Free Katie Starting from Scratch by Coco Simon Page B

stand mixer so we can whip up two batters at once.”
    Emma has this amazing pink stand mixer that she saved up for. It’s very cool. If they still made one in purple, I would probably buy the same one.
    So we got to work, cracking eggs and measuring flour and squeezing lemons. Alexis said, “It’s toobad Emily’s not here with us. We could use some extra hands tonight.”
    You might be thinking that I freaked out again when she said this. Well, I almost did. And I saw Mia look at me like Uh-oh . But I remembered what George had said, and I stayed calm. In fact, I did something that I should have done before—I talked to my friends about how I was feeling.
    â€œUm, listen,” I said. “You guys could probably tell, but this whole Emily thing is kind of weirding me out.”
    Mia nodded. “I thought so, but you weren’t saying anything, so I wasn’t sure.”
    â€œIt’s just—” I put down the measuring spoons I was holding. “I like Emily. She’s nice. There’s nothing wrong with her. But it’s, like, now she’s in every single part of my life. I’m just not used to it.”
    Alexis nodded. “I can understand that. I mean, Dylan’s been my older sister my whole life, so I’m used to her. But if she suddenly showed up now and started bossing me around and criticizing my clothing, I’d be like, who is this?”
    â€œExactly!” I said. “And, Mia, I know you had to get used to Dan, but I mean, it’s not like he hangs out with us or comes to Cupcake meetings. But Emily—it’s like everybody expects me to doeverything with her. Especially my mom. If Emily was really my sister, I’d have had ten years to get used to her being around. It’s like my mom wants me to feel like I’ve known her for ten years in only one week. And she’s always around. Like, always.”
    â€œYour mom is probably being extra nice to Emily because she likes Mr. Green,” Emma said.
    â€œThat’s what George said!” I practically yelled. “And then—well, I was kind of jealous of the way you guys liked her so much.”
    â€œOh my gosh, are you serious?” Mia asked. She spun around to stare me, and she twirled so fast, she forgot that in one hand she was holding the open flour container, and a cloud of flour filled the air.
    I laughed. “Yes, I’m serious. She’s so good at art and everything, just like you.”
    â€œSo you thought I liked her better than you?” Mia asked. “Katie, duh! You’re my best friend!”
    I was kind of embarrassed about how silly I felt. I mean, Mia was right. We were best friends. Why had I even worried that Emily would come between us?
    â€œAnd by the way, Emily is probably not perfect,” said Mia. “Look, I kind of know what you’re going through. There are things about Dan that drive me crazy, as you know. Like how he loves to blare heavymetal music in his room—usually when I’m trying to study. But all in all, he’s a pretty great brother. And the same goes for Emily. Just think of what she might have been like. She could have been mean, she could have been nasty. She could have been like Olivia Allen!”
    I shuddered, suddenly realizing how lucky I was and how awful my life could have been.
    â€œWell, I was just being extra nice to Emily because she’s Mr. Green’s daughter, and she’s, like, connected to you now,” Alexis said. “I would always be nice to someone who you were friends with or related to. Not that you are related yet or anything.”
    I nodded. “Yeah, I finally figured that out. But it shouldn’t even matter why you’re being nice to her. I mean, you guys can be nice to whoever you want.”
    â€œBut if you don’t want Emily to come to any more Cupcake meetings, we understand,” Emma said. “Trust me. I love my brothers, but I