Her BFF's Big Secret #2

Annie's Secret [Her BFF's Big Secret, #2]

Annie—if it really was Annie—opened the stall door again slowly. Her face was still missing, replaced by what looked like a large deflated ball. Then she put her hands to the sides of the ball (her head? ), squeezed, took a deep breath, and blew out her cheeks.

In an instant, Annie was back.

Becca stepped into the stall and kept staring. “What…just…happened?” she asked.

“I have a confession to make,” Annie said, “and you can’t tell anybody—not ever.” She looked Becca in the eyes, and said, “I am not exactly human.”
At just that moment, the girls’ bathroom door opened, and Ms. Jones came inside.

“Where are you girls?” Ms. Jones asked.

“We’re in here,” Becca replied, popping out of the stall, followed by Annie, her face now normal.

Ms. Jones walked over to them, concern showing on her face.

“Are you hurt?” she asked.
“I’m fine,” Annie replied, “I was a little scared and a little sore, but I’m okay now.”

“Are you sure?” Ms. Jones asked while inspecting Annie’s head. “Do you need to go to the nurse?”

“No, no, I’m okay. I just need to splash water on my face, then I can come back to class.”
“Well, you seem to be alright,” said Ms. Jones, who appeared surprised by Annie’s reaction. “But if you have a headache or if you feel dizzy, tell me immediately.”
“Okay.”

“Come on, Becca,” Ms. Jones said, “let’s give Annie some time to herself.”

Before Becca could say anything, Ms. Jones motioned to get her moving.

When they arrived at the gym, Ms. Jones announced, “All right folks, everything is okay. Annie is fine and will be back soon. Let’s return to our game.”

Kids began throwing balls at each other again. Becca let herself get hit so she could sit by the wall and wait for Annie to return. A few minutes later, Annie entered the gym and sat next to Becca.

“Don’t ask anything now,” Annie whispered. “Just wait till lunch.”

Becca nodded, but wished she could speed up time and make it lunch this minute. Something really weird was going on, and she didn’t know how to feel.

Finally, gym class ended. Becca let Annie speed ahead of her, and took her time changing into her regular clothes. She washed her hands, returned to her classroom, and got her lunch, all the while deep in thought. Then she headed to the lunchroom.

Seated at an empty table in a far corner of the cafeteria, Annie waved.

Becca walked across the crowded lunchroom and sat down next to what she hoped was still her friend Annie. Becca pointed to her lunch bag and said, “My mom gave me empanadas. You can have some.”

“Yum,” Annie said. “I love empanadas.”

They began eating in silence, but after a few mouthfuls, Becca could no longer contain herself.

“So, you’re not human?”

“Nope,” Annie replied, her mouth full of empanada.

“Then… what are you? An alien?”

Becca nodded silently, still munching.

“Not from another country, right?”

“Nope.”

“From outer space?”

“Yep.”

“Like E.T. ?”

“Well, not exactly like E.T.”

“Like Superman?”

“I wish. It would be cool to fly around.”

“Yeah, it would,” Becca agreed, suddenly feeling less tense. “So, what kind of alien are you?”

Annie took a deep breath and leaned in so she could speak even more quietly.

“My species is from a planet millions of light years away. My family and a couple of others came over as part of an expedition to see if people on Earth would be friendly to outside contact. This was a while ago, before I was born. All of the creatures from my planet can change shape, and I can, too—like you saw,” Annie explained. “It’s hard to do, though, and I can’t really change into anything complicated. When the dodgeball hit me, it caught me by surprise and I lost control. I think my face just took on the form of the ball or something. When we were in the bathroom, I was able to change my face back.”

“What do you normally look like?” Becca asked. “Do you have fangs? Antenna? Three eyes?”

Annie smiled and said, “No, nothing like that. My face isn’t too different… this is pretty much how I look normally, plus or minus an arm or two.”

The bell rang, and kids began cleaning up and leaving the cafeteria.

“Becca, I know this is crazy to hear, but…”

“Don’t worry,” Becca interrupted. “We’re still best friends. I am freaked out, not gonna lie. But I will not say anything… to anyone.”

Annie smiled and hugged her. They threw away their trash and returned to class.

