

Lily was very happy. She got an invitation to Ben's birthday party. She liked Ben. He was her friend. He liked to play with cars and blocks. She wanted to give him a nice present.
She asked her mom to help her wrap the present. Her mom gave her some paper and tape. Lily tried to fold the paper around the present. But the paper was too big. She tried to cut it with scissors. But the scissors were too sharp. She cut her finger. She cried.
Her mom hugged her and put a band-aid on her finger. She said, "Don't worry, Lily. I'll help you wrap the present. You can make a card for Ben. That will make him happy."
Lily nodded. She took a piece of paper and some crayons. She drew a picture of Ben and her. She wrote, "Happy birthday, Ben. I like you. From Lily." She smiled. She liked her card.
She put the card in an envelope. She wrote Ben's name on it. She was ready to go to the party. She grabbed her present and her card. She ran to the door. She was very excited.
But she did not see the cat. The cat was sleeping on the rug. Lily tripped over the cat. She fell down. She dropped her present and her card. The present broke. The card tore. The cat hissed. Lily cried.
Her mom heard the noise. She came to the door. She saw Lily and the cat and the mess. She said, "Oh, Lily. What happened?"
Lily sobbed. She said, "I'm sorry, mom. I ruined everything. Ben won't like me anymore. He won't want me at his party."
Her mom hugged her and said, "No, Lily. That's not true. Ben will still like you. He will still want you at his party. Accidents happen. We can fix this. We can get a new present. We can make a new card. We can still go to the party. It will be fun."
Lily sniffed. She said, "Really, mom?"
Her mom said, "Really, Lily. Trust me. Come on, let's go. We don't want to be late."
Lily nodded. She wiped her tears. She followed her mom. She hoped her mom was right. She hoped Ben would still like her. She hoped the party would be fun.
She did not know that Ben had a surprise for her. He had made a cake for her. He had put spicy peppers in it. He wanted to make her laugh. He thought she would like it. He did not know that Lily hated spicy food. He did not know that Lily would cry again. He did not know that his plan would backfire. He did not know that his party would end in chaos.
