Free Special Delivery by Ann M. Martin Page B

said Ruby aloud, hopping out of bed. She pulled her sheet music out from under a pile of papers on her desk, unwrapped a piece of bubble gum, popped it in her mouth, and scanned the music. “I know this,” she said. She snapped her gum and dropped the music back on the desk. Nothing to worry about. Not to mention that this was Ruby’s
second
Thanksgiving concert with the Children’s Chorus.
    â€œBeen there, done that,” said Ruby, and she opened her wardrobe to choose an outfit for Thanksgiving dinner at Three Oaks.
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    The concert was to begin at ten o’clock in the morning in order to give everyone plenty of time to tend to their feasts afterward. The members of the Children’s Chorus were to arrive at the community center at nine-fifteen sharp, wearing white tops and navy skirts or pants. And they were not to have their sheet music with them. The concerts were traditionally given from memory. No music allowed.
    Ruby was just a teensy bit anxious about not having her music. She thought back to the previous Thanksgiving concert, which had been her very first concert with the chorus. She had not had a solo then — none of the brand-new members had been given one. But this concert was different. Ruby was now a second-year member.
    Feeling quite responsible and grown-up, Ruby had laid a green velvet dress out on her bed that morning. It was to be her outfit for Three Oaks. Then she had reached for the white blouse and navy skirt that were hanging, freshly pressed by Min, in her wardrobe. She put them on carefully. They remained wrinkle free. And Ruby was quite pleased that she had had the forethought to lay out her dress ahead of time so she wouldn’t have to worry about an outfit later.
    â€œI’m all organized,” Ruby announced to Flora and Min when she entered the kitchen that morning. “I’m ready for the concert, and I chose my outfit for this afternoon. So in case we don’t have much time after the concert, I can get dressed really fast.”
    â€œThat’s admirable, Ruby,” said Min. “I’m proud of you.”
    â€œNow, if I can just eat breakfast without spilling anything,” said Ruby.
    â€œWhy don’t you wear a bib?” suggested Flora.
    â€œHa-ha,” said Ruby. “Min, who’s going to drive Lacey and me to the community center?”
    â€œI am. We should leave at nine o’clock, okay?”
    â€œOkay.”
    Min looked at her watch. “It’s quarter to eight now. You’ll have time to practice your solos before we leave.”
    Ruby removed her wad of bubble gum and stuck it on the edge of her plate. “Don’t need to. I’m ready.”
    â€œI haven’t heard any rehearsing.”
    Ruby shrugged. “We’re singing these songs from the nineteen forties — I’m not sure why —”
    â€œDidn’t Ms. Angelo explain why she chose the songs for the concert?” interrupted Flora.
    â€œYes. I mean, she must have,” said Ruby dubiously. “Well, anyway, both of my solos are in ‘Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.’ That’s a song made famous by the Andrews Sisters. First I have just one line, but at the end I have —”
    â€œI still didn’t hear you rehearsing,” said Min.
    Ruby squirmed in her seat. “These are really tasty sticky buns,” she remarked.
    Min sighed. “Be ready by nine.”
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    At exactly nine-fifteen, Ruby and Lacey arrived at the community center. The outside air, which was very cold, smelled of fallen leaves and wood smoke and pine needles. The sky was clear and blue.
    â€œRemember last year?” said Ruby. “Remember how beautiful the community center looked during the concert?”
    Ruby hadn’t known, when she’d entered the center the previous Thanksgiving, that the spare wooden hall, which was vast and dim, would be decorated for the holiday, or that the room would be infused