Free Alexis Gets Frosted by Coco Simon Page B

question?” I cried in dismay.
    But the others thought it was a really good idea.
    â€œI know who I’m writing about!” said Katie. (We all did.)
    â€œSyd the Kid, à la Sydney Whitman, will be mine!” declared Emma. “Not that I can take credit for the Whitmans moving to California, but still, that solved it.”
    â€œWho’s moving to California?” asked Matt as he ambled into the Taylors’ kitchen from outside.
    My heart skipped a beat. He was wearing a light blue hoodie that made his eyes look electric, and his hair was all wind-tousled and messy. So cute. Sigh!
    â€œHey, Alexis, I’m just going to run up and finish the plans. I’ll be right down with the printouts,” he said.
    â€œGreat. Thanks.”
    â€œSo tomorrow is our baking day?” said Katie. “For the project?”
    â€œYup. Maybe at my house?”
    Katie agreed, and Emma and Mia wanted to come too.
    â€œYou guys must have lots of other stuff to do. I think Katie and I can handle it. I feel bad taking up your time with my project.”
    But they insisted.
    â€œLook, like Katie said, this could be a whole new line of revenue for us!” Mia pointed out.
    â€œWe wouldn’t miss it,” said Emma firmly.

    That night I pulled my dad aside and told him about the plans for the cupcakes. I also told him about a few ideas I had for presents for my mom, including a spot for her dollhouse and having my granddad deliver it before the weekend.
    My dad loved all my ideas and said I was very thoughtful, which, of course, I liked to hear. I don’t know if he would have said it if he knew I’d quacked at someone at school today.
    When my mom came to tuck me in, I couldn’t bear telling her about what had happened with Olivia today. I knew she’d chastise me for being mean and also for not having apologized yet, and I didn’t want her to be disappointed in me. But I could tell she knew I was holding something back by the way she kept asking questions but nothing directly.
    In the end, she gave me a kiss and said she’s always available for discussions.
    Phew.

CHAPTER 9
Rallying
    T he day of reckoning had arrived. On Tuesday afternoon, it was time to bake the gingerbread and to begin the house. I felt like I was on one of those cooking challenge shows, with all the crazy ingredients assembled before me. Licorice whips, molasses, ginger, sprinkles, eggs, flour, cookies; plus rulers and knives and paper . . . It was wild.
    But first, the gingerbread.
    Katie and I made a triple batch in my mom’s huge KitchenAid mixer. Mia and Emma actually sat at the kitchen table and did homework while we did that, because it was the “boring part.”
    When it was time to roll out the dough, and cut and score it, they came and helped hold the templates—which I’d cut out last night—in placeover the dough, and offered opinions on how things should be laid out on the pans. This was deemed the “hard part.” I only hoped it wouldn’t get much harder than this. Compared to gingerbread architecture, baking cupcakes is a sweet walk in the park.
    While we worked, we discussed the spreadsheets for the time capsule and made a plan to shoot the photos of our items on Saturday at my house, after my mom’s birthday party.
    Katie slid the trays into the oven to bake. We’d have to do about six rounds of baking before all the gingerbread was done. It smelled good, but it was not that appetizing looking, all shiny and brown. Katie laid out the next slabs of dough on waxed paper and tweaked them a little. I felt useless, watching her work.
    â€œAny sightings today?” asked Mia. “I didn’t see her in homeroom this morning.”
    I knew who she meant. “No,” I said.
    â€œShe was absent,” said Emma, not looking up from her notebook.
    â€œWhat?” I was shocked. “How do you know?”
    Emma looked up.