Chapter 1
Charlie felt a rush of excitement as the school bell rang at the end of the school day. It was finally winter break! She sprang out of her seat, ready to pack up her stuff and meet with her friend Lillian. The two had been friends since the first grade on the playground.
“Excited for winter break?” Lillian asked.
“You bet I am! We should definitely host a Christmas sleepover and invite the rest of the girls. It would be so fun!” Charlie replied.
“That’s a great idea! We could have hot cocoa, s'mores, and sugar cookies!”
“Yes! All of that sounds delicious,” Charlie said enthusiastically.
As they walked toward the front of the school, heading to Lillian’s car, Charlie sighed. “I'm so jealous of you. I have to wait two whole months until I get my license, and you already got yours a month ago!”
Lillian laughed. “That’s the perk of being born earlier in the year. Now hop in.”
Charlie sat down in the passenger seat and opened the notifications on her phone. “Ughhh,” she groaned. “I have to go to another of my brother’s stupid soccer games tomorrow. I wanted to do something fun, like go ice skating!”
Lillian chuckled as she started driving out of the school parking lot. “Well, that sucks. How long is it?”
“Two hours,” Charlie replied, her voice full of annoyance.
“Well, that sounds fun,” Lillian said sarcastically.
After a short drive, they pulled up to Charlie's house. “Bye!” they called out to each other before parting ways.
The next morning, Charlie woke up to the delightful smell of pancakes. She quickly slid into her slippers and ran downstairs for breakfast.
“Morning, Mom!” Charlie said with a yawn.
“Good morning, sleepyhead. It’s nice to get to sleep in for once, isn’t it?”
“It is,” Charlie agreed, taking the plate her mom handed her.
“Wow, you really overdid it today, Mom! This looks amazing,” she said, admiring the fluffy reindeer-shaped pancakes on her plate.
“Glad you like them! I wanted to make something special for the first day of winter break,” her mom said with a bright smile.
As Charlie ate, she couldn’t help but notice how festive everything felt. Snow blanketed the yard outside, the fire crackled in the fireplace, and the house was filled with the scent of peppermint and sugar cookies. It was like a holiday wonderland.
Her good mood dimmed as she remembered the soccer game. “Mom, do I really have to go to the soccer game today?” Charlie pleaded.
“Yes, Charlie. You never come to his games. He came to every one of your ballet recitals!” her mom replied.
“Good point. I guess I’ll go,” Charlie sighed.
“Plus, we need you to watch Jojo for a bit,” her mom added.
“Fine.”
Charlie put her plate in the sink and headed upstairs to get ready. After grabbing her favorite book, A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, from the shelf, she was interrupted by her little sister.
“Hi, sissy,” Jojo said, poking Charlie’s arm with a pink Crayola marker.
“Hey! Stop that!”
Jojo just giggled.
“Ready?” her mom called out.
“Yep! Is Dad already there?”
“Yes, he left an hour before you woke up. Let’s go,” her mom said, grabbing her purse as the three of them walked out the door.
