The Pink Shop at the End of Maple Street

Maplewood was the kind of town where everybody knew everybody, and the gossip traveled faster than the mail.

Right in the middle of Maple Street sat the strangest little shop anyone had ever seen. The sign above the door read: **Mochi & Saffron — Baked Goods & Fresh Cuts.** Pink curtains hung in the windows. Pink flower pots sat on the steps. Even the doorbell chimed in a high, sweet tone that sounded almost like a dessert.

Inside, Mochi moved between her bakery counter and her salon chair like she owned both worlds — because she did. Her light pink hair was clipped up neatly with a little mochi-shaped barrette. Her giant pink scissors gleamed on the counter beside a tray of fresh cream puffs.

"Saffron," she called toward the kitchen, "the maple tarts are burning."

A tall figure appeared in the doorway, dusted in flour, looking unbothered.

"They're caramelizing," Saffron said calmly. "There's a difference."

Six Reasons to Cross the Street

Graham spotted the pink sign first.

He stopped dead on the sidewalk in front of Mochi & Saffron, and the rest of the crew walked straight into him — Chip, Rocky, Basil, Coco, Reese, and finally Sorrel, who bumped his wheelchair into Graham's heel.

"Watch it," Sorrel said, squinting with his good eye.

"Those scissors," Graham whispered, pointing at the window. "They're the size of garden shears."

Through the pink curtain, Mochi's giant scissors caught the afternoon light and flashed like a lighthouse warning.

Nobody moved.

Then the shop door swung open, and out stepped a tiny, very old woman with a parrot on her shoulder. The parrot was bright green with an orange beak, and it stared straight at Graham.

"Fresh cuts today, boys," the old woman announced cheerfully. She pointed her cane at the sign. "My granddaughter does good work."

The parrot opened its beak.

"SIT IN THE CHAIR," it squawked. "SIT IN THE CHAIR."

The boys scrambled backward. Graham tripped over Sorrel's wheel. Sorrel didn't even blink.

"That bird," Coco said breathlessly, "just threatened us."