Boy Trouble Read online

  This is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  251 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10010

  Copyright © 2019 by Sheryl Berk & Carrie Berk

  All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

  Yellow Jacket and associated colophon are trademarks of Little Bee Books.

  Manufactured in the United States of America MAP 1019

  First Edition

  1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.

  ISBN 978-1-4998-0649-6

  yellowjacketreads.com

  To Jordana, Kelly, Sierra, and the entire gang at Brandsway Creative. Love you all! Thank you for always believing in me–Carrie

  CONTENTS

  1 THE COLD SHOULDER

  2 INSTANT REPLAY

  3 LADIES FIRST

  4 UP, UP, AND AWAY

  5 IT’S A BIRD, IT’S A PLANE . . . IT’S HARRIET!

  6 DANCE DILEMMAS

  7 DONUT GIVE UP

  8 TIME TO (WO)MAN UP

  9 ON YOUR MARK . . . GET SET . . . PROPOSAL!

  10 PRINCE CHARMING

  11 STAGING THE PERFECT PROPOSAL

  12 THE PERFECT STORM

  13 A MAGICAL NIGHT

  CARRIE’S GUIDE TO THE ULTIMATE SLUMBER PARTY!

  INVITE YOUR GUESTS

  DECK THE HALLS

  ARRANGE YOUR EATS

  KEEP ’EM BUSY!

  JAX AND EMMA’S “KITCHEN SINK SPLIT”

  MAKE YOUR OWN FACE MASKS

  BREAK OUT THE TUNES!

  SNUGGLE UP FOR A SCREAM-FEST

  PLAY A GAME

  AND THE PARTY GOES ON . . .

  “Guys, you have to see this text!”

  Emma Woods sprinted up the steps of Austen Middle School, where her two best friends, Isabelle Park and Harriet Horowitz, were seated at the top waiting for her. Emma noted that even from several feet away, Izzy always looked so put together—her lime-green headband perfectly matched her velour tracksuit. As for Harriet, her mousy-brown hair could be a bit unruly at times, but today she’d put it in braids. They looked cute against a sweater embroidered with cheerful cherries. Emma hadn’t given much thought to her own school outfit today—she had more important things on her mind. The air had a chill in it, so an orange sweatshirt, jeans, and a messy bun seemed a fine choice. In the sunlight on the school steps, her hair glowed auburn, strawberry blonde her mom liked to call it. When she reached her BFFs, she breathed a sigh of relief. They had been inseparable since kindergarten, even though they were all so different. It’s what kept them excited to be friends. They never got bored together.

  When Emma reached the top of the stairs, she waved her phone in the air. Izzy and Harriet instantly flew into protective mode. “It’s not someone writing mean comments on your blog again, is it?” Izzy asked, delicately. When Emma had started her Ask Emma advice blog at Austen, some of her classmates had resented her butting into their lives. But fixing problems and giving advice was Emma’s specialty—it made her feel happy and whole and she was good at it. After a few months, she had not only won her peers over but she also developed quite a following. Her inbox was constantly flooded with kids asking her to help sort out their issues—everything from school problems and relationships to parents and poor self-esteem. Although this morning, she was the one who needed advice. It was always easy for her to see the perfect solution for someone else, but when it came to her own life, her vision could get fuzzy.

  “If you’re being bullied, you have to tell Principal Bates,” Harriet told her. “Is someone picking on you again?”

  “No, no, no,” Emma assured them and took a seat. “I’m not being bullied. This text is supergood . . . I think. I don’t know. Just read it!”

  Emma held out her phone and the two of them huddled around her. Harriet read out loud:

  “Meet for math homework tomorrow at Freddy’s? I owe you money for lunch on the train home from DC, so I’ll pay. See you soon.”

