Lola Levine and the Halloween Scream Read online

  “I want to be a llama!” he says. “Can we do that, Dad?”

  “Of course!” says Dad.

  “Maybe you can use cardboard,” Mom says.

  “Yay!” says Ben. “I’m going to be a llama, Mama!”

  “And we can dress Bean up like Maria!” I say.

  “Yes!” says Ben, jumping up and down. “Bean will dress up for Halloween! He’ll be our Halloween Bean!” My brother sure does like to rhyme.

  Mom and Dad decide that I should go to bed early, because of the field trip to Feliz Manzana Farm tomorrow. The problem is, talking about costumes made me so excited that I’m not even one bit sleepy! I decide to write in my diary.

  Dear Diario,

  Today I made a mouse out of leaves! I also went on a leaf walk and did some leaf collecting. I wanted to do some leaf jumping and throwing, but I didn’t. And I still had a lot of fun. I’m really, really excited to be a zombie. Do zombie’s talk? I wonder. Or do I just have to grunt? Since zombies are make-believe, I can be any kind of zombie I want. But a talking zombie doesn’t sound very scary.

  Shalom,

  Lola Levine

  Chapter Four

  Apples and Pumpkins

  Today when Dad drives us to school, he doesn’t just drop Ben and me off—he parks the car and gets out. He is a parent chaperone on our field trip. Because my dad works in his art studio at home, he can make his own schedule. My mom works all day at the newspaper. She even has to go in at night sometimes.

  We drive to the farm in a big yellow school bus. Dad rides in the front with Ms. Garcia and some other parents. The drive takes such a long time! I am happy when we get out and I can stretch my legs. A lady dressed in overalls and boots greets us. She has a big smile on her face.

  “Welcome, Northland students,” she says. “I’m Ms. Carolyn, and this is my family’s farm. We are going to have fun this morning!” Ms. Carolyn leads us on a walk to the orchard, where Ms. Garcia breaks us up into teams of four or five. Each team gets to fill a basket with apples.

  “There are only a few rules,” Ms. Carolyn says. “First, I want to show you how to pick an apple.” She uses one hand to hold the branch and the other hand to slowly twist the apple until it comes off.

  “Don’t pull,” Ms. Carolyn says, “or the branch will shake and apples will fall and bruise. Also, don’t eat the apples until you have a chance to wash them at home. Oh, and one more thing—no climbing on the trees.” I don’t know why, but my dad looks straight at me just then and raises his eyebrows at me.

  We then walk a little farther to the part of the farm where the apples are ready to be picked. All of a sudden, Bella grabs my hand.

  “Look!” she says. She points to what looks like a person up high on a wooden pole.

  “It’s a scarecrow!” I say, smiling. “It scares away birds, I think.”

  “Ms. Carolyn!” Bella raises her hand. “Why would anyone want to scare away birds? Birds are nice.”

  “Birds are delightful, but they sometimes eat seeds and young crops. That’s why you find scarecrows on many farms,” Ms. Carolyn says.

  “Maybe I’ll be a scarecrow for Halloween,” I say. “What’s scarier than a scarecrow?!”

  “They give me goose bumps,” Bella says. I pick up some straw from the ground and tickle Bella with it.

  “The scarecrow is coming to get you,” I say, laughing.

  “That’s not funny!” Bella says.

  “But scarecrows aren’t real,” I say.

  “They’re real enough to me. Stop trying to scare me!” she says, and then she stomps away and joins a different group for apple picking. I didn’t realize ballerinas were such good stompers.

  Apple picking isn’t nearly as fun without Bella, but at least I’m in the same group as Josh, Juan, and my dad. After we finish picking apples, we get to taste some apple cider made fresh on the farm. I love it, and Dad buys some to bring home and share with my mom and Ben. When I get back on the bus, I walk toward Bella. She’s already seated.

  “Can I sit here?” I ask.

  “Okay,” says Bella, “but I still don’t like scarecrows.”

  “What do you like?” I ask Bella.

  “Bunnies! And fairies. And butterflies and unicorns,” Bella says.

  “Unicorns are pretty cool,” I agree.

  The next day, I wake up and write a note—but not in my diario. This time, I’m writing to Principal Blot.

