Ever since Bree accidentally called them the BAD Babysitters, everything in the universe had been that way—very, very bad. Obviously the whole thing was just a mistake, but Malia and Dot spent the entire next day acting kind of mad at Bree, which made her sad, as her best friends were all of the non-cat things she loved about this world.
So when Malia texted saying to meet her at Marvelous Ray’s, Bree was so, so, so excited. Not just because she was maybe forgiven, but also because Marvelous Ray’s was easily the best place on earth. They had arcade games and Skee-Ball and music and dancing and candy and pizza and joy. Plus, boys always hung out there, if you were into that kind of thing.
When Bree got there, she had the same feeling she always had when entering Marvelous Ray’s, which was kind of like when you first see a Christmas tree with all the presents underneath it and are like, “OH-MY-GOD-SO-MUCH-HAPPINESS-WHERE-DO-I-BEGIN?” Bree was hungry and wanted fries. She also wanted to play the mermaid ring toss game, because the prizes for that one were all super glittery and they changed them all the time. But when she opened the door, Malia was standing right inside the entrance, next to the giant statue of a manatee wearing a T-shirt, which was the Marvelous Ray’s mascot. Her arms were crossed and she had the same expression she had whenever she got into a fight with Chelsea, where her lips formed a straight line across her face.
“Dot is already here. Go order food and then meet us in the back corner,” Malia commanded. It was honestly pretty scary. “We have business to discuss.”
Bree let out a sigh. So the mermaid ring toss game would have to wait. She ordered fries and, while they were cooking, went to take a very quick peek at the new prizes. Two words: “GLITTER CONVERSE.” Okay, one more word: “PURPLE.”
Then she picked up her plastic basket of fries and made her way to the back corner to find her friends. Malia and Dot were already sitting at one of the little neon orange tables. Dot’s tray was loaded with enough food to feed all of Bree’s siblings at once and then maybe also the entire boys’ soccer team. There were French fries, sweet potato fries, chicken fingers, a cheeseburger, and an order of fried Oreos. Dot caught Bree eyeing her food with wonder.
“What? I had a gift card for winning the grand prize at science summer camp, so I kind of ordered everything.”
“You and your science fairs,” said Malia.
“You are welcome to partake. Whatever I don’t finish is coming home in my purse.” Dot turned her attention back to Malia, who nervously drummed her fingers on the table. “Okay. What’s up?”
“I have done reconnaissance!” Malia announced, jumping out of her chair.
“Like Leonardo da Vinci?” Bree asked. Ariana was in the high school’s art history class and was always talking about the Reconnaissance.
“Bwee,” said Dot, through a mouthful of chicken finger. It was like she was so excited about both fried poultry and the chance to share her knowledge that she couldn’t decide what came first. “Leonardo da Vinci is from the Renaissance. Malia is talking about reconnaissance. Which means, like, spying.”
“Oh,” Bree said. She had thought she was right, but whatever. She wouldn’t have to take art history for, like, five more years.
“As ALIA was saying,” Malia continued, pacing back and forth in front of the pick-a-prize crane game that no one ever actually won. “I have done reconnaissance and the news is not good. I looked through Chelsea’s desk while she wasn’t home. And maybe also the contents of her backpack. And maybe also her phone while she was showering. The Seaside Sitters have taken all of the business in town. They have jobs booked for days, weeks, months, even. They’re working for every family I’ve ever heard of, plus some from the next town over. There is nothing left for us. We are basically out of business.”
All three of them sighed.
“Well, that’s sad,” Bree said.
“Why are you deciding to break this news at the temple of joy?” Dot asked, sweeping her arm overhead, where a million happy lights blinked back at them.
“Because that’s where it gets interesting. My friends, this place is our future,” said Malia, triumphantly putting her pointer finger up in the air.
Bree looked at Dot. She seemed as confused as Bree was. Was Malia suggesting they ditch babysitting and get jobs at Marvelous Ray’s? Because she would totally be into that, if working at age twelve wasn’t illegal.