  The text was from Jackson Knight, a fellow seventh grader she had a major crush on. Emma couldn’t believe he invited her to Freddy’s Deep Freeze Ice Cream Shoppe, which indisputably made the best sundaes in all of New Hope, Pennsylvania. But she wasn’t quite sure if this counted as their “first date.” After all, they’d only admitted to liking each other a week ago after teaming up at the National Student Congress in Washington, DC. They’d spent so much time preparing their arguments and working together, dating just seemed like the logical next step. And this would be her very first boyfriend! But Jax definitely had a knack for keeping her guessing. Maybe it was what drew her to him in the first place—he was the new boy at Austen Middle and his air of mystery was exciting. That and his wavy black hair and sparkling blue eyes . . .

  “So is he asking me out?” Emma looked at her friends. “Like, is it official?”

  “Hmm,” Harriet replied, trying not to burst Emma’s bubble. “Well, it’s polite of him to pay you back.”

  “It sounds like he needs help with pre-algebra,” Izzy said. She always called it like she saw it. “I wouldn’t read too much into it, Em.”

  But that was the point! Emma wanted to read more into it! She wanted to believe that the moment Jax asked her to dance at the Congress after-party and professed that he liked her wasn’t all a fleeting dream.

  “So it’s not a date,” Emma said, disappointed. “Why do you think he changed his mind so quickly? Is he having second thoughts? Cold feet?”

  Harriet spied Jax climbing off the school bus dressed in a puffer jacket, ski hat, and scarf. “He looks pretty warm to me,” she said.

  Before Emma could think of a good comeback, Jax was climbing the stairs toward them.

  “Hey,” he said simply, stopping at the step beneath Emma.

  She looked down and their eyes met. “Hey,” she replied. Ugh! Why did her cheeks flush whenever she spoke to him?

  “Freddy’s after school, right?” he asked.

  Emma stared at him, dreamily. Izzy had to elbow her in the ribs to answer. “Um, yeah. Sounds good.”

  “Great. See ya later!”

  He raced past them into school just in time for the first bell to sound.

  “He seemed enthusiastic,” Harriet assured Emma as they scrambled to their feet. “Like he’s really looking forward to it.”

  “Who wouldn’t be looking forward to a Freddy’s hot fudge sundae?” Izzy commented. Harriet shot her a look, and she added, “I mean, who wouldn’t be looking forward to a sundae with his girlfriend?”

  Girlfriend? Two seconds ago she was convinced he just needed help with a worksheet, but one smile and all of a sudden she was thinking about what their names would be if they got married. Would they hyphenate? Would she be Mrs. Emma Knight? What if he wanted her last name? Mr. Jax Woods. Dad would like that! She was laughing to herself, thinking about how confused her grandma would be, when she practically collided with Principal Bates in the school atrium.

  “Oops! Sorry!” she said, stepping on Ms. Bates’s toes.

  “It’s okay,” the principal replied. “I have five more toes on the other foot. I hope you were distracted thinking about your next blog. I do look forward to Ask Emma’s posts.”

  “Um, yeah.” Emma was relieved Ms. Bates had given her a good excuse for acting so spacey. “I got a really tricky question. I was just thinking of how I should respond.”

  “What’s the question?” Ms. Bates asked her.
/>   “Question?”

  “The one that has you stumped?”

  “Oh, that question!” Emma panicked. She didn’t have a student question to answer, but she didn’t want to talk to Ms. Bates about Jax. How embarrassing! She had to improvise.

  “It’s about a boy. And a girl. A girl who likes a boy.”

  “Uh-huh,” Ms. Bates replied. “And does the boy like her back?”

  “I think so. That’s the question. It’s not one hundred percent crystal clear.”

  “So what advice are you giving this girl?” Ms. Bates continued.

  “I guess I’m telling her to give it time, wait and see how things go, take it slow. Just be yourself and be patient because relationships are complicated and they take time to grow. And don’t act all weird and pushy—otherwise, I’ll scare him off.”

  Ms. Bates raised an eyebrow. “You’ll scare him off?”

  “I mean she’ll scare him off. That’s what I mean.”

  Ms. Bates nodded. “Sounds like very good advice to me.”

  Now all Emma had to do was follow it!

  “Well, I hope she gets what she wants. She sounds like a smart girl.”

