Mia's Golden Bird

  Please write to me and tell me what’s new since you last wrote to me! I hope you’re finding new ways to have fun. At least you won’t have the cast forever, right? Keep telling yourself that!

  Your Cabin 7 BFF,

  Libby

  Yep, Mia thought, that’s exactly what she kept telling herself — the cast is just temporary. And hopefully, with some luck, all of her weird friend problems would be temporary too.

  She stuck the envelope into a pocket of her duffel bag and told herself to make sure and write Libby back soon. She finished her sandwich and checked the time. Just as she did, the door flew open as Lacy rushed in, heading right toward the table where Mia usually sat.

  Her smile seemed about as bright as the sun. “Mia!” she exclaimed. “I’m here! Are you ready to go have an amazing time?”

  Mia gulped as she stood up. “I hope so.” She realized that probably wasn’t exactly the answer Lacy was looking for. “I mean, yeah, absolutely.”

  Mia’s mom stepped over to where the two girls stood. “You’re leaving now?” she asked them.

  “Yes,” Lacy said. “I had to bring the limo again. It’s parked out front.” She looked around and then pointed at Mia’s bag. “Is this all you have?”

  “Oh, was I supposed to bring a sleeping bag? Sorry, I didn’t think about that.”

  Lacy laughed. “A sleeping bag? No, of course not. We’re not going camping. Yuck. Can you imagine, sleeping in a tent? On the ground? I just thought maybe you had a suitcase or something, but if this is all you have, then great. Let’s go!”

  Mia grabbed her duffel bag, then gave her mom a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said.

  “Please call if anything comes up. Anything at all. Te quiero, Mia.”

  “Te quiero mucho, Mamá,” Mia replied. She gave her a little wave and then followed Lacy out the door.

  It was a beautiful day — warm and sunny. Lacy wore a pretty orange sundress, with gold sandals, and she carried a pretty gold purse. As Mia watched the driver open the car door for Lacy, she felt panic rising up in her chest.

  Why had she agreed to do this? To go to a movie star’s house and sleep over? She was nothing like Lacy. First of all, Lacy probably never wore the same outfit twice. Second of all, her shoes matched her purse. She always carried a purse. If Mia couldn’t stick it in the pocket of her shorts or jeans, it stayed home. Third, a limo?! Again?

  This is never going to work, Mia thought. Lacy is way too classy for me. I don’t belong with her.

  Lacy peered out of the car at Mia. “What are you doing? Come on, climb in! We managed to lose the paparazzi earlier, but they might show up at any moment. So let’s get a move on!”

  Maybe Mia could tell Lacy she couldn’t go because she suddenly didn’t feel well. It was actually kind of true. Her stomach felt queasy as she considered what the next twenty-four hours were going to be like.

  “I, um —”

  “Did you forget something?” Lacy asked. “You brought along the photos, didn’t you? And your camera?”

  “Yes,” Mia replied. “They’re all in my bag. I just, well, I didn’t bring any fancy clothes. Like you’re wearing.”

  Lacy waved her hand as if she were swatting away a fly. “Fancy? What do you mean? You don’t need anything fancy. We’re just going to hang out at my house. Come on, you look fine. Let’s rock and roll.”

  Mia took a deep breath and walked toward the limo. Right before she got in, she heard “Hey, Mia!” from down the sidewalk. She turned and saw Josie, Salina, and Polly walking toward them.

  Great, Mia thought. Perfect timing.

  The last thing Mia wanted to do was explain what she was doing, so Mia gave them a quick wave and then climbed into the limo. The driver quickly shut the door, and a few seconds later, they were on their way.

  “Who was that?” Lacy asked. “Some of your friends from school?”

  “Yeah,” Mia said, grimacing as she thought about the questions she’d have to answer on Monday.

  “You could have stayed for a minute and talked to them,” Lacy said. “I don’t want them to think you’re rude or stuck up or something.”

  “Oh well,” Mia said with a sigh. “Too late now.”

  It was not a house.

  It was a mansion.

  An honest-to-goodness mansion, with a chandelier the size of a kiddie pool hanging from the ceiling in the entryway.