  Dear Principal Blot,

  It’s Lola. My brother doesn’t know I’m writing you. Please don’t tell him. Have you had enough time to decide if we can bring our pets to the Fall Festival parade? Because it’s tomorrow! I hope you have, and I hope the answer is yes. Ben is very excited about this. Even though he bugs me sometimes, I don’t want him to be disappointed.

  Shalom,

  Lola Levine

  When I get to school, I stop by the front office. I see Principal Blot sitting at her desk.

  “Hi, Principal Blot!” I say loudly. “Can I see you for a second?” Principal Blot waves me in.

  “What’s the problem, Lola?” she asks.

  “There’s no problem,” I say. “I know I’m usually in trouble when I’m in your office, but not today. I’m just here to give you a note. About having pets at the Fall Festival parade.”

  “Okay, Lola. You may leave it on my desk,” she says, and I do.

  “How are Milo and Jelly?” I ask, because I want to remind her that she has pets that she loves very much.

  “They are fine,” she says. “Shouldn’t you be going, Lola?”

  “Why?” I ask.

  “Because the bell just rang and you are now late for class,” she says. “Here’s a tardy slip.”

  “Have a super great day, Principal Blot!” I say as I leave. “Don’t forget to read my note!”

  “I won’t,” Principal Blot says.

  When it’s time to paint our pumpkins, I bring mine over to where Bella is sitting.

  “Are you going to paint a bunny face on your pumpkin?” I ask Bella.

  “No,” she says, and smiles. “I’m going to paint a happy pumpkin in all my favorite colors.” As far as I know, Bella’s only favorite color is pink. She wears something pink almost every day.

  “I’ll use light pink, dark pink, ballerina pink, magenta, purply-pink, and pinkish-purple,” she says, and I smile.

  “I’m going to paint my pumpkin all black and then make white designs on it,” I say, and Bella laughs. I look over and see Josh and Juan making their pumpkins into soccer balls. Why didn’t I think of that?

  “I love your pumpkins!” I tell them. “Will your soccer pumpkins have faces?”

  “Of course!” says Josh.

  We are in the middle of pumpkin painting when we hear a ding from the speaker above the door. This means an announcement is coming.

  “ATTENTION, NORTHLAND ELEMENTARY STUDENTS,” a loud voice says. “THIS IS PRINCIPAL BLOT, AND I HAVE A SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT. WE WILL BE SENDING A NOTE HOME TO YOUR PARENTS, BUT I WANTED YOU TO KNOW THAT THIS YEAR, WE WILL BE ALLOWING PETS ON CAMPUS DURING THE FALL FESTIVAL PARADE—FROM NOON TO ONE PM ONLY, AND THEY MUST BE WITH YOUR PARENTS AND ON A LEASH. PET COSTUMES ARE OKAY, TOO, BUT THE SAME RULES APPLY— HISTORICAL FIGURES OR BOOK CHARACTERS. HAVE A NICE AFTERNOON.”

  Then we hear another ding, and things are silent, but only for a second. Then everyone is clapping and saying “Yay!” I’m happy for myself, but I’m even happier for Ben. I swear I can hear his “Whoopee!” from two classrooms away.

  Dear Diario,

  Tomorrow is the Fall Festival parade. Yay! Ben is so excited to dress up Bean. I’m excited, too. I wonder if Principal Blot will wear a costume. I hope so!

  Shalom,

  Lola Levine

  Chapter Five

  The Parade

  On Friday morning, I wake up to the sound of a big crash. “Mom! Dad?” I say really loudly, but no one answers. Then I hear Ben’s voice right outside my bedroom door.

  “Help, Lola! Help!” Oh no, I think, what has he gotten into now? I jump out of bed and run into Ben’s room. Ben is lying on the floor moaning, and it looks like the bookshelf has fallen on top of him.

  “My hand! My hand!” he says, and holds up his hand. His fingers are covered in blood.

  “Mom! Dad!” I yell. “Where are you?” I kneel down next to Ben, and then I smell it. Ketchup. Gross.

  “Ben!” I say. “You got me!”

  “I did! I did!” he says, laughing. Mom and Dad jump out from the stairwell and say “Boo!” and we all laugh. They were in on the joke, too.

  “Good one, Ben!” I say.

