Sophie waited for Kate to tell her the big news. But it was not easy.

Sophie waited through the field trip.

She waited on the bus back to school and the bus home.

She waited until she got to Kate’s house.

Then she could not wait anymore.

“You have to tell me now!” she cried as they walked into Kate’s kitchen. “Honestly! I can’t wait anymore!”

“I will, I will. In a second,” Kate told her. She had a giant smile on her face. “Hi, Mrs. Belle! We’re home!” she called out.

A cheerful voice called back to them. “Hellooo! I’ll be right there!”

Mrs. Belle lived in their neighborhood. She had three kids, but they were all grown up. She came over to Kate’s in the afternoon and stayed until Kate’s mom got home from work.

Kate’s mom worked in a doctor’s office, but she was not a doctor or a nurse. Sophie was pretty sure her job was to keep people quiet in the waiting room.

Sophie liked Mrs. Belle. She knew a million card games. And she let Sophie and Kate watch TV game shows with her.

She also made stuffed cabbage. It smelled pretty bad. But it actually tasted good.

Mrs. Belle walked into the kitchen. She was wearing her favorite tracksuit. It was bright yellow, like her hair. Sophie knew that it had to be her favorite, since she’d dyed her hair to match.

Mrs. Belle gave Kate and Sophie a hug. “So, how was school today, girls? What did you do?” she asked them.

Kate shrugged. She said the usual: “Okay,” and “Not much.”

Sophie usually said the same thing. But now that she was Sophie the Honest, “Okay” and “Not much” were not enough.

Sophie took a breath. She cleared her throat.

“To be honest, Mrs. Belle, school was hard today. Before we went on a field trip, we had a spelling quiz first thing. And I thought I knew all the words. But guess what? I studied the words from last week by accident. But then the day got better, because we got to go on our trip. That meant we got to miss meat loaf for lunch. So that was very good. Then I scared Toby and Archie away, and Kate and I got the back seat of the bus. But then I opened my lunch bag. And my mom packed me egg salad. And it stunk up the whole bus….”

Sophie stopped and took another breath. Then she went on.

“Anyway, we walked all over the place where George Washington was born. And I guess we learned some stuff. Stuff like if you ever go on a field trip, do not wear fancy shoes. And that George Washington’s teeth probably fell out because he ate hoecakes that tasted like wood. And that he did not have a TV. But even if he did, I bet it would have gotten burned. And that even presidents can have the most boring jobs in the world.”

Mrs. Belle’s eyes were wide. She looked surprised. So did Kate.

“My goodness! Sophie, you’re a little chatterbox today!” Mrs. Belle exclaimed.

Chatterbox? Again?

Sophie stood up very straight. She proudly raised her chin.

“I’m just being honest, Mrs. Belle. From now on, that is who I am,” Sophie said. She tugged on her shirt so her H showed better. “Sophie the Honest, at your service!”

“I see! So tell me, and be honest! What can I get you girls to eat?” Mrs. Belle said.

That was when Kate spoke up. “Cookies, please!”

Mrs. Belle got out a box of cookies with fudge stripes on top. She poured two cups of milk and let the girls squeeze chocolate into them.

“Whoa!” Mrs. Belle said. “I think that’s enough.”

Sophie stopped squeezing and licked her fingers. Then she remembered what she had been waiting for all day.

“Kate! You have to tell me your big news!” she said.

“Oh, right!” Kate said. She took a sip of chocolate milk and grinned. “But first, do I have a mustache?”

Sophie rolled her eyes. “Yes,” she said. She sipped her milk so she had one, too. “Now go on!” she told Kate.

Kate turned to Mrs. Belle. “Mrs. Belle, tell Sophie about your daughter!”

Mrs. Belle winked. “Well, she’s moved back to town. Finally!” she told Sophie.

“Oh …, “ Sophie said. She guessed that was exciting … for Mrs. Belle.

Kate leaned over. “That’s not all,” she said.

Then Mrs. Belle told Sophie that her daughter had bought a horse farm.

“Oh,” Sophie said. That was more exciting.

Then Mrs. Belle told Sophie that her daughter had invited Kate to come ride horses. And that Kate could bring two friends. And sleep over. And they could do it all that weekend!

“Oh!” Sophie said. That was not just exciting … it was the most fantastic, amazing, awesome thing ever, in the whole world!

“Have you ever ridden a horse before?” Mrs. Belle asked.

“No. Never.” Sophie shook her head. “But it has always been my lifelong dream,” she said very seriously.

Kate looked at her funny. “It has?”

“Yes, honest!” Sophie said. “I just didn’t know it until now.”

Then Sophie looked at Kate. And Kate looked at Sophie.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Kate asked.

“I think so!” Sophie said.

They gulped down their milk and each grabbed a handful of cookies.

“Thanks a lot, Mrs. Belle!” they said. “We have to go outside and practice!”

Sophie and Kate ran straight to Kate’s swing set. They straddled the swings like they were horses. They grabbed the chains and rocked and yelled, “Giddyup!” as loudly as they could.

“Whoa!” Kate said at last. She patted the air where her horse’s head would be. “Easy now, Lightning. Not too fast.”

Sophie pretended to pat her horse, too. “Good girl, Buttercup. Nice jumping!” she told her.

Then Sophie suddenly thought of something. Something that made her horse stop. Was pretending to ride a horse honest?

“What’s wrong, Sophie?” Kate asked. “You look like your horse threw you off.”

Sophie sighed. She swung her leg over the swing so that she was facing forward.

“What’s wrong is that I forgot to be honest. No more pretending for me,” Sophie said.

“Huh?” Kate said. “But we like pretending.”

“I know. But pretending isn’t honest,” Sophie said. “At least, I don’t think so.”

Sophie sighed again. This time, Kate sighed with her.

They were both quiet for a minute.

“Can I still pretend?” Kate asked.

Sophie nodded. “Sure. Why not?”

Kate started to gallop on her horse. Then she stopped. “It’s not the same by myself.”

“Sorry,” Sophie said glumly. She didn’t want to ruin Kate’s fun, but she had to be true to her new name!

“That’s okay,” Kate said. “The only problem is that we pretend a lot.”

They were both quiet again.

“I know! Let’s talk instead,” Sophie said, swinging back and forth. “Tell me. Who else are you going to ask to come to the horse farm?”

Sophie knew that was a tough question, since Kate could only bring two friends. Sophie was Kate’s number one best friend. But there was a four-way tie for number two. Grace and Sydney sat at their table in room 10. And Eve and Mia played the most with them at recess.

Kate shrugged. “Grace is nice,” she said. “But she can be a little bossy. And Eve and Mia are fun. But Eve still can’t sleep over. She always has to call her mom. And Mia laughs really, really loud. She could scare the horses. So I guess I’ll ask Sydney. What do you think?” Kate asked.

Sophie nodded. “I think that sounds good,” she said honestly.

Then Kate chewed her hair. Sophie knew she did that when she was nervous.

“But what if Grace and Eve and Mia find out?” Kate went on. “I don’t want them to be mad. Or feel bad.”

Sophie waved her hand.

“Don’t worry,” she told Kate. “Sydney is good at keeping secrets. How could anyone find out?”