Giving Up the Ghost by Phoebe Rivers Page A

present!” She raced upstairs and returned a few minutes later with a small box carefully wrapped in pink paper with a silver bow on top.
    â€œHere. From me. To you.”
    â€œThanks, Lily,” I said, suddenly feeling shy around my best friend.
    â€œOpen it!” she urged, smiling and bouncing on her heels. She was obviously eager for me to see what was inside.
    I carefully tore away the paper and opened the box. Inside was a silver charm bracelet with three charms on it. A heart. A camera. A seashell.
    â€œThe heart is for our friendship,” Lily explained, peering into the box with me. “And the camera is because you’re an awesome photographer and I want everyone to ask you why you have a camera on your bracelet so you can say, ‘Oh, because I’m an awesome photographer.’ And the shell is because of all the fun we’re going to have at the beach together this summer!” She looked at me anxiously, waiting to see how I would respond.
    Now it was my turn to give her a hug. “It is perfect,” I said. “I love, love, love it.”
    She beamed.
    â€œI especially love the heart,” I croaked awkwardly, feeling my shyness creep over me. “I, well, I kind of thought you and Miranda were becoming best friends these days.”
    Her eyes widened. “ Miranda? Why on earth would you think that? You’re my bestie, Sara! You know that!”
    I shrugged. “No reason. I guess I was just being silly.”
    I didn’t even consider reading her thoughts.
    Lily helped me clasp the bracelet around my wrist as we set off for Scoops. I loved the way it jingled and tickled my wrist ever so slightly as I walked and swung my arms. I smiled as I thought how just a little while ago I had been wishing I had an accessory to wear with my outfit, and now I had one. The most perfect one.
    Lily linked arms with me as we walked to Scoops. “So Uncle Paul closed Scoops just for us tonight!” she chattered. “The trade-off is that people are welcome to buy their own ice cream, and since half the middle school is coming, he’ll probably do a better business with it closed than open! Dawn Marie will be there, of course, but the rest of the staff got the night off.” Dawn Marie was Lily’s sort-of cousin—they weren’t related by blood, but Lily called her a cousin all the same. Dawn Marie was in high school, and I know Lily looked up to her almost like a big sister.
    We approached Scoops, which did look very much closed. A closed sign was in the window, and no lights were on.
    â€œI thought Miranda and Marlee and the others were here decorating,” I said, puzzled.
    â€œThey are,” said Lily, rapping on the door. “But Uncle Paul told us to turn off the lights while we were stringing up the decorations, so we wouldn’t get a shock or whatever.”
    The door opened. It was Avery.
    â€œHey, guys,” she said.
    â€œHow’s the decorating going?” asked Lily as she nudged me ahead of her.
    Avery stood aside to let us enter. “Great. Just great. We’re—”
    â€œSURPRISE!”
    The lights flicked on. I stood there, blinking, in total shock, as fifty or so people stood in a huge semicircle in front of me. They were smiling. Giggling. And looking straight at me.
    I still didn’t get it. Confused, I looked behind me to see if Jayden was standing there.
    â€œWe so got you!” I heard Jayden’s voice in front of me and turned. He stepped out of the crowd. “I cannot believe you thought this party was for me ! I’m not moving for, like, two more weeks!”
    Everyone laughed. When I had time to gather myself a little, I looked around. There were all my friends from school. Plus a bunch of Jayden’s friends. Practically the whole boys’ soccer team. The whole boys’ basketball team. All of Lily’s siblings. Dawn Marie. Mrs. Randazzo. Lily’s aunt Angela. My dad.