  Ms. Bates winked and walked off leaving Emma standing in the atrium, stunned. Did she know about her and Jax? Did everyone at Austen Middle assume they were going to be a couple? And if they did, could someone please fill Jax in?

  The day seemed to drag on forever—especially last period. Emma watched the clock on the classroom wall slowly tick until it reached 3 p.m.

  “Gotta run!” she called to Harriet, who was still packing up her English notebook.

  “Good luck!” Harriet shouted after her. “Text me later with all the details!”

  When Emma arrived at her locker, Jax was leaning on it, waiting for her.

  She smiled. “I’m all ready to walk to Freddy’s!”

  “Freddy’s? I love Freddy’s!” a voice suddenly interrupted. Elton appeared out of nowhere and elbowed right in between them. Emma was positive he didn’t do it to be mean—they’d been friends since kindergarten. He was just kind of clueless when it came to couples. Actually, when it came to most things, besides sports and science and video games.

  “The Super Quadruple Scooper Sundae is the best,” Elton continued, ignoring her pleading look.

  Jax nodded. “I know, right? With hot fudge?” They high-fived each other as Emma stood there impatiently tapping her foot. Then the conversation turned to the soccer match next Friday . . . and last night’s episode of American Ninja Warrior . . . and some new video game Elton got. Emma was being completely left out.

  “Ready?” she asked Jax again. How long could the two of them stand there talking about nothing?

  “Huh? Oh, yeah,” Jax replied. She took him by the elbow and steered him away from his track and soccer teammate before Elton could invite himself along.

  “So,” she said as they began strolling the six blocks to the center of town. Emma tried to walk close to Jax, hoping they might brush shoulders or accidentally touch hands, anything to make their walk feel special.

  “So,” Jax replied. “I’m kind of lost on the properties of operations problems.”

  Really? Was he seriously going to make small talk about math? Maybe he didn’t want to date her after all. She needed to know for sure.

  “I had so much fun in DC, didn’t you?” She tried to remind him of how he had said he liked her—without actually having to remind him. She replayed his words in her head: I’ve been wanting to ask you forever: Would you maybe like to go out with me sometime? That’s what he had said, so why was he talking about math when they finally had the chance to be together?

  “The Washington Monument was awesome,” Jax recalled. “I never realized how tall it was till I saw it in person.”

  Emma tried again: “And the party after the championship. I don’t think I’ll ever forget it.”

  “Yeah, I mean, who gets to see a private concert by Maroon 5?” Jax added. “That was sick.”

  Actually, Emma was starting to feel a little sick. This conversation was not going in the right direction. Under the bright lights of the competition, they were on the same page, but now . . . were they even in the same book?

  They arrived at Freddy’s, and Jax made his way past the counter and several tables covered in red gingham tablecloths to finally select a booth in the back that was private and quiet. Maybe that was a good sign?

  Freddy, a plump, older gentleman with a white beard and glasses, greeted them. When she was little, Emma remembered how much he reminded her of Santa Claus. Freddy had been in the ice cream busi-ness for more than fifty years, and behind the counter, he kept a display of old ice cream scoops, fluted glass bowls, and the original sign that hung in the window when they first opened their doors. It read, freddy’s deep freeze is ready to please!

  “Well, Emma, nice to see you,” Freddy said, wiping his hands on his apron.

  “You know the famous Freddy?” Jax whispered.

  Emma nodded. “My dad’s been coming here since he was three.”

  “That’s right,” Freddy said, grinning. “I remember your grandpa used to sit him up right on the counter and order him a root beer fizz. Your dad could polish off two or three of them in one sitting.”

  “Still can,” Emma giggled.

  “Well,” Freddy continued, “what can I get for the two of you today?”

  He handed them each a menu. There were so many interesting treats to choose from—and the most tempting, out-of-the-ordinary flavors.

  “What is Chip-Chip Hooray?” Emma asked.

  “That’s my brand-new flavor creation,” Freddy replied proudly. “Coffee ice cream with white and dark chocolate chips mixed in. But, if you ask me, the best flavor is Nuttin’ Honey—it’s honey vanilla with a swirl of chunky peanut butter.”

