My Summer of Pink & Green Read online

  “OK, so I think we’re set. Good work on everything, guys.” Anais smiles. “We have a few weeks until the grand opening and I think we’re in good shape. Cross your fingers that everything works out with the inspections.”

  I stand up and make an over-the-top crossing fingers gesture, but no one seems to find it funny. “I’ll let you know when I get the final numbers on appointments from Sarabeth,” I add, just so they take me seriously. “She said eight bridesmaids, but I want to make sure I know what each person is getting done.”

  “Thanks, Lucy.” Anais gets up and straightens her flouncy skirt. “See you all in a few days.”

  Bevin and I are the first ones out of the meeting (except for my mom, who left early to take the call).

  “I’m going to run an errand with my dad, and then he’ll drop me off at Annabelle’s pool. She texted me the address. Meet me there,” Bevin says, more like a statement than a question.

  “Um, OK.” All I can think about right now is checking all the new e-mail addresses! It may be really pathetic, but it feels so official to have our own business e-mail accounts.

  “I mean, you’re not too busy for some swimming, right?” she continues.

  I look at her, confused. She’s asking me to go, but maybe that’s just because she’s being nice. Maybe this is the next step in her makeover, and she should go on her own. After all, it’s not like Annabelle texted me about the plans—she texted Bevin.

  “OK, have fun,” I say, smiling. I decide to leave it open, and see if she presses the issue.

  “OK.” She makes a puckered kissy face. “Smooches.”

  So we still need to work on that obnoxious kissy face of hers.

  Bevin heads out with Gary, and since my mom is in the pharmacy office, I sprint over to the spa reception area and sit down in the comfy rolling chair. I turn on the MacBook and follow the links to the Pink & Green e-mail.

  I feel like I could stay in this seat forever. I’d love watching all the customers come in and out. I could always play online if I got bored. The computer is sparkly and shiny and superfast.

  Unfortunately there isn’t much e-mail to check. Just a few registration sign-up things for Boat Fest, and some tips to enhance your e-mail and get the most out of your online experience.

  Oh well. I’ll keep checking, at least once an hour like Anais said.

  While I’m at the computer, I check my personal e-mail, where there’s a reminder that the southeastern Connecticut and Rhode Island small business owners’ meeting is happening tonight! How did I not realize that? It’s taking place at the Bayberry Cove Library, which is about four towns away from Old Mill. That’s where Sunny’s aunt and uncle and her cousin Asha live.

  OK, Lucy, think. I need to figure out what I’m going to tell Mom and Grandma and Claudia, some reason why I need to go all the way to the Bayberry Cove Library. And now I don’t even have to worry that Anais will be at the meeting because I know for sure she’s out of town! The timing couldn’t be more perfect.

  My mom pops her head into the spa area. “So sorry to run out like this, Luce, but I have another meeting at the Old Mill Observer.” She winks at me. “Top secret, but I think they’re going to let me write some articles. Not really a staff writer, I won’t have an office, but they’re pleased with my writing.”

  “Mom!” I shout, and she shushes me. “That is so amazing! It’s your dream!”

  “I know,” she whispers. “But let’s keep it quiet. Nothing’s certain yet, OK?

  “I should be back later tonight. I have this meeting and then I’m going with one of the editors to this journalism and business conference,” she tells me. “There’s grilled chicken salad in the fridge for you.” She leans over and kisses me on the cheek. “Make sure you’re checking the e-mails while I’m gone.”

  I nod. This sneaking out to the meeting thing is going to be easier than I thought. It doesn’t even seem like anyone’s around. Claudia and Bean may be here, but they don’t pay attention to me anyway.

  And then I hear Grandma whistling.

  OK, one tiny obstacle left.

  “Lucy,” she calls. “Come help me, please, doll.”

  I run over and find Grandma hovering over a box of washcloths. “Luce, Eli’s in the spa area, helping to install that closet-organizer system. When he’s done, I want you to arrange all these towels by size. Can you handle that?”

  I nod. “Duh. Of course I can.”

  “Thanks, love.” She gives me a hug.

  “Oh, but, Grams, I need to go to the library tonight for Earth Club research,” I tell her. I wasn’t even really planning what I was going to say; the lie is just coming out, flowing normally. “So I’ll be leaving at six, OK?”

