Through her daughter's headphones, Samantha Mayes's mom could hear the music blasting raucously.

"Turn that down, please, Sam. It makes it hard for me to concentrate on the road," Mrs. Mayes said calmly.

"Yea, sure mom, sorry," Sam replied as she fiddled with the volume buttons, "I just really love that song."

The music-loving, tall brunette stared out the window as her mom pulled the car into their neighborhood. She looked in the direction of her friend's house and squinted to see if she could tell if Alexandra was home or not. Maybe we can get together this afternoon if she's home, she thought.

When they had gotten home and eaten a snack, Samantha asked her mother if she could go over to Alex's house.

"Just call and make sure it's okay with Alexandra and her mom, sweetie," she reminded her daughter.

Samantha dialed the familiar number and waited for someone to pick up the phone. Mrs. Albright, Alexandra's mom, answered the telephone and after conversing with Samantha for a few minutes, agreed it was okay for her to come over for the afternoon. Sam hurried to get her tennis shoes on and fled to Alex's on her scooter.

"Hey Alex, whatcha doin?" she greeted as she came into her friend's room. Spread across the floor was a few pairs of shorts, tee shirts, and swimsuits.

"Oh, hi Samantha. I'm just packing because I'm going to our friend's beach house this weekend. Their letting us borrow it for a few days. And guess what?"

"Umm, "Samantha pondered, "Are you going to get that new swim suit for the trip?"

"Well yea, I think, but that's not what I'm thinking of," Alex said.

"Well then I don't know." Sam had no idea what Alex's secret was, but she was really anxious to find out.

"Charlotte and Amy are coming. And you can, too!" Alexandra shouted. They both started jumping, laughing, and screaming with excitement as they celebrated about the next weekend to come: four whole days with their best friends! Eagerly, Samantha phoned her mom to make sure she could go, and luckily her mom had decided immediately the Sam could go, as she trusted Alexandra's family fully. They then phoned Charlotte and Amy, their other best friends, to make sure they could go. In a few minutes, it was settled: the four friends would be traveling to the beach to stay at a beach house that belonged to friends of the Albrights, and Mrs. Albright had agreed to stay with them. It was the perfect summer trip. After the two girls had settled down to watch their favorite movie for about the thirtieth time, Sam took off on her scooter back to her own house to pack.

In a few hours, Samantha had laid out shirts, swimsuits, shorts, flip-flops, pajamas, a disposable camera, and her favorite items: her C.D. player and dozens of C.D.s. Although the trip wasn't for two more days, Sam was ready to leave that very day. As the next day assed, she had to contain her excitement by listening to music and searching for any items she hadn't stuffed into her old, baby blue colored suitcase the day before. At dinner though, Samantha began to feel less excited.

"Mom, I have a stomachache and my head hurts. I don't feel like eating," she mumbled. Her head felt as if bricks were weighing it down, and her queasy stomach was making her nauseous.

"Honey, why don't you lie down on the couch, and I'll be there in a minute to take your temperature. I hope you're not too sick to go to the beach tomorrow," her mom replied.

This is not good at all, Samantha thought. When her mom checked the thermometer, it read 102.5o. Feeling she had to do anything she possibly could to make herself feel better before the next day, Sam went straight to her bedroom to try to go to sleep. She strongly wished that she would feel great for the imminent trip before her.

Unfortunately, the next morning, Samantha's fever was worse. Her headache and stomachache did not seem to want to disappear, either. As her mom made telephone calls first to the doctor's office and then to Mrs. Albright, she started bawling. Samantha lay on the couch, her face buried in a squishy pillow as she failed to restrain her disappointment. This is the worst summer ever! I can't believe I won't be able to go on that trip, she mumbled to herself angrily. She knew that it would be ridiculous to cancel the trip just because she couldn't go, especially because this was the only weekend of the summer the Albrights could use the beach house. Samantha was devastated.

"Sweetie, Alex, Charlotte and Amy want to talk to you. They're all on the phone," Mrs. Mayes said as she handed the receiver to her daughter.

"Hey Sam. We just wanted to say that we are really going to miss you on the trip," Samantha heard Alex say. Her other best friend Charlotte sighed and said sadly,

"Yea. It's not going to be as much fun without you. I'm really sorry that you can't come."

"Well, we'll sure miss you. And next year, we'll all try to go again; so don't be too disappointed. Get better soon, Sam!" Amy reassured.

Sam smiled and was thankful for the act of kindness her friends had shown her. She didn't want them to feel guilty for going without her, but at least they had let her know that they would not have as much fun and would miss her.

It had been three days since Samantha's friends had traveled to the beach house. Today, they would be expected home. Sam felt unusually better and had been helping her mom put together a scrapbook of her piano recitals. Patterned paper lay strewn around the floor along with pictures of Sam with her violin and pictures with her next to a stunning, shiny grand piano. As they were gluing down a snapshot of Samantha and her music teacher, the phone rang.

"Sam, one of my co-workers just told me about a summer office party. It's this evening &endash; do you want to go? I think you would have a lot of fun, and maybe meet some of my co-workers' kids," her mom told her as she hung up the telephone. Samantha agreed, and started gathering up the scrapbook supplies so the she could begin to get ready.

"I just have to make one quick stop at the Albrights house to pick up this thing for the party," Sam's mom told her as they pulled out of the driveway. Sam was hardly paying attention, as she was focused on the music exploding from her headphones. In a matter of minutes, her mom stopped the car in front of Alexandra's house. Samantha reluctantly turned of her portable CD player and walked next to her mom up the porch steps. Mrs. Albright opened the door before they had a chance to knock, and then stood back, glancing backward anxiously. Why is she looking over there? Samantha wondered.

Abruptly, Amy, Alex, and Charlotte popped out of nowhere.

"SURPRISE!" they shouted as kazoos sounded and confetti was thrown.

"We did everything in blue because we were so blue without you!" her friends explained while they hugged Sam one-by-one.

Sam was in shock. She hadn't even noticed that all of the party decorations and her friends' outfits were in different shades of blue. After a few seconds, though, she started laughing hysterically.

"You guys are great!" she said. Sam glanced over to her mom, who had started to chat with Mrs. Albright in the kitchen. Apparently, the "office party" was a trick. Sam smiled, and then joined the other girls, who had started walking to the back porch, where several cartons of ice cream and toppings were set on a table.

"Come on, Sam, we made an ice cram sundae assembly line," Amy laughed. They all fled outside and created their sundaes; each girl's different than the rest. Sam went all out for her favorite flavor: she chose triple chocolate ice cream, chocolate syrup, and chocolate candies. She giggled as she dug into her sundae, wiping her chocolate mustache off her beaming face.