“Hey, what do you all think of balloons as decorations?” Jasmine asked. “Maybe Mrs. Wallace could get a big balloon arch for the carnival entrance.”
Madison looked up from her work, her face serious.
“Balloons are fun, but if some flew off, they might end up in trees or a lake somewhere,” she said thoughtfully. “That wouldn’t be good for birds, fish, and other animals.”
“Oh! Of course!” Jasmine said quickly, her cheeks turning red. She had been so concerned with impressing her friends with her ideas that she had forgotten about the most important thing—the animals!
At that moment, Cookie wandered over to Jasmine and climbed into her lap for a snuggle. He always seemed to know when Jasmine was feeling down and needed some cheering up. Nothing made Jaz feel better than a good puppy cuddle.
“Your dog is the cutest,” Madison said. Then she scooted over and gestured to Jasmine to join her. “I could use some help with this glitter. Which color do you want to use?”
“Red would work,” Jasmine said, giving Madison a grateful smile. Then she picked up Cookie and placed him next to her so she had some room to work. She felt better already.
That night after dinner, instead of hanging around for dessert, Jasmine went to her room. She gazed at the bulletin board filled with photographs of her, Sofia, and Keiko. She smiled at the photo from Halloween, when they had all dressed up like cats, with fake whiskers sprouting from under their noses.
They’d always been so close. But lately, things seemed different, and Jasmine had to admit it bothered her. To take her mind off her friends, she decided to make some more carnival decorations on her own. When she concentrated on the needy animals at the shelter, her worries seemed smaller.
“Hi, honey,” her mom said, popping her head into Jasmine’s room. “How’s it going in here? All set for the carnival next weekend?”
Jasmine shrugged. “Yeah, I guess,” she said.
Her mom stepped into the room, taking a seat on Jasmine’s bed, which was covered with a baby-blue comforter, Jasmine’s favorite color.
“Is everything okay, niña?” she asked. “You hardly said a word during dinner, and you haven’t said good night to Cookie.”
Jasmine could never hide anything from her mom. Ever since she was little, her mom could always tell what kind of mood she was in. “Can I tell you something?” Jasmine asked her mom now.
“Of course,” Dr. Arroyo said. “You can tell me anything.”
Jasmine stared at the floor. “I … I think Sofia and Keiko like Madison more than me.”
“What makes you say that?” her mom asked. “I thought you were all friends.”
Jasmine nodded. “We are. That’s why I haven’t said anything.” She looked down, embarrassed.
“You know, friends don’t have to do everything together,” her mom pointed out.
Jasmine looked up at her mom in surprise. “They don’t?”
She laughed softly. “No. I realize you, Sofia, and Keiko are used to doing almost everything together. But sometimes it’s okay to give people a little space. They’re still your friends.”
“Are you sure?” Jasmine asked.
Her mom squeezed her hand. “I’m positive. If they weren’t, they wouldn’t be working so hard on this carnival for the shelter. That’s more your cause than theirs, and they wouldn’t be helping if they didn’t care about you.”
Jasmine studied her mom’s light brown eyes. “Maybe you’re right,” she said. Jasmine was too tired to talk about it anymore. She gave her mom a hug as she stifled a yawn. “Thanks, Mom.”
Jasmine turned off her desk lamp and climbed under the covers. “Oh! I forgot one last thing. Here, Cookie!”
A minute later, the dog appeared at the door. Jasmine’s mom picked him up and laid him on the bed. Cookie yipped, turned in a long circle, and burrowed under the covers next to Jasmine.
Jasmine smiled. Dogs are the best, she thought. Cuddling with Cookie always made her feel safe and warm. This thought reminded her that there were a lot of stray dogs out there who needed homes of their own, or at least a safe place at Rosa’s Refuge until a permanent home could be found. And it was up to Jasmine and her friends to help them.
The weather could not have been more beautiful on the day of the carnival. Jasmine and her parents, along with many of the other regular shelter volunteers, arrived early to help set up. Jasmine’s dad helped her hang the WANTED posters all around the park. Then they draped the colorful crepe paper streamers from tree branches. Everything looked very festive.
