• A couch for waiting (not just pillows)
• A bigger polish wall
• Drying chairs separate from the waiting couch
“Oh, and don’t forget a desk for us to use for our homework!” Brooke said.
“Couldn’t forget that,” Aly said, and added it to the list. Then Aly looked at her watch—it was 4:03. “It’s past the deadline,” she said. “Let’s go downstairs and ask Mom if she got the store.”
Aly knew the answer before she even asked. Their mother was sitting at the kitchen table, staring out the window.
“Bad news, girls,” she said when she saw Aly and Brooke. “I couldn’t get the paperwork in on time, and the other businesses did. A coffee shop’s going to move into that space. So we’re back to the beginning.”
Mom sighed.
Aly sighed.
Brooke sighed.
Actually, though, Aly was secretly a little glad that the ice-cream space didn’t work—she was worried about having the Sparkle Spa in a freezer. But she still hoped they’d find a new place soon.
three
White Out
At school on Monday, Aly sat with Charlotte at their lunch table. Lily was a buyer that day instead of a bringer, so she was on the lunch line, waiting to get chicken fingers with french fries and applesauce. Mom had packed Aly’s lunch—a cheese sandwich, a pear, pretzels, a little bottle of water, and a chocolate kiss—and Charlotte had lunch from home too. Her mom had different ideas about food than Aly’s mom, so Charlotte’s lunch had cookies, along with a sandwich made out of peanut butter and marshmallow fluff that was the exact color of White Out nail polish. There were some raisins too, but Aly suspected Charlotte wasn’t going to eat those, and a fruit punch juice box.
When Lily sat down, Suzy Davis followed her, dropping into the empty seat across from Aly. Aly and Suzy Davis had a long history of not liking each other, but recently they’d started becoming friendlier—because of two things: (1) Aly and Brooke’s favorite manicurist, Joan, married Suzy’s uncle, and (2) Suzy helped the girls win a carnival competition by adding her makeup business, Suzy’s Spectacular Makeup, to their Sparkle Spa booth. The thing about Suzy was that she was basically a good person, and was really smart, too, but sometimes the way she said things or the way she acted made people upset with her. Aly tried to see past that. Charlotte had a little more trouble. Lily too, but not as much as Charlotte.
“So did your mom find a new place for True Colors?” Lily asked as she opened up her carton of milk.
Aly swallowed a bite of her cheese sandwich. “She found a place, but then someone else rented it to open a coffee shop.”
“I hate coffee shops!” Charlotte declared.
Suzy looked at her. “Why?” she asked.
Charlotte’s eyes shot daggers at Suzy. “Because they took over the space Aly’s mom wanted for True Colors,” she said. “Duh.”
“That’s a dumb reason to hate coffee shops,” Suzy said. “That was just one coffee shop, not, like, every coffee shop on earth.”
“She’s being supportive,” Lily said, picking up a chicken nugget. “You should try it sometime.”
Aly shook her head. As always, Suzy wasn’t wrong, she just didn’t say what she was thinking in the very nicest way possible. But Lily sounded kind of mean too.
“Anyway,” Aly said, “there was another space that was really cool. Brooke and I liked it even better. It was huge and beautiful and used to be a hair salon, but it was too expensive. It’s too bad, because the Sparkle Spa could’ve gotten a window.”
“A window?” Charlotte squealed. “For our own signs and stuff?”
Aly shrugged. “Probably. But it’s not going to happen.” Still, Aly couldn’t help dreaming about how cool the Sparkle Spa would look with its very own window.
“I think your mom should get the bigger space so that I can have room there for my makeup business,” Suzy said. “People liked it so much at the carnival. And it’s not fair, because my mom’s company is only online, so I can’t have a part of her shop like you and Brooke do with your mom’s.”
“What did you just say?” Aly asked. Ideas were already starting to spin like a Ferris wheel in Aly’s brain.
“People liked my business?” Suzy said.
“No, the other part.” Aly put down the pretzel she was about to eat.
“That I should be allowed to have my makeup business in True Colors?” Suzy asked.
