Best Friend Emma Read Online Free PDF

animal kingdom are like this withtheir young, I tell myself nervously. It doesn’t mean she’s really paying close attention.
    “Um-hmm,” she says, nodding. “Friends. Well,” she corrects me, “I believe I told you not to worry—that you
would
make new friends at Oak Glen. And you have, Emma. Just look at you and Annie Pat! Why, you couldn’t have chosen a better friend if you’d ordered her from a catalog.” She beams a smile at me.
    “And don’t forget Kry,” I say, sliding in the name—a name that I hope my mom will be hearing a lot in the future. Like this coming Saturday, for instance.
    “Cry?” Mom repeats, looking confused.
    “Kry Rodriguez, Mom.
You
know. The new girl. She’s my friend, too. Our friend, I mean. Mine and Annie Pat’s. The three of us are really good friends now.”
    Liar, liar, pants on fire
. But my mom doesn’t know that.
    And the three of us
will
be friends someday—if it kills me.
    Mom blinks, trying to remember when I last talked to her about Kry—which was never, because I was keeping Kry all to myself. “Oh,” she finally says. “Well, that’s nice, sweetie.” Her eyes stray back to the computer screen.
    “So anyway,” I say, raising my voice a little, “I made this new friend, like you told me to, and I was wondering if I could invite her out to lunch and a movie on Saturday. With you driving. Kry’s really nice, Mom.”
    My mother turns to me, surprised. “But, Emma, you already have plans on Saturday,” she says, reminding me. “
Big
plans. Annie Pat and her father are taking you to Marine Universe!”
    Mom sometimes forgets what day it is, ever since she started working at home, and she almost always forgets to buy the kind of cereal I like best, and she often forgets to take clothes out of thedryer, and she sometimes forgets to add all the correct ingredients to a recipe. Even cookies! And peanut-butter cookies without the peanut butter are just plain weird.
    But she has to remember
this
?
    “Marine Universe is off,” I inform my mom. “Annie Pat canceled the whole thing,” I add, so my mom won’t think any of this is my fault.
    Big
mistake.
    “I’m sure you’re wrong about that, Emma,” Mom says, frowning. “I know how much Annie Pat was looking forward to her special day. She needs to get away from the new baby, even if it’s only for a little while.”
    And then my mom reaches for the phone.

    “No, don’t!” I say, squawking the words like a startled toucan.
    But it’s too late. Morn and Mrs. Masterson are alreadytalking. “Mmm-hmm, mmm-hmm,” my mom murmurs, shooting me a
stay-right-there
glance as I tiptoe toward the door.
    It’s more of a glare, really, and my heart starts thudding.
    “Mmm-hmm,” Mom continues. “Oh, for heaven’s sake!” She listens to Annie Pat’s mother some more. “Well,” Mom finally says with a sigh, “I can’t tell you how sorry I am, Donna. I don’t know what got into Emma, but I intend to find out.
Pronto
.”

    Then she makes a few good-bye noises, hangs up the phone, and turns to face me.
    And I thought things were bad before!
    I have a feeling round three is about to begin.

      9      
It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time
    It is a cold but sunny Friday morning, and the world smells like wet fallen leaves, and school starts in about twenty minutes, and I have a headache from being yelled at by my mom last night. She told me that not only did I hurt Annie Pat’s feelings, which I did by accident, but I lied about what happened, which I did on purpose. (But it seemed like a good idea at the time.)
    So I’m not doing
anything
tomorrow—except writing letters of apology to Annie Pat
and
my mom. Ugh. Maybe I should just write a letter of apology to the whole world, while I’m at it!
    And now, worst of all, I have to un-invite KryRodriguez to the cool Saturday lunch and movie. We were going to have such a good time that Kry would have wanted to be my friend for sure, even though