The Mystery of the Birthday Basher

already on it,” Amirah assured Mama. She may not have known exactly what to say to Paulina on the phone, but Amirah had plenty of ideas for how to make it up to her.
“Why am I not surprised?” Mama asked with that special smile she saved just for Amirah. She kissed Amirah on the forehead and added, “Just let me know how I can help.”
“I will,” Amirah replied. “Thanks, Mama.”
Amirah practically skipped over to her desk in the corner, where she kept all her favorite art supplies: a thick sketchbook, colored pencils in every color, and—of course—a rainbow-hued assortment of sparkly glitter. Before she got started, Amirah reached into her pocket for the vial of sprinkles she carried everywhere. Amirah was a firm believer in the power of sprinkles to make everything better, from a cupcake to a disappointing day. And she knew better than anyone exactly how powerful sprinkles could be.
Just six months ago, Amirah had embarked on the adventure of a lifetime when she found herself transported to a wondrous world called the Magical Land of Birthdays. There, she had explored enchanted places, solved mysterious puzzles, and even befriended a unicorn! Best of all, Amirah had met her very own B-Buds—birthday buddies who all shared the same birthday. Ever since that magical adventure, Amirah knew deep in her heart that birthdays were more special—and more important—than ever. Just as surely as she knew that someday, somehow, she’d see her B-Buds again. It was hard to imagine waiting until their next shared birthday on January 8, but at least the wait was almost half over.
That’s why Amirah would’ve never skipped Paulina’s party—never. And that’s also why she was so determined to make things right.
Deep in thought, Amirah picked up a pink pencil and started to sketch. Paulina’s favorite color was pink, just like Amirah’s, and her doll collection was practically a legend in their town. If only I could bake a cake that looked like a doll, Amirah thought to herself. But not just any doll. A sophisticated, elegant doll. A doll wearing a gorgeous ball gown—in sparkly pink, of course.
And that’s what inspired Amirah to try baking a doll cake for Paulina! She sketched quickly, even though it was hard for her hand to keep up with all the new thoughts popping into her mind.
When she finished sketching, Amirah sat back, studied her cake drawing, and smiled to herself. Yes. It was perfect—perfect for Paulina! Now all Amirah needed to do was get some special ingredients at the store. Mama and Amirah loved to bake more than just about anything else, so they kept their kitchen stocked with all the staples—butter, sugar, flour, eggs. But Paulina’s cake would need a little something extra.
Amirah bounded out of the room and found her mother in the kitchen, putting away the clean dishes. “Mama! Can you take me to the store?” she asked breathlessly.
“What do you need?” Mama asked, raising an eyebrow. “We just refilled the sprinkles last week . . .”
“I know,” Amirah said with a grin. She showed Mama her sketch. “What do you think? I want to make this cake for Paulina.”
“It’s beautiful, princess,” Mama replied. “She’s going to love it.”
“I want to get some pink glitter candles . . . and some sugar pearls for the dress. Oh! Maybe I can even get some candy flowers too!” Amirah exclaimed, adding a few more notes to her sketch.
Mama reached for her keys. “I’ll get Amir and meet you at the car.”
“Thanks, Mama!” Amirah said. She impulsively stood on her tiptoes to give Mama a kiss on the cheek, then bounded out the front door so joyfully that her curls bounced. Despite the heat of the summer day, there was plenty of activity in Amirah’s neighborhood. The postal carrier was humming as he traveled from door to door, placing mail in the mailboxes. Amirah’s special friend in the neighborhood, Mrs. Maria, was enjoying a cold, refreshing drink called horchata on her front porch. And on the sidewalk in front of her home, Amirah spotted a boy from school, Billy, who was walking four dogs at the same time!
“Billy!” she exclaimed, jogging over to him. “I didn’t know you had four dogs! They’re beautiful!”
“They’re not all mine,” Billy replied as he pointed to a little brown dog. “Just this one. This is Fiesta.” Fiesta wagged his tail at the mention of his name. “I started a dog-walking business this summer. These other three dogs belong to some of my clients.”
Amirah’s eyes widened. “You started your own business?” she said. “Wow. That’s amazing.”
“It’s okay, I guess,” Billy said.
“Fiesta is such a great name for a dog,” Amirah continued, bending over to let Fiesta sniff her hand. “Did you name him that because you love birthday parties?”
“Well . . .” Billy shifted uncomfortably. Amirah wasn’t sure if maybe he was shy, or just in a rush to get back to work.
Before Billy could finish his sentence, a fluffy black shepherd started to pull at the leash. A roly-poly dachshund yipped and ran in a circle around Billy’s legs, while the chihuahua pulled the leash in another direction. Soon they were all tangled up—including Billy!
Amirah would’ve giggled, but Billy’s face had fallen into a frustrated frown. “Here—let me help—” she said, not wanting him to feel even more embarrassed.
“It’s fine,” Billy said shortly. “It happens more than you think.”
Then, with a heavy sigh, he began to patiently untangle the dogs’ leashes.
“Amirah!” Mama called from the driveway, jingling her keys. “Let’s go!”
“See you later,” Amirah told Billy. Then, with a quick wave, she hurried over to her mom’s car.
Amirah was quiet while they drove to the market. Billy didn’t seem to think his dog-walking business was a big deal, but Amirah thought it was incredible. Maybe I’ll start a business of my own someday, she thought dreamily. A cake-baking business. Or a—a birthday business!
Amirah wasn’t entirely sure what a birthday business would be like, but she knew she had plenty of time to figure it out.
“Amir and I are going