The show started at sunset, and the park was full. It seemed to Penny that every kid in town was there, along with a number of adults.
Penny and Zoe, neither eager to endure more unpleasantness from the local kids, stayed back from the crowd surrounding the gazebo, almost hiding behind Zoe’s tree. A girl neither knew, but whom Penny recognized by face as one of the few girls who had been friendly, sat a little ways off from them, alone. She glanced in their direction a few times, as if hoping to be invited over.
Penny returned her wave at one point, forcing a smile, but when they didn’t ask her to sit with them, she returned her attention to the empty gazebo, looking disappointed.
Zoe nudged Penny in the side and nodded toward the girl. “We’re supposed to try and make new friends,” Zoe
