Chapter 23
To: Fall Carnival Committee
From: Alice Knowles
Subject: Re: Carnival
I am supposed to help out tomorrow at the fall carnival at the beanbag toss. But I noticed tonight that I have a bit of a scratchy throat, so I don’t think I’m going to be able to make it.
To: Fall Carnival Committee
From: Patty Westman
Subject: Re: Carnival
I was supposed to make brownies for the carnival, but I just realized that I don’t have any eggs in the house! So unfortunately, I’m not going to be able to bring brownies as promised. That is, unless somebody wants to come to my house and bring me some eggs!
To: Fall Carnival Committee
From: Teresa Yu
Subject: Re: Carnival
I just realized that this weekend is my parents’ anniversary! I was supposed to volunteer at the bouncy house for the 2–3 p.m. shift, but I can’t do it because of this prior obligation.
To: Fall Carnival Committee
From: Julie Bressler
Subject: Re: Carnival
The grocery store sells eggs, Patty.
Can anybody take Teresa’s shift at the bouncy house?
To: Fall Carnival Committee
From: April Masterson
Subject: Re: Carnival
No worries, Patty! I’ll make extra brownies!
To: Fall Carnival Committee
From: Sean Cooper
Subject: Re: Carnival
I am doing the 1–2 p.m. shift at the bouncy house, so I’ll do Teresa’s shift after. Unless it turns out to be my parents’ anniversary too.
The fall carnival takes place on the first weekend of November.
It’s a massive event. Because of the chilly weather, everything is set up in the large gymnasium of the elementary school.
There are two bouncy houses (one for jumping and one with a slide), loads of games, and I am manning—what else?
—the bake sale. People were supposed to bring in baked goods early this morning, but unfortunately, nobody ever does what they say they’re going to do.
But I have enough experience now that I anticipated it, so about three-quarters of the food on the table was made by me. I spent most of the morning baking.
The silent auction is still going as well and will be active until midnight. We’re going to announce the winners tomorrow. I think we’re going to break some records.
Strangely enough, the bake sale is not going very well. Usually, half the food is gone by an hour into the carnival. And I made all the baked goods everybody loves. I don’t understand why nobody is buying anything. I’ve sold only one brownie and two cookies.
“Would you care for any baked goods?” I call to Carmen Landers, who is passing by the table with her five-year-old son. “We’ve got just about everything!”
“Mommy, I want a brownie!” the little boy cries. “The one with M then she picks one up from the tray. But I follow her with my eyes, and the second she gets away from me, she tosses it in the trash. I guess I can’t blame her.
I don’t know what to do now. Even if I got the post removed at this point, it’s too late. Everyone has already seen it. What am I supposed to do? Put a sign on my table saying I didn’t actually spend the last twelve hours vomiting. I feel like that will only make things worse.
I can’t believe I made all this food for nothing.
But it’s fine. I enjoy the bake sale, but the real moneymaker is the silent auction. And we’re going to clean up on that one. The bidding for the Yankees tickets is really out of control.
After Carrie wanders away, I scan the crowd of children and parents milling around.
The bake sale is outside of the gymnasium, but I can see inside if I crane my neck.
I’ve been looking for Maria, but I haven’t seen her since I’ve been here.
I haven’t seen her since she caught me unearthing Raffey from my backyard.
I’ve been desperate to find a way to apologize for that.
I also want to tell her that I spoke to Bobby, who has sworn he didn’t have anything to do with it, but she probably won’t believe me.
Remembering how much Maria liked my apple turnovers at the book club, I put a couple of them in a napkin and head into the gym. I know she’s volunteering there. Maybe she’ll appreciate it if I bring her some sustenance. After I explain that I don’t actually have a vomiting illness.
I find Maria at the table with the raffle bags.
She’s sitting behind the table, next to Julie.
Apparently, they are doing the raffle together.
I didn’t realize that. And as I approach, I notice they’re deep in conversation.
Maria says something, and Julie laughs. It’s a genuine laugh—not Julie’s usual sarcastic laugh.
It’s been months—maybe years—since I’ve heard Julie laugh that way.
I wave to try to catch Maria’s eye when I get close enough. She doesn’t smile or wave back, but we make eye contact. She looks right at me. Then she lowers her head and says something else to Julie. Julie glances my way, then laughs again.
Are they laughing at me?
I lift my chin and stride over to them. I plaster a smile on my face, even though I’m feeling very self-conscious.
I should have dressed up more, like both of them did.
I thought it would be enough to wear my skinny jeans and a nice cashmere sweater.
I mean, I don’t want to get chocolate all over my best clothing…
“Hi!” I say brightly. “How’s it going?”
Julie frowns at me. “April, I don’t understand why you came to the bake sale if you’re sick. It’s very irresponsible of you.”
I grit my teeth. “I’m not sick.”
“But you said on Facebook that you’ve been vomiting for the last twelve hours.”
“That wasn’t me.” I hate the whining edge in my voice. “Somebody was impersonating me. It must’ve been a joke.”
“Mmm.” Julie looks away and fiddles with one of the raffle bags. “Fine. Then maybe you should get back to the bake sale.”