  “What about dinner?” Grandma asks. “I don’t want you skipping meals like your sister. You’re still growing and you need to eat.”

  “Oh, don’t worry, I’m going out for dinner with Sunny after,” I tell her. Another lie.

  “Well, let Claudia or me know if you need a ride, and please take this box over to the spa area. Eli should be done soon.” Grandma ties her hair back in this pretty floral hair band. “Mr. Tuscano, I’m on my way to give you that prescription!” She jogs over to the prescription counter. I’m glad to have a grandma that can still jog, even if it only is a few feet.

  I carry that box of washcloths over and Eli is still finishing organizing the closet. Claudia and Bean are conducting another interview and I don’t want to disturb them. I step outside the building for a second and quickly call Sunny.

  “Did you throw up?” she asks me before saying hello.

  At first I’m confused and then I remember the hot-dog-eating contest. Wow, that seems like forever ago already. “No, not at all. I was fine!” I laugh. “Hope that’s not even grosser.”

  “Well, you certainly impressed the boys,” she says. “Yamir was telling my dad about it this morning. He was like ‘isn’t that so awesome?’ and ‘she’s so cool’ and then when I caught him and he noticed me, he started blushing. It was funny.”

  Yamir was bragging about me to his dad? Sure, it was only about eating hot dogs, but that’s still pretty cool.

  “I need to ask you a favor,” I tell her. “Please say yes. If you’re thinking about saying no, just remember all I did for you by joining Earth Club and helping you with Evan and all of that.” I pause. “OK?”

  “First of all we have to discuss you and Bevin becoming BFFs with AGE,” she starts.

  “We aren’t BFF,” I say. “They’re basically just people for Bevin to hang out with so she can learn to be social. But I need you to say you’ll help me.”

  “Lucy! First of all, what a weird reason to hang out with people. Second of all, I can’t say yes if I don’t know what it is. What if you’re asking me to jump into the river from a high bridge or something?”

  I groan. “It’s nothing like that. I just need you to come with me to Bayberry Cove Library tonight. You can sit and read in the YA section while we’re there, I just need you to come with me so it doesn’t look strange.”

  “Huh? Explain.”

  So I tell her all about the small business owners’ group and how I feel it’s important for me to go. “I want to get advice on how to be taken more seriously in the business,” I add. “And they have meetings once a month, I think, and this one isn’t too far away.”

  “But my aunt and uncle and Asha and Raj live in Bayberry Cove,” she tells me. “So what if they see us?”

  “Do they normally hang out at the library?” I laugh.

  “No, they all have iPads and download like forty e-books a day, but that’s a whole ’nother story.” She sniffles; she always has summer allergies. “Fine, I’ll go. But what should we say our reason for going is?”

  I peek into the spa window to make sure Eli’s still working on the closet. I don’t want to shirk any responsibilities here. I need to make sure I unpack that box before I leave. “We’ll say they have books and stuff we need for Earth
Club that Old Mill and Waterside libraries don’t have.”

  Sunny sniffles again. “OK, sure. It’s twenty-five minutes away, though. My mom will probably just wait while we go in.”

  Darn. That won’t work. “Here’s an idea. I’ll make Claudia and Bean drive us, and your mom can pick us up. We’ll tell her a later time so she doesn’t see the meeting in progress.”

  “Oh! I have an amazing idea. There’s that famous lobster roll place a few blocks away,” Sunny says. “Asha’s taken me there a million times. We’ll call when the meeting’s over and tell my mom to meet us there and we’ll get lobster rolls after the meeting!”

  “Genius, Sunny!” I shout. “You always solve problems with food. I love it!”

  She cracks up. “OK, I’m not gonna invite Yamir or Evan because then there’s more of a chance of them spilling the beans. What time are we going?”

  “Be ready at six. The meeting starts at seven.”

  “Got it,” she says, then pauses. “You know we’re making up this whole elaborate lie just so you can go to a business owners’ meeting? That’s really, really lame.”

  “Gee, thanks.” She was being so nice up until now.