“Yes!” Aly answered. “What if another business helps my mom pay her rent? Then she could afford the larger space, and divide some of it with the other business!”
“And still have a window for the Sparkle Spa!” Lily added, punctuating her sentence by stabbing a french fry in the air.
“Exactly!” Aly said. “That’s a great idea, Suzy.”
“That wasn’t her idea,” Charlotte said through a mouthful of cookie.
“It actually wasn’t,” Suzy agreed. “I just wanted a place where I could have Suzy’s Spectacular Makeup.”
“Okay, fine,” Aly said. “It wasn’t totally your idea, but it helped give me that idea. I can’t wait to tell my mom. I think it’ll change everything!”
That night, at dinner, Aly spoke to her mom about the idea.
Mom leaned back in her seat. “That’s actually kind of brilliant.”
Aly smiled. It was really nice when her mom thought she was smart about something, mostly because Aly thought her mom was the smartest woman she knew.
Brooke was shoveling stir-fry into her mouth, then stopped with a forkful of vegetables halfway to her lips. “Joan’s cookies!” she said. “Joan could have a place for her cookie business!”
Joan, in addition to being the girls’ favorite manicurist, Suzy Davis’s aunt by marriage, and their mom’s best friend, was also the best cookie baker the girls knew. Sometimes people asked her to make cookies for parties, and she often made cookies for fun to bring into the salon. She always saved some for Aly and Brooke and their friends, and asked them to give her a report on how they tasted. She even taught the girls how to make sparkly rainbow-colored cookies called Unicorn Treats. Well, originally they were called Unicorn Poop, but Aly thought that was gross, so they changed the name.
“I think Joan is happy running her side business out of her house,” Mom said. “But there are a lot of companies that might fit nicely with True Colors. Maybe someone who wants to sell hair accessories or jewelry, or maybe even a little juice counter. I should send an e-mail to the women in the Businesswomen Unite group, to see if they know anyone. I wonder how much space a jewelry shop or a juice counter would need.”
“Not too much,” Brooke said, after taking a swallow of water. “Because we still need room for the Sparkle Spa.”
Mom nodded, but didn’t say anything. Aly worried. What if her idea meant that Mom had changed her mind from the other day and there wouldn’t be room for the Sparkle Spa anymore?
She sent a Secret Sister Eye Message to Brooke: Did I just mess up?
Brooke sent one back: I hope not.
Aly hoped not too.
four
Orange Juice
Auden Angels Day at the Sparkle Spa was always on Tuesdays. Well, it wasn’t just Auden Angels Day—other kids could come to the spa then too—but it was the day that the Auden Angels came for their rainbow sparkle pedicures. Ever since September, the sixth-grade soccer team had made appointments to have their toenails polished all through the fall outdoor soccer season and the winter indoor soccer season. Anjuli, the goalie, had her fingernails done too. There was usually space for a few other kids to make appointments, but not many.
After school, Aly, Brooke, Charlotte, Lily, and Sophie met to walk to the Sparkle Spa. In order to get there faster, the girls race-walked, propelling themselves forward with their elbows, just like they’d seen people do when they watched the Olympics on TV. Aly and Brooke were expert race-walkers.
“So, still no new place?” Charlotte huffed, trying her best to k
eep up.
“No,” Brooke answered. “But Mom’s going to start looking again tomorrow. She might want another business to share the space with True Colors.”
“Like the Sparkle Spa?” Sophie asked.
Aly shook her head. “Like a grown-up business,” she said. “But the Sparkle Spa will have room there too.”
“We hope!” Brooke said, her hair bouncing.
“What do you mean, you hope?” Lily asked.
“Even though Mom said the other day there would be room for us, last night at dinner she didn’t guarantee a space. We’re a little nervous, but we’re trying not to be.”
Lily stopped race-walking, pausing right in front of Baby Cakes, a kids’ clothing and cake store. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying? The Sparkle Spa might close?”
Aly stopped too. “We don’t think so, but we just don’t know for sure.”
Brooke stopped next to her sister. “And until we know something for sure, we decided not to worry about it. Right, Aly? Because it might be a waste of worrying.”
Aly nodded. Though the truth was, she was still worried.
