“Did I hear the timer?” Ms. Holly cupped a hand to her ear. “I think Team Yummy’s cupcakes might be done. Let’s check!”

Charles jumped up to follow Ms. Holly to the oven. He and the rest of his team—Kendra, Alivia, and Luis—clustered around Ms. Holly as she pulled on an oven mitt, opened the door, slid out the rack, and poked a toothpick into one of the cupcakes. Charles’s mouth watered as a sweet, chocolatey aroma wafted through the air. He could hardly wait for a taste.

Ms. Holly pulled out the toothpick and held it up so everyone could see. “What do we think?” she asked.

“They’re done!” said Alivia, jumping up and down. Charles could tell that she was eager to taste the cupcakes, too. But he also noticed that the toothpick was covered with brown goo.

Charles shook his head. “Not done,” he said, remembering something Ms. Holly had mentioned earlier that day. “The toothpick has to come out clean.”

“Very good, Charles,” said Ms. Holly as she slid the rack back in and shut the oven door. “I see that you’ve been paying attention. We’ll give them just three more minutes.” She beamed at him, and Charles felt himself blushing. He didn’t want to be a teacher’s pet, but he liked it when Ms. Holly told him he’d done a good job.

Cooking lessons were so much fun. Charles was glad he had begged Mom to sign him up as soon as he saw the poster at the Littleton Community Center. He had been totally into cooking for a while now, and he wanted to learn more.

Today was Cupcake Day in cooking class. This was Charles’s third lesson with Ms. Holly. She was the best teacher ever! She made everything so much fun, even when they were just learning about how to carry a knife when you were moving around the kitchen (point it downward, and don’t run), how to clean up as you cooked (always keep your area tidy), or the correct way to wash your hands before you started any cooking at all (sing a whole verse of “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” while you scrub with soap and warm water).

Even though Charles was one of the youngest kids in class, Ms. Holly made him feel grown-up. She usually gave a few instructions at the beginning of each lesson, and then the teams were on their own. Ms. Holly was always reminding them that it was okay to make mistakes, too. “It didn’t turn out the way you expected?” she’d ask. “Well, what do you think you might do differently next time?”

On the first Saturday, they had learned how to make spaghetti and meatballs and a Caesar salad. On the second Saturday, they had made homemade pizza with all kinds of crazy toppings. (Charles’s team had put grapes and baloney on theirs, which was unexpectedly delicious.) And this week, they were doing cupcakes.

Each week, Ms. Holly divided up the class into three teams, and every time the teams were different. Charles liked everyone in the class, but today’s team was the best. Alivia was really creative, Kendra was funny, and for some reason Luis loved washing pots and pans, which was perfect since Charles definitely did not.

When Ms. Holly had told them that they could make up any flavor combinations they wanted for their cupcakes, Kendra was the one who’d come up with the perfect idea. “Chocolate cupcakes with pink peppermint frosting,” she’d said.

“And we could decorate the top with crushed-up peppermint candy,” Charles had added. He’d seen something like that on the baking show he and Dad had been watching lately.

The best part of cooking class was the end when they got to eat everything they’d made—but not until after Ms. Holly had tasted all their creations and declared one team the winner for the day. So far, Charles had not been on a winning team, but he had a feeling that today might be it. He watched through the oven window, counting the seconds until it was time to check the cupcakes again.

“How’s Buddy?” Ms. Holly asked as they waited.

“He’s great!” said Charles. Ms. Holly always asked about Buddy, Charles’s sweet brown puppy. She’d learned about him on the first day of class when they had played a “getting to know you” game. Charles had told everyone how his family fostered puppies, taking care of dogs who needed their help just until they could find each one the perfect forever home. It was never easy to give up the puppies when the time came, and with Buddy it had been pretty much impossible. The whole family had fallen in love with him. Buddy, Charles had told the class, was the only puppy the Petersons had ever decided to keep.

“Awww,” Ms. Holly said when Charles talked about how cute Buddy was, with his soft brown fur and the white spot on his chest that was shaped like a heart. “I love dogs, but I’m allergic. You’re so lucky.”

Charles knew he was lucky. Being a foster family was the best thing that had ever happened, and getting to keep Buddy was the icing on the cake.

Like … peppermint icing! Kendra had mixed up a bowlful of the stuff while they waited for their cupcakes to finish baking. Now, Charles poked a clean spoon into the bowl so he could taste the beautiful pink frosting. The flavor was sparkly and sweet. “Wow!” he said. “It’s delicious!”

When the cupcakes were finally done, Ms. Holly helped pull them out of the oven. Charles and Luis popped them out of the tins and set them on a rack to cool. After a few minutes, Alivia spread a thick layer of pink frosting on each one. Then Kendra sprinkled flakes of crushed peppermint candy over the tops—and their creation was ready, just in time for the judging. They cleaned up their workstation while Ms. Holly walked around the room, looking over the finished cupcakes.

When she tasted Team Yummy’s entry, Ms. Holly closed her eyes and pretended to faint. “Whoa,” she said. “You guys really outdid yourselves. The flavor combination, the beautiful pink look, the candy sprinkles, the whole concept. It’s a home run. Today’s winner is definitely Team Yummy.”

Charles and his teammates jumped up and down, giving each other high fives. “Yes!” yelled Luis. “Team Yummy rules!”

Charles knew their cupcakes were the best, but he tasted all the other teams’ cupcakes, just to be sure. The rainbow ones that Team Scrumptious made looked really cool, but the flavor wasn’t very exciting. He liked the butterscotch frosting on Team Tasty’s cupcakes, but it didn’t exactly go with the strawberry-flavored cake part. He had to agree with Ms. Holly. It was Team Yummy for the win.

Charles was buzzing as he ran out to meet Mom, who had come to pick him up. Ms. Holly followed the class outside to make sure everyone had a ride home. She waved at some other moms and called out a greeting to one of the dads. Then she peered into the Petersons’ van. “Wait a minute,” she said. “That’s not Buddy.”