Rose and Mavis sat on the log in the vacant lot, talking about plan B.
Well, actually, it was Rose who was trying to talk about plan B.
“So,” Rose said, “what’s plan B?”
“I’m not sure yet,” Mavis said.
“But I thought you were good at coming up with plan B.”
“I am.”
“Oh.” Rose wiped red dirt off her shorts. “I just thought you would’ve come up with it by now.”
“It takes time to think up a good plan B.” Mavis was starting to feel a little annoyed.
Then Rose didn’t say anything, and Mavis started to feel a lot annoyed.
“Maybe you can come up with plan B,” she said. “I’m the one that’s been doing all the thinking.”
“But I’m not the one who said I was good at coming up with plan B,” Rose said.
Well, didn’t that beat all?
Here Mavis had been trying so hard to fix things for Rose and Mr. Duffy. “I’ve been trying to be a good best friend,” she said, kicking at a cluster of Queen Anne’s lace beside the log. “If you’d rather have a different best friend, go ahead. Maybe one of those girls from the swim team and y’all can be in the mother-daughter book club together.”
Then Mavis sat there in steamy silence with her arms crossed and her lips clamped tight.
A dragonfly flitted among the wildflowers in front of them. Mavis kicked at the flowers, making the dragonfly dart away and disappear across the vacant lot.
Finally, Rose broke the silence. “I wouldn’t rather have a different best friend,” she said.
Mavis kept her arms crossed and her lips clamped tight.
Silence.
Silence.
Silence.
Then Rose said, “Aren’t you worried about Mr. Duffy?”
Mavis shrugged. “I guess.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, yes. Yes, I’m worried about him because I know you’re worried about him.”
And then, quite unexpectedly, that old snake, Mr. Jealousy, showed up and made Mavis say, “All you and Mr. Duffy care about is each other. What about me? Doesn’t anybody care about me?”
Uh-oh. Mavis hadn’t meant to say that. But it was too late. Rose’s face turned a little red, and she said, “Why are you being so mean?”
Then the next thing you know, Rose and Mavis were arguing.
Mavis reminded Rose that she was the one coming up with the ideas to fix things with Mr. Duffy.
Rose pointed out that she had broken every rule in the Tully Rule Book to go along with all of Mavis’s crazy ideas.
Mavis said Rose should be glad to have such a fun thing to do as going to Wonderland.
Rose said she thought maybe they were being too hasty trying to get a dog for Mr. Duffy, especially when he didn’t even want one.
On and on.
Back and forth.
Until finally Mavis stood up and said, “Fine.”
Rose stayed sitting on the log and said, “Fine.”
And that was that.