  “I’m just saying. Usually teenagers make up this stuff to sneak out to concerts or to meet famous people or go to parties or something.” She laughs. “But a discussion group? It’s funny.”

  “Fine. It’s funny.” I’m not laughing.

  “Don’t take yourself so seriously, Luce.” Sunny pauses and waits for me to say something. “Fine, whatever. See you at six.”

  why you need to go all the way to Bayberry Cove to do research, Lucy,” Claudia says as I’m rushing her to leave. “We have computers, the Internet, databases, whatever, you don’t need to go to a library so far away.”

  “They have a whole environmental Going Green section,” I tell her.

  “They do?” Bean asks. “That’s pretty impressive.”

  “Let’s just go. Come on. We’re going to be late to pick up Sunny.” I drop the subject because all I need is Bean coming in with me to peruse the section. Maybe I’m not as good a liar as I thought I was.

  Claudia groans. “We’ve been busy here all day. We’re not on call to be your chauffeur.”

  “Well, Grandma’s busy, and Mom’s busy,” I say. “Besides, you can go to Lobster Landing after you drop me off. Best lobster rolls in all of Connecticut, ten years in a row.”

  “Oh, yeah!” Claudia exclaims. “Bean, get ready. You’ve never had a lobster roll like the ones at Lobster Landing. It’s right on the water and it’s so nice.”

  “Bonus!” Bean high-fives me. “We get to chauffeur Lucy and Sunny and get lobster rolls. This is the best day of the summer so far.”

  I roll my eyes but eventually start laughing. Bean’s not a bad guy. He’s a little doofy, but he’s funny sometimes, and he loves my sister, so I guess he can’t be that awful.

  We’re in the car on the way to Sunny’s house and I get a sinking-stomach feeling, similar to how I felt after I ate all the hot dogs. What if this is a huge mistake? I could be turned away from the meeting, or maybe someone there knows Mom or Grandma or even Anais. I should have thought this through. I need a wig or a hat or crazy glasses.

  I need a full disguise.

  “I’ll be right back.” I hop out of the car and go into Sunny’s house. I don’t wait for Claudia or Bean to ask me why I’m going in; I just go.

  “Hello, Lucy darling,” Mrs. Ramal says.

  “Hi. Um, can I run upstairs? I need to get something from Sunny.”

  She nods, confused.

  “Sunny!” I burst into her room. “I need a disguise. What if someone recognizes me?” I don’t wait for a response. I just start rifling through her closet, looking at her hats and sweaters and anything I can find. “Do you have a wig?”

  “Lucy.” She puts her hand on my shoulder. “Calm down.” She hands me her old glasses that had a very light prescription. “Wear these.”

  I put them on and I’m surprised at how cute I look in the wire frames.

  “Even if I give you a hat, will you really wear it indoors?”

  I shrug. “I don’t know. I just think I should look a little different, a little unlike myself.”

  Sunny looks at her watch. “We need to go or you’re going to be late.” She’s still looking through her closet. “I know! A sari!”

  “Huh?”

  “You’re kind of tan now, so you can just look like a pale Indian girl.” She finds the prettiest sari in her closet and hands it to me. It’s pale pink and turquoise with little silver beading. It could probably pass as some kind of artsy sundress. “Go change.”

  I listen to her and when I come out of the bathroom, Sunny tells me how pretty I look.

  “But won’t your family wonder why I’m wearing this?” I ask.

  She hesitates for a second. “Give me your clothes.”

  She runs back into the bathroom and puts on my jean cutoff shorts and my ribbed yellow tank top.

  “We traded clothes! Perfect explanation!”

  I don’t have the heart to tell her it doesn’t make sense really since she wasn’t wearing the sari before. Sunny’s trying so hard and not being mean; I can’t ruin that. And we run out of the house so fast, no one really sees us. We just yell good-bye as we’re out the door.

  On the way over, I’m really, really nervous. I keep wanting to ask Sunny questions—like should I say my name is Sunny Ramal? Should I make up a new name? I thought I had this all planned out but now I’m not so sure. I worry that if I say my name is Lucy Desberg, someone will recognize it and figure me out.

  “Why are you wearing that to go do research for Earth Club?” Claudia asks me after a few minutes. I wonder what took her so long. I guess she’s been distracted by the book she’s reading.