  “We’re here,” Lacy called out as she and Mia walked through the set of double doors.

  Mia stood there, in awe, feeling like a tiny ant at the bottom of a gigantic hill. She was pretty sure she had never felt so small.

  Everything was so pretty. And expensive-looking. The paintings on the walls. The furniture in the living room, or whatever room it was, off to the side from where they stood. The extra-wide staircase that loomed across the room from them.

  An older woman with short brown hair and glasses, wearing a simple black dress, came from around a corner somewhere.

  “Hi, Alice,” Lacy said. “I’d like you to meet Mia. The girl I was telling you about?”

  “A pleasure to meet you, Mia,” Alice said, smiling. She looked at Lacy. “Shall I have the chef make you anything? Are you hungry?”

  Lacy looked at Mia. “I’m fine,” Mia said, because that seemed like the most polite response.

  “I think we’re good for now. Is Mom back yet?” Lacy asked as she slipped her sandals off and picked them up by their straps in one hand. Mia wondered if she should take off her shoe too. Of course she couldn’t take off her cast. But they probably didn’t want dirt tracked all over their gorgeous house. Mansion. Whatever.

  She leaned down and started to untie her sneaker.

  “Oh, no,” Lacy said. “Don’t worry. You’re fine. These were just hurting my feet like crazy. Stupid expensive designer shoes.” She turned back to Alice. “Sorry, is she back?”

  “No,” Alice replied. “She called and said she won’t be home until quite late tonight. Some friends asked her to meet them for dinner and a show. She told me to tell you to have fun and not to wait up for her. You have an early day tomorrow, since it’s birding day.”

  Lacy sighed. “Okay. Thanks. I guess we’ll go upstairs now. Is Mia’s room ready?”

  “Yes,” Alice replied. “It’s been prepared exactly as you requested.”

  “Perfect.” She turned to Mia. “Come on. This way.”

  Mia carried her bag and followed Lacy toward the staircase, thinking how strange it was that Mia would have a room all to herself. This would be a first for her in the sleepover department. She’d slept on the floor, in the bottom bunk of a bunk bed, and even in the same bed with a couple of her cousins when she was younger.

  Lacy walked slowly, probably making sure Mia could keep up.

  “Your house is beautiful,” Mia said to break the awkward silence.

  “Thanks,” Lacy said. “It’s not really my style, but my mom fell in love with the place, and I wanted her to be happy. The pool is pretty sweet, I have to say.”

  “Sorry I can’t swim,” Mia said. “Stupid cast.”

  Lacy was quick to respond. “Oh, no worries. It’s fine. There’s lots of other stuff we can do. I think you’ll like the theater room.”

  They reached the top of the stairs, and Mia stared at Lacy, wondering if she’d heard wrong, and said, “Did you say theater room?”

  “Yeah. I’ll show you later. Follow me.”

  As Lacy turned to head down the long hallway, Mia told herself to play it cool. She shouldn’t freak out over every little thing Lacy told her about or showed her. So Lacy was rich and could afford to live in a mansion with a theater room. Big deal.

  Except that was the problem. It kind of was a big deal.

  Lacy stopped outside a door and said, “This is where you’ll sleep. My room is right next door. Go ahead and put your bag away and then come find me, okay? I have to use the little girl’s room, but I’ll see you in a second.”

/>   “Um, since I’ll need to go too, eventually, where is the little girl’s room?” Mia asked.

  “Oh, you have a bathroom all to yourself. There’s a door at the far end of your room. You’ll see.”

  Lacy scurried off, leaving Mia alone. She opened the door slowly, almost like she was scared about what she’d find on the other side.

  “Wow,” she whispered, taking it all in.

  There was a king-size bed with more pillows than she’d ever seen on one bed and a beautiful white-and-peach quilt that matched the soft peach walls.

  There were vases of brightly colored fresh flowers on every available surface.

  There was a chandelier constructed of colorful beads that hung in the middle of the room.

  And there was a window seat beneath one of the picture windows made out of a pretty satin fabric.