When the girls reached True Colors, they said hello to all the manicurists and the regular customers they knew, like Mrs. Franklin. Her dog, Sadie, was a pet model and had just gotten cast in a TV commercial for medicine that treated allergies. Mrs. Franklin was very excited about it, and the girls were too.
“So we’ll be able to see Sadie on TV?” Brooke asked. “That’s the coolest ever. Do you think maybe Sparkly could be on TV one day?”
Aly and Brooke’s dog Sparkly was very sweet and very tiny, but he was not a dog model at all. Mostly he hung out in his corner of the Sparkle Spa when the girls were at school. Joan had made a deal with the girls’ mom that she would walk him during the day. The girls loved Joan for it. Sparkly did too.
“Maybe,” Mrs. Franklin told Brooke. “But it’s a lot of work, getting your dog on TV, and a lot of training.”
Brooke scrunched up her face. She did not like training Sparkly. Pretty much all he knew how to do was “fetch” and “lie down.” One afternoon she’d tried teaching him “shake hands,” but it hadn’t worked out very well.
The girls headed into the Sparkle Spa, where Mom had celery sticks, peanut butter, and water waiting for them. They ate their snack and did their homework—one of Mom’s rules—and then opened the Sparkle Spa for business.
Jenica, the Angels’ captain, arrived first with Bethany and Giovanna. Jenica and Bethany jumped into the pedicure chairs, and Giovanna sat near them.
“Is it okay if I pet Sparkly?” Giovanna asked.
“Sure,” Charlotte told her. “He likes when you scratch his ears.”
“I heard your mom might be moving her salon,” Jenica said. “My nana told me.”
Aly turned on the water in the pedicure basin and looked up at Jenica. “That’s the plan,” she said.
“We’re hoping that means we get a bigger Sparkle Spa,” Brooke said. “But we don’t really know.”
Jenica nodded. “You should see if you could get three pedicure chairs, if you do.”
On Aly’s list, she’d had written four pedicure chairs, just in case another manicurist started working at the Sparkle Spa. But three pedicure chairs would be really nice too, Aly thought. At least then she, Brooke, and Sophie could do pedicures at the same time—with no clients waiting.
Aly was in the middle of removing Jenica’s old toenail polish when someone knocked on the door. Charlotte headed over with her schedule clipboard. All the people who worked at the Sparkle Spa had special jobs, like in a real business. Charlotte was officially the COO—chief operating officer—of the Sparkle Spa. That meant she was in charge of schedules and lots of other chores that involved organizing.
“Oh,” Charlotte said when she saw who was there. “Hi, Suzy.”
“Hi,” Suzy replied. “Brooke and Aly’s mom said I could come back here while she talks to my mom.” Then she sniffed the air a little bit. “Nice job covering up the dog smell in here. It’s usually worse.”
Brooke stood up with a bottle of Under Watermelon polish in her hands—one of the colors in the rainbow sparkle pedicure. “For the last time,” she said to Suzy, “the Sparkle Spa does not smell like dog!”
Suzy nodded. “That’s what I’m saying. It smells better today.”
Brooke huffed and knelt back down to paint Bethany’s toenails.
Aly sniffed the air. She thought it smelled a little bit like vanilla and wondered if Mom or Joan had sprayed perfume or something else in the room while the girls were at school.
“So, what’s your mom talking to Mrs. Tanner about?” Lily asked Suzy. Lily was stationed next to the sparkly teal strawberry that was the Sparkle Spa’s donation jar. Mom wouldn’t let the girls charge for their services, but she allowed them to put out a donation jar. Once she took out the cost of the nail polish and other supplies, she told the girls they could donate the money to whatever charity they wanted. So far they’d donated to lots of places, including the pet adoption center where they’d gotten Sparkly.
Since Lily was really good at math, she was the CFO—chief financial officer—of the Sparkle Spa. That meant she handled all the money and reminded clients to donate.
“Aly and Brooke’s mom sent an e-mail to a bunch of women who run businesses, including my mom, asking if anyone wanted space in her new salon. My mom’s business is mostly online, but she liked the idea of having a real store with lots of storage for her supplies, so she came to talk to Mrs. Tanner. If it works out, then I’ll get to have Suzy’s Spectacular Makeup there too.”