  “I love wearing Sunny’s clothes,” I tell her, “and I rarely get to anymore.”

  “Oh-kay.” Claudia drags out the word.

  Bean is actually a very slow, cautious driver, or maybe it’s just because he’s driving Grandma’s car and wants to be careful. Whatever it is, it feels like it’s taking a billion years to get to the Bayberry Cove Library. And the longer it takes, the more nervous I get and the more I regret deciding to do this.

  Sunny squeezes my hand. “You are acting so weird,” she whispers.

  After what feels like a two-hour drive, we finally get to the Bayberry Cove Library.

  “So Sunny’s mom is picking you up?” Claudia turns around from the front seat.

  “Yup.”

  “If the line’s really long at Lobster Landing, we can always come to the library after and wait for you to be done,” she adds.

  “No, no, that’s OK,” I say really fast.

  Claudia crinkles her eyes at me. “You’re odd, Lucy. But I love you anyway.”

  Sunny and I get out of the car and walk toward the double doors of the library. We watch Bean and Claudia drive away.

  “Are you ready?” Sunny asks me.

  “I don’t know why I’m so nervous.”

  She shrugs. “You’ll be fine.” I clutch her arm, suddenly feeling wobbly, and she widens her eyes at me and breathes through her nose. “Can you stop acting like this? You’re driving me crazy.”

  “Sunny, you agreed to come. I need your help.”

  She ignores me.

  “Should I make up a new name? Where should I say my spa is? I’m so scared. I don’t want this to end up getting back to my mom or grandma or Anais. Then I’ll really be in trouble.” I sit down on the sidewalk outside of the library for a second. I need to think.

  “Say your name is Lucy Ramal. Your spa is in New York City but you’re back and forth to your summer home in Waterside, so you wanted to get some advice.” Sunny blurts out this list as fast as she can. “No one will find you out.”

  “Maybe I should be Louise Ramal?”

  “Fine.” Sunny pats me on the back, but it’s an impatient pat, not a nice one. “
Now go. You’re going to be late.”

  a woman at the reference desk asks me as I walk in. I guess I look lost. Sunny was planning to wait outside for a second or two and then come in so it didn’t look suspicious.

  “Oh, I’m here for the small business owners’ group,” I tell her, trying to sound as adult as possible.

  “Sure, they’re in the children’s corner, in the back on the left-hand side.” She smiles. “Beautiful sari, by the way.”

  “Thanks.” I wonder if she thinks I’m Indian. I kind of hope so.

  As I’m walking over, I feel my phone vibrating. I take it out because I think that it’s Sunny, but when I look at it, it’s Bevin calling.

  I debate answering versus letting it go to voice mail but in the end, I decide to answer it.

  “Lucy, I need your help,” Bevin says as soon as I say hello.

  “Can I call you back?” I whisper. “I’m at the library.”

  “What?” she yells.

  “Never mind. Can I please call you back later?”

  “I really need to talk to you,” she says.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I see the small business owners’ group gathering. The meeting is going to start any minute. But Bevin needs me. I don’t know what to do.

  “I’m so sorry, Bevin, but I can’t use cell phones in here. I promise to call back soon. Bye.”

  I hang up before she can say anything else. I feel bad, but I really don’t have a choice. There’s a huge sign with a cell phone in a red circle with a line through it.

  I want to put Bevin’s call and Sunny’s weirdness out of my head, so I can focus on the task at hand: this meeting.

  It’s funny that this group is meeting in the children’s section, but it makes sense since most little kids are home by now. The people sit in regular-sized chairs, with all of the little chairs stacked up in a corner.

  “Hello, my name is Louise Ramal. I’m here for the meeting,” I say to the lady standing up. Everyone else is sitting down. They all stare at me. I’m pretty sure one man is about to tell me to leave—he’s got a scowl on his face like I’ve just interrupted his important conversation. I square my shoulders and try to look like Anais.

  “Welcome. We’ll be starting in just a minute.” The lady smiles. At least she’s nice. I let out a breath I didn’t know I’d been holding. “Please fill out this contact information sheet. That way we’ll be able to keep in touch, alert you to the next meetings, etc.”