Mrs. Wallace buzzed around, a clipboard in hand.
“Hi, Jasmine!” she called out as she hurried by. “You and your family are doing a great job with the decorations. And tell your mom I said thanks so much for taking care of the food!”
The food? Jasmine thought. What food? Just then, her mom greeted someone behind Jasmine.
Jasmine spun around. “Tía Alicia?” she said in surprise. “What are you doing here?”
“Your mother told me how much you are doing to help the animal shelter, and I wanted to help out, too,” her aunt said as she wrapped Jasmine in a big hug. “So I agreed to donate food for the carnival.”
She gestured to the table behind her, where servers from El Coquí Café, her aunt’s Caribbean restaurant, were busy unloading a van. They set up aluminum trays filled with empanadas, yellow rice, and roasted meats. There were also pitchers of lemonade and iced tea and trays of fresh fruit.
“Wow!” Jasmine said. “Thank you, Tía Alicia!”
Her mouth watered at the sight of all that delicious traditional Puerto Rican food. There were even two trays of Jasmine’s favorite dish—sweet plantains. She’d watched many times as her aunt cut off the hard peel of the plantains, which looked like long bananas, and sliced the plantains into small flat pieces, then fried them until they were golden brown.
“I have to get back to the café,” her aunt said as she kissed Jasmine. “But I wanted to be sure it all got here on time.”
“I just saw Madison, Sofia, and Keiko in the arts-and-crafts corner,” said Jasmine’s mother. “Why don’t you go see if your friends could use some help?”
“Okay, see you later!” Jasmine said. As she walked across the park, she noted the bounce castle and petting zoo in one corner. There were fluffy ducklings, two sheep, a goat, and even a small pony giving children rides in a little loop! Then there was a donation tent, where people could buy T-shirts, make a donation, or enter the raffle. There was a games tent and even a small stage, where a local band was setting up their instruments. The carnival looked even more wonderful than Jasmine had imagined!
As Jasmine approached the arts-and-crafts corner, she saw an adult volunteer running the spin art station, which already had a line of five or six kids waiting to make a painting. Nearby, several picnic tables were set up with cups of crayons, colored pencils, and stacks of paper. Keiko, Sofia, and Madison were huddled together there, whispering.
“Hey, guys!” Jasmine called with a wave.
But when the girls saw her, instead of waving back, they quickly broke their huddle. Madison snatched the paper they’d been looking at and hid it behind her back. Then they turned and faced Jasmine, shoulder to shoulder.
“Oh, hi,” Sofia said, shifting her eyes to Keiko, who glanced at Madison.
Sensing that something was off, Jasmine shuffled her feet uncertainly. “Um, what’s going on?”
Keiko blinked innocently. “What do you mean? Nothing’s going on.”
“Don’t you love how Mrs. Wallace turned our arts-and-crafts corner into an art gallery?” Madison asked, changing the subject.
“An art gallery?” Jasmine asked.
Keiko stepped back and pointed at a bunch of drawings of some of the shelter animals that were now hanging from colored yarn strung between two trees.
“Jasmine?” Keiko asked, puzzled. “Don’t you like the art gallery?”
“Oh! It’s great,” Jasmine sa
id, focusing on the drawings, which were clipped up with cute plastic clothespins. She recognized a picture of Frankie and one of the five kittens, drawn in crooked orange crayon.
“After kids come here to draw pictures of the animals,” Keiko said, “we post them on this board for people to buy. All the money goes to the shelter. Isn’t that awesome?”
Jasmine nodded. She loved the art gallery, but it still felt like her friends were hiding something. “What’s that in your hand?” Jasmine asked Madison. “Is it another picture?”
Madison’s eyes went wide. “It’s nothing. Just something I have to give my mom.” She glanced off in the distance. “I think I hear her calling me now! I’ll be right back.” With that, she took off like a shot. As she ran, Sofia and Keiko struggled to hold in their giggles.
