Lake Rescue by Annie Bryant

“I thought we were meeting at the office.Remember, my grandmother was giving me some money.”
    “We said the front steps last time I heard,” Charlotte smiled.
    Mrs. Summers pulled up to the curb, waved from her minivan, and the girls piled in, tossing their gear in the back.
    “Charlotte, Charlotte, sit by me,” Kelley pleaded from the very back seat. She clutched Mr. Bear in one hand and patted the seat beside her with the other. “You are my best friend in the whole world, besides Mr. Bear. Marty is my favorite, too, but he isn’t a bear,” she stated matter-of-factly.
    “Almost,” Avery said. “Marty is cute as a little bear cub. We should have told your dad to bring him, Char.”
    “To the mall? No way.” Charlotte let pictures flash through her mind of Marty, the wonder dog, loose in the mall. They could probably catch him easily, though, since he’d stop to let everyone pet him.
    Kelley put her arm around Charlotte and hugged her tight. She loved everyone, and most of the time, everyone loved her.
    “Everyone have her seat belt fastened?” Mrs. Summers called, looking in the rear mirror. “We’re off on an adventure.”
    They were a tight fit but giggling helped, and they weren’t going far. “Good thing I didn’t eat too much for dinner last night,” Katani said.
    “You did too, Katani,” said Kelley. “You ate fish and broccoli, and rice and pumpkin pie.”
    That set them giggling again. Kelley was very literal. She said things exactly as they were.
    Maeve piped in. “My mom made the best dinner—roast chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy. It’s my favorite dinner in the world. I could eat it every night.”
    Charlotte laughed. Everything with Maeve was extreme. Things were the best, the most fabulous, or the absolute worst. It really made hanging out with her fun–it was kind of like having a character in a sitcom for a friend.
    Mr. Ramsey was waiting for them in front of the outdoor store. Charlotte waved to him. When he had heard Mrs. Summers was taking all of the girls shopping for the trip, he called to ask if he could come along. Mr. Ramsey loved to plan trips…even for other people. He rubbed his hands together and said, “Okay, girls, big-time shopping. Let’s get started. Thanks for picking them up, Mrs. Summers.”
    “Nadine, please, and I wouldn’t miss this trip for anything. I helped outfit my two oldest girls for their big Lake Rescue weekends. If we get separated, we’ll meet back at shoes. That’s easy to find.”
    The BSG hurried off together. “I have to wear all my sisters’ hand-me-downs,” Katani complained. “Is that a major drag or what?”
    “All of them?” Maeve said. “You can’t have anything new?”
    “I can, but I have to buy a lot myself. I thought maybe I could afford a new vest and some socks.” Katani flipped through a circular display of vests, most of them plain blue, plain brown, plain tan.
    “Look!” Charlotte pulled a khaki vest from the revolving rack. “This is almost as good as a photographer’s vest with all the pockets. I hate having anthing in my hands when I hike.My old shorts have good pockets and with a small backpack, I should be—”
    “Free to catch yourself if you fall.” Avery finished the sentence.
    Charlotte looked at Avery with a hurt expression. “Well, that too. You know, Avery, I’m not a klutz at everything I do. My dad and I have hiked around a lot of places.”
    “I know that, Char…you know me. Open mouth, make joke, insert foot,” apologized Avery.
    “Cool!” Katani had wandered off to a rack that held more colorful clothing. “Look! This looks just like a Juicy Couture vest.”
    “If Juicy designs vests.” Isabel smiled. “It is cute. Is it lots more expensive than the plain ones?”
    “I’m afraid to look.” Katani pulled out the price tag and her face fell at least a couple of inches. “Yeah, it is.”
    “Your mother is talking to my dad and smiling,” Charlotte pointed out. “My