  As Mia put her bag on the bench that sat at the foot of the bed, she noticed a plush white robe. When she picked it up, she saw the yellow M sewn on the front.

  A personalized robe? For Mia to wear one night?

  Mia dropped the thing as if it were filled with spiders.

  What was Lacy trying to do, make Mia feel like the poorest girl in the state of California? That robe probably cost more than Mia’s entire wardrobe.

  This was crazy. What was she doing here? She belonged here about as much as a giraffe belonged in the ocean.

  She found the door at the far end of the room, which she guessed led to the bathroom, stepped inside, and shut the door behind her. Of course the bathroom was gorgeous too, with its pretty silver fixtures and white marbled counters. It was huge too. She’d never seen such a large bathtub.

  Mia sank onto the floor next to the door and sat there, wishing with all of her heart she hadn’t agreed to this sleepover. But it didn’t seem like there was any way out, unless she pretended to get sick, and then she wouldn’t be able to go birding with them. If she didn’t go birding with them, she wouldn’t get paid, and she couldn’t let that happen.

  She made herself stand up and go to one of the sinks, where she splashed water on her face. After she dried off with one of the towels that probably cost hundreds of dollars, she stared at herself in the mirror.

  “You can do this,” she told herself. “Don’t let it get to you. Don’t let her get to you.”

  Just then, there was a knock on the door. “Mia, are you in there? Is everything okay?”

  Mia went to the door and opened it. “Everything’s fine.”

  Lacy smiled. “Oh, good. When you didn’t come find me right away, I started to worry.” She turned toward the bedroom. “Do you like it? Aren’t the fresh flowers pretty?”

  Mia decided she couldn’t fake her way out of this. After all, she wasn’t an actress like Lacy. If she was really going to stay here for the night, she decided she had to let Lacy know, in the nicest way possible, that this fancy house was kind of freaking her out. “Yes,” Mia said. “But I feel a little … overwhelmed, to be honest.”

  Lacy turned back around and stared at Mia. “Oh no. I don’t want that. I want you to be happy.” She walked over and rubbed Mia’s arm. “Please don’t let the stuff bother you. It’s just stuff, you know?”

  “But your stuff is so much nicer than my stuff,” Mia said. “The cottage where I live is probably only a little bit bigger than this single room.”

  Lacy walked over to the bed and sat down with a big sigh. “But see, I love the sound of a beach cottage. It sounds so cute. Like something out of a novel. I don’t want you to feel funny about the fancy stuff. So I have a lot of money. So what? My grandpa, who passed away last year, used to say everyone has to put on pants the same way — one leg at a time. Sometimes I wish people would focus not so much on ways we’re different, but instead, on the ways that we’re the same, you know?”

  “Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Mia said.

  “Come on. Wait until you see the surprise I have planned for you.” Lacy grinned. “I think you’re going to love it!”

  For some reason, Mia wasn’t so sure about that.

  The surprise was a manicure in a room at the far end of the house that looked just like a salon.

  No, it didn’t look like a salon. It was a salon.

  “It probably seems weird,” Lacy said as she tucked her blond hair behind her ears, “but I spend a lot of time getting my hair, makeup, and nails done. All celebrities do, you know?”

  “No, I get it,” Mia said, because it did make sense, even if it seemed a little bit over-the-top.

  There were two young women sitting at the nail stations. Lacy waved her hand toward them. “I thought we’d get our nails done. Unless you’d like to have your hair done instead? Rhonda does a great job on my hair, I’m sure she would love to do something with yours.”

  Mia instinctively reached up and touched her hair. “You don’t like my hair?”

  “No, no, that’s not what I meant,” Lacy said. “I just … I want you to be happy. So what will it be? Nails or hair?”

  Nails or hair? Never, in the history of her life, had Mia been asked such a simple question and been unable to figure out the right answer. She looked down at her nails, which seemed so boring and simple, like the rest of her, and realized she’d never had her fingernails painted. Ever. It just wasn’t her thing.

  Being girly, in general, wasn’t really her thing.

  But she liked her hair, long and wavy and easy to put into a ponytail. What if Rhonda decided to do something trendy and gave her some freaky cut?

