SOFIA

"Good Morning, Amy."

"Good Morning, Jo."

The school's Halloween party had been less exciting than expected. Yet, we had a good amount of fun. Through Baker's mom who was a theater actress, we had access to a whole lot of costumes and we decided to go as the March sisters, Helen, Jenny, Maria, and I, and Baker joined us as Laurie.

We didn't even have a real discussion about who was gonnabe who, it just fit. I called dibs on Jo because she is the coolest. I like tothink that I'm like her; independent, brave, and definitely not straight – well,the last thing isn't necessarily something that made me stand out. But they let me have it. Helen wanted to be Amy and with her blond hair,she fit the picture. Jenny got to be Meg and Maria Beth.

As I was now standing next to Helen at our locker, I couldn't quite imagine what it had been like before we became friends.

"You know," I said, "you had the worst group of friends when I came here."

She shot me an unapproving glance. "You mean Alison and Miranda?" She kept her voice low and looked around.

"Among others." – Meaning Jamie. "You're this super cool, interesting person everyone likes, and everyone wants to be friends with but the people you hang out with are literally the worst people I know."

She shrugged her shoulders. "They don't care about me."

I thought she would elaborate but she didn't. "Yeah, exactly."

"No, I mean, it's good because they aren't interested in me. They know how to have a good time but they won't ever know anything about me that would make me vulnerable."

"That is a weird logic."

"You see, I am there for everyone, all the time, but Alison and Miranda don't really want anything from me besides my social status. They don't ever ask me to do anything for them because they're too conceited."

I laughed a little. "It is so weird to hear you speak ill about someone. And these are your best friends."

The bell rang and she closed the locker door. She clenched her books in front of her chest.

"Well, they are not. Johnathan is my best friend. You are my best friend. And Buttercup is my very best friend over all of you."

I couldn't help but smile brightly at her. She just called me her best friend. I still didn't get why she was friends with the girls in the first place, but I was more than happy with the outcome of this conversation.

"I dare you to sit at a different table today. With people who actually like and adore you and are interested in you."

She made a face. "Do I really have to? You know I'm a creature of habit."

I grabbed her arm to make her stop and turned her to me. "If you do it, I'll get you a present. If you don't do it, you'll never know what I was planning on giving you."

She didn't look me in the eyes but I could see a smile creeping on her face. "That is mean, Sofia."

"I'm just giving you motivation."

I had found the perfect book for Helen.

We both had enjoyed With The Fire On High but were a little disappointed by the writing style. Nonetheless, our assessment was "Elizabeth Acevedo has important things to say." With every interview I saw or read, my awe for the author grew. When she was a teacher, her students came up to her and said, "These books aren't about us." So she decided to write them.

That's when I found that she had, just earlier this year, published another book. Clap When You Land is about two sisters who don't know about each other's existence until their dad dies in a plane crash. I wasn't sure whether it was a good idea to give Helen a book about grieve just yet, but what eventually sold me was the fact that it was written in verses. When I read the sample chapter I thought, Helen would love this.

After rehearsal, we were alone in the auditorium. Helen sat in the first row, I stood in front of her. Behind my back, I hold Clap When You Land.

"I owe you a present."

She agreed.

"I believe it's something you like."

"What is it?" She asked, anticipatingly clutching her hands in her lap.

"A book."

"You got me. No need to say more."

"It's by Elizabeth Acevedo, it's her new book, and it's written in verse."

Hereyes widened in excitement and she extended her hand. "It is? Give it to me!"