  “Now let’s go eat breakfast, and then you can get into your book character costumes. You don’t want to be late today!” Dad says.

  “It’s Friday! It’s Parade Day!” says Ben.

  “I’m so excited to see you at lunch,” I tell Mom.

  “I can’t wait,” she replies, giving me a hug.

  “Is Bean’s costume ready?” asks Ben.

  “It sure is,” says Dad.

  The first person I see when I get to school is none other than Principal Blot. She’s dressed in a long, old-fashioned kind of dress and her hair is in a bun. I run up to her.

  “Who are you supposed to be, Principal Blot?” I ask.

  “I’m Susan B. Anthony,” she says. “She was born almost two hundred years ago, and she fought for women to have the right to vote.”

  “Wow!” I say. “She made the world a better place.”

  “She did,” Principal Blot says.

  “I like your hair that way,” I tell Principal Blot.

  “Thank you,” she says. “I like your costume, Marisol McDonald.”

  “Thank you back!” I say, then run to get in line outside Ms. Garcia’s room.

  Bella looks so cool. She has on a colorful skirt and several shawls. Her hair is braided and woven with flowers. She’s carrying a paintbrush and a stuffed monkey.

  “I’m Frida Kahlo,” she explains. “She is a famous Mexican artist, and she had a pet monkey. I’ve been to her house in Mexico.”

  “I’m going to tell my dad you’re an artist!” I say. “I bet he knows who Frida is.” Josh is dressed as Harry Potter, which isn’t a surprise, and Makayla and Alyssa are dressed as Thing One and Thing Two from Dr. Seuss, which is a surprise. I guess they like things other than just princesses. They even have blue hair! I’m mismatched and marvelous like Marisol McDonald, and I’m wearing my Peruvian chullo hat, just like her. Juan’s dressed up in yellow overalls.

  “I’m Thunder Boy!” he tells me.

  The parade is super fun. Everyone is dressed up, and there are parents and pets everywhere—mostly dogs, though Alyssa and Mira’s mom brought their bunny in a cage. It even has a superhero cape on! Mira is dressed as Little Red Riding Hood, which is funny because I know she’s going to be a wolf for Halloween. As soon as I see my mom and Bean arrive, I run up to them and give them both hugs. I ask Ms. Garcia if I can walk with the kindergartners during the parade so I can be with my family, and she says yes.

  “You make a great llama!” I tell Ben.

  “And Bean makes a great Maria,” he says proudly. Bean is definitely excited to be at Northland Elementary, and he makes lots of new friends.

  Chapter Six

  Trick

  At the end of the day, I am a little sad that Halloweek is over at school. At least Halloween is the day after tomorrow. But I want to play one more trick.

  I decide to surprise my friends after school. I put my pumpkin and my backpack on the ground behind a tree, and then I hide, too. I wait until I see Bella and Josh walking toward the bus stop. Sometimes Josh takes the bus home from school so he doesn’t have to wait until his mom is done working. Bella and Josh are carrying their pumpkins and backpacks, and they must be talking about something really funny because they are both laughing. I jump out from behind the tree with my hands in front of me like a zombie and yell, “Boo!”

  Bella and Josh fall back and something awful happens. Josh drops his pumpkin, and it goes splat on the cement.

  “Lola!” Bella says.

  “My pumpkin!” says Josh. “It’s ruined.”

  “Oh no!” I say. “I’m so sorry. It was a joke.”

  “Not to me!” Josh says, trying to put his pumpkin back together.

  “You know I don’t like being scared,” Bella says, “but you did it anyway!”

  “I thought it would be funny,” I say, but Josh looks like he’s about to cry, not laugh. “I’m so sorry.”

  “Stop saying sorry,” Josh says. “I wanted to put my pumpkin in the window to show trick-or-treaters, and now I can’t.”

  “Maybe we can fix it,” I say, trying to help.

  “Just go away,” Josh says, for the first time ever. So I do.

  By the time my dad picks me up, I’m crying. Ben is worried because I don’t cry very often.

  “What’s wrong?” Dad asks as I get into the front seat and put on my seat belt. Ben climbs into the back and shuts the door, and I spill out the whole story—about the scarecrow, the smashed pumpkins, and the fact that my two super best friends are super mad at me.