“You guys,” Malia continued. “Do you remember that day in the gazebo? When I found the book and those weird little kids were doing the thing with the boogers?” Dot and Bree nodded.
“Do you remember what that felt like?”
“The booger part? That was gross,” Bree said.
“Not the booger part. The part where the three of us joined together to create something new. We decided to form this club because we wanted money for a party and because employment is empowering and also because it seemed like it would be sort of nice to do something with each other where we could hang out and get paid for it. But more importantly, we made this club because it was something bigger than all of that. It was our dream.”
Malia had this crazy look in her eyes that reminded Bree of the time she drank an entire can of lemonade in one gulp right after gym class, and then got sick a few minutes later.
“I mean, the word ‘dweam’ might be a little stwong,” said Dot, her mouth completely full of cheeseburger. Malia glared at her. Dot swallowed. “Or, yeah, I guess you could call it a dream.”
“And what do we know about dreams?” Malia asked.
“Sometimes they’re scary?” Bree said. She always had the same dream over and over again, where her family was on a road trip and they forgot her at an ice cream stand in the middle of the desert and she had to learn to live all by herself, just her and the cacti.
“Guys.” Malia threw her hands up in the air. “I’m not talking about nightmares! I’m talking about dreams! I’m talking about the kind of dreams where just thinking about them makes you want to cry, but in a good way! Like, Bree, when you guessed all the jelly beans in the jar. Or, Dot, all the food that is slowly but surely making its way into your mouth right now. Or the way I’ll feel when Connor Kelly finally tells me he loves me!”
Malia clamped one hand over her mouth and looked around in panic. She had totally been yelling, and anyone could have just heard her admit her crush. Luckily, everyone was absorbed in some activity and didn’t seem to care. She continued her speech but slightly quieter this time.
“Dreams are everything in life! Without them, we’re just blobs with feet that go to school and do a bunch of stuff we don’t really want to do. We can’t vote. We can’t even drive! But we can look after children who are smaller than us. And we can throw a party. At Marvelous Ray’s.”
“We can?” Bree asked. She didn’t know they could do that.
“Yes. That is why we’re here. I added us to the waitlist for the Marvelous Pizza Party Package. Usually they’re all booked up for at least a year, but something magical has happened. Somebody canceled. And we can have our very own marvelous soiree. In just three weeks, right after the fall break.”
Bree’s heart started to beat really fast, the way it did before a math test.
“How are we supposed to pay for it without babysitting?” asked Dot. “As previously discussed, my mom can’t afford to help out.”
“And my parents said they’ll chip in the usual amount, but they can’t pay for the entire thing,” Bree added.
“We can still raise the money IF we find a way to win back the business that should be ours,” said Malia. Dot did not look convinced. “You guys. This isn’t just about money!” Malia continued. “This is about DREAMS! Like throwing a party that will make everyone in the seventh grade super impressed! Like actually doing a thing better than your sister! Like finally having people take you seriously! Like the three of us celebrating our birthdays right here, with pizza!”
Slowly, Dot and Bree started nodding.
“With that weird giant manatee statue as my witness, we will take down the Seaside Sitters!” Malia pledged. “We will babysit all the children! And we will throw the best party that Playa del Mar has ever seen!” She grabbed a fry and held it overhead. “Who’s with me?”
Dot and Bree each grabbed a fry and joined them with Malia’s, like the fast-food equivalent of knights clanking swords.
“To dreams!” said Malia, holding her fry aloft for another moment before victoriously cramming it into her mouth.
“You’re insane,” said Dot. But she smiled as she, too, ate her fry.
“I . . .” Bree started.
“Yes?” Malia ventured, midchew.
“You . . .” Bree tried again.
“What’s up?” asked Dot.
“To dreams!” Bree said, before making a sound kind of like a hiccup. She didn’t say anything else, but she didn’t have to. Bree was crying, in a good way.