  Emma wrinkled her nose. “I don’t love peanut butter. But the Earthquake Milkshake sounds inter-esting.”

  Freddy nodded. “It’s got six different ingredients all swirled into a towering shake: chocolate fudge, caramel, mini marshmallows, toffee chips, fudge ripple ice cream, and chocolate milk.”

  Emma vetoed yet again. “Sounds too sweet.”

  “Maybe you need some more time?” Freddy suggested.

  “We’ll have the Kitchen Sink Split,” Jax hurried to order for them. “One scoop of cookies and cream, one scoop of rocky road, one scoop of pistachio—”

  Emma held up her hand. “Um, no pistachio. I hate it.”

  “You hate it? How could you hate it? It’s my favorite flavor!” Jax exclaimed.

  “It’s green. Alien green.”

  “So? It tastes amazing.”

  “It tastes nutty,” Emma said, wrinkling her nose. “Let’s get a scoop of strawberry-banana instead.”

  “Strawberry-banana?” Jax dropped his menu on the table. “Seriously? Gross! It can’t even make up its mind what fruit it is! I’m guessing you don’t like hot fudge, either?”

  Emma shook her head. “Not really. I mean, ice cream is supposed to be cold. Why would you ruin it by pouring something hot on it?”

  “Chocolate sprinkles?” Jax asked.

  “Actually, I like rainbow ones.”

  Freddy chuckled. “I think I’ll just come back and take your order when you two work out your differences.”

  “Differences?” Emma protested. “We don’t have differences.”

  “Really? Coulda fooled me. But nothing one of Freddy’s famous sundaes can’t solve!” The old man went to pour them two glasses of water.

  “Do we?” Emma asked Jax quietly.

  “Do we what?”

  “Have differences. Stuff that we can’t agree on?”

  Jax shrugged. “Well, yeah. I mean, I’m me and you’re you, Emma. We’re two different people.”

  “But, if we can’t agree on ice cream flavors, how are we supposed to, you know—”

  Jax interrupted her: “I guess we could just order our own sundaes.”

/>   “I wasn’t talking about sundaes. I was talking about us.”

  Jax’s cheeks flushed. “Oh, us.”

  She waited for him to say something else. Anything else. Finally, he broke the silence.

  “Do you think Ms. Bennet is going to give us a surprise quiz in math tomorrow? She seemed like she was hinting at it.”

  Emma was about to explode. She didn’t want to talk about math! She wanted to discuss their relationship and the fun moments they’d shared in DC. Why was he changing the subject? If he liked her, why was he talking about homework? If he didn’t like her, why had he just tried to split a sundae together? What was going on?!

  “I have no idea if we’re going to have a surprise quiz, Jax,” she said with a huff. “That’s the point. It’s a surprise.”

  “Oh. Um. Well, let’s just get our ice cream and then we can go over the chapter. I’m really lost.”

  When Freddy returned with their water, Jax blurted out his order: “So I’ll have two scoops of pistachio ice cream with hot fudge and chocolate sprinkles.”

  “Sounds good!” Freddy said, cheerfully. Then he turned to Emma. “And what do you want, Emma?”

  Emma rolled her eyes at Jackson. What she really wanted to say was “I want a boyfriend who doesn’t flip-flop on how he feels about me!” Instead, she simply replied, “One scoop of strawberry-banana with rainbow sprinkles, please,” and opened her math book.

  As promised, Emma texted Harriet and Izzy as soon as she got home with all the details of her “date” with Jax.

  He only wanted to talk about math! she typed and added a screaming face emoji for punctuation.

  Boys! Izzy typed back with a frowning emoji.

  Ugh! Harriet added with a poop emoji.

  While she appreciated her friends’ sympathy (and Harriet’s sense of humor), it didn’t solve anything. She was still left with the same perplexing problem: Why was Jax acting as if nothing had happened between them? Why was he treating her like a friend instead of a girlfriend? To distract herself, she decided to sign on to her advice blog and see if someone had a problem she could fix.

  Dear Emma,