“Really?” Brooke asked. “Your mom said that?”
Suzy picked up a bottle of Orange Juice polish. “Not exactly,” she said. “But it’s only fair. If your mom can give you a space to run a business, my mom can too.”
Aly and Brooke sent a Secret Sister Eye Message to each other: She doesn’t know what she’s talking about.
Aloud, Aly said, “That would be nice.”
“What kind of business does your mom run, anyway?” Bethany asked as Brooke went back to giving her a pedicure.
“Personalization,” Suzy said. “Like if you want sweatshirts with your name on them, or aprons with a company’s logo on them, or pencils, or whatever. She helps you make them, and then sends them to your house.”
“Oh yeah,” Giovanna said. “My nonna bought hats from her when my whole family went on vacation together. They were really cool.”
“All her stuff is cool,” Suzy said. “So hopefully she’ll get a store, and then I’ll get a store, and it’ll be great.”
“Totally,” Giovanna agreed.
But Aly wasn’t sure. She wasn’t sure about a lot of things:
• Whether it would be great if Suzy’s mom rented out space in True Colors.
• Whether that would mean Suzy would get her own space in True Colors.
• And whether it would be great—or not—if she did.
But Aly tried to remember her promise to Brooke that she wouldn’t worry until there was something serious to worry about. So she kept quiet and continued polishing Jenica’s toes.
five
Very Cherry
Guess who’s taking today off?”
Mr. Tanner, Aly and Brooke’s dad, opened the blinds in the girls’ bedroom on Saturday morning, letting the sun stream in. During the week, their father traveled for work, so when the weekends came and he was home, it was always a little exciting.
Brooke reached for her Very Cherry–colored glasses. She had lots of different-colored glasses so she could match them to her outfits.
Aly rubbed her eyes.
“Mom!” he said, answering his own question. “Joan will run the Sparkle Spa today, and we’re going to have a family day at Frankie’s Fun Fair. So let’s get going.”
Brooke jumped out of bed at the words “Frankie’s Fun Fair.” “We’re going to Frankie’s?” she asked. “Really?”
&nbs
p; “Really,” her dad said. “But it’s a bit of a drive, so brush your teeth and put on some clothes as quickly as you can.”
Brooke raced to the bathroom. Aly rubbed her eyes again and got out from under the covers. “How come we’re going to Frankie’s?” she asked. She was excited too, but going to Frankie’s wasn’t a regular weekend activity. The last time they’d gone was three months ago when Dad’s college roommate came to town with his three sons.
“I thought the family could use some fun,” Dad said. “That’s all. Come on, up and at ’em.”
After dropping Sparkly at True Colors with Joan, the Tanner family headed to Frankie’s, singing along to the radio, even when Dad didn’t know the words.
“You mean she’s not saying ‘I’ll get the weather’?” Dad asked.
Brooke laughed at him. “It’s ‘forget forever’! ”
Aly laughed too when Dad scratched his head and said, “Well, that does make a little more sense.”
When they got to the amusement park, each Tanner chose a ride for the whole family to go on.
Brooke loved the pirate ship that swung them back and forth, making her scream.
Aly picked the swings because it almost felt like she was flying.
Mom chose the carousel because the carved wooden horses’ colors were just like nail polish.
Dad picked the Ferris wheel, so they could all see the entire park below.
“This is the best,” Brooke said while they were sitting together, swinging in the Ferris wheel car.
Aly agreed but was still thinking it was weird that they were having this family day. Maybe her parents thought they needed to “store up” some happiness because something bad was going to happen.
It turned out Aly wasn’t all that wrong.
When the Tanners sat down for lunch—sharing pizza and cheese fries and nachos, which was the exact sort of food Mom didn’t like them eating that much—Mom said she had news to share.
“What?” Brooke asked, dipping a french fry in extra cheese.
Mom took Dad’s hand. “True Colors is going to move!” she announced. “And I decided to take the larger space you girls liked, the one that used to be a hair salon.”
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