Jasmine’s stomach twisted. Were they laughing at her? “What’s so funny?” she demanded. “What are you leaving me out of now?”
Keiko wrinkled her nose in confusion. “What do you mean? When did we leave you out?”
“Well, you didn’t include me when you decided to try walking Sadie at the shelter,” Jasmine said sadly. “And you never told me Madison was in your art class. And now the three of you are laughing at me!”
Sofia shook her head. “We’re not laughing at you. Madison just—”
“I don’t want to hear any more about Madison!” Jasmine cried. “I wish it was just us again.”
Suddenly, Keiko glanced past Jasmine, and her eyes widened. When Jasmine turned to follow her gaze, she found Madison standing right behind her. She’d returned just in time to hear Jasmine. Without saying a word, Madison bowed her head, turned around, and quickly walked away. Jasmine didn’t need to see Madison’s eyes to know they were probably full of tears.
Jasmine felt awful. Even worse, when she turned back to her friends, she saw the same hurt expressions on their faces. Jasmine stood there for a moment, not sure what to say. Finally, she turned and walked away. She knew she had messed up. She had just been honest, but she hadn’t meant for Madison to hear. Was everyone mad at her now?
Jasmine found a quiet bench to sit on. She ran her finger over her dog-biscuit-shaped necklace. What a day this was turning out to be!
“Can I sit with you?” someone asked.
Jasmine glanced up to see Keiko.
“Of course you can!” Jasmine said. She scooted over to make room.
“Is there space for me, too?” another voice chimed in. Jasmine smiled as she slid over to make a spot for Sofia as well.
Keiko handed Jasmine a brown manila envelope with Jasmine written in swirly glitter ink.
“We were saving this for the end of the carnival, but I think you should open it now,” Keiko said. She handed it to Jasmine.
Jasmine opened the envelope to find a giant homemade card. On the front was a drawing of Jasmine holding Cookie and smiling. It looked like something Keiko had drawn. She opened the card and gasped. Every inch was covered in ink. All the shelter volunteers had signed it. They’d left little notes thanking her for her hard work.
“Sofia, Madison, and I wanted to thank you for getting us involved with the shelter and the carnival,” Keiko explained. “So we got everyone to sign the card—and make a donation to the shelter in your name.”
Jasmine was stunned. “Wow! This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me. Thank you both so much!”
“You’re welcome,” Sofia said. “But really, you should thank Madison. It was her idea.”
“Madison’s idea?” Jasmine asked.
“Maybe you should read what she wrote,” Keiko suggested, pointing to a scribbled message near the bottom left corner.
Dear Jasmine,
Thank you for helping me with Frankie and for being my friend. It means a lot to me. And thank you for sharing your friends Keiko and Sofia!
Love,
Madison
“We were finishing the card up when you surprised us at the art station. I’m sorry you thought we were doing something fun without you,” Sofia said. “We wanted to keep it a secret so we could give it to you as a present.”
“I’m sorry, too!” Jasmine cried. She threw her arms around Sofia. Then she turned to hug Keiko. “I feel really bad for what I said about Madison. I have to go find her and apologize.” She jumped up from the bench. “Will you both go with me?” she asked.
“Of course,” Keiko replied.
“That’s what friends are for!” Sofia added.
Keiko, Jasmine, and Sofia walked across the park, looking for Madison. After a few minutes, they found her outside the adopt-a-cat trailer. She was checking up on the five stray kittens, who were curled up in a cage with one of Jasmine’s WANTED: A NEW HOME posters next to it.
“Hi, Madison,” Jasmine said. “I wanted to thank you for this.” She held up her card. “This is one of the nicest things anyone’s ever done for me, and Keiko said it was your idea!”
Madison straightened up and smiled shyly. “You’re welcome,” she said. “I wanted to do something for you, since you’ve done so much for the shelter—and for me.”
