emma when she thought I couldn’t see her.