  “Nails, I guess,” Mia said.

  “Great!” Lacy said, plopping down into one of the chairs and putting both her hands up on to the table. “We can sit here and get to know each other better.”

  Mia sat down in the other chair and put her hands out the way Lacy had.

  “That’s Tawni, by the way,” Lacy said.

  “Hi,” Mia said to Tawni. “Thanks for doing this.”

  “My pleasure,” she said as she placed both of Mia’s hands into a bowl of warm, soapy water. “Do you want to choose a color or would you like clear polish?”

  “Clear will be fine,” Mia said.

  “Are you sure?” Lacy asked. “They just got the prettiest shade of yellow in last week. That’s what I want.”

  Mia wrinkled her face. “Yellow?”

  “I know, it sounds kind of strange for a nail color, but just wait. I saw pictures in a magazine of models with pastel-yellow fingernails, and it looked amazing.”

  “So, are you sticking with clear?” Tawni asked. Mia nodded. Tawni smiled as she picked up Mia’s left hand and went to work massaging some kind of oil onto each of Mia’s fingernails.

  “We actually have a lot in common, you know,” Lacy said as she leaned back in her chair as if she might actually be trying to relax for once. Mia felt herself relaxing into her own chair too.

  “We do?” Mia asked. “Like what?”

  “Like, we’re both only children. At least, I assume you’re an only since you haven’t mentioned any siblings.”

  Mia nodded. “I am.”

  “And we both have single mothers.” Lacy paused. “Right?”

  There was no getting out of it this time. “Right,” Mia said matter-of-factly.

  A look of satisfaction washed across Lacy’s face. “And we both love the beach. I don’t surf like you do, but the beach is one of my favorite places. It is for you too, right?”

  Mia nodded. “For sure.”

  Just then, a nicely dressed young woman scurried into the room, holding a phone. “Lacy, there’s a call you need to take.”

  Lacy went from relaxed to fired-up-and-ready in the blink of an eye. She leaned forward, her, brows furrowed together. “Danielle, didn’t I tell you to hold all of my calls? I don’t want to talk to anyone while Mia’s here.”

  “I know,” she said. “And I’m sorry. But this is important. It’s about your lines for next week.”

  Rhonda quickly dried off Lacy’s hands, and then Lacy stood
up. “I am so sorry,” she told Mia. “I’ll be right back.”

  “No problem.”

  After she left, Mia watched Tawni as she took great care to clip each cuticle with a special little tool.

  “I’m glad you’re here,” Tawni said, glancing up to meet Mia’s eyes briefly before returning to her work. “She talks about you all the time. You’re the first friend she’s had in a long time.”

  “What do you mean?” Mia asked.

  Rhonda stood up and stretched, twisting her body right and then left. “She means, it’s hard for a celebrity to make friends. People don’t know how to act around her. After all, her life is different, yes? She’s lonely quite a bit. Of course, she works a lot, so she doesn’t have time to think about it much. But when she does, it’s sad to see her realizing what she’s missing.”

  Tawni picked up a finger file and began filing Mia’s nails. “I think it’s wonderful that you’ve been able to get past her celebrity status. It’s easy to get hung up on the superficial stuff and forget that deep down inside, Lacy is a just a regular thirteen-year-old girl with hopes and dreams and insecurities like everyone else.”

  Mia sat there, quietly, taking it all in and trying to figure out what it all meant.

  You’re the first friend she’s had in a long time.

  How come Mia hadn’t realized it before now? The flowers, the bathrobe, the manicure — Lacy wasn’t showing off. She wasn’t trying to make Mia feel bad about herself and her situation. No, it was something much different. Lacy was simply trying to do nice things for Mia because she viewed her as a friend.

  It was all in the name of friendship.

  While Mia felt somewhat relieved by this discovery, she also felt something else. Uncertainty. For up until now, Mia had viewed Lacy more like an employer than a friend. Could Mia be what Lacy really needed? Could she be Lacy’s friend?

  She looked down at the pretty charm bracelet on her wrist as she thought of her three friends from camp: Caitlin, Libby, and Hannah. They were each so different and yet, they had become really good friends.