True Colors (8 page)
Authors: Jill Santopolo
“We know you're in charge,” Charlotte said. “But we do love being here. We just want the Sparkle Spa to be the best kids' salon in the world.”
“Yeah, it's been okay, but just so you know, I don't think I can hang out here all the time. I've got sports, too, you know,” Caleb said.
Aly nodded and looked at Brooke, who was biting her lip to keep from smiling. Then Caleb took his post by the door, and the girls started to get ready for the Auden Angels' rainbow sparkle pedicures. Since Brooke couldn't polish, she decided her job was going to be standing near the polish display and talking to people. It really was the perfect job for her.
When the pedicures were done, all the players lined up to decorate Brooke's cast. Jenica grabbed a bottle of bluish-purple Forget Me Not polish. “Quickly,” she said as she dipped the brush in and painted a star on Brooke's cast. “Because we have to
get down to the field for practice for the semifinals on Saturday. You're coming to cheer us on, right? Rainbow sparkle power helped us get there.”
“We'll be there,” Aly said.
“Wouldn't miss it,” Brooke added.
Lily and Charlotte nodded in agreement.
Caleb did too.
After the team left, Lily started counting the day's proceeds in the teal donation jar. The first thing Aly and Brooke had decided as co-CEOs was that the safe was out and the strawberry-shaped jar was back in. Their mom had made it after all, which made it extra special.
Lily handed Caleb a stack of bills and a handful of change. “Can you remember thirty-three?” she asked him.
He nodded.
Lily counted out some more money and handed that to Caleb too. Then she stood up.
“Ahem,” she said. “This week the Sparkle Spa made exactly one hundred and seven dollars andâwhat was the number I told you, Caleb?”
“Thirty-three,” he said.
“Thirty-three cents!” Lily finished. “That means it's time to contribute to a charity, right? Whichever one you choose?”
“Yep, every hundred dollars, we donate,” Brooke confirmed.
Charlotte and Brooke had just finished organizing the polish wall and sat down on the floor near Caleb and Lily. “So are you guys going to pick a place to give the money to now?” Charlotte asked the sisters.
“We should,” Aly said, turning to Brooke.
She saw Brooke looking around at Charlotte's sign-up sheets, which Aly and Brooke had decided
could stay. And then her eyes traveled to Sophie, who'd made it possible for Sparkle Spa to stay up and running while her arm was healing.
Finally, Brooke looked at Aly and gave her a Secret Sister Eye Message:
Let's make it a team decision.
Aly nodded in agreement, so Brooke asked, “What do you guys think?”
Everyone thought for a while.
“Puppies?” Charlotte suggested.
Aly glanced at Brooke, who shook her head.
“Great idea,” Aly said, “but we already donated to the animal shelter.”
“Dancers?” Sophie asked.
“Are they a charity?” Lily said.
“No, I guess not,” Sophie agreed.
Then Brooke jumped up. “I know!” she said. “We should donate to kids who are in the hospital's emergency roomâespecially in the waiting area. It's so
boring there and sometimes scary. The hospital can use the money to make a library, maybeâor at least some magazines and comic books to start. And then maybe people from all over town can donate books they don't want anymore. We'll tell Mrs. Bass that we'll take any of her sons' books that we can get!”
“I like that idea a lot,” Aly told Brooke, beaming. Then she whispered in her sister's ear,
“But
s
hould we let everyone vote?”
When Brooke nodded, Aly said, “Everyone who agrees with this choice, raise your hand.”
Everyone raised their hand.
“Nice teamwork,” she said with a smile.
Aly knew that for as long as she and Brooke needed them, Lily, Charlotte, Sophie, and Caleb would be there to help. But she and Brooke would still be in charge, just the two of them. Because that's how they liked it best.
Diamond Jubilee
M
ay I have another slice, Joanie?” Brooke asked. “This pizza is delicious!” Her arm may have been in a cast, but that didn't stop Brooke from eating three slices of extra-cheese pizza.
True Colors and the Sparkle Spa were celebrating Joan's promotion to COO with a pizza party. She worked so hard and could always be counted onâand she came up with some great ideas while Mom was gone, proving that she had a good head for business. No one deserved this promotion more
than Joan, Aly knew. She was so happy for her.
“Come on, Brooke. We'll be late for the game,” Sophie said. Aly and Brooke had agreed that they should invite all their friends to Joan's party too, since they were part of the salon team now. “I don't want to miss kickoff.”
“Okay, okay. One more bite and we'll all go,” Brooke answered.
“Run, Jenica, run!” Brooke yelled.
“Get it to the goal!” Aly shouted.
“Kick it!” Lily screamed, jumping up and down.
“She's
fast
!” Caleb said.
Aly couldn't believe how quickly Jenica was moving as she bolted down the field. She was faster than anyoneâand her hair was flying all over the place as she ran. The other girls were coming up behind her in different spots on the grass.
It was cool to see how the whole team worked together and knew how to play the different positions.