The rest of the school day, Becca could not pay attention to anything the teachers said. When she got home, she kissed her mother, went to her room, and tried to do her homework. Then the house phone rang and Becca’s mom called her.

“Becca, it’s for you,” her mom said. “It’s Annie.” Becca picked up the phone.

“Hi Becca,” Annie said. “I told my parents about today. They want to have you over for dinner. Can you come?”

“Let me ask,” Becca replied and covered the phone with one hand. “Mami, Annie’s parents want me to come over for dinner. Is that okay?”

“Of course, and you can bring over this tres leches cake we have in the fridge.”

“Mami said it’s okay,” Becca said into the phone.

“Good! See you around seven then. Bye.”

Becca put the phone down and returned to her room. She was excited… but then she started thinking. Annie had said, “My parents want to have you over for dinner.” Not “my parents want you to eat dinner with us.”

Becca had a sudden, horrible thought. Do they want to feed me… or eat me?

Multiple Choice

What did Annie’s face look like before she blew out her cheeks?

• an empanada

• a phone

• Superman

• a large deflated ball

Multiple Choice

After Annie told Becca she wasn’t human, Becca had to wait until lunch to find out more. How did that make Becca feel?

• bored and tired

• silly and energized

• confused and nervous

• sad and lonely

Multiple Choice

Read the following sentences from the text.

“’So, what kind of alien are you?’

Annie took a deep breath and leaned in so she could speak even more quietly.

‘My species is from a planet millions of light years away. My family and a couple of others came over as part of an expedition to see if people on Earth would be friendly to outside contact. This was a while ago, before I was born. All of the creatures from my planet can change shape, and I can, too—like you saw,’ Annie explained. ‘It’s hard to do, though, and I can’t really change into anything complicated. When the dodgeball hit me, it caught me by surprise and I lost control. I think my face just took on the form of the ball or something. When we were in the bathroom, I was able to change my face back….’

The bell rang, and kids began cleaning up and leaving the cafeteria.

‘Becca, I know this is crazy to hear, but…’

‘Don’t worry,” Becca interrupted. “We’re still best friends. I am freaked out, not gonna lie. But I will not say anything… to anyone.’

Annie smiled and hugged her. They threw away their trash and returned to class.”

What conclusion can you draw from this evidence?

• Becca is going to tell Ms. Jones everything Annie says.

• Becca is excited to tell Annie that she is an alien too.

• Becca thinks Annie is just making everything up.

• Becca and Annie feel like they can trust each other.

Multiple Choice

Even though she has promised to keep Annie’s secret, how can you tell that Becca is a little scared and confused at the end of the story?

• She is worried that Annie's family wants to eat her.

• She is searching for information about aliens online.

• She asks her parents what they think about her going.

• She called Annie back and changed her mind about going.

Multiple Choice

What is the main idea of this text?

• Annie’s face turned into a large deflated ball and she used her hands and a deep breath to fix it back.

• Becca promises to keep a secret for her best friend, Annie, after she finds out that she’s an alien.

• During lunchtime, Becca shared empanadas that her mom had made with Annie because Annie really likes them.

• Ms. Jones went into the locker room to check on Annie and then left with Becca so Annie could have time to herself.

Multiple Choice

Read the following sentences from the text.

“’My species is from a planet millions of light years away. My family and a couple of others came over as part of an expedition to see if people on Earth would be friendly to outside contact. This was a while ago, before I was born. All of the creatures from my planet can change shape, and I can, too—like you saw,’ Annie explained. ‘It’s hard to do, though, and I can’t really change into anything complicated. When the dodgeball hit me, it caught me by surprise and I lost control. I think my face just took on the form of the ball or something. When we were in the bathroom, I was able to change my face back.’”

As used in this excerpt, what does the phrase “expedition” most closely mean?

• trip for a specific reason

• school field trip for science

• sports’ team from a country

• family vacation for fun

Multiple Choice

Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below.

Becca promised Annie that she wouldn’t tell anyone that she is an alien ________ she didn’t mention anything to her parents when she went home from school.

• instead

• so

• third

• soon

Open Ended

Where are Annie and her parents from?

Open Ended

Why is Becca worried about the way Annie asked her over for dinner?

Open Ended

Do you think Becca should go to dinner at Annie’s house? Why or why not? Use evidence from the text to support your answer.