From Dogs to Cats and Back Again
Chapter 1
The Friend Problem
Left, right, left, right, I dragged my feet as I walked down the beach with Lily, my twin sister. “Mia,” Lily sneered, “That shirt is so, like, last season.” Just what I needed, a nasty comment from Lily. Lily thinks that she looks so fashionable in her pink mini skirt and leopard print jacket. Did I mention her bright pink bob?When we got back to the house, our mom announced that she had invited our friends over. “Yay!!” Emily was coming over! But, Mom wasn’t finished. “Only Jennifer could come.” My heart sank to the floor. No Emily, just two mean girls to deal with.
“Mom” I said calmly, “Lily always has a friend over.”
“Sorry,” cooed Mom, “That’s just the way the ball bounces.” I felt like a pot that was about to boil over.
I must have looked heated too, because Lily laughed, ”Look, Mia’s mad ‘cause Emily can’t come over.”
“I AM NOT!” I yelled as I retreated to my room. Life was not fair. Lily always got what she wanted. That was just the way life was set up and I hated it.
Chapter 2
Mademoiselle
As I lay in my bed, I heard the doorbell ring and then Lily and Jennifer’s reunion. I heard a yap, then a bark, then a growl. What? I thought, we don’t have a dog.I crept to the top of the stairs to see what was going on. Then it hit me, Jennifer had brought Mademoiselle, her little, white, pampered pooch and when I said pampered, I meant pampered. Jennifer spends her allowance to get Mademoiselle the latest bed or toy, ugh. I'm mostly a cat person. Dogs just are not my cup of tea. Anyhow, I had to see this dog. All we have is a goldfish, Bubbles, who has seen better days. As I crept down the stairs, I heard Lily cooing over how adorable Mademoiselle was. You see Lily is only mean to me.
Then terror struck, Mademoiselle smelled something fishy. She came charging down the hallway looking more like a charging bull than a five pound puppy. I raced up the stairs, my cheeks flaming. That darn Mademoiselle. I wish I could see Jennifer’s face now, hot with embarrassment from her dog’s behavior. I smiled. Maybe life wasn’t so bad after all.
Chapter 3
“Definitely Not”
As soon as I heard the door slam behind Jennifer, I raced down the stairs to find Mom. I located her in the kitchen. “Mom,” I took a deep breath, “Can I have a cat?”
“HONEY!” Mom sounded mad with a capital M. I remembered a rhyme aunt had told me, “When Mommy’s on a mission, don’t make Mommy mad.” I wish I had remembered before I had asked. ”You can’t have one for all the reasons, NO dogs or cats or hamsters,” said Mom.
Just then Lily bounded into the room. “Mom,” she said in her I’m so perfect voice, “Can I have a dog?”
“Maybe,” said Mom confidently. I was fuming. Why did Lily get a maybe when I got a NO?
“Please Mom,” I begged, ”Just one pet?’’
“Well, I’ll think about it,” was Mom’s only reply.
Chapter 4
Lily’s Plan
When Mom left the room, Lily ushered me over to her. I moved toward her like a scared mouse. ”Oh, come on,” Lily said impatiently. “Mia,” Lily whispered to me when I finally got there, ”I have a plan to get us a pet.” Well, when she said that, I perked up.”What is it?” I asked.
Her answer was this, ”What if we volunteer at the animal shelter and make Mom and Dad fall in love with this cute puppy there named Lucie? She looks just like Mademoiselle.”
”Ugh,” I said disgusted, ”I don’t want to own a walking jewelry box, but it is a good plan!’’
The following morning we asked if we could volunteer at the shelter. When they agreed, Lily and I could not help cheering.
“When can we start?” Lily asked.
“Today,” replied Dad who was already looking at his iPhone. ”They really need volunteers.”
When we got to the shelter I saw two doors, one marked CATS and the other marked DOGS.
The manager walked over. ”I’m so glad you’re here,” she said in a southern accent. “Mia, you go to the cat room and Lily, you go to the dog room. We both walked into our assigned room,
I instantly saw a white Persian cat. I have to have that cat, I thought. I studied the list of chores that needed to be done. Things like feed them, clean cages, give extra cuddles to Snowball, the white Persian. My heart lept.
Chapter 5
The Cat
When I looked at the clock, I saw that it was almost time to meet Lily at the door. I trudged outside, not wanting to leave Snowball. Lily was already there, holding a crate. When I peeked inside, I saw that it was empty. “My prop,” said Lily with a grin. My hopes soared. Maybe there was no more mean Lily. I heard Mom's car pull into the parking lot.I ran over as soon as she stepped out of the car. “So, what's the news?” Mom took a deep breath. Lily confessed last night about how she's been treating you and we have decided to get you a cat, Mia.”
“Yay!” I couldn't help cheering. I ran inside to grab Snowball’s crate. “We're adopting this kitty,” I told the manager that I raced past.
“Okay,” she said with a grin. When I got outside Mom was waiting. “Here she is,” I told Mom, as the manager came over and kindly told us, “She's all yours.” And that was that, I put Snowball in the car and we drove home
“But Mom,” Lily howled, ”I need a dog, well now, I guess the cat isn't so bad.” Lily finally gave in, “I hope I don't even notice Snowball.”
