Drake, Minnie, and Maribel have been best friends since they were four years old. They were inseparable. They had a lot of inside jokes, a secret meeting place, and friendship bracelets. They were very exclusive, too. They didn't want to include other people in their group. It would be too hard. Maribel went to a Thai restaurant with her family. She saw Drake and Minnie having dinner together! Why would they have dinner without her? It looked like they liked each other more than friends. Minnie was laughing and flipping her hair. Drake touched Minnie's hand. Maribel was upset. If they started dating, she would be out of the group. At school, Maribel confronted Drake and Minnie about it. "So, when were you going to tell me you two are dating?" Maribel said. Drake and Minnie nervously looked at each other. "We're not dating! We never would," Drake said. "I saw you two at the restaurant last night," Maribel said. "Well, we didn't want to tell you, but we were planning a surprise party for you. That's why we didn't invite you to eat with us," Minnie said. Maribel felt bad that she ruined the surprise.
