The Birthday Party of No Return! by R. L. Stine

charm.”
    He turned to me with a smile on his face. “Thanks a lot, Lee,” he said. “But I already have one of these.”

“Huh?” I let out a loud gasp.
    Cory set down the vulture claw. He reached under his BIRTHDAY DUDE T-shirt. And he pulled up a vulture claw he had around his neck.
    â€œSee?” he said. “Why do you think I’ve been even luckier than usual?” He waved the claw at me. “This thing really works.”
    He tucked his claw back under his shirt. Then he picked up my claw and tossed it back to me.
    I was totally in shock. But somehow I caught it in both hands. I shoved it in my pocket.
    Cory walked over to me. “You keep it, dude,” he said. “You need good luck, too.” He gave me a playful punch in the side. “But thanks anyway for such an awesome gift. You’re a great friend.”
    Before I could say anything, he walked back to the table and started to rip open more presents.
    I’m a great friend?
    What’s up with this? This is supposed to be the Birthday Party of No Return for Cory.
    But it turns out he has his own good-luck claw. And now I have my unlucky one back.
    I had no choice. I had to take it back.
    I couldn’t concentrate on the rest of the gifts. My head was spinning. I could only think about the two claws.
    Why was Cory’s claw lucky and my claw unlucky? Was it really Arfy’s fault? How could I make the claw lucky again?
    Could I buy another one? I didn’t have a clue about where this one came from.
    I shut my eyes. I had to force myself to stop thinking about the claws. I wanted to enjoy the party.
    I walked over to the Wii game. About ten or twelve kids were gathered in front of the big TV. They were still playing the tennis game.
    I waited my turn. Then I took the controller.
    â€œI hope this is easy,” I said. “I haven’t played this before.”
    I gripped the controller tightly. Stared at the screen. Readied myself…
    The serve came at me. I swung hard.
    I gasped as the controller slid from my hand and sailed toward the TV screen.
    â€œNooo!” I moaned over the crash. “Oh, no. Oh, no.”
    I raised my hands to the sides of my face. “It was an accident!” I cried. “An accident !”

The controller shot into the center of the TV screen. A deafening crash. The glass shattered into dozens of jagged cracks. Like a spiderweb over the screen. Then shards of glass dropped to the floor.
    Kids cried out and jumped back. Everyone turned to stare at me.
    â€œAn accident!” I cried. “It … slipped!”
    I didn’t like their angry stares. They were upset they wouldn’t get to play the Wii anymore. I’d ruined their fun.
    I saw Mrs. Duckworth hurrying across the room. “What happened?” she cried. “What was that crash?”
    I just wanted to shrink into the floor. I knew my face was burning red.
    I backed away. I wanted to get as far away as I could.
    I should have watched where I was going.
    I felt a bump on my back. It startled me, and I stumbled backward.
    â€œOh, noooo,” I moaned.
    I backed into the food table. I felt it jolt. I turned in time to see the table tilt — and tumble onto its side.
    Plates and bowls and platters and glasses slid to the floor. Pizza slices made a sick plop. Glasses shattered. Chips flew everywhere. Spilled soda formed a lake under the overturned table.
    â€œNo! No way! No way!” Mrs. Duckworth shouted.
    I tried to step away from the mess. But my legs were acting crazy.
    I slipped on a pizza slice. My hands flew up as I fell back —
    â€” and landed on the birthday cake.
    â€œWhoooaaa.” A cry escaped my throat as I fell on top of the cake. Crashed to the floor. Sprawled on my back. Helpless with the gooey cake beneath me.
    I rolled off the cake with a groan. Blue and white icing stuck to my shirt and the back of my pants.
    I tried to wipe it off, but clumps of