Save the Cupcake! by Lisa Papademetriou

Author:Lisa Papademetriou [Papademetriou, Lisa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Published: 2012-05-01T00:00:00+00:00

Dad pulls up to the curb, and I’m starting to follow Chloe into the backseat when I realize that the front passenger seat is empty.

“No Annie?” I ask, maybe a little too happily.

“She’s meeting us at the restaurant.”

Great. I nod grimly and climb in beside my dad, balancing the white bakery box on my lap.

Chloe chatters happily about Rupert as I look out the window. I can see my grandmother behind the counter inside the tea shop. She waves to us as Dad pulls away from the curb, and I wave back, even though the windows are tinted and I know she can’t see me.

Dad makes a left turn at the light. Our usual pizza parlor is to the right. “Where are we going?”

“I thought we’d try a new place.”

“Why?” I ask, which is a little babyish, since I know why. We’re going to a new place because of Annie, who is too good for pizza, obviously.

“It’s good to try new things.” Dad’s voice is strained, but he tries hard to make it sound relaxed.

“Where?” Chloe asks.

“Rain.”

I haven’t even heard of it, but I can tell it’s fancy the moment Dad pulls into the parking lot. The lettering on the sign is gold and hard to read. Inside, the lighting is dim and the walls are hung with plush red curtains. Candles give everything a soft yellow glow.

“A waterfall!” Chloe says, and Dad laughs.

She’s right. Near the windows is a whole wall of rocks with water cascading down, collecting in a stone pool.

Annie is already there, sitting at a table by herself. She waves to us and Dad waves back. Chloe hurries over to join her.

“Hi, Hayley!” Annie says brightly when she sees me, like we’re old friends.

“Hi.”

Dad bends over and gives Annie a quick kiss, then takes the chair beside her. Sitting across from them, I can see that they aren’t as strange a couple as I first thought. My dad’s hair is dark and graying slightly at the temples, which makes his blue eyes seem bright. He’s wearing a purple button-down shirt and dark jeans that look new, and I wonder if Annie helped him pick them out. Anyway, the clothes make him look younger, and I realize suddenly that my dad is handsome. I guess I’ve never thought about it before. He’s handsome and young-looking, and now he has this pretty, young girlfriend, and I can’t help feeling like he’s someone I’ve never met.

“So, what would you girls like to drink?” Dad asks, once the waitress has handed us our menus.

“Ginger ale,” Chloe says, fast as a bullet.

“I’ll take the dollar,” I say.

Annie lifts her eyebrows and looks at my dad, who turns red and starts to dig in his back pocket for his wallet. Two years ago, my dad offered me and Chloe a deal — every time we skip ordering drinks in a restaurant, we get a dollar. It’s supposed to teach us about saving money or something, but a dollar is usually less than what a drink costs, so he comes out ahead.

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