“For you?” Jasmine asked, surprised. “I don’t feel like I did anything nice for you. I’m really sorry about what I said. I didn’t mean it. I just thought you, Sofia, and Keiko were having more fun without me around.”
“I’m sorry, too!” Madison exclaimed. “I didn’t mean for our surprise to make you feel left out. I was just so happy to meet all of you at the shelter and find friends who liked animals as much as me. No one at my school is like that.” Madison’s shoulders drooped.
“Really?” Sofia asked.
“Yeah,” Madison said. “I’m known at school for being, well, a little too into animals.”
“What do you mean?” Jasmine asked, puzzled. She didn’t think it was possible to love animals too much!
“Well, my school used to have some classroom pets—mostly mice and hamsters—in cages,” Madison explained. “They were meant for us to learn about animals, but to me they looked sad locked up like that. So one day when the teacher wasn’t looking, I set them free.”
Jasmine’s eyes bulged. “You didn’t!”
“I did,” Madison said.
“But what if the animals couldn’t take care of themselves on their own?” Jasmine asked.
“I didn’t think about that at the time,” Madison replied. “I know now that it was a big mistake, but then, well … I thought I was helping them.”
Jasmine knew how Madison felt. She had made a similar mistake when she suggested a balloon arch as a carnival decoration. It was important to think things through, especially where animals were concerned.
“Anyway, my mom decided I needed a place to go to show my love for animals in a better way,” Madison continued. “We’re moving here next month, and my mom thought I might also meet some friends in our new neighborhood. I’m finishing the year at my old school, but next fall, I’ll be at the same school as you, Keiko, and Sofia.”
“Really?” Keiko said. “That’s great news!”
“I didn’t think so at first,” Madison admitted. “I was scared to move here and be the new girl starting at a different school. It’s hard not knowing anyone.”
Jasmine tried to picture what that would be like. She’d always lived in the same place with the same people, and she’d known her best friends for years. It would be scary to start over somewhere new.
“That’s why when I met all of you I tried really hard to become instant best friends—maybe too hard,” Madison explained. “I just liked you all so much.”
“But we like you, too!” Jasmine insisted. “Friends?” She held out her pinkie.
Madison hooked her pinkie around Jasmine’s. “Friends,” she agreed. The girls grinned.
Sofia cleared her throat. “I hate to break up this touching moment, but can we please check in on some animals soon? My parents are here, but they haven’t seen me with any dogs or even cats. At this rate, I’ll never get a dog!”
“Girls!” she said breathlessly. “There’s a long line at the petting zoo. Do you think you could head over there to help?”
“We’re on it!” Jasmine said eagerly as she and her friends changed course. The animal handlers who had set up the petting zoo waved the girls past the line of families waiting to get inside the roped-off area that held the ducks, sheep, and goats.
“What can we do?” Madison asked one of the handlers.
“Just make sure everyone’s happy while they’re waiting in line and that they head outside of the ropes once they’ve had their turn,” he said.
Together, the four girls worked as a team. Madison helped keep the line moving by handing out paper cups of food pellets to the kids who wanted to feed the goats and sheep, while Keiko snapped pictures of the kids petting the ducklings. Since Jasmine knew the most about animals, she told the kids a little bit about each one and ushered them out when they were done. Meanwhile, Sofia helped the younger children climb on and off the Shetland pony before and after their rides. She even cleaned up after the pony and held the lead rope while the pony handler lifted kids on and off. Jasmine saw Sofia’s parents watching her from afar. They looked impressed.
Soon the line at the petting zoo was much shorter, and the girls were free to go.
They were heading back to the adopt-a-cat trailer when Mr. Wallace stepped up to the microphone on the stage.
“Would everyone please gather around?” he announced. “It’s time for the raffle!”
The girls headed toward the stage, where they joined up with Jasmine’s dad and Sofia’s parents. Mrs. Wallace and Jasmine’s mother were standing on the stage behind the microphone, holding a large glass bowl full of tiny red tickets. When Mrs. Wallace noticed the girls walk up, she tapped the microphone.
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