  “That is a bummer,” Dad says. “I can see why you are feeling sad and sorry. Why did you decide to scare them, Lola?”

  “Because I thought it would be fun,” I answer.

  “For who? For them?” Dad asks. I think about it for a little bit.

  “No, I thought it would be fun for me,” I say. “I know Bella doesn’t really like being scared.”

  “That was a mean thing to do, Lola,” Ben says from the backseat.

  “It’s not your job to tell me that!” I say to Ben. But then I think about it.

  “I guess it was a little mean, but I just wanted to have fun.”

  “Everyone has fun in different ways,” Dad says. “We need to listen to our friends.”

  That night, I can’t sleep. I toss and turn and flip my pillow over again and again, but it doesn’t work. I try to think of puppies and soccer games, but even that doesn’t work. I get out of bed and decide to write in my diary.

  Dear Diario,

  I can’t sleep. It’s like I’ve got monkeys jumping up and down in my head, and they are all saying, “You’re mean, Lola Levine!” I want to be nice to my friends. I just don’t understand why they don’t like Halloween jokes as much as me. But if I think about it really hard, maybe I do understand. I always say I like being scared, but I’m not telling the truth, because right now I feel scared that I might have lost my two best friends.

  I think I’m going to go and wake up Mom, because some worries are too big for just one person.

  Shalom,

  Lola Levine

  I peek into my parents’ room, and Mom is still awake reading.

  “Mom?” I whisper, because I don’t want to wake up my dad.

  “Hi, sweetie,” Mom whispers. “What’s wrong?”

  “I can’t sleep,” I tell her, “and I really want to. For real.” Mom gets out of bed and gives me a hug.

  “Let’s go downstairs and have some hot milk,” Mom says.

  I watch my mom stir the milk in the pot and add a few drops of honey. When it’s ready, we take our mugs into the family room, where Bean is happy to see me. Mom and I sit on the couch, and she wraps us in my favorite blanket, the one Grandma Levine, my bubbe, knitted for us.

  “What are you thinking about, Lola?” Mom asks.

  “I’m thinking that Josh and Bella are mad at me,” I say. “And I’m thinking that maybe I’m not nice.”

  “Lola,” my mom says, “you are nice. You’re my sunshine girl. I’ll tell you what you are not, though.…”

  “What?” I ask Mom.

  “You’re not perfect,” Mom says. “Nobody is. We all make mistakes, and it’s hard to be perfect every second of every day. All we can do is keep trying to be our best selves.”

  “I’m glad I don’t have to be perfect, but I still don’t like feeling this way,” I tell Mom. “And what am I supposed to do about Josh and Bella?”

  “Well, you’ve said sorry, so the other most important thing is to change your actions.”

  “You mean I should stop scaring them?” I ask.

  “That seems like a good idea, but don’t worry, we can still celebrate the scary parts of Halloween together,” Mom says. “Okay?”

  “Okay,” I say, and I feel better. I always feel better after I talk with Mom. “I don’t have to be perfect,” I say, “and even if I wanted to, nobody is perfect. I think I can go to sleep now.” Mom gives me one more hug and then walks me upstairs and tucks me in.

  “I love you, Lola,” she says.

  “I love you, too, Mom,” I say with a yawn.

  In the morning, I feel better, and I have a plan. I ask Dad if we can go to the grocery store after breakfast. I bring all the money I have in my piggy bank and some markers. I buy two pumpkins—a big one to give to Josh so he’ll have something to paint today and a little pumpkin for Bella. Dad drives me to Josh’s house and I knock on his door. He answers and I give him his pumpkin.

  “I’m so sorry,” I tell Josh. “I wanted to make sure you had a pumpkin to paint.”

  “Thanks, Lola,” Josh says. “I wasn’t really scared, you know. I was more surprised.”

  “I know,” I say, “but I realize it wasn’t a very nice thing to do. Most people don’t like to be scared or surprised. Will you still come trick-or-treating with me tomorrow?”

  “Of course,” he says. “I’m going to be a firefighter, remember?”

  I’m so relieved. I say good-bye to Josh, and then Dad and I go to Bella’s house. No one answers the door. I remember that Bella has ballet on Saturday mornings, so I leave the pumpkin in Bella’s mailbox. It’s not just a regular pumpkin. It’s a pumpkin-gram.