“Just taking a break!” I hold out the apple turnovers. “Would you guys like a sample from the table?”
Maria barely looks at me. Julie eyes the turnovers then shakes her head. “No, thank you.”
“Um, okay.” I stand there awkwardly for a moment with the apple turnovers in my hand. “It seems like the carnival is a huge success though. You did an amazing job, Julie.”
If there’s one thing I know Julie loves, it’s compliments.
“We all did an amazing job, April,” she says. “It wasn’t just me putting this together. I couldn’t have done it without help from all the other parents.”
And she smiles at Maria. Even though I did half the freaking work for this carnival.
“Well!” My cheeks are starting to hurt from smiling. “I guess I’ll get back to the bake sale.”
“You do that,” Julie says.
My cheeks are burning as I walk back across the gym.
I can’t believe the way Maria snubbed me.
Julie and I used to be so close—she was the one who told everyone in town to watch Sweet Secrets and helped me make the show a success.
She’s been my best friend for five years!
But now that Maria is around, it’s like I can’t do anything right in her eyes.
I can only imagine what Maria has been saying to her about me. I don’t know how that stupid giraffe ended up in my backyard. It wasn’t Bobby’s fault, and it definitely wasn’t my fault.
Tears are pricking at my eyes. I certainly don’t want to go back to the bake sale, where everybody is staring at me like I have the plague.
So instead of leaving the gym, I hang right.
That’s where the bouncy houses are. Where Sean is doing his second shift, since Teresa backed out.
But he doesn’t look like he’s getting too burned out.
He’s teasing this little girl about her sparkly pink shoes, and she’s giggling.
He’s really good with kids. And he’s such a good dad.
Meanwhile, my husband isn’t here at all. He’s working. Obviously.
Sean knocks on the door to the bouncy house. “Hey! Sixty more seconds of bouncing then everybody out for the new group! Time to go crazy!”
I take a deep breath and walk over to Sean, who seems taken aback to see me. He literally takes a step back.
“Hi,” I say.
“Uh, hi, April,” he says.
He must think I have the plague, like everyone else. “I guess you saw that post on Facebook,” I say.
He frowns. “Facebook? No, I don’t have a Facebook account.”
Oh, thank God.
“Lucky you.” I snort. “So how is it going over here? Looks like fun.”
“Yeah…” He rubs at the back of his neck as he avoids my eyes. “It’s pretty busy.”
“Well, I don’t want to interrupt or anything. I just thought you might enjoy a snack.” I hold out the turnovers, wrapped in a napkin. “It’s those apple turnovers you loved. I saved some for you.”
Actually, there’s a whole pile of them back at the bake sale table. But he doesn’t need to know that.
I hoped Sean’s eyes would light up like they did that night of the book club, but instead, he takes another step back. “I better not.”
I look back at the raffle table. Sure enough, Maria’s eyes are on my back. I turn back to Sean, my own eyes narrowing. “Did Maria tell you not to talk to me?”
“What? No.”
Liar. “So why don’t you want a turnover?”
“I just…” He shrugs. “I just don’t. I’m not hungry.”
“Fine.” I almost crumble the turnovers in my hands. “Are you picking up Bobby to go play soccer at the park tomorrow?”
He drops his eyes. “Uh, I was thinking it would just be me and Owen tomorrow. Just some one-on-one time. Sorry about that.”
The tears in my eyes are getting dangerously close to the surface. “I see…”
“Look,” he mumbles, “I’ve got to get back to work…”
And then he turns away from me to deal with the bouncy house. Our discussion is over.
Fine. I’ll just eat them myself. Who needs to be able to button my pants?
Nobody stole any food from the bake sale table while I was gone. If anything, it looks like there’s somehow more food on the table than there was before. What am I going to do with all this food? I can’t even give it away.
“Mom! Mom!” It’s Bobby. I haven’t seen him in half an hour, because he’s been off playing with his friends. The fact that he’s returned could mean only one thing. “I need more tickets to go on the bouncy slide!”
I wince. “Bobby, I gave you forty dollars’ worth of tickets!”
“Yes, but everything costs so many tickets.” He pouts. “I need more. Leo and Owen are going… I don’t want to be left out…”
That one tugs at my heartstrings. Especially since I just got left out by Leo and Owen’s mothers. So I reach into my pocket and pull out the tickets I was planning to use to enter the raffles. “Fine. But this is all I’ve got.”
I guess I won’t be entering any raffles. Not that I would dare go near that raffle table again.
My heart isn’t in this carnival right now. Nobody is buying any of my baked goods, and people look like they’re afraid to even breathe the same air as me. I can barely manage a smile. It’s not like I’m the sort of person who feels like they need to be loved by everyone. But…
Well, maybe I do feel like I need to be loved by everyone.
Maybe I should go. I’ll give Bobby a chance to go on the slide with his friends; then I’m going to abandon my station here and just leave. Nobody will even notice I’m gone. I start to put the money away, and that’s when I hear the loud thump from inside the gym.
All of a sudden, there’s a hush within the gym. Broken only by the sound of somebody shouting to call 911.