Jenica passed the ball to Bethany, who kicked it to Mia.
Aly watched Mia's Diamond Jubilee fingernails flash in the sun, with little Silversmith hearts on her pinkies. Sophie had polished her nails for the dance showcase over a week ago, and they were still holding up. “Your manicure's looking good out there, Soph,” she said.
Sophie smiled.
Mia kicked the ball toward the goal, but a girl from the other team blocked the shot and sent it in the other direction. Bethany got there first, then kicked it.
Hard.
The ball went
flying, flying, flying
past the goalie's hands, right into the top left corner of the net.
GOAL!
The Angels won their semifinal match! The team ran cheering onto the field.
Aly heard Jenica scream, “We did it! We did it together!”
I wonder if rainbow sparkle power really did help them at all,
Aly thought.
Brooke cheered. “They're a team, just like us,” she said.
And that's exactly how Aly felt about the new crew at the Sparkle Spa. It hadn't been easy, but they'd done it together.
“So,” Brooke said to Aly, Lily, Charlotte, and Caleb, after they'd congratulated all the Angels, “I heard the soccer girls are celebrating with ice cream. I think we should celebrate too. Not just because they won the game, but because we're a great team, just like them.”
Aly smiled and threw her arm around her sister. “That,” she said, “is one of your best ideas yet.”
(or a Friend!)
an I Love Dancing Pedicure
By Aly
(and Brooke!)
Paper towels
Polish remover
Clear polish
One color polish for the base
(we suggest silver)
One color polish for the hearts
(we suggest copper)
Toothpicks
1. Put some paper towels down on the floor so if anything spills, no one will get mad at you.
(This
is very important. This one time we got Tickled Pink on our grandma's white rug. She was not happy at all.)
2. Rip off another paper towel, fold it up, and put some polish remover on it. If you have polish on your toes already, make sure you get it all off. If you don't, just rub the remover over your nails once to remove any dirt that might be on them.
(Dirt makes polish look lumpy, and that is the absolute pits! No one wants lumpy polish!)
3. Rip off two more paper towels. Twist the first one into a long tube and weave it back and forth between your toes to separate them a little bit.
(This will help keep polish off the skin of one toe when you're painting the one next to it.)
Then do the same thing with the second paper towel on your other foot.
You might need to tuck the end of the paper towel under your pinkie toe if it pops up and gets in your way while you polish.
(You can also use tape if you need to
â
but you probably won't need to.)
4. Open your bottle of clear polish and apply a coat on each nail. Then close the clear bottle up tight.
(You can go in whatever order you want, but our favorite is big toe to pinkie on your right foot, then big toe to pinkie on your left foot. It's easy to keep track that way. But whatever you do, make sure you get them all!)
5. Open the silver polish
(or whichever color you chose for your base; we like metallics for this pedicure)
. Apply one coat on all toenails. Close the bottle up tight.
6. Fan your toes to dry them a little, then repeat the fifth step.
(If you don't do a second coat, the polish won't look as bright. Some people like to do a third coat, but we think that's too many. Plus then it takes even longer
to dry.)
7. Fan your toes a little again.
(You should actually fan them for more than a little while. We recommend singing the whole alphabet song three times in a row. Aly likes to show off and sing it backward, but I do it forward, and that's just fine.)
8. Open your copper polish
(or whatever accent color you chose)
. Wipe the brush on the sides of the nail polish bottle and then balance the brush upside down so the polish doesn't drip anywhere.
Dip a toothpick into the polish and use it like a tiny paintbrush to draw a heart.
(You will probably need to dip a few times to get the whole heart drawn.)
Then repeat on the other pinkie toe.
(Your pinkie toenail is smaller than your pinkie fingernail, so you may want to switch and put the heart on your big toe instead. Either way, it looks beautiful.)
When you're done, close the bottle up tight.
9. Fan your toes again
(one alphabet song should do the trick
â
forward or backward, it's up to you)
and then open your clear polish. Apply a top coat of clear polish on all your toenails. Close the bottle up tight.
Now your toes have to dry. You can fan them for a long time
(like, at least fifteen alphabet songs)
,
or you can sit and make a bracelet or read a book or watch TV or talk to your friend until they're all dry. Usually, it takes about twenty minutes, but it could take longer.
(After twenty minutes you should check the dryness by really carefully touching the nail of your big toe very lightly with your fingertip. If it still feels sticky, keep waiting! Patience is the most important thingâotherwise, you might smudge your pedicure and have to take it all off and do it all over again, which, let me tell you, is a very grumpy-making process. This one time that happened to me twice in a row, and I was ready to pull my braid out of my head, I was so mad about it!)
And now you should have a beautiful I Love Dancing pedicure! Even after the polish is dry, you
probably shouldn't wear socks or closed-toe shoes for a while.
(And make sure no one steps on your feetânot even your dog!)
Bare feet or sandals are best so all your hard work doesn't get smooshed.
(Besides, then you can show off your beautiful toes!)
Happy polishing!